Supporting
Hanuman Reveals His Identity and StoryCh. 444
Bhima asks the ape to reveal his true identity. The ape speaks: he was born from Kesari and Vayu, the wind god — the same wind that gave Bhima his own strength. He is Hanuman, the monkey who served Rama, who leaped across the ocean to find Sita, who burned Lanka and returned. He tells Bhima that he asked Rama for a single boon: to live as long as Rama's deeds were sung on earth. Rama agreed. And so Hanuman is still here.