Maruti

Maruti, better known as Hanuman, is another extraordinary divine personality from the Indian pantheon of gods. As some Puranas tell, he is the son of Vayu, the wind god, and the beautiful apsara Anjani, who at that time had taken the form of a vanara due to a curse. He is also considered the eleventh incarnation of Lord Shiva.

As a child, Maruti was very restless (he probably took after his father). Once, seeing the Sun, Maruti decided it was some very sweet fruit and tried to eat it. Indra saw this and hurled his vajra at him, breaking his jaw. Hence the name Hanuman — the one with the broken jaw. The wind god Vayu became furious and nearly destroyed Earth by depriving it of oxygen. To appease him, all the devas arrived and each gifted the little Maruti unusual abilities, while Brahma healed him and made him invulnerable to any weapon. Maruti's attempt to eat Surya didn't prevent him from later becoming his student, though to gain this knowledge he first had to impress his future teacher with his abilities.

Nevertheless, as a child Maruti was a troublemaker who loved to play pranks on various sages, stealing their ritual objects. So the holy men placed a curse on him — he would forget about his unusual abilities and siddhis until someone called upon him for help.

When Maruti grew up, he became one of the devotees of Rama — an avatar of Lord Vishnu, and his most significant feats are described in the ancient Indian epic «Ramayana». When Rama ended his earthly journey, Hanuman wished to remain — for as long as people would remember Rama's name. He is among us even now and is always ready to come to the aid of all who sincerely call upon him.