Tulsidas started the Ramlila plays, a folk-theatre adaption of the Ramayan. He founded the Sankat Mochan Hanuman Temple dedicated to Hanuman in Varanasi, believed to stand at the place where he had the sight of Hanuman. The Tulsi Ghat in Varnasi is named after him. Tulsidas lived in the city of Varanasi until his death. Tulsidas was acclaimed in his lifetime to be a reincarnation of Valmiki, the composer of the original Ramayan in Sanskrit. A composer of several popular works, he is best known for being the author of the epic Ramcharitmanas, a retelling of the Ramayana in the vernacular Awadhi language. Tulsidas (1497/1532–1623) was a Hindu poet-saint, reformer and philosopher renowned for his devotion for Rama. The Hanuman Chalisa is the most popular hymn in praise of Hanuman, and is recited by millions of Hindus every day. Recitation or chanting of the Hanuman Chalisa is a common religious practice. The qualities of bhagwan Hanuman – his strength, courage, wisdom, celibacy, devotion to Lord Rama and the many names by which he was known – are detailed in the Hanuman Chalisa. Folk tales acclaim the powers of Hanuman. According to the Shaivite tradition, God Hanuman is also an incarnation of God Shiva.
Hanuman is a devotee of Shri Rama and one of the central characters in a well-known Hindu epic, the Ramayan. A Gulshan Kumar-produced rendition of Hanuman Chalisa sung by Hariharan has received more than 2 billion views on YouTube as of November 2021, making it the first devotional song in the platform to achieve this feat.
The word "chālīsā" is derived from "chālīs", which means the number forty in Hindi, as the Hanuman Chalisa has 40 verses (excluding the couplets at the beginning and at the end). Apart from Awadhi, the Hanuman Chalisa is also available in various languages including Sanskrit, Telugu, Tamil, and Gujarati. It was authored by Tulsidas in the Awadhi language, and is his best known text apart from the Ramcharitmanas. The Hanuman Chalisa ( Hindi pronunciation: Forty chaupais on Hanuman) is a Hindu devotional hymn ( stotra) in praise of Hanuman.