Let me start this post by explaining what exactly does Baal Bramhachari mean as many people have confusions regarding this. Bramhachari means celibate which is a person that does not engage in sexual activities. Baal means a child, so when these 2 words are combined it means a person who is celibate since childhood or someone who has never had any sexual relations in his life.
There are 2 very famous Baal Bramhacharis in ancient vedic texts. One is Bhishma and the other is Hanuman. Celibacy as per hindu scriptures makes a person spiritually, physically and mentally very strong. No surprise that Hanuman and Bhishma are amongst the strongest warriors ever. In fact most wrestlers in India pray regularly to Hanuman for guidance and strength.
Everyone is familiar about the story that why Bhishma decided to become a baal bramhachari but not many people know why Hanuman took that decision.
Why did Hanuman decide to be a Baal Bramhachari?
Bhishma who took the oath to become a bramhachari so his father could marry Satyavati and fulfil her condition that there should not be any other claim to the throne of Shantanu’s kingdom besides the children of Satyavati. Unlike Bhishma, Hanuman did not have any compulsion to become a bramhachari. He willingly became a bramhachari so his mind can always be focused in serving and thinking about Ram. He was an absolute devotee of Ram and considered that having a wife, forming sexual relations, having children and maintaining a family will distract him from the ultimate aim of his life, which was to serve and pray for Ram. In my view there is no comparison for the level of devotion that Hanuman had for Ram. I have not heard or read of any devotee who comes even close to Hanuman.
Why did Hanuman marry Suvarchala?
A lot of people see the marriage of Hanuman with Suvarchala as a contradiction of his oath of Bramhacharya but if we look closely at the incident we realize there was no interference with his bramhacharya. Hanuman had married Suvarchala who was the daughter of Surya dev in order to gain the knowledge of Nava Vyakarnas which could only be received by people who were married. The marriage was done just to enable Hanuman to complete his knowledge and there were no sexual relations between Hanuman and Suvarchala so he maintained his celibacy.
Each god in Hinduism has an associated Shakti, Vahana and Astra. Shakti signifies the female companion, Vahana is the vehicle they use and is typically an animal that is associated to the god and Astra is the powerful weapon they carry.
Shakti is not just a wife or companion but also signifies form of strength and energy which helps the god. In case of Hanuman the Shakti is Suvarchala who helps him expand his knowledge, Camel is his Vahana and Gada is his Astra.
Is Makaradhwaja the son of Hanuman?
Another aspect of Hanuman’s life that raises doubt in peoples mind about celibacy is the existence of his son Makaradhwaja. Again if we look closely at the life of Makaradhwaja we will realize that Hanuman always maintained his celibacy.
It is said that when Hanuman was coming back from Lanka a few drops of his sweat fell into the ocean. These drops of sweats were consumed by a female crocodile. The sweat was so potent that the crocodile got pregnant and Makaradhwaja was born as part monkey and part crocodile.
Makaradhwaja was raised by Ahiravan who was a demon that lived inside the ocean. Once Ahiravan captured Ram and Lakshman and took them to the ocean. Hanuman rescued Ram and Lakshman and when he was coming out of Ahirava’’s palace his path was blocked by Makaradhwaja who was the commander of the palace. Hanuman defeated Makaradhwaja and when Ram got to know the full story he declared Makaradhwaja as ruler of the lands under the ocean.
Om Namah Shivay!