SHRI HANUMAN CHALISA: AN OPEN SECRET

jaya hanumāna gnyāna guna sāgara। jaya kapīsa tihu loka ujāgara॥ 1 ॥

rāma dūta atulita bala dhāmā। anjani putra pavanasuta nāmā॥ 2 ॥

Every person, whether brought up in a household with a strong devotional background or in one without much belief in spirituality, is familiar with this verse from one of the most popular Hindu devotional hymns:

The Hanuman Chalisa...

It is a set of 40 poetic verses dedicated to Lord Hanuman, the devotee of Lord Rama.

The Birth of Hanuman

It is believed that after Lord Vishnu decided to be born on earth as Rama, to defeat Ravana… Brahma asked Lord Shiva to descend as an avatar too, to assist Rama. Hence, the 11th avatar of the Neelkanth was born by the blessing of Vayu… the God of Wind, as the son of Kesari and Mata Anjana (she was an apsara who was cursed by Rishi Durvasa to be born on Earth as a Vanara).

Among other stories from Lord Hanuman’s childhood, we are particularly familiar with the one where he mistook the Sun for a ripe fruit and flew to space with the intention to eat the presumably massive fruit !!

It is also important to remember that Lord Hanuman’s mischievous nature during his childhood led him to being cursed by the sages of the families of Brigu and Angira, they said :

bādhase yatsamāśritya balamasmānplavaṅgama taddīrghakālaṃ vettāsi nāsmākaṃ śāpamohitaḥ yadā te smāryate kīrtistadā te vardhate balam

Which meant that Lord Hanuman would for a long duration remain oblivious to his powers and would only remember them when he is reminded of his glory.

The History of the Hanuman Chalisa -

Not everything was shrouded in darkness when the Mughal emperor Akbar imprisoned the great poet Tulsidas. While he was behind bars Tulsidas wrote a dedication to Lord Hanuman. It is believed that right after Tulsidas finished reciting his composition…An army of vanars (monkeys) stormed into the city and palace. It was only when Tulsidas was released that they left !!

Now it’s time to uncover some TRUTHS AND MYSTERIES of the Hanuman Chalisa that have been right infront of us since ages… but you may have failed to notice...

1. AN AVATAR

Interestingly, it is known to all and stated clearly in the Puranas too that Lord Rama is an avatar of Lord Vishnu, essentially the 7th of the Dashavtar of Vishnu … the Preserver and Protector of the universe

‘Dash’/ ‘Dasa’ = Ten (10) and Avatara = incarnation

But what many don’t know is that our Bajrangbali too is an avatar… yes, an avatar of Lord Shiva !!

Although there are many who do not believe that Hanuman is an avatar of Shiva… evidence of the same can be found in Satarudriya Samhita of the Shiva Purana

There is also a clear mention of this found in the Chalisa dedicated to Lord Hanuman itself –

shankara suvana kesarī nandana। teja pratāpa mahā jaga bandana॥ 6 ॥

Here as you may have realised…

‘Shankar suvana’ translates to avatar of Shankar !!

2. DID THE SHRI HANUMAN CHALISA GIVE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE SUN AND EARTH ACCURATELY ?

This is one of the most puzzling facts about the poetic verses... And though it may seem like an estimate that turned out to be correct due to the pure coincidence, it is in reality based on deep and systematic calculations.

So, the average distance between the Earth and the Sun is 149,597,870.691 km

It’s also important to remember that the distance between them varies throughout the year!

Now as the 18th verse from the Hanuman Chalisa goes -

“ जुग सहस्र जोजन पर भानू। लील्यो ताहि मधुर फल जानू॥ १८ ॥ “

Writing the words in English ,

juga sahasra jojana para bhānū। līlyo tāhi madhura phala jānū॥ 18 ॥

This Chaupai describes how Lord Hanuman flew the distance from earth to the sun, with the aim of eating the celestial body which resembled a sweet fruit.

So let us do the Math together now, shall we...?

According to the Hanuman Chalisa, the Surya is situated –

1 Yug x 1 Sahasra x 1 Yojan =>

1 Yug = 12,000 years

1 Sahasra = 1000

1 Yojan = 8 miles

So, after multiplying these we get –

12,000x1,000x8 miles = 96,000,000 miles away from the earth

This can be further broken as => 96,000,000 miles = 96,000,000x1.6 km

= 153,600,000 km, which is the most accurately calculated average distance of the Sun and Earth.

The average distance from the earth to the sun as calculated by modern scientists in 19th century is 92,955,807 miles (149,597,870.691 km).

So this means people during the ancient times managed to calculate this distance so accurately, without the use of modern day technology and instruments…? Or did they have access to things much more advanced than what we have today...?

This one is the most interesting and confusing question that has remained unanswered for years.

3. DIMINUTIVE AND COLOSSAL FORM-

Now would you believe it if I say that Lord Hanuman could manipulate the size of his body… and there is proof of this in the very verses of the Hanuman Chalisa ?

sūkshma rūpa dhari siyahi dikhāvā। bikata rūpa dhari lanka jarāvā॥ 9 ॥

This verse translates to –

You took a diminutive form and appeared before Sita. (When Hanuman flew overseas to travel to Lanka, in search for Mata Sita… whom he found in Ashok Vatika)

You assumed your colossal form and set Lanka on fire. ( When demon king Ravana ordered Lord Hanuman’s tail to be set on fire but he used that very fire to go around burning the kingdom of Lanka).

As you just read, this verse talks about lord Hanuman changing his size by will, similar to the concept of body size manipulation that we are being familiarized to today, through popular movies, tv shows etc.

Is it possible that this was written by Tulsidas back in the 16th century CE… not because it was a fragment of his imagination or an exaggeration of Lord hanuman’s might and vigour… but rather, because it was a reality?

That Hanuman really could manipulate his size… that he could assume the size of both a microscale particle and a colossal figure?

Now this may be a truth that only people during the olden times knew, or who knows, maybe you could witness it for yourself if you manage find the Chiranjeevi: Lord Hanuman praying, studying, and chanting mantras and shlokas in his abode.

The more we question, the more we fuel our curiosity… the closer we might get to uncovering these secrets that contain layers after layers of more mystery !!

OM NAMAH SHIVAY

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Signing Off

Divyakshi Chandran