Hanuman Is a God Who Helped Rama,

Hanuman is a god who helped Rama, an avatar of Vishnu, in rescuing his wife, Sita, from King Ravana of the Rakshasas, and symbolizes the pinnacle of bhakti, a Sanskrit term from Hinduism meaning loving devotion to the supreme God (Hanuman pp). He is also believed to be an avatar of Shiva, and also the source for the Chinese mythological character Sun Wukong, and is most popular in the north of the Indian subcontinent (Hanuman pp).

Hanuman is the son of a cursed apsara, a celestial being called Punjisthala, who due to the curse becomes Anjana, a female monkey, so Hanuman is also called Anjaneya (Hanuman pp). She is the wife of Kesari, a "mighty monkey who once killed a mighty elephant that caused trouble to sages and hermits, therefore he got the name of Kesari, namely the lion, and is also called kunjara sudana, the elephant killer (Hanuman pp). One day the Wind-god, Vayu deva, blew the clothes of the body of Anjana, and became so enticed by her charms that he "possessed her," resulting in the birth of Hanuman, whose birthday is celebrated as Hanuman Jayanti (Hanuman pp).

According to legend, Hanuman inherited his father's activities of "quick flying, forceful travel, and mighty strength, so soon after his birth he decided to catch the Sun, thinking it was fruit eat it (Hanuman pp). This upset Indra, administrator of universal laws, and so he threw the Thunderbolt which felled Hanuman to the earth (Hanuman pp). This in turn upset Hanuman's father, the Wind-god, so much that he went into seclusion, causing choking deaths and asphyxiation to all living beings (Hanuman pp). To appease the Wind-god, Indra removed the effect that his Thunderbolt, which had cut Hanuman's two cheeks, thus he is called Hanuman, for hanuhH in Sanskrit is the word for cheek (Hanuman pp).

Brahma, the Hindu creator god, blessed Hanuman with a "diamond-like body, even invincible to a brahma-astra, a super missile, and made him immortal, "Though Hanuman knows the release from brahma-astra, he was silent due to his respect for Brahma" (Hanuman pp). He is deathless and can leave his mortal body whenever he desires, and this is "what Bhishma pitamaha does in Mahabharata, when he wants to live up to some time on the bed of sharp arrows in the war field itself" (Hanuman pp).

Hamnuman Jayanti is celebrated beginning on the full moon in April throughout Asia, there he is one of the most beloved deities and is seen as Rama's greatest devotee and chief of the monkey army which fought Rama's war with Ravana, the demon king of Lanka (April pp). According to another legend relating to his birth, Dasharath, the king of Ayodhya had three wives, Kaushalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyi, none of whom had children, so the king performed a homa or havan to pray for progeny, and as a reward, the fire god, Agni, gave him three portions of payas, a sweet for his queens to eat to bear divine children (April pp). Kaikeyi, however, accidentally dropped hers and the payas was blown by the Wind-god, Vayu, who dropped it into the hands of Anjani, who ate it and then gave birth to the powerful Hanuman or Anjaneya, a symbol of health, physical strength and steadfastness (April pp).

Hanuman is often portrayed kneeling at Rama's feet, and also shown leaping through the air holding a mountain with medicinal herbs growing on, which he took to Rama's brother who had been wounded in a battle (Hanuman1 pp). Hanuman is also helped "Rama rescue Sita from the island of Lanka by ordering all the monkeys to make a bridge from Lanka to India with their bodies" (Hanuman1 pp). There are virtually hundreds of images of Hanuman in various forms and circumstances.

Catherine Ludvik's book begins with special attention to Hanuman's monkey identity and the origins of his mythology, followed by the development of his character in the Valmiki Ramayana, "its changes between the Valmiki Ramayana and the Ramacaritamanasa, as well as Tulasi Dasa's own perception of Hanuman" (Anderson pp).

As Rama becomes recognized as an incarnation of Visnu

with the addition of books one and seven of Valmiki's

Ramayana, Hanuman's story is also expanded. New exploits are added, such as the burning of Lanka, flying to the Himalayas, and bringing the mountain peak back to the battle site.

Ultimately Hanuman becomes endowed with superhuman powers and skills and he acquires immortality (Anderson pp).

Ludvik explains the prominence of Hanuman in light of Tulasi's own devotion to him and emphasizes that after Tulasi Dasa's death, the cult of Hanuman became especially important in north India (Anderson pp). Hanuman is known by various names, including: Anumandhayya, Aanjaneyalu, Aanjaneyan, Maruthi, Anumandhan, Vaayunandhan, Kesarinandhanan, Aadhitasishyan, and Siriya Thiruvadi (Hanuman2 pp). He is worshipped in the temples as Bhaktha Hanuman and Veera Hanuman, and is seen seated in front of Rama vigrahmas in the Rama sannadhis (Hanuman2 pp). "There are also separate temples for Hanuman ... As Bhaktha Hanuman he is seen holding both hands together in prayer ... He is seen as Veera Hanuman, holding the mace in one hand & the sanjeevi Parvatham in the other" (Hanuman2 pp). Devotees of Hanuman are blessed with courage, valor, wisdom, and gnanam (Hanuman2 pp).