Hanuman Chalisa

(“Hanuman’s forty”) Forty poetic stanzas
in praise of the god Hanuman, written in
Hindi. A signature line (bhanita) at the
end of the text attributes it as written by
the poet-saint Tulsidas (1532–1623),
best known as the composer of the
Ramcharitmanas, a vernacular version
of the epic Ramayana.
Short texts like the Hanuman Chalisa
are often sung as a devotional act, or as
an established part of worship, and in
many cases people can recite the text by
heart. The text is written in the chaupai
meter, the predominant meter in the
Ramcharitmanas.
The text begins with a description of
Hanuman’s physical features, then
relates his devotion to Rama and
his heroic deeds in the Ramayana. The
closing verses reiterate Hanuman’s
power, promise benefits as a result of the
recitation of the verses, and reclaim
Tulsidas’s wish that Hanuman will reside
in his heart.