Vāyu is a primary Hindu

Hinduism

Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...

 deity, the Lord of the winds, the father of Bhima

Bhima

In the Mahābhārata, Bhima is one of the central characters of Mahabharata and the second of the Pandava brothers...

 and the spiritual father of Lord Hanuman

Hanuman

Hanuman , is a Hindu deity, who is an ardent devotee of Rama, a central character in the Indian epic Ramayana and one of the dearest devotees of lord Rama. A general among the vanaras, an ape-like race of forest-dwellers, Hanuman is an incarnation of the divine and a disciple of Lord Rama in the...

. He is also known as Vāta (वात), Pavana (पवन, the Purifier), and sometimes Prāṇa (प्राण, the breath).
As the word for air

Air (classical element)

Air is often seen as a universal power or pure substance. Its supposed fundamental importance to life can be seen in words such as aspire, inspire, perspire and spirit, all derived from the Latin spirare.-Greek and Roman tradition:...

, (Vāyu) or wind (Pavana) is one of the Panchamahābhuta or five great elements. The Sanskrit

Sanskrit

Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...

 word 'Vāta' literally means "blown", 'Vāyu' "blower", and 'Prāna' "breathing" (viz.