Makaradhwaja : Hanuman’s son
After Hanuman sets Lanka ablaze, he douses the fire in his tail in the waters of the sea. A drop of his sweat falls into the mouth of a crocodile (Makara) which impregnates her. A fisherman discovers a boy who is part vanara and part makara on cutting open the crocodile. He informs Ahiravan, the asura king of Patala about it.
Ahiravan is impressed by the strength and virility of the boy, names him Makaradhwaja, mentors him and asks him to guard the gates of Patala. Makaradhwaja knows he is the son of Hanuman. However, Hanuman is unaware of it.
Dandi Hanuman: A folk tale
Ahiravan and Mahiravan (brothers of Ravana) fall in love with Chandrasena a divine woman and want to marry her. Chandrasena however does not want to marry either of them. So, she smartly says, “I will marry only one of you.”
Since neither can live without Chandrasena, they take her to Patala, give her the keys of the Garbagraha of their temple and say, “We will perform a human sacrifice to appease MahaMaya our deity. We have utmost faith in Her. She will tell us who will marry you. But you should part with these keys only when both of us come to ask for it.” Chandrasena agrees to their plan.
Ravana’s devious plan
Meanwhile, the battle between Rama’s and Ravana’s army becomes intense. Ravana tries to win the battle by devious means. So, he summons Ahiravan and Mahiravan and says, “Rama and Lakshmana are perfect in every way. Sacrifice them and appease Mahamaya. We both will get what we want through Rama and Lakshmana.” The brothers jump at the opportunity gladly with the hope that Chandrasena would marry one of them soon. They say, “We will kidnap Rama and Lakshmana and take them to Patala. They cannot return to Bhuloka on their own.”
Ravana says, “But how will you get past Hanuman? He protects Rama and Lakshmana in a fortress that he has created with his tail.”
Ahiravana and Mahiravan say, “We will dupe Hanuman by assuming Vibhishana’s and Jambavan’s forms.” As Ahiravan and Mahiravan had astutely suspected Hanuman assumes that Vibhishana and Jambavan had come over to discuss the details of the battle with Rama and Lakshmana. So, Hanuman lets them pass through his fortress. But when Hanuman sees Vibhishan and Jambavan approaching him again, he realizes that he has been tricked.
When Ahiravan and Mahiravan reach Patala, they ask Chandrasena for the keys of the Garbagraha saying, “We have got two human beings who are perfect for sacrificing to MahaMaya. We will lock them up in the Garbagraha and prepare for the sacrifice.”
Meanwhile, after Hanuman learns the truth from Vibhishana, he goes to Patala immediately. However, Makaradhwaja bars his entry into Patala. When Hanuman duels with him, he is impressed by his strength and asks him whose son he was.
Hanuman meets his son – Makaradhwaja
When Makaradhwaja narrates the story of his birth Hanuman’s joy knows no bounds. Hanuman and Makaradhwaja drop their weapons briefly and embrace each other. But since they are duty-bound to protect their mentors, they start duelling again. Hanuman overpowers his son Makaradhwaja in no time, ties him up to a wall and enters Patala.
When Hanuman meets Chandrasena, he reveals the identities of the captives to her. Chandrasena secretly lets Hanuman into the GarbaGraha, locks the doors from outside and trusts Hanuman to save Rama’s and Lakshmana’s lives.
Chandrasena calmly hands over the keys to Ahiravan and Mahiravan when they return a while later. They enter from a different gate so are unaware of Hanuman’s fight with Makaradhwaja.
When the asura brothers enter the Garba Graha, they are astounded to see their deity standing in front of them. Hanuman in the guise of MahaMaya says, “These human beings are undoubtedly the most perfect amongst mankind. I am extremely pleased with your offering. Take my blessings before you sacrifice them.” When Ahiravan and Mahiravan prostrate before MahaMaya, Hanuman assumes his true form and quickly kills them both.
Chandrasena feels immensely grateful to Hanuman for saving her from her dire predicament. Rama crowns Makaradhwaja as the king of Patala. And Hanuman returns Bhuloka with Rama and Lakshmana amidst loud cheering.
Dandi Hanuman temple in Bet Dwaraka
The Dandi Hanuman temple in Bet Dwaraka is the place where Hanuman meets his son Makaradhwaja for the first time. A Dandi, a club-shaped weapon lies between Hanuman and Makaradhwaja to symbolize that they dropped their enmity instantly when they realized they were so closely related and basked in those precious moments of togetherness that they shared so briefly.
Pancha Mukhi Hanuman: A folk tale
There is no mention of Makaradhwaja, Chandrasena and Mahiravan in the Pancha Mukhi Hanuman folk tale. But we find a beautiful aspect of Hanuman here…
Before Hanuman leaves for Patala Vibhishan says, “O Hanuman, Ahiravan has spread his prana in five akhanda jyoti lamps that lie in five different places. Only if you extinguish them all in one breath, can you kill Ahiravan.”
Hanuman uses his siddhis, reduces his size to that of an insect and enters Patala. He finds five gigantic lamps in different places and realizes he cannot blow them all out in a single breath.
Hanuman remembers Rama chastising him for burning Lanka with his tail. Rama had said, “Hanuman, from now on just listen to my instructions. They are very specific. And do exactly what I tell you. Nothing more or less than that. And whenever you ask me for something, be specific. Only then I will know what you want exactly.”
Hanuman follows Rama’s advice to deal with the situation at hand. He meditates on the fiercest forms of Vishnu. Vishnu blesses him with the heads of Narasimha, Hayagreeva, Varaha and Garuda and transforms him into Pancha Mukhi Hanuman.
Pancha Mukhi Hanuman blows out all the lamps simultaneously much to Ahiravan’s horror, finds Rama and Lakshmana and brings them back to Bhuloka safely amidst loud cheering.
Rama’s words of wisdom to Hanuman
Rama looks at Pancha Mukhi Hanuman fondly and says, “O Hanuman, physical strength alone is never enough. I understood the plight of others who suffered quietly while serving others without any expectations, as Varaha. As Narasimha, I devised a unique strategy to deal with egoistic people and protect the righteous. I choose to stay away from my worldly enemies and focus on following Dharma at all times, as Garuda. And as Hayagriva, I preserved the timeless wisdom of the Vedas and restored it to its rightful owners. And now as Pancha Mukhi Hanuman – I hope you will imbibe all these traits too.
Pancha Mukhi Hanuman understands the worth of Rama’s words. But he looks at Rama with utmost reverence and says, “My lord, my unwavering Bhakti for you alone gives me the strength to do all these things at the right time and place.”
The essence of Dandi Hanuman and Pancha Mukhi Hanuman
Like Karna, Bheeshma and Drona who remained loyal to Duryodhana, Makaradhwaja too remains loyal to Ahiravan. It’s sad. But true. We always remain indebted to people who help us when we are struggling to create an identity of our own – and end up supporting them even when they indulge in adharma.
Like Pancha Mukhi Hanuman, we too may acquire several traits through our experiences, but essentially, we will remain true to our original nature and will prefer to connect to a higher force in our own way. And that is perfectly fine too.
Pancha Mukhi Hanuman photo was given by: Supraja.
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