Śri Gaṇeśāya namah

Śri Saraswatyai namah

Śripāda-vallabha Nŗsimha Sarawati

Śri Guru Dattatreyaya namah

Atulita Baladhāmaṃ Svarṇa śailābha dehaṃ

Dhanujavana-kŗśānam jnāninā-magra-gaṇyaṃ

Sakala-guṇa-nidhānaṃ vānarāṇāmadhīṣaṃ

Raghupati-priya-bhaktaṃ vātajātaṃ namāmi

Om Namo Hanumate namah

Lord Hanuman (Ānjaneya) is not only very popular but also extremely dear to one and all. Even in foreign lands He is revered as a Monkey-god. However, His principle (essence) is extremely secretive.

The word ‘secretive’ does not imply that His principle should be kept away from certain classes of people. It implies that it is of profound, in-depth significance, which can be grasped only when heard with absolute dedication. The term ‘secretive’ also implies that this essence flashes directly from within the person.

We must make attempts to understand the true essence of this Lord through the medium of those pious people who have undertaken an in-depth study of it.

This Lord has many names among which Ānjaneya, Hanumanta and Māruti are most famous. Now comes the question- what is the significance contained in these names? What is the history behind each name? Let us understand.

Ānjaneya- As the son of Mother Anjana, He obtained this name. This fact is well-known. ‘Anjana’ means ‘that which causes love to sprout’. As such, Ānjaneya implies ‘He who causes bliss to emerge’ or ‘He who is an embodiment of bliss’.

Anju vyakti mŗakshana kānti gadiṣu is a grammatical verbal root which means, ‘That which has discriminative wisdom, that which is friendly and that which understands’. When analysed from the angle of these verbal roots (dhatu), Ānjaneya means ‘He who causes a spurt in discriminatory wisdom (viveka); He who is a true friend; He who fulfills all desires; He who is powerful and He who is an embodiment of knowledge.’

Not just that. This verbal root (dhatu) also means ‘movement’. The word ‘Anjanaḥ’ refers to wind (vayu). It implies, ‘He who is moving, He who causes movement’. Hence, Ānjaneya can be interpreted as ‘Son of wind’.

Let us now study the inner meaning contained in the name ‘Hanumanta’. ‘Hanuman’ is the Sanskrit form of this name.

‘Hanu’ means ‘upper jaw’, therefore Hanuman implies, ‘He whose upper jaw is wide’. Another meaning of the word ‘Hanu’ is knowledge. Therefore, Hanuman means ‘He who is supremely learned’. ‘Hanu’ also means ‘destroyer’ i.e. Shiva. From this, it is evident that Hanuman is none other than Shiva.

Jaya Guru Datta.