Śri Maha-gaṇapataye namah

As time passed, the number of devotees thronging the Gandhamādana Mountain increased significantly. Where the Lord resides, devotees throng there don’t they? Irrespective of the place and time devotees follow. Those who follow the master, those who have sought shelter under Him, those who have obtained the worthiness to follow Him, those who due to many past births are connected to Him, follow the Spiritual Master wherever He travels. This has been my experience in life. Even when I plan to travel without prior intimation they arrive there to receive me.

It was the same with Hanuman. He had selected the isolated Gandhamādana Mountain for His austerities believing that His austerities would continue there without interruption and in seclusion. Slowly and gradually devotees arrived there one by one. Slowly there were a significant number of them to serve Him

Although this Lord did not explicitly need any vehicle for His travels, purely with the desire of blessing a devotee who was in the form of a camel, the Lord accepted the camel as his vehicle.

This is yet another important incident in Hanuman’s life which we shall have to cover at a later date. There are innumerable such significant instances in His life story. A river which begins as a small rivulet is joined by many tributaries and transforms into a large river. What then happens to the river? It too merges into that which is greater than it i.e. the ocean and thereafter vanishes into space (through evaporation).

The salty ocean water which evaporates is once again filtered and showered back to earth in the form of pure rain. How, when and where the Lord decides to shower that rain is purely His discretion and mercy. It beats all predictions. All of a sudden a typhoon catches us unprepared. At times, when we are all set to face the typhoon, it moves away from our area and hits another place. Only a few predictions turn true. Don’t we face the consequences of unpredictable and fluctuating weather conditions? This creation itself is unique.

While some gravitational force connects this earth to this visible Sun, another planet elsewhere in creation has a similar connection with another Sun. Perhaps those living in that planet do not address their planet as ‘earth’ and may have coined some other name for it.

In this way, although living amidst His devotees in Gandhamādana, Hanuman took on another form to serve his parents Kesari and Anjana. While serving his parents, in this new form, he also wandered as an ordinary vānara in Kesari’s kingdom. All the while he was showering upon the living entities, the positive energy drawn from his other form which was situated in deep meditation in the Gandhamādana Mountain. He behaved in a manner that failed to arouse even the least suspicion among the living entities including his parents. He had taken up this new form as he had some deeds to be accomplished using it.

Let us now understand how Hanuman became the minister in the court of Vali.

Around that time, Vali and Sugriva performed intense austerities and obtained many extraordinary powers. To be in a state of ‘Yoga’ means to obtain mastery over wind, senses, and mind. When they are conquered, extra-ordinary or supernatural powers automatically accrue to the person. It is equally applicable even to living entities of Kali yuga. Supernatural powers do not imply the ability to create objects or to cause them to vanish in a jiffy. They are some unique powers that automatically dawn upon the senses, mind, and intellect.

Among the brothers, Vali performed more aggressive austerities. He obtained the boon that half of the opponent’s energy and strength must be transferred to him in any combat.

We must not perceive or decipher these incidents using the view-points of the modern Kali period. Few interpretations can be given to suit our understanding, however, it is not apt to try to map the incident perfectly to match the Kali-period. Remember that we are tiny, insignificant beings.

Jaya Guru Datta