Vyoma (Āyudha of Sūrya)
Vyoma · vyoma, “the sky”
Vyoma is the divine āyudha (weapon) of Bhagavān Sūrya, seen in front of him. The Brahma Parva of the Bhavishya Purāṇa, in its Vyoma Māhātmya, tells that it is made of all the devas, that it has four śṛṅgas (horns) spreading on four sides, and that it is as great as Meru. As the cakra belongs to Bhagavān Vishṇu and the triśūla to Bhagavān Śiva, so the Vyoma belongs to Bhagavān Sūrya.
All rests in the Vyoma. The thirty-three yājñika devas play in it. The Maruts, Pitṛs, Agnis, grahas and the eight deva jātis dwell in it, and the seven lokas are established in it. It is called Meru, Vyoma and Dharma. One who does pūjā of the Vyoma does pūjā of all the devatās and goes to Sūryaloka.
Yājñavalkya, having heard the words of Brahmā, did pūjā of Divākara, whose form is Vyoma, and went to Sūrya Loka.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapters 72, 125–126
The Vyoma before Bhagavān Sūrya
Nārada Maharshi tells Sāmba what he saw when he reached Sūrya Loka. In front of Bhagavān Sūrya stood the Vyoma, equal to Mount Meru, with four horns. Before it stood Diṇḍi, and in the other directions stood the devatās. Sāmba asked him of what devatā’s form that Vyoma with the mark of Meru was.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 76
The nature of the Vyoma
King Śatānīka asks Sumantu Muni the nature of the Vyoma seen in front of Bhagavān Sūrya. Sumantu Muni answers that it is the auspicious weapon of Sūrya (sūryāyudha). The Vyoma-sthāna is sarva-deva-maya, made of all the devas, with four śṛṅgas, and it stands in the front part of Bhagavān Sūrya’s presence.
Vyoma came from that which was born in an ocean of gold and other dhātus and which covers the universe. The Vyoma belonging to Kali is said to be the earth.
Sumantu Muni sets it beside the āyudhas of the other devas:
| Deva | Āyudha |
|---|---|
| Varuṇa | the pāśa |
| Brahmā | the huṃkāra |
| Bhagavān Vishṇu | the cakra |
| Bhagavān Śiva | the triśūla |
| Indra | the vajra |
| Bhagavān Sūrya | the Vyoma |
From Vyoma were born Kāla (Time), Saṃvatsara, Agni and the Ṛtus.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 125
Those who dwell in the Vyoma
The thirty-three yājñika devas, who play in the Vyoma:
- The eleven Rudras: Hara, Vara, Śuddha, Tryambaka, Aparājita, Vṛshākapi, Śambhu, Kapardī, Raivata, Īśvara and Bhavana.
- The twelve Ādityas: Aryamā, Mitra, Bhaga, Varuṇa, Vivasvān, Savitā, Pūshā, Tvashṭā, Aṃśa, Atiteja, Vishṇu and Indra.
- The eight Vasus: Dhruva, Dhara, Soma, Āpa, Anila, Anala, Pratyūsha and Prabhāta.
- The two Aśvins: Nāsatya and Dasra.
The Maruts. Seven Maruts move in the antariksha on separate paths: Pravaha, Āvaha, Udvaha, Saṃvaha, Vivaha, Nīvaha and Parīvaha. With seven in each gaṇa they are forty-nine.
The Agnis. Śuci, Vaidyuta and Pāvaka are the Sūryāgnis, and the fire produced by the churning of the araṇi is named Pavana. This Agni is of three kinds, and counting sons and grandsons the Agnis are forty in all.
The Pitṛs. The Saumyas, Barhishads and Agnishvāttas are the Pitṛs of living men.
The grahas. Sūrya, Candra, Aṅgāraka, Budha, Bṛhaspati, Śukra, Śanaiścara, Rāhu and Ketu.
The eight devayonis. Devas, dānavas, gandharvas, yakshas, rākshasas, pannagas, bhūtagaṇas and vidyādharas.
Some of these are with form and some without form, and all of them dwell in this Vyoma. These seven lokas are established in it: Bhūloka, Bhuvarloka, Svarloka, Maharloka, Janoloka, Tapoloka and Satyaloka. All devatās and all grahas are in it, and all rests in it.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 125
The names of the Vyoma
Sumantu Muni gives sixteen names: Ākāśa, Kha, Diś, Vyoma, Antariksha, Nabha, Ambara, Pushkara, Gagana, Meru, Vipula, Bila, Apochidra, Śūnya, Tama and Rodasī.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 126
Meru in the form of Vyoma
Sumantu Muni says that Meru has four corners and four golden śṛṅgas reaching into the sky. On that mountain Īśvara is in the north-east, Indra in the east, Agni in the south-east, Yama in the south, Nirṛti in the south-west, Varuṇa in the west, the Maruts in the north-west, and in the middle Brahmā himself, the Padmajanma. The grahas, the nakshatras and Āditya are in Vyoma, and this Vyoma is called devamaya, full of the devas, and lokamaya, full of the lokas.
This is called Meru, and Vyoma, and Dharma. This Meru in the form of Vyoma is sarvadevamaya and sarvavedamaya, full of all the devas and all the Vedas. Its four śṛṅgas, counted from the one in the east, are the four Vedas.
Above the aṇḍa-kapāla, the shell of the aṇḍa, is tama, which the text glosses as aṇḍa-bhitti, the wall of the aṇḍa.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 126
The Vyoma in the Sūrya temple
Nārada Maharshi teaches Sāmba how a Sūrya temple is laid out. In the space between the front of the temple and the pratimā, a square maṇḍala with four śṛṅgas is made, measured with cord according to the sūtras of pratimā-śāstra. Before it, facing Bhagavān Sūrya, Diṇḍi is set. At midday arghya is offered here to the Vyoma, full of all the devas.
Alternatively a third maṇḍala is made in the shape of a cakra, Bhagavān Sūrya is set upon it, and the learned give arghya at this place. This Vyoma-sthāna is made near, facing Bhagavān Sūrya.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 130
The phala of the pūjā of the Vyoma
Sumantu Muni says that one who does pūjā of the Vyoma does pūjā of all the devatās. So one who desires what is auspicious must do pūjā of the Vyoma with every effort. One who does its pūjā with bhakti and śraddhā goes to Sūryaloka; of this, he tells the king, there is no doubt.
Source: Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapter 125
Sources
- Bhavishya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapters 72, 76, 125–126, 130