The Hanuman Chalisa resonates with people seeking spiritual solace and strength.
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 28 in English with Meaning & Analysis
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 28 Chariot of Desire
और मनोरथ
जो कोई लावै ।
सोई अमित
जीवन फल पावै
Aur manorath
jo koi lavai.
Sohi amit
jeevan phal pavai.
Any wish
one comes with
Endless
fulfillment be receives
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 28 Meaning in English
In this verse, wishes are described as ‘mano-rath’, the chariots of the mind, that propel our actions, and hence our life. While Buddha said desire is suffering, and established monasteries, Hinduism advocated dharma, doing one’s social role. The former disrupted social structure, the latter maintained social structure.
Buddhist shrines (chaityas) were centres of silence and discipline, and introspective art. By contrast, Hindu temples (mandir) were centres of song and dance and food and celebratory art; the walls had images of beautiful women adorning themselves as men went about doing their duties. When Buddhism waned, many Buddhist ideas expressed themselves in Hindu form: Hindu monasticism became a dominant force, challenging Hindu worldliness. The hermit sought liberation (moksha) from the world, while the householder spoke of social obligations (dharma) that sustained the world.
Shiva, the hermit god was patron of the mathas (monasteries) where ash-smeared ascetics focussed on burning their desires just as Shiva had set aflame Kama, the god of desire. Vishnu, the householder god, was enshrined in grand temples that had separate sections such for food (bhoga-mandapa) and theatrical performances (natya-mandapa). How does one balance between moksha and dharma? This was done through the Goddess.
Every human being was seen as existing within an ecosystem of others. The relationships between humans were governed by desire and action. From desire came all the mental modifications: ycarning, attachment, greed, pride, jealousy, frustration, rage; the source of all problems. Action, however, sustained the social fabric.
The Goddess demanded focus on action and detachment from desire. In other words, plant the seed, do not desire the fruit. When put in a social context, this means working to satisfy other people’s hunger and taking away other people’s fear; striving hard to outgrow, rather than indulge, one’s own hunger and fear.
And so the Goddess turns Shiva the hermit into Shankara the householder and gets him to descend from his mountaintop abode of Kailasa to the city of Kashi in the plains. Likewise, the Goddess becomes Lakshmi and Saraswati, and asks Vishnu to serve as her guardian.
Brahma and his sons, be it the devas or asuras, nagas or yakshas, embody the other or those who are so focussed on their own hunger and fear that they are uninterested in the hunger and fear of the others. Hanuman, a student of the Goddess, on the other hand, focuses on satisfying the desires of others and seeking nothing for himself.
Hindu rituals are designed around this principle. Whether it was a Vedic yagna, or a later day puja at a temple, the yajaman makes offerings to a god and hopes to get something in return. Thus his desire is regulated: he does not just ask, or grab, he is made to first give something to the deity.
He can give a gift (flowers, food, incense), or even words of praise (bhajan), or simply the gift of attention (darshan, dhayan). Then we pray the deity reciprocates. We have control over what we offer, how we offer it, when and where and to whom we offer it, but no control on what we receive, or don’t receive. What we get is a function of whether the deity is pleased or not, and whether the deity is willing or not, or if the deity feels obliged or not. We have to accept what we get with grace and be at peace with what we don’t get. So it is with the deity, so it is in life.
The chariot of desire is not the only force that governs the world. There is also karma, the cycle of actions and reactions. We may or may not get what we desire, but we certainly get what we deserve, based on the reactions of the past, and the actions of the present. Hanuman ensures we get what we should, and he ensures we have the strength to cope with what we don’t get. That strength to enjoy what we get and be at peace with what we don’t get is the eternal (amit, or amrit) fruit (phal) promised in this verse.
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 28 Analysis in English
aura manoratha jo koi lavail
sohi amita jlvana phala pavain ||28||
And when approached with heartfelt desires
You fulfill them with unlimited nectar like fruits. (28)
When a devotee asked Hanuman, “Should we have desires or should we be desire-less?” Hanuman gave a pleasant answer. He said, “I don’t like anyone asking anything from my Lord Rama. So I wish that no one should ask anything from Lord Rama.” So the devotee asked again, “Does that mean we should not have any desires?”
Hanuman replied, “No, no! Please have desires. Because I take the responsibility to fulfil every desire. It is my vow to fulfil a devotee’s desire so that my master Rama need not be hassled about it.” Hanuman was himself detachment personified. A renunciant in all aspects. But he helped others like Sugriva and Vibhishan in fulfilling their wishes, aura manoratha jo hot lavai/sohi amita jivanaphalapavai Hanuman’s search for Sita had reached its culmination.
Sitting under the Ashoka tree was Mother Sita herself. Draped scarcely in a single cloth, she looked emaciated. Probably due to months of fasting. Her eyes revealed a trail of continuous tears. She appeared an epitome of divinity.
He shuddered when he glanced upon those guarding her. They were one-eyed, vicious looking demonesses. Their very appearance was enough to plunge the sturdiest of hearts into a state of horror and depression. And they were no less than 700 of them. Hanuman understood Ravana’s trick. By surrounding Sita with such monsters who abused her constantly, he was playing a psychological game of weakening her determination.
Although Sita had resisted a nervous breakdown till now, she could not hold off anymore. After Ravana’s last visit, which Hanuman had been a witness to, Sita decided it was not worth living. If Rama had not come till now, He may not be coming at all. She had been chanting Rama’s holy name since many months now but there was no sign of Rama rescuing her from the evil Ravana.
Hanuman wondered how best to approach Sita so that she did not doubt his words and intentions. The presence of security demonesses also hampered him in contacting Mother Sita. But what he saw next took his breath away. Her long hair was tied to a branch and looped around her neck. It did not need a genius to figure out what she was about to do.
Before Sita could take another step, Hanuman began what he knew best. Narrating Rama katha in a dialect from Ayodhya. That was the only language which would not create panic in Sita. Beginning from birth, he described Lord Rama’s efforts in searching for Sita and how he was sent there with a message from her dear Rama.
His words had the desired effect on her and she relaxed. She unlooped her hair and sat under the tree, looking up to find the speaker. Hanuman took a miniature form and landed in front of her. Now she was completely at ease with a complete stranger knowing that he was an intimate associate of Rama.
They chatted with each other for a long time, exchanging all the facts that had brought them together. Sita was further overwhelmed and tears gushed from her eyes when Hanuman produced the ring given to him by Rama for Sita. Hanuman too was so moved that he immediately offered to take her out of Lanka on his back.
Sita said to him, “Son, you have managed to fly across the ocean to reach me which is by no means an easy task. So surely you are powerful and intelligent. But I have a doubt. I am confused. What is your real size?” Hanuman was quick to realize that because he had appeared in a very small form in front of her, Sita could not imagine how he could take her back. It was a valid question from her. At the same time, he was thrilled being addressed as ‘son’. It made him very joyful.
He said, “I am very small, mother. But by Lord Rama’s grace, I can become very big when the need arises. God’s power is so great that I can also grow big by taking his shelter. But my real size is small, mother,” with all the innocence of a child.
Sita was touched by Hanuman’s profound answer. He had appeared like a rainbow in the skies of her gloomy mind, adding colour to all her forlorn desires of escaping Lanka and uniting with Rama. As long as Hanuman was there, he would see to it that her wellbeing was taken care of. aura manoratha jo koi lavai It was the last day of Rama’s exile.
It was the day Bharat expected Rama to reach Ayodhya. If Rama failed to keep his word, it would not just be the last day of his exile but the last day of Bharat’s life as well. He could not wait a minute longer than the fourteen years. And Rama very well knew the consequence of any delay. Just a few more minutes were left for the day to end and there was no sight of Rama. Bharat was prepared to die. It was inevitable. There was no stopping him now.
His brother Shatrughana, his ministers, citizens of Ayodhya were all present around him. A heavy cloud of darkness hung in the air and no one knew how to convince Bharat to change his decision. He had made up his mind to jump into the pyre of fire at the end of the day.
Unknown to all, help was nearby. Hanuman. He sat on a tree above, wondering what the right step would be to stop Bharat. He had been sent by Rama to inform Bharat of his arrival. But before he could do that, Bharat was already planning to jump in to the pyre.
Hanuman recollected that just a few weeks back he was in the middle of a similar situation. He was on a tree and Mother Sita had been contemplating suicide. This time it was Bharat. Whenever he found himself staring at a dead-end, Hanuman resorted to only one solution. It had always worked. It had worked when all the monkeys were dejected on the shore of the ocean.
It had worked in Lanka for Sita. And he would use the same strategy again today. Rama katha. When he narrated Rama katha to the monkeys, Sampatti had come to their rescue. When he narrated Rama katha to Sita, she had been inspired to live. It would not let him down today either.
He began his narration in his sweetest voice, a voice that could melt even stones. He began from the beginning of Rama lila to the point where Rama reached Bhardwaj muni’s ashram that was on the way to Ayodhya. When Bharat heard the message that Rama was on the way, he quickly dropped the idea of ending his life. He was eager to unite with his venerable brother again.
Once again Hanuman had saved the day by fulfilling Bharat’s wish with his message. From Rama. He had fulfilled Sita’s wish by giving her hope of Rama’s arrival to rescue her. Whenever any wish needed to be fulfilled, Hanuman was always there on the horizon, not only to fulfil the wish but to fulfil it as quickly as possible, sohi amita jivana phala pavai