Another post on Hanuman

I wanted to post this on Chaitra Shukla Pournami (five days back) which is widely celebrated as Hanuman's birthday. Anyway, better late than never. I am actually in the middle of a series on Srirama and Sanskrit. However, I am sure Srirama will forgive this detour to talk about his bhakta. In this post as well, I will illustrate the beauty of Sanskrit's multi-layered personality.

This post can be read in continuation with an earlier one. I had written about how Anjaneya personified humility. I want to share a few more details here. 

Let us first come to his name, Hanuman. Many people will be aware of the story where Hanuman as an infant lunges for the sun and is struck down by Indra. The injury on his jaw (hanu in Sanskrit) gives him the name Hanuman. Now this is one meaning. We use the jaw when we speak. Thus Hanuman also means one who speaks well. It in fact goes a step beyond that. To speak well, it is critical for good knowledge to be present. Thus Hanuman also means one with knowledge. When Hanuman first meets Srirama in the Ramayana he asks certain questions. Srirama remarks to Lakshmana how his speech bears Hanuman to be one who is well versed in all the shaastras.

Now in the older post we have discussed how Hanuman personifies humility. Let me share once again what I wrote there. When Hanuman is about to leave for Lanka he magnifies his form and utters a sloka.

यथा राघवनिर्मुक्तः शरः श्वसनविक्रमः
गच्चेत्तद्वद्गमिष्यामि लङ्कां रावणपालिताम् 

 

యథా రాఘవనిర్ముక్తశ్శరః శ్వసనవిక్రమః 

గచ్ఛేత్ తద్వద్ గమిష్యామి లంకాం రావణపాలితామ్  

 

yathaa raaghavanirmuktah sharah shvasanavikramah

gachchhet tadvad gamiShyaami lankaam raavana paalitaam

 

Srirama is described by Vishwamitra as Satyaparakrama, one whose valour is unchallenged. Srirama's arrow that way is unstoppable. It also has the quality of coming back to him once it hit the target. Hanuman says he is like that. He does not give any credit to himself.

 

Later, in Lanka he proclaims who he is. This is popularly called jayaghosha. In the Ramayana, the Sundarakaanda holds a very special place. One reason for it is that it encapsulates the entire Ramayana, till that time, and afterwards. Hanuman narrates what has happened till that time to Sita and promises her Ravana's end which is what happens next. This jayaghosha is said to carry the essence of the Sundarakaanda itself. Even here, he initially proclaims to be Srirama's daasa. Then, since he is in enemy territory, he proclaims his strength.

जयत्यतिबलो रामो लक्ष्मणश्च महाबलः
राजा जयति सुग्रीवो राघवेणाभिपालितः
 

दासोऽहम् कोसलेन्द्रस्य रामस्याक्लिष्टकर्म्णः
हनुमान् शत्रुसैन्यानाम् निहन्ता मारुतात्मजः

 

न रावणसहस्रम् मे युद्धे प्रतिबलम् भवेत्
शिलाभिस्तु प्रहरतः पदपैश्च सहस्रसः

अर्दयित्वा पुरीम् लङ्काम् अभिवाद्य च मैथिलीम्
समृद्धार्थो गमिष्यामि मिषताम् सर्वरक्षसाम्

 

 

జయత్యతిబలో రామో లక్ష్మణశ్చ మహాబలః 

రాజా జయతి సుగ్రీవో రాఘవేణాభిపాలితః 

 

దాసోహం కోసలేంద్రస్య రామస్యాక్లిష్టకర్మణః 

హనుమాన్ శత్రుసైన్యానాం నిహంతా మారుతాత్మజః 

 

న రావణసహస్రం మే యుద్ధే ప్రతిబలం భవేత్ 

శిలాభిస్తు ప్రహరతః పాదపైశ్చ సహస్రసః 

 

అర్దయిత్వా పురీం లంకాం అభివాద్య చ మైథిలీం

సమృద్ధార్థో గమిష్యామి మిషతాం సర్వరాక్షసామ్

 

jayatyati balo rAmo lakShmaNasca maHabalah

rAjA jayati sugreevo rAghaveNAbhipAlitah

 

dAsoham kosalendrasya rAmasyAkliShta karmaNah

hanumAn shatrusainyAnAm nihantA mArutAtmajah

 

na rAvaNa sahasram me yuddhe pratibalam bhavet

shilAbhistu praharatah pAdapaisca sahasrasah 

ardayitvA pureem lankAm abhivAdya ca maithileem

samruddhArtho gamiShyAmi miShatAm sarvarakShasAm

 

Broadly: Victory to Rama the almighty, victory to Lakshmana the strong. Victory to King Sugreeva, who is ruled over by Rama. I am the servant of the ruler of Kosala, Rama, he who removes difficulties. I am Hanuman, destroyer of enemy armies, born of the Wind. Even thousands of Ravanas cannot face me in battle. I will torment this city of Lanka with

 

Further, if one observes the Ramayana closely, those who served Srirama benefit in one way or the other. Sugreeva befriends Srirama to win back his wife and kingdom. Vibheeshana, though he reaches Srirama out of devotion, also benefits from the kingship of Lanka after Ravana's demise. It is only Hanuman who does not materially benefit in the Ramayana. He is the only one who truly serves Srirama without asking for anything in return. He exists to serve Srirama.

 

In fact Hanuman actually helps the main characters in the Ramayana. He brings the mountain of herbs to resuscitate Lakshmana. When Hanuman finds Sita she is about to commit suicide by hanging herself with her long hair. He gives her hope. He aids Srirama in his quest and helps him in multiple ways. In fact, Srirama admits in the Ramayana that he cannot offer anything to Hanuman in return for his help. Tulasidas says in his Hanuman Chalisa that Hanuman resides in the heart of Srirama, Sita and Lakshmana. Is it surprising in any way?

 

The Ramayana is unique in an (among many) aspect. There are words spoken by (at least initially) negative characters that have become famous in a positive manner. There is a famous statement, rAmo virahavAn dharmah (रामो विग्रहवान् धर्मः, రామో విగ్రహవాన్ ధర్మః). It means Srirama is Dharma personified. Do you know who utters these words? Maareecha, the rakshasa Ravana employs to play the role of the golden deer! 

There is one similar thing for Hanuman. There is a part in the Sundarakaanda where Hanuman comes across Lankini the guardian deity of Lanka. When he defeats her, she asks him to be pleased with and protect her. This has become a mantra. The second line of the sloka below is taken verabtim from Lankinis' words in the Ramayana (not the first part mind you). This can be chanted especially by those who have mental/psychological problems they wish to be rid of.

सन्जीवपर्वतोद्धार मनोदुःखम् निवारय​
प्रसीद सुमहाबाहो त्रायस्व हरिसत्तम​

సంజీవపర్వతోద్ధార మనోదుఃఖం నివారయ 

ప్రసీద సుమహాబాహో త్రాయస్వ హరిసత్తమ

sanjeevaparvatoddhAra manoduhkham nivAraya

praseeda sumahAbAho trAyasva harisattama

 

In Sanskrit, the word Hari can mean Vishnu, a lion or a monkey. Thus the broad meaning of this sloka is, "Oh one who bore the Sanjeevani mountain, please prevent/remove the sorrow of my mind. Be pleased with me, one with great arms, protect me, the strongest among the vanaras."

 

Those who wish to overcome certain difficulties or are looking to achieve a certain objective are also asked to chant the following mantra four times - sree hanumAn jaya hanumAn jaya jaya hanumAn (श्रीहनुमान् जय हनुमान् जय जय हनुमान्, శ్రీహనుమాన్ జయ హనుమాన్ జయ జయ హనుమాన్). The total works out to chanting his name 12 twelve times.

 

Hanuman is a chiranjeevi. Technically, unless I am mistaken this does not mean actual immortality but an extremely long life. We find Hanuman in the Mahabharata. He first comes up when Bhima roams in the Himalayas during the Pandavas' exile. He cautions him against disturbing the peace and sanctity of a certain place. He later manifests in the flag (dhwaja) of Arjuna's chariot.

Tulasidas is said to have come upon Hanuman. He was able to recognize and catch hold of Hanuman after a recitation of the Ramayana. Even today whenever Ramayana is recited or spoken about anywhere there is one seat reserved for Hanuman. Imagine how many times the Ramayana would have been  spoken about over hundreds and thousands of years. He is still said to hear every Ramayana recital with tears of joy in his eyes. Let me end this post on this note.

यत्र यत्र रघुनाथकीर्तनम् तत्र तत्र कृत मस्तकान्जलिम्
बाष्पवारिपरिपूर्णलोचनम् मारुतिम् नमत राक्षसान्तकम्

యత్ర యత్ర రఘునాథకీర్తనం తత్ర తత్ర కృత మస్తకాంజలిమ్ 

బాష్పవారిపరిపూర్ణలోచనం మారుతిం నమత రాక్షసాంతకమ్

yatra yatra raghunAthakeertanam tatra tatra kruta mastakAnjalim

bAshpavAri paripoorNa lochanam mArutim namata rAkShasAntakam

Broad meaning: I salute Maruti, who is to be found with his head bowed and eyes full of tears (of joy, on hearing his Lord's praise) wherever there is praise of Srirama.

 

References:

1. Ramayana discourse by Sri Samavedam Shanmukha Sarma

2. https://www.valmikiramayan.net/utf8/sundara/sarga1/sundara_1_frame.htm 

3. https://www.lexilogos.com/keyboard/sanskrit_devanagari.htm

4. http://www.valmikiramayan.net/utf8/sundara/sarga43/sundara_43_frame.htm

The Depth of Sanatana Dharma - Srirama - Part 2

Continuing from my earlier post, I want to spend some time on the Sanskrit language here. This is especially relevant today in the context of a Muslim professor being appointed to a specific post at Benaras Hindu University. There is a Twitter handle called @TIinexile which is the new handle of a guy who goes by the name True Indology. Paraphrasing what he said, in Sanskrit, the divine and the language are intertwined. Once you take away the divine, the language loses its essence, its beauty. This is a surefire way of killing it.

The depth of Sanatana Dharma, this whole topic, in fact is primarily due to this language. Look at the English language. I am not sure if anyone knows why the alphabets are arranged from A to Z. Sanskrit and its derivative Indian languages have a clear logic. This applies whether it is a North Indian or South Indian language. In fact, possibly South Indian languages have preserved features of Sanskrit better. Definitely, in my personal opinion, a South Indian poojari pronounces mantras much better than a North Indian one. The Hindi version of Sanskrit has to many halants. 

The language is a phonetic language. What we write is what we pronounce and vice versa. The alphabet starts with vowels which form the base sounds. Consonants do not have existence independent of the vowels. As we cross each varga - ka cha Ta ta pa, the sound moves from the back of the mouth to the lips. Thus there is a beauty and logic to the structure. 

The very alphabets are said to have been derived from the sound of Lord Siva's dhamarukam or damroo. 

Sanskrit also has the concept of beejaakSharaam (बीजाक्षरम्, బీజాక్షరము) or "seed letter". I do not have enough knowledge to elaborate on these. Further this is not a topic that must be publicly discussed. The base concept is that sound has power. This is the concept behind mantraas, and why they should not publicly broadcast or spoken. For that matter, one must not even utter these without proper initiation.There is the Sanskrit shloka shared by the PM some time back.

amantram akSharam naasti naasti moolam anauShadham

ayogyo purusho naasti yojakah tatra durlabhah

अमन्त्रम् अक्षरम् नास्ति नास्ति मूलम् अनौषधम् 

अयोग्यो पुरुषो नास्ति योजकः तत्र दुर्लभः

అమంత్రం అక్షరం నాస్తి నాస్తి మూలం అనౌషధం 

అయోగ్యో పురుషో నాస్తి యోజకః తత్ర దుర్లభః 

There is no letter (of the alphabet) that is not a mantra. There is no root that is not medicinal. There is no man (person) that is unworthy. However, it is extremely difficult to find the one that can put them to use.

 

Thus the presence of a lot of hidden meanings in Hindu literature is precisely because of Sanskrit. This is obvious in a way. There is a message that must be conveyed. Unless the medium offers that flexibility it is not possible for the message to have multiple meanings. 

Now, in any language there may be words with multiple meanings (if I remember what an old Guinness Book of World Records said, the word "set" in English has the maximum meanings). There are also multiple words to convey the same meaning (synonyms basically, fire, blaze, conflagration etc). What sets Sanskrit really apart is that the meaning of an entire sentence or shloka can change.

I will explain this with an example and get into the Ramayana in the next post.

References:

1. https://www.lexilogos.com/keyboard/sanskrit_devanagari.htm
2. http://vadirajaacharya.blogspot.com/2006/06/making-anything-happen_03.html

On the language divide in India - part 1

A long break from writing. I recently discovered that there ARE people who read my posts :) I anyway have stuff to share. Hence I am back!

This article is based on the recent arguments over "imposition" of Hindi on south Indian states. In the interest of brevity I am dividing what I have to say it into multiple portions. Also, as mentioned in an earlier post, apart from commenting about the present state, I will also suggest what I feel is a resolution to the issue.

As always, I am open to being corrected if I am wrong. Let me state at the outset the following:

1. My mother tongue is Telugu. I am extremely proud of being born into it. Sanskrit is another language I respect immensely (maybe more than Telugu?). I am decently fluent in Hindi and English apart from Telugu.
2. I am one of the increasing number of Telugu speakers who lament about the increasing usage of English in daily Telugu speech. Today a majority of Telugu speakers seem to be more comfortable inserting English words (Hindi/Urdu in Telangana) into their daily speech. I am sure this is the case throughout India, with other languages as well. In fact I recently saw an interview of an important Hindu religious leader who is supposed to have been educated in Telugu medium. His speech was possibly peppered with more English than mine! Funnily enough Christian preachers and evangelists seem to be sticking to an almost outdated mode of Telugu, what is called, graanthikam, or one that is found in books.
3. Chronologically, Hindi is a relatively new language compared to the south Indian languages. Hence the amount of "classical" literature in this is less than that in the south Indian languages. I am clubbing dialects like Awadhi (with apologies to the speakers of these "dialects") with Hindi as we know it today. 
4. Due to geographical reasons the northern part of the country has had immense damage caused via invasions from outside - Mongols, Turks, Greeks et al. This has had impact on multiple facets of what we call north India today - language, food etc. For this reason, I believe that what one gets to see in the southern part of the country is actually closer to what was the original Indian version of that cultural aspect. For example, there are certain Vedic rituals which are not retained in memory by anyone outside Kerala. 
5. I believe the Aryan-Dravidian hypothesis is hogwash and is just an attempt to drive a wedge in a land that is culturally one. Point 4 above is another reason I believe the theory is rubbish. 
6. Further, I believe many of the so-called "Indologists", especially westerners are not fit to comment on Indian texts. I will explain why. As many would know, the Vedas were passed down orally for thousands of years without putting them in writing as the pronunciation is almost if not equally important as the text of the slokas. There are Vedic scholars called Ghanapaathis, especially in Andhra (I have not seen them elsewhere) who have committed Vedas to memories. I believe that a lot of Vedic scholars DO NOT KNOW the meaning of what it is they are reciting. The simple reason is that to truly know the meaning one has to be well versed in nirukta and that is a different subject altogether. Also, Sanskrit is a language where the same word can mean different things in different contexts. And to borrow from Rajiv Malhotra's books, the same thing has multiple names depending on the characteristics. For example, the word maa can mean "to me" or it can mean negation. On the other hand paavaka, agni, havyavaahana are all terms used for fire. Also, India's many texts are interlinked. Hence without truly understanding the multiple meanings and multiple sources it is foolish to claim to be an expert on anything related to Indian culture.

Having laid this foundation I will next proceed to build my case as to WHY (in my opinion obviously) south Indians seem to be prefering English over Hindi. I will also put forward suggestions on HOW to remove some apprehensions. Some of the suggestions I have in mind are really long term-oriented, in the sense that they cannot be implemented overnight. I will share these in the forthcoming posts.

Gadkari - the man of the season

First of all, I do not want to be sued by Nitin Gadkari. Recently Anjali Damania, an RTI activist went live on national TV to state that Gadkari tried to dissuade her from pursuing her investigation into the alleged irrigation scam in Maharashtra. I am not very sure what proof the lady is carrying and it is perhaps very unwise to make that allegation in absence of any proof, even if it is true. 

Now apparently Gadkari had said that there were business dealings with Sharad Pawar. I am not very clear on this. However I was suddenly reminded of a Sanskrit sloka when I saw a news article that an amendment has been made by the BJP to its Constitution to enable heads of the state and national units to serve a second term. The most prominent beneficiary of this move would appear to be Gadkari as his terms ends in December this year. This was done apparently because the RSS felt that the job of overhauling the BJP begun by Gadkari was incomplete. Maybe he is indeed the best person suited for the job. I am not making any allegations, but to my knowledge the richest BJP President till date has been Gadkari who is a businessman and agriculturist (the link to Pawar?).

The sloka goes like this.

यस्यास्ति वित्तं स नरः कुलीनः 

yasyaasti vittam sa narah kuleenah
स पण्डितः स श्रुतवान गुणज्ञः 

sa panditah sa shrutavaan gunagyah
स एव वक्ता स च दर्शनीयः 

sa eva vaktaa sa cha darshaneeyah
सर्वे गुणाः काञ्चनमाश्रयन्ति

sarve gunaah kaanchanamaashrayanti

The meaning goes something like this - the one who has wealth, he is said to be of noble ancestry, said to be a scholar, a man endowed with good qualities. He alone is an orator and a handsome one. All qualities are dependent upon (possession of) wealth.

When the BJP is gearing up for the 2014 elections (though far away) and a possible election before that (unlikely though) would Sushma Swaraj or Arun Jaitley who are leaders of the opposition have been better choices? There is a lot of talk about Modi being the next Prime Ministerial candidate. Would he have been a good choice? The last choice is difficult as Gujarat is scheduled to go to the polls soon. Still, just wanted to express my opinion.

Also Yeddyurappa is in rebel-mode again. He is not very subtly giving hints to the BJP by praising the Congress saying they have never let their leaders down. Seriously? If this is indeed true this could have been because the tallest (officially at least) leader for most if not all of the time has been a member of the Nehru-Gandhi family. Apparently Gadkari started out as a BJP worker and is today party President. I hope this continues and we don't see people who think of party posts as family heirlooms (more than the case is today, if I may say so).

Patriotic Bookies!

Betting is illegal in India. This does not people from indulging in it, whether in their own apartment complexes or in large scale betting rackets. However, Indian bookies have refused to place bets on Ajmal Kasab, y0u-know-who. Read this article for more. A Sanksrit sloka comes to mind.

yukti yuktam vacho graahyam baalaadapi sukaadapi
yukti heenam vachstyaajyam vruddhadapi sukaadapi

It basically means that something which is good can be learnt from a child or a parrot. But something which is not should not be learned even from an (experienced world-wise) old man or from Suka Maharshi himself.