Loyalty. Devotion. Selfless service. Courage. Strength. Knowledge. Humility. Lord Hanuman embodies all these. The monkey god occupies a special place in the minds and hearts of Hindus who prize and aspire to such values. Without Hanuman’s help, Lord Rama would have found it a hard task to rescue his wife, Sita, from the clutches of Ravana. He flew over the ocean to look for Sita in Lanka. He also saved Lakshmana’s (Rama’s brother) life by transporting an entire mountain that had medicinal herbs to the battlefield where Lakshmana lay, mortally wounded.
Hanuman’s Birth
Hanuman was born to Anjana, an apsara, and Kesari, the king of the Vanaras. A sage had cursed Anjana to be born as a monkey. The curse would end only when she gave birth to an incarnation of Lord Shiva. So Anjana did severe penance to please Shiva. Shiva manifested before her and granted her wish. It was the Wind god, Vayu, who transferred Shiva’s energy to her womb.
The story goes that when King Dasharatha of Ayodhya performed a Yagna for progeny, Lord Agni gave him some divine kheer which was meant to be shared between his 3 wives to help them conceive. But a kite made off with some of the kheer. When it dropped the kheer, it was Vayu who caught hold of it and dropped it on Anajana’s palms. She became pregnant after consuming it. So Vayu is also referred to as Hanuman’s father. Hanuman is believed by many to be Rudra, an avatar of Shiva.
Hanuman was blessed with many powers. As a child, he flew towards the sun, thinking it was a big ball. He wanted to play with it! But an alarmed Lord Indra sent his weapon Vajra, the thunderbolt, at him. Hanuman fell down, and his jaw became disfigured. It was how he got his name. Vayu was furious and threatened to cease functioning. How could earth survive without winds? So, to please him, all the gods decided to bless Hanuman with gifts of various boons.
Brahma said that weapons could not hurt Hanuman and that he would have the ability to change his form at will and travel anywhere he wanted. Indra said that the Vajra would no longer hurt Hanuman and that his body would be stronger than it. Varuna, the god of the ocean, gave him protection from water.
Agni, the god of fire, said that fire would not be able to harm him. Surya, the Sun god, gave him the ability to change his body’s size. Yama bestowed on him good health and immortality. Vishwakarma, the divine architect, assured him that he would be safe from all the objects he created.
Thanks to all these boons, Hanuman became invincible and played a key role in the Ramayana.
It is said that he had Ashta Siddhis or 8 occult powers that Sita had bestowed on him.
Hanuman’s Ashta Siddhis
Ahima is the first Ashta siddhi, and it enabled him to become as tiny as an atom.
The second Ashta siddhi, Mahima, allowed him to become huge in size.
Laghima siddhi enabled him to become light or even weightless.
Prapti allowed him to go anywhere in mere seconds.
Prakamya siddhi enabled him to achieve all his desires. It also gave the ability to communicate with animals, birds, and other species and also to know future events.
Isitva siddhi allowed him to control everything in nature and also influence others.
Vasitva siddhi enabled Hanuman to control anything, be it a material or any natural force. It allowed Hanuman to control his mind so that it was not affected by any distractions and materialistic things.
Garima siddhi allowed him to make himself or anything very heavy.
But it is not just these magical powers that make Hanuman so special. He is also revered for his admirable traits that we could do well to emulate in life. We may never be able to acquire his Ashta Siddhis, but we can certainly acquire some of his personal traits with a little effort. Here are 5 things that we can learn from Lord Hanuman.
Perseverance
Without perseverance, no one can succeed in life. Those who tend to give up easily when they face challeges can take a leaf from Hanuman’s book. It was Hanuman’s persistence that led to the discovery of Sita in Lanka. Hanuman had to face many hurdles in his quest for Sita, but he eventually reached Lanka and located Sita. Hanuman teaches us that if we persevere in our efforts and soldier on, eventually we can accomplish the impossible and reach our goals.
Adaptability
Hanuman was a shape-shifter. He could become tiny, huge, light, or heavy. Thanks to his various abilities, he could respond effectively to different challenges. He lifted a mountain to save Lakshmana’s life. He became weightless and sat on a leaf to escape the attention of Ravana and his soldiers in Ashoka vana. He was caught and bound, but he made himself very small and wriggled out of the ropes that bound him.
He leaped over the ocean and reached Lanka in seconds. Whatever the situation he found himself in, Hanuman adapted to it. Of course, he had magical powers, but he teaches us that we have our own inner powers that we need to tap into when we face difficult situations in life.
Strength
Hanuman possessed immense strength, both physical and mental. When Rama's brother Lakshmana suffered a mortal wound in the battle against Ravana and his demon army, Hanuman was sent to fetch the Sanjeevani herb before sunrise. He became much bigger than his actual size and stopped the sun from rising. As he could not identify the Sanjeevani herb, he lifted the entire mountain. We need to be strong physically and mentally to be successful in life.
Loyalty and devotion
Loyalty and devotion underpin strong relationships. Having loyal friends or spouses in our life makes a huge difference to us. Hanuman was very loyal and devoted to Lord Rama. He accompanied Rama everywhere, and his life was spent in selfless service to his Lord. Once, he even tore open his chest to prove his love for him and revealed the forms of Rama and Sita enshrined in his heart. We need to be loyal to those whom we love and who love us in return. We should also devote ourselves to the welfare of our loved ones. This is an important lesson that we can learn from Hanuman.
Courage
Hanuman was bold and fearless. He went to Lanka alone to look for Sita. He flew over the ocean to reach Lanka. He confronted an entire army of demons singlehandedly. Even when he was caught by Ravana’s soldiers, he did not panic. On the contrary, he used his wits to escape from their clutches and even set fire to Lanka.
People recite the Hanuman Chalisa to gain strength and courage, like Lord Hanuman. Courage is an important factor for success in life. Those who lack courage will always be bullied, and they will never be able to resist injustice or oppression or overcome obstacles in life. Taking risks, too, requires courage, and sometimes we do need to take risks. Hanuman’s life teaches us that if we have courage and confidence, we can achieve even impossible things.
