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{{Short description|Characters of Hindu epic Ramayana}}
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{{Use Indian English|date=January 2016}}
[[File:Rama and monkey chiefs.jpg|thumb|[[Rama]] and Vanara chiefs|300x300px]]
 
In [[Hinduism]], '''Vanara''' ({{langx|sa|वानर||forest-dwellers}})<ref name="FM">{{Cite book|last=Krishna|first=Nanditha|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DF_af8_547EC&q=Vanara+forest+monkey|title=Sacred Animals of India|date=2014-05-01|publisher=Penguin UK|isbn=978-81-8475-182-6|language=en}}</ref> are either monkeys, apes,<ref name="monier">{{cite web |last1=Monier-Williams |first1=Monier |title=Monier-Williams Sanskrit Dictionary 1899 Basic |url=https://www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de/scans/MWScan/2020/web/webtc/indexcaller.php |website=www.sanskrit-lexicon.uni-koeln.de |access-date=23 August 2022}}</ref> or a race of forest-dwelling people.<ref name = "FM" />

In the epic the ''[[Ramayana]]'', the Vanaras help [[Rama]] defeat [[Ravana]]. They are generally depicted as [[humanoid]] apes, or human-like beings.

== Etymology ==
[[File:When Ravana carried Sita first on his shoulders and then in the chariot, she threw some of her jewels towards the monkeys.jpg|thumb|When Ravana carried Sita first on his shoulders and then in the chariot, she threw some of her jewels towards the monkeys]]
There are three main theories about the etymology of the word "Vanara":

* Aiyanar suggests that ''vanara'' means "monkey" derived from the word ''vana'' ("forest"), Literally meaning "belonging to the forest"<ref name="Narayan">{{cite book |author=Aiyangar Narayan |title=Essays On Indo-Aryan Mythology-Vol. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Oym17qIeB-0C&pg=PA422 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |isbn=978-81-206-0140-6 |pages=422–}}</ref> Monier-Williams says it is probably derived from ''vanar'' (lit. "wandering in the forest") and means "forest-animal" or monkey.<ref name="monier"/>
* [[Devdutt Pattanaik]] suggests that it derives from the words ''vana'' ("forest"), and ''nara'' ("man"), thus meaning "forest man" and suggests that they may not be monkeys, which is the general meaning.<ref name="Pattanaik2003"/>
* It may be derived from the words ''vav'' and ''nara'', meaning "is it a man?" (meaning "monkey")<ref name="Banerji2003">{{cite book |author=Shyam Banerji |title=Hindu gods and temples: symbolism, sanctity and sites |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XSRAAQAAIAAJ |date=1 January 2003 |publisher=I.K. International |isbn=978-81-88237-02-9}}</ref> or "perhaps he is man".<ref name="(Swami.)2000">{{cite book |author=Harshananda (Swami.) |title=Facets of Hinduism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_lERAQAAIAAJ |year=2000 |publisher=Ramakrishna Math}}</ref>

== Identification ==
[[File:Vintage 40'S Print BHARAT MEETS RAMA Brijbasi.jpg|thumb|left|alt=A 20th-century painting depicting a scene from Ramayana, wherein Vanaras are shown building a bridge to [[Lanka]]|A 20th-century painting depicting a scene from the ''Ramayana'', in which Vanaras are building a bridge to [[Lanka]].]]

Although the word Vanara has come to mean "monkey" over the years and the Vanaras are depicted  as monkeys in the popular art, their exact identity is not clear.<ref name="Kristi1997">{{cite book |author=Kirsti Evans |title=Epic Narratives in the Hoysaḷa Temples: The Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata, and Bhāgavata Purāṇa in Haḷebīd, Belūr, and Amṛtapura |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=v-0yalYlNDkC&pg=PA62 |year=1997 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=90-04-10575-1 |pages=62–}}</ref><ref name="Catherine1994"/> According to the Ramayana, Vanaras were shapeshifters. In the Vanara form, they had beards with extended sideburns, narrowly shaved chin gap, and no moustache. They had a tail and razor-sharp claws. Their skin and skeleton were reinforced with an indestructible Vajra, which no earthly element could penetrate. Unlike other exotic creatures such as the [[rakshasa]]s, the Vanaras do not have a precursor in the [[Vedic literature]].<ref name="Vanamali2010">{{cite book |author=Vanamali |title=Hanuman: The Devotion and Power of the Monkey God |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j5qFlxXSS48C&pg=PA13 |date=25 March 2010 |publisher=Inner Traditions / Bear & Co |isbn=978-1-59477-914-5 |page=13 }}</ref> The ''Ramayana'' presents them as humans with reference to their speech, clothing, habitations, funerals, weddings, consecrations etc. It also describes their monkey-like characteristics such as their leaping, hair, fur and a tail.<ref name="Catherine1994">{{cite book |author=Catherine Ludvik |title=Hanumān in the Rāmāyaṇa of Vālmīki and the Rāmacaritamānasa of Tulasī Dāsa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KCXQN0qoAe0C&pg=PA2 |date=1 January 1994 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-1122-5 |pages=2–3|quote=G. Ramadas infers from Ravana's reference to the ''kapis''' tail as an ornament (''bhusana'') that is a long appendage in the dress worn by men of the Savara tribe.}}</ref> Aiyanagar suggests that though the poet of the ''Ramayana'' may have known that vanaras were actually forest-dwelling people, he may portrayed them as real monkeys with supernatural powers and many of them as ''{{Transliteration|sa|amsa}}''s (portions) of the gods to make the epic more "fantastic".<ref name="Narayan"/>

According to one theory, the Vanaras are semi-divine creatures. This is based on their supernatural abilities, as well as descriptions of [[Brahma]] commanding other deities to either bear Vanara offspring or incarnate as Vanaras to help Rama in his mission.<ref name="Catherine1994"/> The [[Jain]] re-tellings of Ramayana describe them as a clan of the supernatural beings called the [[Vidyadhara]]s; the flag of this clan bears monkeys as emblems.<ref name="Richman1991">{{cite book |author=Paula Richman |title=Many Rāmāyaṇas: The Diversity of a Narrative Tradition in South Asia |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XkifYfljHP4C&pg=PA35 |year=1991 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=978-0-520-07589-4 |pages=35 }}</ref><ref name="KRSI2005">{{cite book |author=Kodaganallur Ramaswami Srinivasa Iyengar |title=Asian Variations in Ramayana: Papers Presented at the International Seminar on 'Variations in Ramayana in Asia : Their Cultural, Social and Anthropological Significance", New Delhi, January 1981 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CU92nFk5fU4C&pg=PA68 |year=2005 |publisher=Sahitya Akademi |isbn=978-81-260-1809-3 |pages=68–}}</ref><ref name="RobertSally1996">{{cite book |author=Valmiki |others=Translated and annotated by Robert P. Goldman and Sally J. Sutherland Goldman |title=The Ramayana of Valmiki: An Epic of Ancient India - Sundarakāṇḍa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sFmsrEszbxgC&pg=PA31 |year=1996 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=0-691-06662-0 |page=31 }}</ref><ref name="Philip2006">{{cite book |author=Philip Lutgendorf |title=Hanuman's Tale : The Messages of a Divine Monkey: The Messages of a Divine Monkey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fVFC2Nx-LP8C&pg=PA116 |date=13 December 2006 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-804220-4 }}</ref>{{rp|334}}<ref name="Pattanaik2003">{{cite book|author=Devdutt Pattanaik|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xolzAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA121|title=Indian Mythology: Tales, Symbols, and Rituals from the Heart of the Subcontinent|date=24 April 2003|publisher=Inner Traditions / Bear & Co|isbn=978-1-59477-558-1|page=121}}</ref>

G. Ramdas, based on Ravana's reference to the Vanaras' tail as an ornament, infers that the "tail" was actually an appendage in the dress worn by the men of the [[Sora people|Savara]] tribe.<ref name="Catherine1994"/> (The female Vanaras are not described as having a tail.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Adhyātma Rāmāyaṇa: Concise English Version |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sQcmczcunygC&pg=PA10 |date=1 January 1995 |publisher=M.D. Publications |isbn=978-81-85880-77-8 |page=10 }}</ref><ref name="Philip2006"/>{{rp|116}}) According to this theory, the non-human characteristics of the Vanaras may be considered [[artistic license|artistic imagination]].<ref name="Kristi1997"/> In Sri Lanka, the word "Vanara" has been used to describe the [[Nittaewo]]s mentioned in the [[Vedda people|Vedda]] legends.<ref name="CGU2000">{{cite book |author=C. G. Uragoda |title=Traditions of Sri Lanka: A Selection with a Scientific Background |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BOmAAAAAMAAJ |year=2000 |publisher=Vishva Lekha Publishers |isbn=978-955-96843-0-5}}</ref>

== In the ''Ramayana'' ==

[[File:Sampati's Find.jpg|thumb|[[Sampati]] meeting with Vanaras painted by Balasaheb Pandit Pant Pratinidhi]]
Vanaras are created by [[Brahma]] to help [[Rama]] in battle against [[Ravana]]. They are powerful and have many godly traits. Taking Brahma's orders, the gods began to parent sons in the zion of [[Kishkindha kingdom|Kishkindha]] (identified with parts of present-day [[Karnataka]], [[Andhra Pradesh]], and [[Maharashtra]]). [[Rama]] first met them in [[Dandaka Forest]], during his search for [[Sita]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/rama/index.htm|title=The Ramayana index}}</ref> An army of Vanaras helped Rama in his search for Sita, and also in battle against [[Ravana]], Sita's abductor. [[Nala (Ramayana)|Nala]] and [[Nila (Ramayana)|Nila]] built a [[Adam's Bridge|bridge]] over the ocean so that Rama and the army could cross to [[Lanka]]. As described in the epic, the characteristics of the Vanara include being amusing, childish, mildly irritating, badgering, hyperactive, adventurous, bluntly honest, loyal, courageous, and kind.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/rama/index.htmtranslation |title=The Kabbalah: Part Two: Chapter IV. Analysis of the Zohar. The Kabbalists' View of the World |access-date=4 January 2009 |archive-date=20 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191020115406/https://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/rph/rph16.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref>

== Other texts ==
The Vanaras also appear in other texts, including [[Mahabharata]]. The epic [[Mahabharata]] describes them as forest-dwelling, and mentions their being encountered by [[Sahadeva]], the youngest [[Pandava]].{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

== Shapeshifting ==

In the ''Ramayana'', the Vanara [[Hanuman]] changes shape several times. For example, while he searches for the kidnapped Sita in Ravana's palaces on Lanka, he contracts himself to the size of a cat, so that he will not be detected by the enemy. Later on, he takes on the size of a mountain, blazing with radiance, to show his true power to Sita.<ref>Goldman, Robert P. (Introduction, translation and annotation) (1996). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=sFmsrEszbxgCThe Ramayana of Valmiki: An Epic of Ancient India, Volume V: Sundarakanda]''. Princeton University Press, New Jersey. 0691066620. pp. 45–47.</ref>

== Notable Vanaras ==
[[Image:Hanuman in Terra Cotta.jpg|thumb|Sculpture of [[Hanuman]], a warrior among the Vanaras, carrying the [[Dunagiri|Dronagiri]] mountain]]
* '''[[Angada]]''', son of [[Vali (Ramayana)|Vali]], successor of [[Sugriva]], who helped [[Rama]] find his wife [[Sita]]
* '''[[Añjanā|Anjana]]''', [[Hanuman]]'s mother
* '''[[Hanuman]]''', devotee of the god [[Rama]] and son of [[Vayu]]
* '''[[Kesari (Ramayana)|Kesari]]''', Hanuman's father
* '''[[Mainda]]''' and '''[[Dvivida]]''', sons of [[Ashvins]]
* '''[[Macchanu]]''', son of [[Hanuman]] (per the [[Reamker|Cambodian]] and [[Ramakien|Thai]] versions)
* '''[[Makardhwaja]]''', son of [[Hanuman]] (per the [[Versions of Ramayana#Regional versions|Indian versions]])
* '''[[Nala (Ramayana)|Nala]]''', son of [[Vishwakarma]]
* '''[[Nila (Ramayana)|Nila]]''', son of [[Agni]]
* '''[[Rumā]]''', wife of [[Sugriva]]
* '''Sharabha''', son of [[Parjanya]]
* '''[[Sugriva]]''', king of [[Kishkindha]], son of [[Surya]]
* '''[[Sushena]]''', son of [[Varuna]]
* '''Taar''', son of [[Brihaspati]]
* '''[[Tara (Ramayana)|Tara]]''', wife of [[Vali (Ramayana)|Vali]]
* '''[[Vali (Ramayana)|Vali]]''', [[Sugriva]]'s brother and son of [[Indra]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Wiktionary|vānara}}
*{{Commons category-inline}}

{{Ramayana}}

[[Category:Legendary creatures in Hindu mythology]]
[[Category:Mythological monkeys]]
[[Category:Mythological human hybrids]]
[[Category:Vanara in the Ramayana| ]]
[[Category:Forest spirits]]