I wanted to post slokAs of Lord Shiva during the week of mahAshivarAtri, but got side-tracked with other things. I will save those for a later time. In this post, I will post one of my favorite slokAs which I have been wanting to write about for a while.
बुद्धिर् बलम् यशो धैर्यम्
निर्भयत्वम् अरोगताम्
निर्भयत्वम् अरोगताम्
अजाड्यम् वाक् पटुत्वम् च
हनुमत् स्मरणात् भवेत्॥
हनुमत् स्मरणात् भवेत्॥
buddhir balam yasho dhairyam
nirbhayatvam arogatAm
ajADyam vAk paTutvam ca
hanumat smaraNAt bhavet ||
This is one of the simplest slokAs you will come across with a very simple meaning. बुद्धि (buddhi) - intelligence, बलम् (balam) - strength, यश् (yash) - fame, धैर्यम् (dhairyam) - courage, निर्भयत्वम् (nirbhayatvam) - fearlessness, अरोगताम् (arogatAm) - disease-free health, अजाड्यम् (ajADyam) - determination, वाक् पटुत्वम् च (vAk paTutvam ca) - and articulateness of speech, will all last forever (भवेत्, bhavet) if you meditate (स्मरणात् , smaraNAt) on Lord Hanuman (हनुमत्, hanumat) at all times.
The quality that stands out for me whenever I recite any Hanuman slokAs or read stories about him is his humility. Despite his immense strength and courage, he embraces the role of a humble servant at all times. In one of the innumerable stories about him, he was offered the chance to give up mortal life for good. However, he turned that offer down since he wanted to live on forever here on Earth all the while meditating on his dear Lord Rama. He did not want the pleasures of the other worlds to distract him. Such is his faith, chastity and spirit of bhakti.
