Humility and Service: The Way of Hanuman

The episode

When Hanuman returned from Lanka having found Sita, Ram asked how he had managed to cross the ocean and burn a fortress city. Hanuman's answer, in the Ramcharitmanas, is that a monkey's only skill is jumping from branch to branch; whatever was done was done by Ram's power. Ram, who had nothing to give in exile, gave him an embrace, and said he could never repay the debt.

Later, at the coronation in Ayodhya, Sita gave Hanuman her pearl necklace. A well-loved story says he bit each pearl open, and when asked why, replied that he was looking for Ram in them, and that what does not hold Ram is of no use to him. He asked for only one boon: to remain on earth as long as Ram's story is told.

The reasoning

Hanuman is the strongest figure in the Ramayana, and also the most learned and the best speaker. He is worshipped not for the strength but for what he did with it. He used all of it for someone else's cause and kept none of the glory.

This is not false modesty. Hanuman knew exactly what he could do; he crossed the sea without hesitating once reminded. Humility in his case is accuracy about where ability comes from and what it is for. Compare Ravana, equally gifted, who used every gift for himself and lost everything.

It is also the secret of his effectiveness. A person working for his own credit has to stop and be noticed. Hanuman never stops; on the way to Lanka he will not even rest on the mountain that rises to offer him a seat.

How to practise it

• Do the work fully and let someone else announce it.
• When praised, pass the credit to your team, your teachers and to God.
• Offer your particular strength, whatever it is, to a cause larger than yourself.
• Be gentle in manner and firm in purpose: Hanuman approached Sita softly and Ravana fearlessly.
• Finish before resting.

Next: Victory over ego. In Ayodhya, pilgrims by tradition seek Hanuman's permission at Hanuman Garhi before going to Ram's temple. His great journey is the Sundara Kanda.