Mukhya Praana and his Avataara-s
This is an article series. Please read all previous articles before reading this article. The URLs for all previous articles are located in the SPECIAL THOUGHTS section.
Earlier, we had started pondering over Mukhya Praana.
- Mukhya Praana is destined to ascend to the position of Chaturmukha Brahma in the next Para Kaala. In other words, the current Brahma will attain Moksha at the end of the current Para Kaala. This will result in the annihilation of the entire Brahmaanda, which is referred to as Mahaa Pralaya. No creation exists past Mahaa Pralaya for a duration of 1 Para Kaala (311,040,000,000,000 earth years). And then, a new Brahmaanda gets created, which will have the current Mukhya Praana promoted to the new Chaturmukha Brahma
- At the current time, the current Brahma and Mukhya Praana have Abhimaana over everything in this entire Brahmaanda. Most importantly, Brahma & Mukhya Praana are referred to as Jeeva Kalaa Abhimaani Devata-s, which means that they are present inside every Jeevaatma.
- Paramaatma is infinite. But a Jeevaatma is finite. There is no way for anything finite to connect with the infinite. Therefore, as described in Shreemad Bhaagavata Puraana, Paramaatma himself created the Mukhya Praana Tattva so as to serve as a connection between the infinite Paramaatma and every finite Jeevaatma. But how many such “Fine Jeevaatma-s” exist? The answer is… the total number of Jeevaatma-s is also infinite. Thus, Mukhya Praana connects all the infinite “Finite Jeevaatma-s” with One Single “Infinite Paramaatma”. And thus, one facet of Mukhya Praana Tattva which connects with every Jeevaatma is finite, while the other facet of Mukhya Praana Tattva which connects with the Paramaatma is infinite. For this reason, Mukhya Praana is specifically referred to as Sootra and Paramaatma is referred to as Sootra Dhaara. In a Puppet Show, there is a Puppeteer who is working the Puppets through the strings that connect them to his fingers. In this example, Paramaatma is like the Puppeteer (Sootra Dhaara), all the Jeevaatma-s are like the Puppets and Mukhya Praana is like the strings (Sootra) which connect the Puppets to the Puppeteer’s fingers.
All across the world, there are numerous Hindu temples. A temple is not created by simply buying some Moorti-s and housing them in a Mandap in a building or structure. The Moorti needs to be carved as per iconographic rules and stipulations as per Sthaapatya Veda, on of the 4 Upaveda-s. Likewise, the temple architecture too has to follow various rules of iconography and Vaastu Shaastra. After having followed the aforementioned rules, stipulations, and recommendations, the learned and wise follow the steps of invoking the presence of the Divine in that particular Moorti (icon), and this process is popularly referred to as Praana Pratishthaapana. Most Hindus will have heard the term “Praana Pratishthaapana”, especially in the context of the “Raam Lalla” temple at Ayodhya in January, 2024. What exactly does this mean? In layman terms, the Moorti – which was carved so wonderfully by Shree Arun Yogiraj – is a finite icon. Our intention is to invoke the “Infinite Paramaatma” into this “Finite Moorti”. As explained above, the one who connects the “Infinite Paramaatma” to the “Finite Moorti” is Praana. This process is called “Praana Pratishthaapana”. This involves something that we’ve lately started referring to as Vedic Science.
Basically, Science pertains to Jada (Inanimate), and Vedic Science pertains to Jeevaatma (Sentient) and the energies associated with them. The difference between the Jada (Insentient) and the Jeevaatma (Sentient) is that the Jeevaatma (Sentient) has Jnyaana (Knowledge) and experiences Aananda (Bliss) whereas Jada has neither Jnyaana (Knowledge), nor does it experience any Aananda (Bliss). Therefore, spiritual and emotional connection is possible only between Jeevaatma-s (which also includes Devata-s) and of course, Paramaatma, who is bestowed with infinite Jnyaana (Knowledge) and Aananda (Bliss). Praana Pratishthaapana involves spiritually and emotionally connecting with the Saatvik Jeevaatma-s (Devata-s), Mukhya Praana, and Paramaatma. Needless to say, that this requires awareness of the basic facts pertaining Devata-s, Mukhya Praana, and Paramaatma, which is what is referred to as Yathaartha Jnyaana. Our emotions towards the Devata-s must be guided by Yathaartha Jnyaana and that’s what leads to Nija Bhakti. Simply getting emotionally supercharged is not Bhakti. For example, someone who is normally very calm and composed too will start jiving and grooving to the drum beats in party… or will start sobbing when he/she goes to the funeral of a close friend. This is because the atmosphere in the party or the funeral home is emotionally supercharged. Similarly, when someone is overwhelmed with a sense of gratitude towards the Devata-s, they become emotionally supercharged and will start saying anything & everything in flattery… and often nonsensical. This can’t be termed Bhakti. We can see many examples of this in the latest blockbuster movie, Hanuman Ansh. As they say in Hindi… “Bhaavnaaon me behkar kuch bhee bol dena” is not Bhakti. One needs to take a step back, rein in the emotions and try to understand the facts (acquire the much-essential Yathaartha Jnyaana) and express gratitude based on those facts. This is what leads to Bhakti and begets the Anugraha of the ones above.
In summary, since the Moorti is a finite insentient icon, we invoke Mukhya Praana to connect this “Finite Insentient Icon” with the “Infinitely Sentient Paramaatma”. This is called Praana Pratishtaapana. And from then on… we offer Naivedya (edibles) to the “Infinite Paramaatma” through the afore said Pancha Praana-s. You can go to any temple in any number of countries all across the world… the priests there will offer Naivedya (edibles) to the Infinite Paramaatma while chanting the Mantra-s “Praanaaya Swaaha, Apaanaaya Swaaha, Udaanaaya Swaaha, Samaanaaya Swaaha, Vyaanaaya Swaaha”. So, yet again… we’ve all heard about Praana. We were never explained anything in detail.
It is now amply clear that Praana is not “Optional”… but instead, Praana is “Absolutely Vital”. There is no living or existence without Praana. That is why this Devata is referred to as Mukhya Praana or even Pradhaana Vaayu, where the words Mukhya and Pradhaana refer to something that is most important (as in Mukhya Mantri or Pradhaana Mantri). The Devata-s in levels 4, 3, and 2 are, as has been explained earlier, referred to as Para Shukla Traya Devata-s… which means that Mukhya Praana is a Para Shukla Traya Devata. Also as has been explained earlier, Amsha (or Ansh as is often used in Hindi) refers to partial manifestation, carries limited or specific powers, and often forgets the “Moola Roopa,” and this applies to all Devata-s in Level 5 and below… whereas, Avataara of a Para Shukla Traya Devata is quite rare and never a partial manifestation. They always descend with their full powers, though they may not always use them. And, they never forget their “Moola Roopa”. Therefore, an Avataara of Mukhya Praana is extremely rare and when it does happen, it will be of humongous importance. This has been substantiated by the following verses in Bhavishyat Parva or Bhavishyat Puraana.
tasyaangam prathamam vaayu:
praadurbhaava visheshata: |
prathamo hanuman naama
dwiteeyo bheema eva cha ||
poorna prajnya: truteeyastu
bhagavat kaarya saadhaka:
tretaadishu yugeshyeva
sambhoota: keshavaajnyayaa ||
A famous scholar par excellence, and a Padmashree awardee, has stated that the above scripture may not be available currently as ancient manuscripts may not have been preserved to the present day. One scholar I consulted informed me that lines similar to the above verses are present in the Skanda Purana too. I suspect that manuscripts of Bhavishyat Parva may’ve been deliberately hidden or destroyed by some miscreants. But the above verse is very significant in emphasizing the importance of “Vaayu”. Let’s elaborate on the meaning of the above verse:
tasyaangam prathamam vaayu: = Vaayu (Mukhya Praana Vaayu) is his (Paramaatma’s) first/foremost organ (of action)
praadurbhaava visheshata: = On account of the importance of (his) Praadurbhaava (Avataara)
prathamo hanuman naama = First (Avataara) is referred to by the name Hanumaan
dwiteeyo bheema eva cha = Second (Avataara) is that of Bheema
poorna prajnya: truteeyastu = Third (Avataara) is that of Poorna Prajnya
bhagavat kaarya saadhaka: = (He is the) accomplisher of Paramaatma’s tasks/missions
tretaadishu yugeshyeva = (He takes Avataara-s in) Tretaa yuga onwards
sambhoota: keshavaajnyayaa = On account of Keshava’s (Paramaatma’s) decree.
The aforementioned scholar also explains that the above verse also elaborates to us that Paramaatma takes Avataara-s in only in Kruta, Treta and Dwaapara Yuga-s… whereas Mukhya Praana takes Avataara-s in only in Treta, Dwaapara and Kali Yuga-s. In other words, Paramaatma does not take Avataara in Kali Yuga, but Mukhya Praana does… and Paramaatma does take Avataara in Kruta Yuga, but Mukhya Praana does not. With the above verse, it is now evident that it is Mukhya Praana who took his first Avataara as Hanumaan in Tretaa Yuga. So, let’s elaborate on the first Avataara of Shree Mukhya Praana, which is the great Hanumaan.
Hanumaan
What a wonderful Avataara! A role model in every thought, every word, and every step. Let me begin by asking this question. Which other Devata, in any Avataara and that too as a little boy, has jumped up to the sky, caught the Sun, and carried him in the armpit? Distance didn’t matter… temperature didn’t matter… brightness, unbearable by mere mortals, too didn’t matter. And when he was struck by Indra, he pretended to become unconscious, which caused life in the entire universe to come to a standstill. If this doesn’t depict Hanumaan’s connection with the basic vitality of the entire universe, what else will?
Another important anecdote from Vaalmeeki Raamaayana is the way Hanumaan appeared in front of Shree Raama and Lakshmana for the first time. Hanumaan is in the form of a Vaanara in this Avataara… but when he was “ordered” by Sugreeva to intercept the “intruders” in Kishkinda, he chose to appear in front of Shree Raama and Lakshmana in the form of a Braahmana. The words he spoke were so apt, precise, and to the point that it left none less than Shree Raama himself in awe. Shree Raama himself told Lakshmana that there’s not a single flaw in the Braahmana’s (Hanumaan’s) speech and that such flawless speech is possible only when one has absorbed the essence of the entire Veda-s. What more do we need to say about Hanumaan’s Jnyaana? Those who chant “jai hanumaan jnyaan guna saagar” rarely think of this anecdote about Hanumaan.
Next… Hanumaan relinquishes his Braahmana form and returns to his Vaanara form and carries both Raama and Lakshmana on his shoulder. This is a huge symbol in substantiation of all that has been said so far about Mukhya Praana being the connection between the Finite Jeevaatma and the Infinite Paramaatma. Here Lakshmana represents a Jeevaatma seeking Moksha and Shree Raama represents Paramaatma, the bestower of Moksha. And Hanumaan is Mukhya Praana, carrying both. Just as Hanumaan carried both his master Shree Raama and Lakshmana through the narrow valleys of Kishkinda, Mukhya Praana has the ability to carry us, mere mortal Jeevaatmas, through the narrow channels of our Shareera to unbounded freedom for eternity.
Next… Hanumaan is also the only Devata to jump across an ocean and return. Hanumaan didn’t simply jumping across the ocean… Hanumaan had a mission to accomplish. He had been tasked with carrying a message from Shree Raama to Maataa Seetaa Devi. Therefore, as described in the verses above, Hanumaan became the true Kaarya Saadhaka (Accomplisher of an Assigned Mission). Carrying Paramaatma’s message is not a task that can be assigned to any Pappu, Laloo or Pinkoo… It cannot be assigned to anyone other than the absolute best among all the Devata-s. Also, crossing the ocean is symbolic for crossing the Bhava Saagara (the ocean of life and this seemingly eternal cycle of birth/death). The only one capable of crossing over to our side to redeem us and take us back with him is Mukhya Praana, which is what is shown symbolically as Hanumaan crossing the ocean, delivering a message, destroying all those who cause impediments, burning down everything that houses evil and then returning to Shree Raama with a message… successfully and completely unhurt.
Next… among all the Devata-s you may be aware of in the realm of Hinduism, how many Devata-s have lifted a mountain? I’m sure you’ve heard of Krishna lifting a mountain, Varaaha lifting the whole Bhoomi, Vishnu bringing the Meru mountain while mounted on Garuda. Here, Krishna and Varaaha are both Avataara-s of Vishnu. The only Devata to lift a mountain in either the Moola Roopa or in any Avataara is Hanumaan lifting the Sanjeevini mountain. While elaborating on the topic of Sarasvati Devi sitting on a rock, it had been explained that a rock is symbolic for Yathaartha Jnyaana and Nija Bhakti. A mountain is basically a conglomerate of several such rocks. Thus, Hanumaan lifting the Sanjeevini Parvata is symbolic for Mukhya Praana Devata proving the depth of his knowledge to the entire universe and that he is capable of knowing everything pertaining to this entire universe.
What’s even more interesting, and not very popularly known, is how Hanumaan put the Sanjeevini Parvata back where it belongs. After the necessary herbs were extracted from the mountain, Hanumaan did not feel the need to fly back from Lanka to Himaalaya from where the Sanjeevini Parvata had been brought. He just lifted it back again and, standing in Lanka, he threw it back towards the Himaalaya. The Sanjeevini Parvata did not fall down randomly somewhere and roll down until it lost all its momentum… but, it actually fell back into its place exactly where it was located earlier and exactly how it was situated in that place… not one inch this way or that way, but precisely as it was before. We do not hear any such anecdotes regarding any other Devata.
Amidst all the above, we are currently facing a huge fallacy about worship of Hanumaan as an Avataara of Shiva. This is totally unfounded, goes against all the scriptures, defies all common sense, and is extremely detrimental to the well-being of society. Hanumaan is NOT Shiva’s Avataara. This may’ve been a nefarious line of thought invented by miscreants. This may’ve come from some Veera Vaishnava-s and/or Veera Shaiva-s for different reasons. Some even ascribe this line of thought to have originated from Shree Tulasi Daas who, with all due respect to his great poetic offerings of hymns evoking Bhakti, may not have been able to go deep enough to see the difference between Mukhya Praana (the Guru) and Shiva (who, according to the scriptures, is Mukhya Praana’s Shishya for a duration of 40 Para Kaala-s, which amounts to 311040 billion X 40 Earth Years).
Be it the Veera Vaishnava-s or Veera Shaiva-s or anyone else… they all got it completely wrong… yet, the whole of Uttar Bhaarat believes in this fallacy. This belief may please those devotees… But will it please Shiva when the devotees are giving him the credit which should go to his Guru Mukhya Prana? Will it please Hanumaan? Shouldn’t that matter most? Say, for example, a person helps someone complete a certain construction project for a college. He lends his service without expecting anything in return and works for free. And on the day of inauguration, the college board showers all kinds of praises and profusely thanks his neighbour. What will the neighbour think? What will the person who actually did all the work think? Do you expect the person to be pleased because you gave all the credit to his neighbour for all the work he did? If you think that the person was not given due credit? And if you don’t expect humans to be pleased such stupidities, then how/why would you expect Devata-s to be pleased by such stupidities? Credit must always be given where it is due and the Devata-s know this too well.
I’ve even heard some of my “irrational and emotionally supercharged” friends say “Oh… Devata-s are very kind… they won’t be offended by things like this”. My response to that is… Does Raama not know to distinguish between those who offer flowers to him and those who throw stones at him from rooftops? Do you expect Raama to bless those who offer flowers to him with utmost respect and also bless those who throw stones at him? And, in the earlier example, it remains a fact that credit was not given where it was due… and on top of that, you are now accusing that Raama too doesn’t know to give credit where it is due. Such arguments are completely irrational.
Suppose one person reads and understands the scriptures and understands that Shiva (Level 5, Shesha Maarga, Position 99) has to serve as a Shishya of Mukhya Praana (Level 3, Position 99). And another person doesn’t care to understand any of the scriptures and goes by the popular belief that Hanumaan is Shiva’s Avataara. One has done his homework and understands the subject well… while the other couldn’t care less to understand the subject, nor did any homework. If both of them deserve the same credit, then that would be irrational and unfair. As has been mentioned many times in the past, Devata-s are not dimwits who dole out A+ to everyone regardless of how they performed in the test. As mentioned earlier with examples, we benefit from our beliefs and worship only when they line up with realities. If our beliefs don’t line up with realities… then we get into trouble no matter how strong our belief may be.
In conclusion, as has been discussed in the past, Veera Vaishnava-s do not worship Shiva, and that creates a controversy. Similarly, Veera Shaiva-s do not worship Vishnu, and that creates another type of controversy. However, among all the Devata-s worshipped by Hindus, Hanumaan is the most non-controversial. All Hindus worship Hanumaan, who is one of the 7 Chiranjeevi-s (who live for the entire time until the end of the current Para Kaala). Hanumaan is said to be in Kishkinda to this day, and his presence will be there wherever Shree Raama is being worshipped.
We shall ponder over the recent blockbuster movie “Hanuman Ansh”.
