Tulsidas, a renowned poet-saint, authored the Hanuman Chalisa with Meaning in the 16th century.
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 36 in English with Meaning & Analysis
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 36 Problem-Solver
संकट कटै
मिटै सब पीरा ।
जो सुमिरै
हनुमत बलबीरा ॥
Sankat kate
mite sab peera.
Jo sumirai
Hanumat Balbeera.
Problems cease
pain goes away.
When one remembers
Hanuman, the mighty hero.
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 36 Meaning in English
This chaupai reiterates what Hanuman can do for us: remove problems and take away pain. In the Ramayana, Hanuman solves Ram’s problems. He finds Ram’s missing wife, Sita, by leaping across the sea to the kingdom of Lanka. He saves Ram’s injured brother, Lakshman, by carrying a mountain of herbs across the sky.
He even saves Ram from being sacrificed by Mahiravana to Patala Bhairavi. If he can help God, surely he can help humanity. Perhaps this explains Hanuman’s mass appeal. Across India, at the start of roads that wind up hills and mountains, one frequently finds temples of Hanuman.
People driving past in cars, buses and trucks, throw money at these temples, offerings to the great hero, to give them the strength to overcome the obstacle before them, and to keep out all obstacles from their path. A temple is also located at the end of the journey, on the other side of the mountain, where the travellers can thank Hanuman for protecting them from all potential danger.
At the frontier of most villages, and in most Hindu crematoriums, we find red-orange images of Hanuman, glistening with til oil, bedecked with Arka leaves and flowers, protecting the village from the wild, from diseases and demons, ghouls and ghosts. He embodies the positive side of masculinity (strength) but not the negative side (domination).
When Hanuman was flying over the ocean to Lanka, he defeated many monsters. But he did not stop to rest. Mount Mainaka rose from under the sea and requested Ram’s messenger to sit on his slopes for a bit. Hanuman politely refused, for he had a task to complete. Thus Hanuman embodies selflessness, commitment, and integrity, the one who completes the most arduous task without resting. We yearn to have someone like Hanuman on our side. And to have him on our side, we need to invoke Ram in our hearts.
In folk retellings of the Ramayana, Ravana had locked up Shani, lord of Saturn; Mangal, the god of Mars; and Preta-raja, or Mahakala, or Yama, lord of disease and death, under his throne. Hanuman released them and so Shani, Mangal, and Mahakala are in Hanuman’s debt.
If one prays to Hanuman on Saturday, the day associated with Saturn, then Shani, who delays things, does not assert his malevolent force. If one prays to Hanuman on Tuesday, the day associated with Mars, then Mangal, who causes strife, does not assert his malevolent influence. And if one worships Hanuman at night, when Preta-raja rules, then raja rules, then disease and death, caused by negative energies and black magic, fail to act.
The Nawabs of Lucknow started the Bada Mangal festival, when Hanuman is worshipped with great fanfare every Tuesday in the summer month of Jyestha (May-June). This practice began after an image of Hanuman was found at a construction site. The story goes that the elephant carrying the deity to its new location stopped at one point and refused to budge.
So the temple was built at the spot the elephant stopped. In this festival, local Hindus and Muslims participate, the latter providing water to the long queues of devotees who stand all through Tuesday night to see Bada Hanuman.
This verse reveals the most elemental form of Hanuman and resonates with humanity’s most primitive past, when the things one wanted from divine forces were as basic as protection from dangers and cures from diseases. In the verses that follow, the higher needs of humanity are addressed, revealing Hanuman’s versatility spanning from the most elemental to the most refined.
Hanuman Chalisa Chaupai 36 Analysis in English
sankata katai mitai saba pira
jo sumirai hanumata balabira ||36||
All difficulties are wiped away and all pain vanish,
By remembering the mighty Hanuman. (36)
During one of his travels, Hanuman saw a very weird scene. A group of people were lighting a funeral pyre, but surprisingly, they were not burning a human body but rather a wooden statue! And though it was a lifeless wooden statue, an old lady nearby was bawling her heart out. She lamented continuously about her dead son. Next to her stood a small boy trying to console his wailing grandmother by assuring her that his father was not dead. He was astonished why she was conducting the last rites of someone who was alive.
Hanuman was bewildered to see this awkward scene. Inquisitiveness made him approach the old lady to question her. He wanted to understand the entire situation to make sense of it. Why was she burning a wooden statue of her son while her son was still alive according to her grandson?
The old lady shared her complicated story with Hanuman. She said that though her son was alive, he was as good as dead. Whoever was called by King Baladhari never came back.
Hanuman could sense something sinister in her words. There seemed to be some connection between the disappearance of her son (and many others) and the evil king. He wanted to know more about the king and his whereabouts. Hanuman Chalisa Hanuman promised her that he would get to the root of the whole problem and retrieve her son.
When she saw a ray of hope knocking at her door, the old lady revealed everything she knew about the atrocious king. Hanuman set about on a mission to find her lost son, Gajashakti, and to find out everything about the activities of the mysterious king.
While Hanuman was almost at the kingdom of King Baladhari, he came across two very weak and emaciated men who were about to jump off a cliff to commit suicide. Immediately Hanuman intervened and prevented them from doing so.
They got furious with Hanuman for stopping them from ending their lives. Hanuman explained compassionately that suicide was not a solution to any problem. He encouraged them to face their problems with courage and not give up without trying their best. When Hanuman assured them all help, they confided in him.
At one time, they were the most powerful wrestlers in the entire village. But one day, King Baladhari invited them for a wrestling competition. Eager to exhibit their strength and talent, they accepted the invitation. But to their horror, King Baladhari sucked away all their energies and strengths. All that was left of them was simply a bag of bones while all their strengths had been transferred into the king.
Hanuman was surprised hearing this tale. How did he get this kind of incomprehensible power? The two former wrestlers said that all this was the grace of Lord Brahma on him. Lord Brahma had been pleased with his tapasya and offered him a boon by which he could extract the entire physical strength of anyone standing in front of him. And that’s how he got his name Baladhari, due to this boon. But there was a flipside to this. As soon as that person died, his strength would leave from Baladhari’s body.
Thus in order to retain their strength in his body, he would not allow those people to die. He would imprison them and keep them well-fed so that they live. The two unfortunate men had somehow managed to escape from that cave. They were hoping that by ending their life, the king’s strength would decrease and there would be a greater probability of him being defeated.
Hanuman then confirmed that Gajashakti was also in the king’s captivity. They narrated that Gajashakti too was a powerful wrestler with the strength of an elephant and was always in the forefront to protect the village from any kind of calamity. Obviously, he came into the king’s radar and was thus invited by the king to a wrestling match where all his strength was siphoned off.
They sadly explained that now Gajashakti was reduced to a mere shadow of himself, in a sad emaciated state in the prison. The king additionally gave Gajashakti a warning that if he tried to escape, he would kill his family members and slaughter everyone in his village.
Equipped with all this information, Hanuman headed for a meeting with King Baladhari. Considering him to be an ordinary vanara soldier, the king heaped insults on Hanuman. Then he sent his soldiers to kill him. In a matter of a few seconds, Hanuman destroyed all the soldiers. Baladhari then took Hanuman seriously and stepped forward to fight.
Hanuman defeated Baladhari easily. Baladhari tried to suck away Hanuman’s energy by holding his hand. What he didn’t realize was the vast difference between their two bodies! His body was limited in its capacity but Hanuman being Rudransh, an expansion of Lord Shiva, was unlimited in his capacity. When Hanuman’s energy began entering Baladhari, he, very soon, reached the upper limit of his capacity to handle Hanuman Chalisa more energy.
He wanted to let go of Hanuman’s hand but Hanuman wasn’t ready to. Thus Hanuman’s energy flowed into his body with a tremendous rush and when Baladhari’s body crossed the tipping point, it blasted into millions of pieces which scattered all over the place. Liberating all the weak wrestlers, Hanuman inspired them I to not give up on themselves.
He taught them the importance of exercise to regain their lost physical strength. He created akhadas or wrestling arenas where they could practice intense exercises and recover their strength. Once Gajashakti found his strength, Hanuman took him back to his mother. The old mother became really happy and blessed Hanuman profusely.
At that point, Narada made his appearance and requested Hanuman that he should see to it that never again can another I Baladhari exploit people’s strengths. Thus for the future, Hanuman created a beautiful reddish deity of himself known as Balanidhi.
And he said, “This form will always reside in all akhadas and wrestling arenas. Anyone who worships this form of mine and performs physical activities and exercises will be I able to acquire great strength. Physical activity will keep one I strong and lack of it will make one weak.
From now on no one will be able to steal the strength of another, like Baladhari did.” Narada was very happy and satisfied to know that there would be no more exploitation and pain, sankata katai mitai saba pira / jo sumirai hanumata bailable Tulsidas recommended installation of Hanuman deity in every akhada to gain Hanuman’s blessings for strength for wrestling.
In Ashoka Vatika, when Hanuman assured Mother Sita that Lord Rama would free her from the bondage of the evil Ravana, Sita was so pleased that she plucked a betel leaf from a tree, put it on Hanuman’s forehead and blessed him with immortality. All those who seek success in life and wish to be free from fear, pray to Hanuman and appease him with a betel leaf garland.