Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 22 Meaning in English

The Hanuman Chalisa in English is a cherished part of Hindu religious literature.

Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 22 in English with Meaning & Analysis

Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 22 Guardian of Fortune

सब सुख
लहै तुम्हारी सरना ।
तुम रच्छक
काहू को डरना ॥

Sub sukh
lahae tumhari sarna.
Tum rakshak
kahu ko darna.

All joy
exists in your shelter.
With you as guardian
there is nothing to fear.

Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 22 Meaning in English

This verse seeking shelter and protection from Hanuman evokes humanity’s most primal needs. Every village in India had a guardian-god (vira) who protected the village from danger: wild animals and raiders. He or she protected the settlement (kshetra-pala). Hanuman emerges from the kshetra-pala tradition. He protected Sugriv, and he protected Ram, and he protects Ayodhya.

The idea of submitting to a divine being and seeking his shelter is prevalent in most religions. However, the reasons are different. A Buddhist surrenders (sharanam) to the Buddha, as he seeks freedom from a world of suffering.

A Christian seeks shelter in the love of Christ, as he abandons his way of sin and returns to God’s fold. A Muslim submits to Allah, promising to live by His commandments revealed by His final prophet, Muhammad. These ideas informed the idea of submission in the Bhakti period of Hinduism.

The Hindu devotee submits (sharanagati) to either Ram, or to Shiva or Shakti who are worshipped by Ram, or to Hanuman, who worships Ram. The object of adoration (aradhana) could be all of them simultaneously, or each one of them sequentially, depending on need and mood.

This complication arises because Hinduism is not monotheistic and does not seek to be monotheistic unlike most religions and doctrines. It acknowledges the diverse needs of people, and so the need for different deities for different people, each form being seen as one of the myriad manifestations of the divine.

In Hinduism, unlike Buddhism or Christianity or Islam, submission does not mean following a particular doctrine or a set of rules. It is submitting to the will of the divine, which in earlier pre-Bhakti times meant submitting to what is determined by one’s karma. If things happen as we desire, it is the grace of God (Hari-krupa). If things don’t happen as we desire, it is the will of God (Hari-ichha). Hari is another name for Vishnu. It is also another word for monkey. And monkey is a metaphor for the restless human mind.

Western scholars using Western religious frameworks and the atheistic contempt for religions, often reduce Hindu devotion (bhakti) to some kind of feudalism with God presiding as master. They ignore the strong component of affection and love in the relationship, like a parent’s for a child (vatsalya-bhav), like a lover for their beloved (madhurya-bhav), like a friend for a companion (sakha-bhav).

Bhakti is essentially the construction of an emotional highway connecting the devotee to the divine. God is not always in a position of power: he can also be the playful child, the gullible hermit, the mischievous monkey; which enables the devotee to take on the role of a parent, or a friend. Hanuman can be at once awesome (adbhuta) and silly, displaying monkey qualities (kapitva). The latter part is missing in most non-Hindu religions.

Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 22 Meaning in English 1

If one looks at the verse carefully, one realizes that the deity works for the devotee. The devotee submits and then the deity works to enable the happiness and security of the devotee. And so, in this verse, the protection is a kind of spiritual hug from God that comforts the frightened and lost devotee.

The emotional aspect of the divine elevates the stature of the otherwise rustic guardian and fertility gods of the village. From material, he becomes spiritual,transcendent. He makes the devotee feel that he matters, for there is someone celestial watching out for him, even if fellow humans do not. Thus the devotee is granted meaning.

Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 22 Analysis in English

saba sukha lahai tumharl sarana
tuma rakshaka kahu ko darana ll22ll

There’s all happiness under your shelter
When you give protection, there’s nothing to fear. (22)

“These villages were given to us by Lord Rama and Hanuman was a witness,” the brahmanas cried out in unison.The brahmanas of Kanyakubja had been in possession of about 4,400 villages, which they claimed that their ancestors were gifted by Lord Rama, with Hanuman as the witness.
But King Kumaarpala would not believe them. Where was the proof? He wanted tangible proof of ownership. If they couldn’t prove it, the villages belonged to him. It was as simple as that.

Having lost their home and all their possessions overnight,the brahmanas wondered how they could gather proof. Their only hope was finding Lord Rama or Hanuman. They decided to search for them and three thousand brahmanas left on foot on a journey to south to validate their claim.

It was a difficult journey. They crossed dense jungles, dangerous rivers, and difficult terrains. They survived on fruits and roots. Day by day, they became weaker and weaker in mind and body. Till one day they could not go any further. Helplessly, they prayed to Lord Rama to come to their rescue. Instead of Rama, an old yogi came.

He asked what they were doing in the middle of nowhere and when the brahmanas informed him about their mission to find Rama,he discouraged them totally. However, the brahmanas did not have any other proof, so they continued their journey to Rameshwaram.

Next day, they met another travelling yogi. He too thought they were wasting time searching for Rama. Who has ever met Him, he asked. It’s all a fairy tale, with no substance of truth. But the brahmanas, instead of believing him, were suspicious of who this yogi really was. “Are you the same yogi who met us yesterday?” they asked suspiciously, “or are you Hanuman himself?”

The yogi smiled broadly and assumed his original form. The brahmanas gasped in astonishment as they saw Hanuman standing in front of them. Tears flowed as they bowed down to him and paid obeisance. Hanuman held out his palm and offered them fruits. These were divine fruits that would satiate hunger and bring them joy.

Next, what he did made no sense. He plucked a hair from his right armpit and placed it in a pouch. He plucked another hair from his left armpit and placed it in a separate pouch. He wrapped both the pouches with tree bark and handed it over to the brahmanas.

“Go back to Kanyakubja and tell the king I have instructed him to return the land to you. If he refuses, then remove the hair from the left pouch. Once the king begs forgiveness and promises to return your land, use the right pouch. Follow these instructions carefully and you will get your land back.” The brahmanas were delighted with Hanuman’s assurance and danced joyfully.

Hanuman then flattened a rock and asked them to spend their night peacefully on it. Whilst they slept, Hanuman lifted the rock and carried them back to their homeland in a matter of hours which otherwise would have taken them months to cross.

When the brahmanas woke up, they were shocked to find themselves back home. They thanked Hanuman from the bottom of their hearts. They proceeded to the palace to convey Hanuman’s instruction to the king. But as expected, the king only laughed at them. “You expect me to believe you met Hanuman?” he scoffed at them. “Get lost now!”

The brahmanas removed the hair from the left armpit pouch and dropped it. The king sneered even more. As soon as the brahmanas left the palace, they turned behind to see a cloud of smoke rising up from it. Within minutes the palace was on fire. People ran out from there trying to save their lives. Miraculously, only the palace was on fire. The fire did not spread anywhere else.

They were not surprised to see the king also trying to save his life. He hurried towards them, bewildered and humbled. There was no need for any words. His eyes begged them to stop the fire and take the land. The brahmanas dropped the hair from the other pouch and lo and behold, the fire disappeared, restoring the palace to its original condition.

He immediately issued a decree to return the land to the brahmanas, stating that it belonged to them forever. He had enough proof to believe that now. The brahmanas could only thank Hanuman for giving them shelter and returning their life, their homes, and happiness. Hanuman never disappointed his devotees, saba sukha lahai tumharlsarana.This was calamity no one knew how to heal with.

The vanaras could handle weapons used by Ravana’s army but what they saw right now was just one man! He was walking all over the battlefield, burning everything. He was a resident of Patalaloka. It could only be Ravana who invited this terrible demon named Bhasmalochana.

With the departure of his brother Kumbhakama, Ravana had lost his mental balance. He had even started attacking his own people in madness and fear. All of a sudden, he remembered Bhasmalochana. Who could be better than Bhasmalochana to lead his dwindling army and lend confidence to his attack?

Bhasmalochana did what was expected of him. He strode out with an air of confidence to take on the monkey army. Such was his confidence that he was not only alone, he was also blindfolded! At first, it seemed funny and audacious on his part, but as he came closer, he became more and more visible and menacing. They could see the glow surrounding his eyes, underneath the band.

They wondered if his eyes could be glowing. Realization dawned on the monkeys, then. Bhasmalochana! He was none other than the man who could bum with his sight! From humour, the monkeys turned to panic. They ran helter-skelter, not wanting to turn into ashes. They wanted to be nowhere around when he opened his blindfold. The entire monkey army was in chaos all of a sudden.

The generals and leaders of the army were equally stunned. They were all overwhelmed with fear, thinking of what step to take to protect themselves. Attack was no longer a priority. Saving themselves was. In the midst of all this, Bhasmalochana uncovered his eyes.

His eyes dazzled like the sun in all its glory. When he looked at someone, there was a flash of light, followed by a scream. Then came the smell of flesh and finally a heap of ashes. It all happened so quickly that the ashes were not even hot. Because the burning process that normally took hours was reduced to nano seconds.

As this mass destruction was taking place, Hanuman came into action. But instead of running towards them, he began to run in the opposite direction. The monkeys were horrified to see him running away from the site of disaster.

Why was he abandoning them and fleeing? The monkeys had no hope left now. There was no way they could survive if Hanuman himself was running away. While they were drowning in sorrow, they caught a glimpse of Lakshmana smiling. He had in fact seen Rama whisper into Hanuman’s ears so he knew Hanuman was up to something brave.

Now the monkeys could also see a masterplan behind Hanuman’s actions. They saw Hanuman climbing high up. “Look! Where Hanuman has reached! He is so amazing.” All the monkeys huddled together to watch their hero Hanuman. It was fascinating to watch him and guess what he was up to. Despite the impending danger, there was sudden excitement in the air.

Hope had returned. They could now see Hanuman’s tiny figure at a distance, scaling up the fortress of Ravana. He had reached the city. Naturally he would not run into the enemy camp if he was trying to save himself. There was a deeper motive behind this. What could it be? They didn’t have to wait too long to find out because they saw Hanuman flying out of the fort with a huge plank of iron on his back.

Holding the plank with one hand and his tail, he balanced himself in air. He used his other hand to navigate the flight. But it was still a mystery as to what Hanuman was planning to do. Lord Rama and Lakshmana showed no such anxiety. The monkeys even saw them exchange a knowing glance. Hanuman had now landed right behind Bhasmalochana.

Whereas the monkeys were behind rocks, trees, inside water bodies anywhere at all, to hide themselves from the demon’s fiery glance. Peeping out of their hiding places, they were less concerned about their own safety and more curious about Hanuman’s next step. Hanuman’s agile tail shot up to carry the iron plank high in the air over Bhasmalochana’s head. He then expertly twisted the tail and flipped the iron plank.

Wow! What brilliance! The tail was the centre of attraction as it began to lower the vertical iron plank such that it came right in front of Bhasmalochana in the path of his vision. As soon as he brought it in front, there was a deafening sound. Boooom! It was an explosion. Bhasmalochana had turned into a pile of ashes. A huge cheer went out from the monkey army as they ran to hug their saviour. There were a few who had not yet grasped what exactly Hanuman had done to blast their enemy.

They looked at the iron plank. What a surprise, it was a mirror! Hanuman showed Bhasmalochana a mirror to see himself! With this heroic act, Hanuman easily overcame something that could have potentially won the war for Ravana, wiping out the monkey army. The vanaras had nothing to fear as long as Hanuman was there.

His devotees have nothing to fear as long as they sought protection from Hanuman. tuma rakshaka kahu ko darana Draupadi worshipped Hanuman for the protection of Pandavas. A deity of Hanuman is present in every household altar. Because he overcomes difficulties for gods also. He rescued all gods from Ravana’s prison. Whether it is Suryadeva or Varuna or Agnideva, or even Sita, everyone takes Hanuman’s shelter.

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