According to Hindu legends, Hanuman was born to Anjana and father kesari. Hanuman is also called the son of the deity vayu (Wind god) because of legends associated with Vayu's role in Hanuman's birth. One story mentioned in eknath's Bhavartha Ramayana (16th century CE) states that when Anjana was worshiping Vayu, the King Dashratha of Ayodhya was also performing the ritual of putrakamesthi yagna in order to have children. As a result, he received some sacred pudding (payasam) to be shared by his three wives, leading to the births of Rama, Lakshamana, Bharata and Shatrughna, By divine ordinance, a kite snatched a fragment of that pudding and dropped it while flying over the forest where Anjana was engaged in worship. Vayu, the Hindu deity of the wind, delivered the falling pudding to the outstretched hands of Anjana, who consumed it. Hanuman was born to her as a result.
The Ramayana locates the birthplace of Hanuman in Kishkindha. Anjeneri Anjanadri (Near Hampi) in Gangavathi Taluk Koppal District, Karnataka is one of a number of places that claim to be the location of Kishkinda.
CHILDHOOD OF HANUMAN
According to Valmiki's Ramayana, one morning in his childhood, Hanuman was hungry and saw the rising red colored sun. Mistaking it for a ripe fruit, he leapt up to eat it. In one version of the Hindu legend, the king of gods Indra intervened and struck Hanuman with his thunderbolt. It hit Hanuman on his jaw, and he fell to the earth as dead with a broken jaw. His father, Vayu (air) - states Ramayana in section 4.65 - became upset and withdrew. The lack of air created immense suffering to all living beings. This led lord Shiva to intervene and resuscitate Hanuman, which in turn prompted Vayu to return to the living beings. As the mistake done by god Indra, he grants Hanuman a wish that his body would be as strong as Indra's Vajra, where as his Vajra can also not harm him. Along with Indra other gods have also granted him wishes: such as God Agni granted Hanuman a wish that fire won't harm him; God Varuna granted a wish for Hanuman that water won't harm him; God Vayu granted a wish for Hanuman that he will be as fast as Wind and the wind won't harm him. Lord Brahma has also granted Hanuman a wish that he can move at any place where he cannot be stopped at anywhere, Lord Vishnu also grants Hanuman a weapon which is named "Gada". Hence these wishes make Hanuman an immortal, who has unique powers and strength.
HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT
Vedic roots
The earliest mention of a divine monkey, interpreted by some scholars as the proto-Hanuman, is in hymn 10.86 of the Rigveda, dated to between 1500 and 1200 BCE. The twenty-three verses of the hymn are a metaphorical and riddle-filled legend. It is presented as a dialogue between multiple characters: the god Indra, his wife Indrani and an energetic monkey it refers to as Vrisakapi and his wife Kapi. The hymn opens with Indrani complaining to Indra that some of the soma offerings for Indra have been allocated to the energetic and strong monkey, and the people are forgetting Indra. The king of the gods, Indra, responds by telling his wife that the living being (monkey) that bothers her is to be seen as a friend, and that they should make an effort to coexist peacefully. The hymn closes with all agreeing that they should come together in Indra's house and share the wealth of the offerings.
Tamil roots
The orientalist F.E.Pargiter (1852–1927) theorized that Hanuman was a Photo-Dravidian deity. According to this theory, the name "Hanuman" derives from the world first language Tamil word for male monkey (ana-mandi), first transformed to "Anumant" – a name which remains in use. "Anumant", according to this hypothesis, was later Sanskritized to "Hanuman" because the ancient Aryans confronted with a popular monkey deity of ancient Dravidians coopted the concept and then Sanskritized it. According to Murray Emeneau, known for his Tamil linguistic studies, this theory does not make sense because the Old Tamil word mandi in cankam- literature can only mean "female monkey", and Hanuman is male. Further, adds Emeneau, the compound ana-mandi makes no semantic sense in Tamil, which has well developed and sophisticated grammar and semantic rules. The "prominent jaw" etymology, according to Emeneau, is therefore plausible.
Late medieval and modern era
Valmiki's Ramayana, estimated to have been composed before or in about the 3rd century BCE, Hanuman is an important, creative character as a simian helper and messenger for Rama. The character evolved over time, reflecting regional cultural values. It is, however, in the late medieval era that his profile evolves into more central role and dominance as the exemplary spiritual devotee, particularly with the popular vernacular text Ramcharitmanas by Tulsidas (~ 1575 CE). According to scholars such as Patrick Peebles and others, during a period of religious turmoil and Islamic rule of the Indian subcontinent, the Bhakti movement and devotionalism-oriented Bhakti yoga had emerged as a major trend in Hindu culture by the 16th-century, and the Ramcharitmanas presented Rama as Vishnu avatar, supreme being and a personal god worthy of devotion, with Hanuman as the ideal loving devotee with legendary courage, strength and powers.
Hanuman evolved and emerged in this era as the ideal combination of Shakti and bhakti. Stories and folk traditions in and after the 17th century, began to reformulate and present Hanuman as a divine being, as a descendant of deities, and as an avatar of Shiva. He emerged as a champion of those religiously persecuted, expressing resistance, a yogi, an inspiration for martial artists and warriors, a character with less fur and increasingly human, symbolizing cherished virtues and internal values, and worthy of devotion in his own right. Hindu monks morphed into soldiers, and they named their organizations after Hanuman. This evolution of Hanuman's character, religious and cultural role as well as his iconography continued through the colonial era and in post-colonial times.
The evaluation of faith
Hanuman, the great monkey God of the Ramayana is a symbol of the mind that has become disciplined and filled with devotion. Hanuman is the evolved state of our unruly monkey mind that constantly jumps from thought to thought. This mind is fully focused on the presence of the Divine Self, the Lord of Life within the heart.
When Rama asks Hanuman, “How do you look upon me?” the great monkey gives a three-part answer, “When I believe I am the body, then I am your faithful servant. When I know I am the soul, I know myself to be a spark of your eternal Light. And when I have the vision of truth, you and I, my Lord, are one and the same.”
With this answer, he shows us three states we flow through in our spiritual quest. Many times we identify with the person, the body-mind –ego we think we are. At those times we can realize that we are here to do God’s work, to serve that higher Self in us and in everything. This is the foundation of Karma Yoga, the yoga of service.
One level up and we realize we are not as separate from divine intelligence as we thought, that there is a higher knowing and presence working through us. We sense we are not separate from other beings and that our existence is an expression of the indescribable presence of God in us. This is where Bhakti and Raja Yoga open us further.
The most dramatic shift in our perception occurs when all veils lift and we have the vision of truth. Then we know that we are all that exists. We are the Source; we are One. Jnana Yoga aims at this direct perception.
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