Reflecting on one of Hinduism's most popular prayer for positive energy Acclaimed mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik demystifies the Hanuman Chalisa for the contemporary reader. His unique approach makes the ancient hymn accessible, combined as it is with his trademark illustrations. Every time we experience negativity in the world and within ourselves, every time we encounter jealousy, rage and frustration, manifesting as violation and violence, we hear, or read, the Hanuman Chalisa. Composed over four hundred years ago by Tulsidas, its simple words in Awadhi, a dialect of Hindi and its simple metre, musically and very potently evoke the mythology, history and mystery of Hanuman, the much-loved Hindu deity, through whom Vedic wisdom reached the masses. As verse follows verse, our frightened, crumpled mind begins to expand with knowledge and insight and our faith in humanity, both within and without, is restored.
The Hanuman Chalisa authored by Goswami Tulsidas is one of the most popular Hindu devotional hymns. The 'Mahaviri' Hindi commentary (1984) by Swami Rambhadracharya has been acclaimed as the best treatise on the Hanuman Chalisa. This book presents an annotated and expanded English translation of the 'Mahaviri' commentary by Nityanand Misra. Each of the 43 verses of the 'Hanuman Chalisa' is explained in three stages. The first phase being a word-for-word translation to help the reader understand the literal meaning of each word in a verse. The second is a simple English translation of each verse. This third and final phase is an informed commentary on the true meaning of the verse, explaining the deep essence of the text with citations from authoritative Hindu scriptures (the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Gita, etc.) and other works of Goswami Tulsidas. All such citations are also translated into English. Following the commentary, Misra also provides five useful appendices for advanced readers. These include more than 120 endnotes (annotations), a detailed note on the prosody and rhythm of all the verses for chanters, the musical notation of the traditional melody of the Hanuman Chalisa for devotional singers and instrumentalists, and two alphabetical indexes for all words and verses used in the hymn. The book is a must-have for reciters and singers of the Hanuman Chalisa who want to understand the deep essence of Tulsidas's timeless hymn to Hanuman. It targets laypersons as well as scholarly readers. The design of the book, including font sizes and line spacing, is suitable for the elderly as well. The book has reached thousands of readers across the globe and has been praised as “the most comprehensive guide to the Hanuman Chalisa available in English”. It has been loved by readers for not only its scholarship and research, but also for its beautiful production, aesthetic typeface, attractive layout, and excellent footnotes and appendices.
The Sri Hanuman Chalisa is considered one of the most popular Hindu devotional hymns, chanted daily by millions of people all over the world. Many chant these praises of the monkey god, Hanuman, to seek His protection, strength, help and assistance during their struggles. However, the deeper significance and value of knowing about Hanuman is that He is the ultimate model of Bhakti, humility and surrender, expressed even to this day through His selfless devotional service to Lord Rama. Fortunately, Paramahamsa Sri Swami Vishwananda has provided a commentary which reveals the deeper meaning behind each of the forty verses of this beautiful hymn. Verse by verse, Paramahamsa Vishwananda guides us to understanding that, by cultivating devotion, humility and surrender, the inner gates to Divine Love are opened and we are finally able to reach the ultimate goal of life: to become devoted servants of this great Love.
Can a 40-verse hymn provide the solution to all your problems in this lifetime… and beyond? Why do millions of devotees recite this hymn whenever they are fearful of the unknown? Hanuman Chalisa, a devotional hymn in praise of the Vanar or Monkey God Hanuman, may appear to be a mere chant which someone can recite in about two minutes. Each verse, however, conveys a much deeper message, which is described in this book: verse by verse. Consider this anecdote. Lord Rama sent Hanuman to the netherworld (Pataal-Lok) to fetch his ring that he claimed had fallen down. As Hanuman reached there and was searching for the ring, he requested the king of the netherworld, the serpent Vasuki, to help him. Vasuki led him to a massive mountain of identical rings. A surprised Hanuman requested Vasuki to help him find the actual ring. Vasuki told him about the circle of life wherein all the four yugas or eras (satya-yuga, treta-yuga, dwapar-yuga and kal-yuga) repeat in a periodic manner. Every treta-yuga in the past had a Lord Rama and Hanuman, and in future would also have the same. The mountain of rings is actually infinite for there is no beginning or end to this circle of life. Hanuman finally understood the purpose of his visit and returned to Ayodhya, expecting not to find Lord Rama there but assured that Lord Rama would be born again in future, in the next treta-yuga. Similar to the above mentioned story and the message, many other hidden pearls of wisdom and knowledge conveyed in Hanuman Chalisa are lucidly explained in this book.
About The HymnHanuman chalisa is a sacred and one of the most powerful hymns to Hanuman composed by the great sage Tulasidaasa - The author of Raamayana in Hindi. He was a very great devotee of Raama and Hanuman and have had visions of Hanuman many times in his life. He was well-versed in Puranas Agamas and Mantra shastras.The Translation and CommentaryIn this sacred hymn Tulasidaasa praises the greatness of Hanuman and also many great deeds done by him. There are many secrets of mantra shastra - the method of ritualistic worship hidden in the hymn. different forms of Hanuman are praised in different dohaas (couplets)In this book each verse of Hanuman chaalisa is elaborately explained with the help of Veda, Purana, and mantra shashtras. incidents showing Hanuman's great qualities are quoted from different sacred scriptures.The word by word meaning of the hymn is also explained.
Here is the charming narration of incarnation of 11th Ansh (constituent) of Lord Shiva as Sankat Mochan Hanuman. The contents of this book in Hindi and English are full of colourfufl illustrations. Its reading gives mental peace inspiring self-realisation and confidence.