Images of Sanatan - Hanuman tearing his Chest
This iconic photo of Hanuman tearing his chest has a wild story behind it that you don’t know about so here’s the tea!
You’re watching Episode 5 in our series “Images of Sanatan” in which I decode the meanings behind famous Hindu Dharmic visuals you’ve seen but never really understood.
You’ll be shocked to to know that the whole incident shown here doesn’t actually appear anywhere in the two most authoritative versions by Valmiki or Tulsidas’ Charitramanas, except for maybe in the Uttarkanda which is debunked to be a later mixture & not part of the original script.
We actually read about it in the 15th century CE’s regional Bengali Krittivasi version penned by Krittibas Ojha. In this, when Devi Sita presents hanuman with a neckless, he says anything without Ram’s name is useless, and when he’s bullied for not having Ram’s symbol on himself, he tears open his chest to reveal Ram’s image, proving that his entire essence has his Prabhu Sri Ram in every atom of it.
The practical lesson for you to take away is that when we’re praying to our Ishtas i.e. our guardian deities, we must BECOME them, as in pick up their best virtues, values & personalities into our daily lives - only then will our sadhana make sense.
Hanuman shows us that his bhakti towards Ram isn’t surface-level, he’s so deeply in love with him that his heart literally beats with Ram Naam.
When you repeat your given mantra daily & consistently, you’ll soon see that the deity literally starts acting through you, that’s the power of sadhana.
You know what’s funnier. tho? Hanuman’s Gada Mace weapon, which he’s most famously known for worldwide, is also a recent addition, not an original element.
In the original Valmiki tale, Hanuman plays the role of a wise Vedic scholar, spy & strong warrior, making use of rocks, boulders, mountains & iron rods in his vicinity to fight his opponents.
It’s only when Tulsidas re-branded him as a bhakt of Ram, who he believed to be a Vishnu Avatar, did Vaishnav followers also start putting Vishnu’s Kaumodaki in his hand to concretise that narrative.
Hanuman’s orange colour, dapped with Sindoor, also comes from a medieval story in which Sita tells him that she applies sindoor to ensure Ram’s long life, so like an innocent pookie, he lathers the same all over his body to protect Ram endlessly.
The point to make here is the Hindu culture is so beautifully human that our own Gods & deities are constantly evolving as we discover them in new ways. It has happened with Ganpati, too, but we’ll save that for another episode.
Case in point is how with Hanuman has earned the title of the #1 bhakt after he was linked to Shiva & Vishnu in the last few centuries.
Who knows, 500 years later, if he ever makes an appearance because he’s an immortal Cheeranjeevi still lodging in Gandhamadan mountain in our realm, our great grandkids might actually see him in a new fresh light?
Regardless, he’ll always remain our favourite Maruti,
So jor se bolo, JAI BAJRANGBALI & JAI SHREE RAM!