Child Hanuman Swallows the Sun

Dadi: "Guddu, have you ever been so hungry you felt like you could eat the sun?"

Guddu: "*giggles* That's impossible, Dadi!"

Dadi: "Not for baby Hanuman! Let me tell you what happened when he was just a little child, perhaps younger than you."

Guddu: "Baby Hanuman? I only know him as the big, strong god!"

Dadi: "Every great being starts small, beta. Little Hanuman woke up one morning absolutely starving. His mother Anjana wasn't home, and there was no food around."

Guddu: "Oh no, poor baby Hanuman!"

Dadi: "He looked up at the sky and saw the sun rising - red and glowing, looking exactly like a ripe, juicy fruit."

Guddu: "*gasps* He didn't!"

Dadi: "He did! Little Hanuman thought, "That fruit looks delicious!" And because he was the son of the Wind God Vayu, he could fly. He leaped into the sky and zoomed straight toward the sun!"

Guddu: "The sun must have been so scared!"

Dadi: "Surya, the sun god, was terrified! He called for help. Indra, the king of the gods, came riding on his four-tusked white elephant Airavata."

But baby Hanuman got distracted. "Ooh, a toy elephant!" He started chasing Airavata instead!

Guddu: "He thought the elephant was a toy? *laughing*"

Dadi: "Then something else caught his attention. That day happened to be a solar eclipse, when the shadow planet Rahu was supposed to slowly swallow the sun. Hanuman saw Rahu and thought, "What's this big worm blocking my fruit?!""

He charged at Rahu! Poor Rahu ran to Indra crying, "There's a monkey trying to eat me!"

Guddu: "This is so funny, Dadi!"

Dadi: "Indra wasn't laughing. He threw his thunderbolt weapon at baby Hanuman. It struck the child's face, and little Hanuman fell back to Earth, unconscious."

Guddu: "Oh no! Is that when his face got swollen?"

Dadi: "Exactly, beta. That's why he's called "Hanuman" - "one with a mended jaw." Hanu means jaw."

But now Vayu, the wind god, was furious. His beloved child had been hurt! He caught Hanuman and retreated into a cave, taking all the air with him.

Guddu: "He took ALL the air?!"

Dadi: "Every bit. People couldn't breathe. Animals collapsed. The gods panicked - living beings can't survive without air!"

Guddu: "What happened?"

Dadi: "All the gods came to apologize to Vayu. And to make peace, each one gave baby Hanuman a special blessing:"

Brahma made him immune to all curses.

Indra promised the thunderbolt would never hurt him again.

Surya gave him a portion of his own brilliance.

Varuna blessed him with protection from water.

Yama granted him immortality!

And more and more blessings came...

Guddu: "So all his superpowers came from this one incident?"

Dadi: "Every single one. The ability to fly, to change size, to become incredibly strong, complete wisdom, and eternal life. All because a hungry baby tried to eat the sun."

Guddu: "*thoughtfully* Dadi, it was kind of silly of baby Hanuman, wasn't it?"

Dadi: "It was innocent, beta. He didn't know better. But see how the universe works? His innocent mischief led to him receiving divine blessings that would later help him serve Lord Rama and save the world."

Guddu: "Even mistakes can become something good?"

Dadi: "Sometimes the most unexpected paths lead to the greatest destinations. Baby Hanuman's hungry adventure made him who he was meant to be."

Guddu: "Dadi, can I have a snack? I'm getting hungry just hearing this story!"

Dadi: "*laughs* Just don't try to fly to the sun, beta. The kitchen is much closer!"