We shall relish, little by little, the rasa in Sri Madhurageethams, compositions of HH Maharanyam Sri Sri Muralidhara Swamiji, in the form of ‘questions to relish’, which we call as a ‘quelish’, as shared by his disciple Sri Ramanujamji.
(These quelishes are being shared regularly in a whatsapp group dedicated to enjoying the rasa of Sri Madhurageethams. To join this group, please reach out to us at newsletter@godivinity.org)
This month we shall enjoy a quelish related to Lord Hanuman.
Where can you find the link between Sri Hanumanji and Lord Srinivasa of Tirumala in Sri Madhurageetham verses?
While there are several Sri Madhurageethams that link Lord Srinivasa and Lord Hanuman, the one that best fits this quelish is ‘bAla hanumantham’. In this Madhurageetham, in the last line Sri Swamiji sings that Lord Hanuman is Lord Srinivasa’s dearest devotee.
The whole song resonates with the spirit of childhood innocence, joy, spontaneity and divinity. Our Bala Hanuman wearing colorful garlands, playing varieties of games, without “mine” and “I”, and being the son of Vayu, is flying freely in the vast blue skies and in the vast blue sky of our Sri Swamiji’s heart as well (we can infer this from the term “bhAvayami”.
Tattva Rasa
In this Madhurageetham, Sri Swamiji, when referring to Lord Srinivasa refers to him as “gaganapathi jAmAtA”(son-in-law of Akasha Raja). Wind is contained and is within the vast sky. Lord Hanuman is jeevottama and is in the fold of Srinivasa, who is sarvotthama. Therefore, Lord Hanuman is in the perfect state devoid of “I’ and “me”.
Prema rasa
Further, in this Madhurageetham, the “heart” of Sri Swamiji seems to be overflowing with the “bhAvam” of Anjana Devi. A child is decorated by the mother; he does not decorate himself on his own! The motherly affection of Sri Anjana Devi, seeing and rejoicing her ‘lil’ boy, whom she lovingly decorated, is seen through our beloved Sri G’s heart also. Hence, the lines that describe the form of Lord Hanuman (nAnAvidha puShpa mAlAdharam).
Why does a mother decorate a son? So that the father finds tremendous joy in cuddling him.
Here, the Vayu Kumara, with all the lovely adornments, was sent by the mother so that the father ‘Vayu’ could cuddle him to his heart’s content. So Vayu Kumara did ‘gagana’ sanchara for his father to cuddle him and feel the joy along with his Divine Father (Lord Srinivasa) also fondly watching in Tirumala!
What a priceless dominant bhaava of vatsalyam (motherly devotion) towards Hanumanji!
The lyrics and meaning are presented below.
Other Madhurageethams that link Lord Srinivasa with Lord Hanuman are “Ananda vimaana” and “Jaya Jaya Srinivasa” and to some extent “Govinda undan naamame”.
Raga: Khamboji
Tala: Adi
bAla hanumantham bhAvayAmi – sadA
nAnAvidha puShpa mAlAdharam
nAnAvidha krIDana lOlam
mamakAra ahankAra rahitham
mamachitthachOram vAyukumAram
gaganE sanjcharaNa samarttham
gaganapathijAmAthA priyabhaktham
Meaning
I am envisioning Bala Hanuman – Always!
The One adorning garland of assorted flowers
The One who enjoys sporting different leelas
The One devoid of ‘I’ and ‘Me’
The son of Vayu who has captivated my mind
The One who has the prowess to fly around in the sky
The One who is dear to Lord Srinivasa (son-in-law of Akasa Raja)
Sowmya Balasubramanian, Dublin, CA
Illustration by Thaman Sai, Arepalli, 12yrs, Richmond VA
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