he Story of Ganesa: 12. Hanuman humbled | INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

 

The Story of Ganesa: 12. Hanuman humbled | INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

INDIAN MYTHOLOGY

The Story of Ganesa: 12. Hanuman humbled

In Treta Yuga, three kings—Kosala, Kekeya, and Vasumitra— were on friendly terms. They had a daughter each named Kausalya, Kaikeyi, and Sumitra. Dasaratha, the young King of Ayodhya, had already earned a name and fame for himself. Little wonder then that the three kings wished to make him their son-in-law. When the proposal went to Dasaratha, he accepted it and sent word of his willingness to marry the three princesses.

The kings then called on sage Jaimini with a request that he chose an auspicious day for the wedding. After studying the birth charts of the princesses and taking into consideration the planetary positions and movements, the sage said, “I foresee a day when the princesses will be married in the presence of Lord Vighneswara. However, let me warn you. They may be harmed by the activities of some demons. I would, therefore, advise them to be vigilant till the day of the wedding.”

On hearing this, the three kings were worried about the safety of their daughters and thought of various ways to ensure that they are not harmed by any demon. Ultimately, they had a large box made and put the princesses inside and kept it safe under lock and key.

Sage Narada came to know of their impending wedding. And as was his wont, he called on Ravana and said, “O Lord of Lanka! King Dasaratha of Ayodhya is soon to get married. I hope you remember the curse that his son would be instrumental to your death.”

After the sage had taken leave of him, Ravana sent for Mahodara, a demon of huge size. He was asked to go and bring the three princesses to Lanka. He went in search of them and found out that they were being kept safe in a box. He managed to get hold of the box. He now thought of taking it to Lanka across the ocean. As he was capable of flying, he swallowed the box and started. He had reached only half way when he suffered a terrible stomach ache. He spat out the box containing the princesses.

The box fell into the sea and was tossed this way and that. King Dasaratha was at that time travelling in a large boat. He was anxious to reach land and was peering at the horizon when he saw the strange sight of a huge box, which was getting closer and closer to the boat.The box hit against the boat with such force that its lid opened to reveal the three princesses inside.

A rope ladder was then lowered into the box and the princesses were helped to climb into the boat one after the other. At that very moment, Vighneswara appeared there and performed the wedding of Dasaratha with the three princesses. After the wedding, the Lord disappeared, and the king proceeded to Ayodhya with the princesses.

Weeks and months passed.  Dasaratha performed the Putra- kameshti yaga and he was blessed with four sons. The eldest of them, Ramachandra, son of Kausalya, at the instance of his step-mother Kaikeyi, went away to spend fourteen years in exile in the forest. He was accompanied by his wife Sita and brother Lakshmana.

When they were living in the forest, Ravana succeeded in kidnappaing Sita. Rama was then helped by Hanuman and Sugriva, the monkey princes, to reach Lanka where in a fierce battle, Rama fought Ravana and killed him and rescued Sita.

On his way back to Ayodhya on conclusion of the fourteen years of self-exile, Rama took a dip in the holy waters of the Sethu, and wished to instal a Siva linga for worshiping the Lord. He sent Hanuman to Kailas,s the abode of Siva, to fetch a Siva linga. At Kailas, Hanuman chose the biggest of all lingas. Unfortunately, however much he tried, he was unable to lift it. In fact, he could not lift even the smallest of the lingas he found in Kailas. Time was running short, and Hanuman was perturbed over his failure.

Suddenly, he saw a young lad approaching him. “May I know who you are?” he asked of Hanuman. “If I am not mistaken, are you not Hanuman? But, then, how could Hanuman be in Kailas? I must be mistaken!” he said by way of aside.

“My boy, you’re not mistaken. I’m Hanuman. My Lord, Rama, had sent me here to fetch a Siva linga. But, tell me, who are you?” asked Hanuman.

“Oh! I keep a watch over the lingas here. I have heard that Hanuman is an incarnation of Siva and as he has five faces, he is also called Anjaneya,” said the lad. “If you are Anjaneya, where are your other four faces?” the youngster queried.

Suddenly, Hanuman turned into a huge figure with four more faces—those of Garuda (eagle), Varaha (boar), lion, and horse—and appeared as Panchamukha Anjaneya. He smiled at the lad and told him, “Vighneswara, I’ve showed you my five faces; now it is your turn to show me your own five-faced figure!”

Vighneswara now assumed his Viswaroopa. Hunuman was overawed. He prostrated before the Lord. “Even when you appeared as a lad, I knew you are Vighneswara. Could I now have one of those lingas, for which I have come all the way to Kailas?”

“O Hanuman! I wanted to have the darshan of the five-faced Anjaneya,” said Vighneswara. “All this drama was enacted only to satiate my curiosity. You’re very much a part of Siva. Do you think anyone can prevent you from taking away any of the lingas? Still you found it proper to make a formal request for one. So, I shall give you the very best among them.” Vighneswara then picked up the largest one and handed it to Hanuman, who took it with great reverence and began his return journey.

All this had taken some time and Rama was getting impatient. Without waiting for Hanuman, Sita made a Siva linga of clay. Rama consecrated it with holy water and began reciting mantras marking the start of his worship.

When Hanuman saw this, he felt ashamed of himself. Overcome by frustration, he tried to pull out the clay linga with his tail. But it stood like a piece of rock.

Rama was all the while watching Hanuman’s actions out of frustration and anger. He turned to Hanuman and said, “My friend, even intelligent persons would sometimes commit mistakes. You possess great knowledge. Though this is clay, it represents the Lord. Nobody can play with the Lord’s images. No, you’re not late; you may instal the linga you have brought next to the clay one. I shall worship both.”