Hanuman and Makardhwaja!

श्री गुरु चरण सरोज रज, निज मन मुकुर सुधार |

बरनौ रघुवर बिमल जसु, जो दायक फल चारि |

बुद्धिहीन तनु जानि के, सुमिरौ पवन कुमार |

बल बुद्धि विद्या देहु मोहि हरहुं कलेश विकार ||

Hanuman and his son Makardhwaja

When Hanuman took a dip in the sea, to cool himself after burning Lanka; a drop of his sweat, due to the extreme heat generated in his body due to extreme labor by him, fell into the mouth of a giant fish-eat-reptile like creature(SuvanaMacha) , Makara, thus impregnating it.

The fish was caught by people of Ahiravana, who ruled Patala, the nether-world. Markardhwaja was discovered when the stomach of the fish was cut open and thus he was named after it and was brought up by them.

When he grew up, Ahiravana, seeing his strength and virility gave him job of guarding, the gates of his Kingdom.

When Ahiravana took Rama and Lakshmana to Patala, Hanuman followed them to their rescue. He was challenged at the gate of Patala by a creature, who was part Vanara and part reptile - a Makara. He introduced himself Makaradhwaja and son of Hanuman, the mighty warrior.

Hanuman was amused and said that, I am myself the Hanuman but he could not be his son, as he was Brahmachari complete celibate since birth. However, Hanuman then closed his eyes in dhyana to see the events described above of Makardhwaja's birth.

Makardhwaja asked him for his blessings, however, he said to Hanuman, that he will have to fight him to enter Patala, as he cannot betray Ahiravana, his mentor. Hanuman defeats Makaradhwaja in a duel and then ties him to the back to proceed further to ultimately kill Ahiravana and rescue Rama & Lakshamana as Makardhawaja is presented as the exemplary devotee (bhakta) of Ahiravana as Hanuman for Rama.While returning from patal lok Shri Ram takes a glance at Makradhwaj in pain, post enquiring Hanuman narrates the story to Shri Ram. Shri Ram being impressed by Makardhwajs stand for his mentor and fight with Hanuman declares him the king of Patal Lok as then king Ahiravan was killed.

This is one of the best stories of Ramayana, in the yogic level it signifies a cleansing and purification process.

Hanuman after burning lanka, burning all his karma on with his internal Tapas and agni , is at such an intense state of being that all his tapas is gathered in his sweat in the form of a seed and the seed is seeking expression to be born into the world.

Yet hanuman is such a high intensity that he cannot engage with any mortal woman who can hold the seed and give birth to his son(similar stories apply to Typhonic deva Ganesha and Lord Kartikeya too)

So he drops it in a SuvanaMacha, a tyophnic matsya form, a golden fish . The matsya here represents the first vishnu avatar, representation of vigilant alertness or Awareness.

Remember when pralya(end of old world and daw-beginning of new creation) comes it's the matsya avatar that saves the sapta rishis from flooding of the bhu loka and good to also note that the 1st guru in human embodiment was Matsyendranath. (Adinath shiva is considered as the first guru, the Primeval Master’)  of course hanuman himself is one of the gurus in the ancient lineage. 

So the planting seed in matsya is engaging in giving birth in complete pure awareness.

He is named Makar dhwaja, have you seen a crocodile? How it engages in a hunt, when it dives deeper into sub conscient(water) and when it comes back and sits still on the sand? It represents the quality of the chitta that is pre requisite that is required before you try to enter the Pataal loka, the sub conscient, if you don't embody this quality you will get entangled and get lost in the Pataal loka. 

So when they said Ram and Lakshman were kidnapped and taken by ahirvavna into Pataal loka, it signifies that Raam-the self and Lakshman - Guardian/Protector of self(Snake) have been trapped by the Ahivaravana the Ego Self and Ego-Will. 

So how do you rescue " The Self", that is when Hanuman comes in,he is dedicated to Sri Rama and his work and thus he has to enter the Pataal Loka. 

Hanuman represents, Maha Prana, aspect of vayu, the breath, the most important thing in life, again awareness, enter the Pataal loka with the Tapas(heat, intensity) , the anushasan(discipline), only after you have gained mastery over the Prana, the key to which is mastery of the breath. 

When hanuman enters, he finds Makardhwaja blocking him from entering Pataal loka as he is the guardian, and preventing him from rescuing Shri Rama and Lakshmana. 

At first he is angered how dare someone claim to be his son, he is a Brahmachari but he does samyama on it, dhyana, meditates to check it before acting on it. This represents the quality of the being to be sure, to verify that "Am I responding authentically or from Ego-trip that I am a Brahmachari?"

"Come I wait, I look within me, I am still" 

After he comes out of meditation he realises Makar dhwaja is telling the truth, but he has a responsibility of rescuing "The Self" , he his meant to do Sri Rama's work, helping him to rescue Maa Sita,even if it meant going against or attempting to kill his own son. That's exactly what he does, he ties up Makara Dhwaja which represents the animal, reptile awareness which till now was in control of Ahiravana (Ego will) and is tied up to contemplate and repent. 

Meanwhile hanuman enters in, kills Ahiravana (Ego-will) and rescues Shri Rama and Lakshmana and while they are returning back, Shri Rama "The Self" enquires with hanuman about Makaradhwaja. 

Hanuman narrates the story and Sri Rama crowns him as the king of the Pataal loka, the sub conscient region coronated by Shri Rama himself, that means the transformation of lower nature permanently and now it is under pure awareness and control of the self. 

This whole episode is the working out and transformation which each yogi goes through during his/her own journey to unite Shri Rama and Maa Sita , the union of masculine aspect of Divine  and  Feminine aspect of the Divine , the highest union of yoga, the union of still static energy (Consciousness)  and dynamic-creative energy (Force) of the universe. 

Hanuaman represents the First Gnostic Being to achieve this Union, that is why in the whole of ramayana(the story and journey of separation and union of Chit-Shakti) 

Hanuman is the hero not Shri Rama(with all due respect). 

I could go on with writing about the glory of Pavana Putra-Hanuman, Anjaneya, Buddimatam Vrishtam but the post has to come to an end. 

Today is father's day and Hanuman is exemplar of how a father (which is of course just a small part of his life) is, that if the son is governed by the ego he is not worried about teaching him a lesson to transform him not change him , by being a the perfect example himself, not by just morally lecturing his son, he shows him what it means to do the work of Sri Rama.

Today is also Jayanti of the Guru Rinpoche - Padmasambhava, the lotus born (730AD-805AD, born - the Kingdom of Oddiyana, present-day Swat Valley Pakistan, lived majorly- Nalanda University before destruction, travelled to Tibet, continued to work there and attained mahasamadhi there) 

I dedicate this to my father and to all fathers in this world and first /last but not the least to Bajrang Bali.

May he guide us in our personal journey to attain the highest state of union(Purna Yoga) and live a complete life, in poornatha always, being an Arya Yogi! 

Guru Kripa Hi Kevelam 

Jai Hanuman 

Jai Sri Ram

पवन तनय संकट हरन मंगल मूरति रूप |

राम लखन सीता सहित हृदय बसहु सुर भूप ||

सिया वर राम चन्द्र की जय, पवन सूत हनुमान की जय।