I bow to the leader, the lord of all monkeys—kapisha, the destroyer of Aksh—aksha hantaaram— and to the one who created fear in the hearts of the people of Lanka—vande lanka bhayankaram. The word kapi is generally translated as vanar or monkey. Going into science, Darwin’s theory mentions another race of intelligent humanoids—between homo sapiens, the human race, and the race of apes and monkeys.
But, the term kapi has a greater significance. It is made up of ka and pi. ‘Ka’ in Upanishadic literature refers to Brahma-sukham or infinite happiness, and ‘pi’ is to drink. Hence, kapi epitomises a Person of Realisation who is incessantly drinking divine knowledge. Moreover, when invoked with the right attitude and devotion, such a person reveals this knowledge to us.
Kapi is the one who constantly drinks the nectar of devotion of Sri Ram and reaches out to Him. Realised Masters and Sages are also like kapis. They move from place to place, just like our great Gurudev did, travelling around the world imparting knowledge, instilling devotion, and removing the cause of our sorrows. Through their exemplary lives, such kapis instil confidence and motivate us to take giant leaps in life.
Among all the Realised Masters, Hanuman’s name is agraganyam—foremost. Among the vanaras, Sugreeva and Bali were kings who sat on the throne of Kishkindha. Sri Hanuman was not the king but it was he who ruled over the hearts of the monkeys and, as such, was indeed a true leader. Therefore, kapisham is an apt name to describe him as the leader of the monkeys.
