A chalisa (from chalis, "forty") is a forty-verse hymn of praise, a devotional genre that flourished in North Indian vernacular languages. The Hanuman Chalisa, composed in Awadhi by the 16th-century saint-poet Tulsidas, is by far the most recited — millions chant it daily or on Tuesdays and Saturdays, the days associated with Hanuman, for courage and protection from negativity. Its popularity inspired chalisas to many other deities, including Durga Chalisa, Shiv Chalisa, Ganesh Chalisa, and Sai Chalisa. A chalisa typically opens and closes with framing doha couplets around forty chaupai verses, and is recited rhythmically, often from memory.