Jai - Your answers

[Guest guest]

Jai,<br>I will try to answer your questions as

much as I can. Hanuman was the son of Kesari and

Anjana. <br>In heaven there was a very famous apsara who

on a certain occasion insulted one of the rishis. As

a result she got a curse that she would be born as

a female monkey. After her birth she was named

Anjana. Her husband's name was Kesari. Because Anjana had

no son, she began to do penance. She gave up eating

and drinking. She prayed to Vayu, the Wind God, not

only to get her a son, but that he should be powerful

and swift, just like Vayu himself. Anjana gave birth

to her son Hanuman. Soon after his birth Hanuman

came out of the cave and, as the sun was rising, he

flew towards the sun to eat its reddish rays. As he

flew towards the sun, Rahu stood in his way. But with

a stroke of his tail he pushed Rahu aside. Then

came Ketu, but he also was removed, and Hanuman flew

ahead towards the sun. Then heaven became worried.

Indra mounted his elephant "Airavat", and wondered in

his mind, "Who is this extraordinary child going out

to eat the sun?" Indra became angry and flung his

weapon "vajra" on Hanuman, who was caught unawares. He

was hit on his left knee, and fell on the top of a

high mountain. Vayu came to know about Hanuman's fall.

In his anger Vayu stopped the wind .The very life of

the gods became imperilled. The condition of all

living beings became extremely precarious. All began to

pray to Vayu to give up his anger. Then Indra went to

meet the unconscious Hanuman, praised him for

surviving the stroke of his weapon, and called him "Maruti"

or "son of the wind". As a boon Indra said, "You

will not be afraid of death" ("Ichchamarni").

Brahmadev also said: "Nobody will be able to kill you with

any weapon in war." With this Hanuman became almost

invincible. Then Vayu was pleased and the wind began to blow

gently, and life returned to all living

creatures.<br><br>Indra is the Lord of the Gods. He is associated with

thunder and storms. Varuna is associated with the Oceans

and rivers. Varuna was a very important god in

pre-Vedic Hindu mythology. Though only about a dozen hymns

address him in the Rig Veda, he had a position of stature

among the deities. He was viewed as a lord of the

cosmos, keeper of divine order and bringer of rain. He

was also believed to be the enforcer of contracts,

and was omnipotent. In late Vedic times, the worship

of Varuna fell off and Indra replaced him as king of

the gods. Varuna became god of the oceans and rivers,

which was still quite important. The souls of those who

drowned went to him, and he was attended by the nagas.

[Guest guest]

Ref: 697<br><br>Dear Sir/Madam, and also

Baburoy,<br>Re: “…Hanuman was the son of Kesari and

Anjana…”<br>Could Hanuman have been a Dravidian? Which area could

he have come from?<br><br>In South India is a form

of Karate, I do not remember its correct name now,

has a lot of jumping and springing movements. Could

it be that the monkey people, like Hanuman, Vali,

Sugreeva, etc have been referenced to the people harbouring

this ancient art/sport of “Karate”. <br><br>Re:

“…famous apsara…insulted one of the

rishis…curse…”<br>Could it be that the Apsara an Aryan fell in love with

the Dravidian Kesari, thus explains for her

banishment and change of name to Anjana after marriage. The

insult must have been felt by Brahma’s courtiers when

the Apasara refused the advise against marring

Kesari.<br><br>Re: “Because Anjana had no son…prayed to Vayu, the

Wind God…”<br>Vayu could have impregnated her, and by

luck she had a son, I suppose. Vayu could have had

been of prime ministerial status in Brahma’s court

till probably Indra replaced him, or may be Vayu

succeeded Indra.<br><br>Re: “Soon after his birth Hanuman

came out of the cave and…”<br>Could the Sun God have

been a pharaoh on a brief official visit to the then

Indian kingdom?<br>Who are Rahu and Ketu? I am

absolutely blank about them.<br>What could be the Indra’s

weapon “Vajra”?<br><br>Re: “Vayu came to know about

Hanuman's fall. In his anger Vayu stopped…”<br>Here Vayu

could seem a treasurer before his becoming the prime

minister, who when stopped work for some time and created

quite a stir.<br><br>Re: “Then Indra went to meet the

unconscious Hanuman…”<br>After realising the truth about

Hanuman and his connections in the power hierarchy, he

probably received extra protection from the then

emperor.<br>What could be the significance of the hurt on

Hanuman’s left knee?<br><br>Re: “Indra is the Lord of the

Gods. He is associated…”<br>The succession of the prime

ministers may be as such; Varuna came first, followed by

Indra and then Vayu. Indra must have been the ablest of

the three.<br>Now I have a problem, how to relate the

Nagas in this story?<br><br>Could any one improve upon

this story?<br><br>I believe that all the stories in

the Indian mythology are of historical significance

in a poetic form. All the ones in the mythology have

been mortals who have gone through situations that

very much occur even as on today.<br><br>Thank you,

and with regards,<br>Jai.<br>jaichavan