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| SURYA - THE VEDIC SUN-GOD |
In ancient India during Vedic age and even afterwards SURYA has played a very
significant role in Hindu mythology and amongst Hindu gods.
SURYA is one of the three chief gods of the Vedas. As one of the spheres, the
physical sun is the celestial form of fire, Agni, and source of all life. SURYA
is at the center of the spheres. Above it are the esoteric spheres of the Supreme
Ruler and below it are the manifest spheres of the moon and the earth.
The other name of SURYA is SAVITRI, which means brilliance. In the later ages,
like other many Vedic gods, this god became more or less a mythical figure superseded
by Vishnu, who came to be regarded by Hindus as the supreme manifestation of
the self-Existent the Supreme God. Still the most celebrated
mantra (hymn), known as GAYATRI Mantra, is the incantation addressed to SURYA. Also many of the forms
of meditation, prayers and rituals used in the daily ceremonies of Hindu Brahmins
are addressed to this god. Daily in the morning one can see hundreds of Hindus
offering water to the rising sun, accompanied with incantations. Women can be
seen frequently taking a pledge that in case SURYA bestows them with a son, they
would be regularly performing ceremony to worship this god.
A legend states that about three hundred years ago a learned Hindu, who was suffering
from leprosy, prayed to SURYA for cure. He was inspired to write eight verses
in Sanskrit, known as SURYASHTAK, to please the god, and by the time he had finished
the last verse he was restored to health. Worship of the god SURYA is performed
standing in the sun with clasped hands and closed eyes. The origin of this method
of obtaining relief from sickness is ascribed to SHAMBU, the son of Krishna,
who was directed in a dream to repeat twice a day the twenty-one names of SURYA
standing in this manner.
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| SURYA AND SANJANA |
SURYA has two wives, SANJANA and CHHAYA. The first one is the daughter of VISHWAKARMA.
After her marriage she found that she could not bear the power of this god's
rays. She, therefore, made an image of her own, imparted life to it and left
it with SURYA. Later on she was turned into a mare and was adopted by SURYA again.
The abode of this god is called as SURYALOKA. A powerful race of Hindu kings
has always taken pride in calling itself as the direct descendant of Surya. In
this dynasty of SURYAVANSHIS (the descendants of SURYA) the first King had been
IKSHWAKOO while god RAMA was the sixty-sixth king in this lineage. Even till
medieval ages and thereafter so many RAJPUT kings connected their family with
Surya.
Surya has several sons. The lawgiver, MANU, the lord of death, YAMA and the river
YAMUNA were born of SANJANA. According to Mahabharata, the great warrior KARNAwas this god's illegitimate son by KUNTI, the mother of PANDAVAS. Surya is also
the father of the monkey chief, SUGRIVA, who was the ally of Lord Rama. |
