Hanuman Chalisa, Chaupai 18

Meaning of “jug sahasra jojan par bhānū”

"jug sahasra jojan par bhānū" is Chaupai 18 of the Hanuman Chalisa, which Tulsidas wrote in Awadhi. It means: The sun stood thousands upon thousands of yojanas away, and you swallowed it, taking it for a sweet fruit. Read it slowly, one half at a time, and say the Awadhi aloud.

जुग सहस्र जोजन पर भानू ।लील्यो ताहि मधुर फल जानू ॥jug sahasra jojan par bhānūlīlyo tāhi madhur phal jānū

The sun stood thousands upon thousands of yojanas away, and you swallowed it, taking it for a sweet fruit.

Tulsidas, Hanuman Chalisa, Chaupai 18, Gita Press reading

Word by word

जुगjug
ages, a vast count
सहस्रsahasra
thousand
जोजनjojan
yojanas, an old measure of distance
परpar
away
भानूbhānū
the sun
लील्योlīlyo
swallowed
ताहिtāhi
it
मधुरmadhur
sweet
फलphal
fruit
जानूjānū
taking it for

Where this happens in the Ramayana

Valmiki has Jambavan recall it: as a child Hanuman saw the rising sun, took it for a fruit and leapt into the sky to seize it.

अभ्युत्थितं ततः सूर्यं बालो दृष्ट्वा महावने। फलं चेति जिघृक्षुस्त्वमुत्पत्याभ्युत्पतो दिवम्॥

Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha Kanda 4.66.16

Other readings

  • Many printings show सहस्त्र, a common misspelling of सहस्र.

A 7-day courage plan from the Gita, one verse a day, by email.

Send my 7 days

Sources and method

Awadhi text: Goswami Tulsidas, Gita Press reading, checked against three Gita Press printings and Rambhadracharya's Mahaviri. English meaning and word glosses: Wisdom's own, following the traditional reading, edited by Ankur Shukla.