Celebrating Hanuman Jayanti - The Birth of Lord Hanuman

Among all festivals associated with Lord Hanuman the Hanuman Jayanti or birth of Lord Hanuman is the most celebrated.

It is often believed that tithi of Hanuman Jayanti is Ashwin Vadya Chaturshi; but some believe the same to occur on Chaitra Purnima every year.

The overall environment is all new and refreshing on Hanuman Jayanti, especially in India, wherein every nook and corner has a temple dedicated to Lord Hanuman. Every year at Hanuman Jayanti, a host of religious discourses are conducted at temples; these also include pujas before sunrise. The conclusion is initiated after sunset, often with kirtans, after which idol of Lord Hanuman is worshipped and Prasad, often prepared with dry ginger is distributed among the devotees.

In one's everyday life, one can attain both, the blessings of Bajrang Bali, and his intervention in all one's actions. More so than ever, on Hanuman Jayanti, the Vayuputra is believed to be 1,000 times more active than on normal days. On the day, as aura of festivity prevails, it is believed that one must chant Sri Hanumate Namah as many times as possible.

Ideally, there are some predefined ways that state and tell us the right way to worship deity Hanuman. Before the worship, one must apply sindur on the deity or a picture of the deity with the ring finger. Similarly, the flowers which are offered to the deity should be in multiples of five, and should be offered with their stem towards the deity. The incense sticks that are used for worship should be of Kewda, Chameli and Ambar flavors, and there is a procedure for using the incense sticks for Aarti as well. As these are held between the index finger and thumb of the hand, these must be rotated thrice in the clockwise direction, while completing a full circle.

On Hanuman Jayanti, one must try and visit a Hanuman temple at sometime during the evening. One must go around the idol five times and if one wants to do further circumambulations, these should be in multiples of five.

In the state of Maharashtra, it is Saturday which is believed to be the day for Lord Hanuman, but in rest of India, both Tuesdays and Saturdays are considered to be particularly auspicious for worshipping Lord Hanuman. On these days, one must worship Lord Hanuman by offering Sindoor and oil. Another traditional custom which is very prominent and has been prevalent from centuries is of breaking a coconut before Lord Maruti.

A very common belief associated with lord Hanuman is that his idol in a seated position should not be installed on an altar. This is because in the seated form, Maruti represents the nirgun (unmanifest) and maarak (destructive) form of energies. Maruti means the one whose roar cannot be penetrated even by deities. The higher element of any deity, it is thus believed, can be activated by the roar of Lord Hanuman. This has the strength to shake up the fourteen planes of saptalok and saptapatal.

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