Sūrya

Sūrya is the deva of the Sun. The Purāṇas tell of his birth from the eyes of Nārāyaṇa, from the cosmic Śakti, and as the son of Kaśyapa and Aditi. He is the father of Yama, Yamunā, Śani, Tapatī and the Aśvins. He is the chief of the twelve Ādityas, who are the twelve months of the year.

The Varāha, Mārkaṇḍeya, Agni, Bhaviṣya and Bhāgavata Purāṇas, and the Mahābhārata, each tell part of his story. Here is what they say about his birth, family, pūjā and the grace he gives.

Birth of Sūrya

From the eyes of Nārāyaṇa

The Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 9, says that Nārāyaṇa was thinking how to support the newly created world when a great light came out of his eyes.

• The right eye gave a light like fire (vahni-saṃkāśa).
• The left eye gave a light like snow or moonlight (tuhina-saṃkāśa).

Parameṣṭhin (Brahmā) knew these lights and shaped them into Sūrya (the Sun) and Candra (the Moon). Next came prāṇa-vāyu (the vital air). From vāyu came fire, and from fire came water.

From the cosmic Śakti

The Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 26, says that at first only the eternal Ātman existed, with jñāna-śakti (the power of knowledge). When it wished for a second, light (teja) came out from within itself. That light is Sūrya, the great radiance (mahā-teja).

“Because all devas, siddhas, ṛṣis, and the sun itself arose from him, he is called Sūrya (the birth-source).”

Names of Sūrya

The Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 26, gives these names and where they come from.

Family: the Ādityas

The Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 20, says that Sūrya, also called Mārtaṇḍa, is the son of Kaśyapa and Aditi. Kaśyapa is the son of Marīci, who is the son of Brahmā. The twelve sons of Kaśyapa and Aditi are the twelve Ādityas, and each one is a month of the year.

“These months are the Ādityas. The year itself is Hari (Viṣṇu).”

Mārtaṇḍa is the most glorious of the twelve. The Varāha Purāṇa describes him this way:

“The nārāyaṇātmaka teja (Nārāyaṇa’s light) manifested in twelve forms.”

The two wives of Sūrya

In the Varāha Purāṇa, Sūrya married Saṃjñā, daughter of the divine craftsman Tvaṣṭā. Her children by Sūrya are:

• Yama, the deva of death
• Yamunā, the sacred river

Saṃjñā could not bear Sūrya’s intense radiance. She made a shadow-double of herself, Chāyā, and went to the northern Kurus in the form of a mare (aśvī).

The children of Chāyā

Sūrya lived with Chāyā, thinking she was Saṃjñā. Chāyā’s children are:

• Śani (Saturn)
• Tapatī, the devī who is the river Tapatī

The unequal treatment

Chāyā favoured her own children over Yama and Yamunā. Yama complained to Sūrya. Sūrya was angry. Because of Chāyā’s fault he cursed Śani (śāpa): “You shall have a cruel gaze.” To Yama he said: “You shall be the one in the middle (dharma-pāpa madhyavartī, between dharma and pāpa), and ruler of all worlds.”

Sūrya and Saṃjñā meet again

Sūrya traced Saṃjñā to the northern Kurus. He became a stallion (aśva) and joined with her in the Prājāpatya manner. From this union came the Aśvinī Devatās (the Aśvins).

The birth of the Aśvins

The Varāha Purāṇa, Chapter 20, says that when Sūrya joined Saṃjñā in her mare form, his seed fell and split in two. By the grace of a vara (a boon), these two became the twin divine physicians.

• Their names are often given as Nāsatya and Dasra.
• They are sons of Sūrya (Mārtaṇḍa) by the horse-form of Saṃjñā, daughter of Tvaṣṭā.
• In Chapter 9, their counterparts in the body are prāṇa and apāna, the two vital breaths.

The Saptamī tithi

The events of Sūrya’s coming forth took place on a Saptamī (the seventh lunar day). He came out as great heat from Nārāyaṇa, tormented the devas, and then cooled at their request.

On this day:

• The devotee gives Sūrya pūjā with devotion (upāsanā).
• Sūrya gives the worshipper the desired result (iṣṭa-phala).

The Ārogya Vrata

In the Varāha Purāṇa (Book 2, Chapter 62), Sūrya is the presiding deva of the Ārogya Vrata. This vrata (vow) removes disease and brings health, wealth and mokṣa (liberation).

How it is kept

• When to begin: on the Saptamī of the bright fortnight (śukla-pakṣa) of the month of Māgha.
• Fasting: eat on Ṣaṣṭhī, fast on Saptamī, and eat again on Aṣṭamī. This three-day cycle is one observance.
• How long: repeat it on every Saptamī for a full year (ekā saṃvatsara).
• Archanā (pūjā with names): honour Sūrya, who is the form of Viṣṇu and is eternal (sanātana), with these names:

Āditya! Bhāskara! Ravi! Bhānu! Sūrya! Divākara! Prabhākara!

• Fruit (phala): whoever honours Sūrya in this way for a full year gets health (ārogya), wealth (dhana) and grain (dhānya) in this life. After death he reaches the śubha sthāna (auspicious place) from which there is no return, which is mokṣa.

The account of King Anaraṇya

The power of the vrata is shown by the account of King Anaraṇya, a ruler of great strength and beauty. One day he travelled to Māna-sarovara with his divine company. In the middle of the lake he saw a huge, shining white lotus, the brahmodbhava-padma. It is the form of Brahmā’s first manifestation, living in the waters. Its very touch gives mokṣa.

The king was taken by its beauty and told his charioteer: “Bring me that lotus. I shall wear it on my head and be praised before all.” The charioteer went into the water and reached for the lotus. The moment he touched it, a great roar (huṃkāra) burst out, and the charioteer fell dead from the sound. The king’s own colour changed at once. He became a leper (kuṣṭhin) and lost his strength and courage.

The ṛṣi Vasiṣṭha, son of Brahmā, then came and explained:

“This lotus is the Brahmodbhava-padma, famous in the three worlds. The moment one sees it, all devas become visible. It appears only for six months at a time. One who sees it and then enters the water destroys all pāpa and reaches mokṣa. Your charioteer did exactly that. He entered the water on seeing it and has gone to sugatī (a good destination).”

“Within this golden lotus, Sūrya himself dwells, who is in truth the eternal Paramātman. You saw it and then said you would wear it as an ornament. This pride, this pāda-buddhi (treating the sacred as a crown-jewel), brought you this leprosy.”

Vasiṣṭha ended: “You saw this lotus, so I call you a sādhu (a good man). But you gave way to moha (delusion), so I call you an asādhu.”

He then taught Anaraṇya the Ārogya Vrata. The king kept it with a devoted heart. The disease left him and he reached the highest siddhi (perfection).

Saṃjñā, Chāyā and the solar line in the Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa

The Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, Chapters 74–75, tells more of Sūrya’s family life and how his tejas (radiance) was reduced.

In this account Sūrya’s wife is Saṃjñā, daughter of Viśvakarma, the divine builder. She could not bear his full tejas, and she used to lower her eyes before him. Sūrya cursed her twice. The first time was for closing her eyes: “A restrainer of all beings shall be born of you.” So Yama came into the world. The second time was for being restless in his presence: Yamunā would be born, a river-daughter of restless mind. Both births came from Sūrya’s displeasure.

Saṃjñā could no longer bear the full radiance. She made a shadow-double, Chāyā, from her own body to be his wife in her place. She told Chāyā to serve Sūrya faithfully and never to reveal the secret, unless her hair was seized or a curse threatened her. Then Saṃjñā fled, first to the home of her father Viśvakarma, and then to Uttara Kuru (the northern Kurus), where she did tapas (austerity) in the form of a mare.

When the secret came out, Viśvakarma put Sūrya on a divine lathe and cut down his tejas, shaving away fifteen of every sixteen parts. From this trimmed radiance Viśvakarma made the weapons and ornaments of the devas:

• Śiva’s triśūla (trident)
• Viṣṇu’s Sudarśana Cakra
• Kubera’s vimāna (flying chariot)
• the weapons of the other devas, yakṣas and vidyādharas

Sūrya was left with only one-sixteenth of his first tejas.

Sūrya then went to Uttara Kuru in the form of a horse (aśva). His nostrils touched those of Saṃjñā, who was doing tapas as a mare, and the Aśvins, Nāsatya and Daśra, were born from the mare’s mouth.

The devas and ṛṣis saw the restored Sūrya and praised him with a stotra (hymn of praise). It calls him:

• Ṛk-svarūpa, Yajus-svarūpa and Sāma-svarūpa (the form of the Ṛg, Yajur and Sāma Vedas)
• the cause of day and night
• the purifier of all things through his kiraṇas (rays)

Without his touch no homa (fire offering), dāna (gift) or dharma bears fruit.

The Mārtaṇḍa Māhātmya in the Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa

After the account of Saṃjñā and Chāyā and the reduction of Sūrya’s tejas, the Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa gives nine chapters (99–107) to the Mārtaṇḍa Māhātmya, a long praise of Sūrya as the sustainer of the cosmos and the embodiment of Vedic knowledge.

Sūrya as Vedic teja. The Māhātmya says that Sūrya is not only a planetary deva but the visible form of the first Vedic teja (luminous power). His rays are the Ṛk, Yajus and Sāma mantras, the three forms of Vedic knowledge made visible as light. It says plainly: “Without Sūrya’s kiraṇas, no homa, dāna or dharma bears fruit.”

The twelve monthly names. Sūrya is one with the twelve Ādityas, each with a name for one month of the year: Dhātā, Aryamā, Mitra, Varuṇa, Indra, Vivasvān, Pūṣan, Parjanya, Aṃśu, Bhaga, Tvaṣṭā and Viṣṇu.

The stotras to Sūrya. In these chapters the devas and ṛṣis offer many stotras to Sūrya. They praise him as the eye of the world, the witness of all action, the cause of the seasons and tides, and Paramātman shown in visible light.

Accounts of grace. The Māhātmya includes accounts of Sūrya’s devotees receiving his grace. One is the account of the princes rescued from Pātāla through Sūrya’s help.

Sūrya in the Agni Purāṇa: form and pūjā

The Agni Purāṇa treats Sūrya’s form in Chapter 51, his pūjā-vidhi (rule of pūjā) in Chapter 73, and his pratiṣṭhā-vidhi (rule of installation) in Chapter 99. These chapters are narrated by Hayagrīva to Brahmā and by Parameśvara to Skanda.

His form on the seven-horsed chariot

Sūrya stands on his chariot with seven horses (saptāśva) and one wheel. He has two arms and holds a red lotus in each hand. On his right stands Daṇḍī, who holds a writing instrument and an inkpot. On his left stands Piṅgaḷa, who holds a staff. These two are his chief attendants (pārśadas) and stand at his doorway. Two women with cāmaras (fly-whisks) attend at his sides. His consort Chāyādevī stands beside him. A simpler form shows only Sūrya on his chariot. The seven horses pull the chariot, and Aruṇa is the charioteer.

The twelve Ādityas

The Agni Purāṇa lists twelve forms of Sūrya who preside over the twelve months. They live in the twelve rāśis (zodiac signs) in turn. Each has its own colour, and each has four arms that hold the mudgara (club), śūla (spear), cakra (discus) and kamala (lotus).

Their twelve śaktis are Iḍā, Suṣumnā, Viśvārci, Indu, Pramardinī, Praharṣiṇī, Mahākālī, Kapilā, Prabodinī, Nīlāmbara, Vanāntasthā and Amṛtākhyā. They are set on the tips of the keśaras (filaments) of the twelve-petalled lotus that surrounds the central Sūrya.

The nine Sūrya-śaktis

In the solar pūjā (Chapter 73), nine śaktis of Sūrya receive pūjā on the eight petals and the centre of the lotus of the pūjā-maṇḍala. Each has a bīja-mantra (seed syllable).

The four-part sthāna (seat) on the pīṭha are Vimalā, Sāra, Ārādhya and Paramasukha. They receive pūjā at the four corners of the pīṭha.

How the Sūrya pūjā is done

The solar pūjā begins with the devotee meditating: “I am the luminous Sūrya.” Arghya (the water offering) is made by mixing red sandalwood paste into water and raising it to the level of the forehead. Gaṇeśa is honoured first in the Īśāna corner, with this mantra:

Gaṃ Gaṇapataye Namaḥ

(A salutation to Gaṇapati.) Then the guru is honoured in the Āgneya corner. The pīṭha-maṇḍala is then made sacred. Sūrya’s āvāhana-mantra (mantra of invitation) uses a nine-syllable form, with bīja syllables added:

Oṃ Haṃ Khaṃ Dolāya Namaḥ

The Sūrya mantra for regular japa (repeated recitation) is:

Hrāṃ Hrīṃ Saḥ Sūryāya Namaḥ

(A salutation to Sūrya.) The Gāyatrī mantra, which begins “Oṃ Bhūḥ Bhuvaḥ Svaḥ”, is the central Sūrya mantra, along with the special solar mantras for each limb. The navagrahas are given pūjā in Sūrya’s company: Candra, Maṅgala, Budha, Bṛhaspati, Śukra, Śani, Rāhu and Ketu. Red lotuses and red sandalwood are the chief offerings to Sūrya.

Sūrya-pratiṣṭhā

Chapter 99 of the Agni Purāṇa lays down the pratiṣṭhā (installation and consecration) of Sūrya’s mūrti in the usual Āgamic order:

• maṇḍapa-nirmaṇa (building the pavilion)
• śayyādhivāsana
• the nyāsa of the vidyā and of the Sūrya-devatā with his limbs (sāṅga)
• the tattvanyāsa, from ākāśa to pṛthvī
• śuddhyāṭaka
• piṇḍiśodhana (purifying the pedestal)

The Sūrya mantra, with “Svāmī” or “Pāda” added to the name of the deva, is used throughout the pratiṣṭhā. The same solar mantras used for pūjā are used for the prāṇa-pratiṣṭhā, the calling of life into the image.

Sūrya in the Bhaviṣya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva

The Brahma Parva of the Bhaviṣya Purāṇa speaks of Bhagavān Sūrya at length: his cosmic identity, his household (parivāra), his rays, his appearance at the start of the kalpa, his twelve forms, the account of his avatāras and the whole Sauradharma. It is told as a conversation between Sumanta Muni and King Śatānīka.

Sūrya, the deva seen with the eyes

Śrī Kṛṣṇa, teaching Sāmba, calls Sūrya Nārāyaṇa the supreme pratyakṣa devatā (the deva who can be seen directly). He says:

“He is the eye of the entire cosmos. This world arose from him and dissolves into him. All of these arose from Sūrya Nārāyaṇa alone: graha, nakṣatra, yoga, kāraṇa, rāśi, the Ādityas, Vasus, Rudras, Vāyu, Agni, the Aśvins, Indra, Prajāpati, the directions, all lokas, mountains, rivers, oceans and nāgas. There is no deva higher than him, nor will there ever be.”

(Brahma Parva, Chapters 47–48.)

His divine household

Nārada described Sūrya’s celestial household (Brahma Parva, Chapters 75–76):

• Wives: Rājñī and Nikṣubhā, his two consorts, who sit on either side of him in his sūrya-loka.
• Charioteer: Aruṇa, the elder brother of Garuḍa, who drives seven emerald-green horses.
• Attendants (gaṇas): Piṅgala, Lekhaka and Daṇḍanāyaka, each with his own duties.
• Doorkeepers: two birds named Kalmaṣa.
• Also present are Brahmā and Diṇḍi, who sing Sūrya’s praise.

The Sūrya-maṇḍala and his rays

The Sūrya-maṇḍala (the Sun’s disc) is 9000 yojanas across. His kiraṇas spread through the whole disc like the stamens that spread out from a kadamba flower. The Mahāpuruṣa of the sahasraśīrṣāḥ puruṣaḥ hymn lives at the centre of this disc.

Sūrya has 1000 kiraṇas, in three groups:

• 400 Candana kiraṇas: they make rain and are of the nature of amṛta.
• 300 Candra kiraṇas: they bring snow and are pale green.
• 300 Śukla kiraṇas: they make heat and sustain the world.

The seven chief rays among the thousand are Suṣumṇa, Harikṣeśa, Viśvakarman, Sūrya, Raśmi, Viṣṇu and Sarvabandhu.

Twenty names for the rays are: Heti, Kiraṇa, Gau, Raśmi, Gabhasti, Abhīṣu, Ghana, Uṣṭra, Vasu, Marīci, Nāḍī, Dīdhiti, Sādhya, Mayūkha, Bhānu, Aṃśu, Saptārci, Kara and Pāda.

(Brahma Parva, Chapter 75.)

The twelve forms of Sūrya

The Bhaviṣya Purāṇa (Chapter 74) describes the twelve divine mūrtis of Sūrya, who preside over the twelve months. The twelfth is Viṣṇu. This same Viṣṇu came as Vāsudeva Kṛṣṇa, so Sāmba is the son of a form of Sūrya himself. (Brahma Parva, Chapters 50–51 and 74.)

The showing of Sūrya at the start of the kalpa

At the start of the present kalpa, Brahmā and the devas were seized by ahaṃkāra (pride). Then Sūrya’s supreme tejas arose of itself, spread through the cosmos and showed itself in its universal form (virāḍrūpa) before the devas. Brahmā, Śiva and Viṣṇu each offered great hymns. They are three of the greatest Sūrya stotras kept in the Purāṇas. (Brahma Parva, Chapters 152–153.)

Sūrya’s account of his avatāras

The Brahma Parva (Chapters 158–159) includes Sūrya’s own account of the forms he has taken across the yugas and manvantaras for the good of dharma and the world. This section is part of the Sauradharma teaching.

Bhadra, daughter of Sūrya and Chāyā

The Uttara Parva of the Bhaviṣya Purāṇa (Chapter 117) tells of the birth of Bhadra, daughter of Sūrya and Chāyā. It also tells how she became part of the pañcāṅga (the traditional almanac) as the presiding power of the Viṣṭi-karaṇa.

When Bhadra was born she was so fierce and overwhelming that all the worlds were shaken. She had the colour of a thundercloud and eyes blazing with terrible energy, and she threatened to consume everything around her. Brahmā himself came to her. By his authority as Creator he disciplined her fierce power and gave it a direction. From then on she would preside over the Viṣṭi-karaṇa. This is the fearsome karaṇa of the pañcāṅga that falls eight times in every lunar fortnight. Her harmful energy is acknowledged and held in check by rites in this period. Brahmā also gave her twelve auspicious names. By reciting them, even the unlucky Viṣṭi period becomes helpful for the devotee.

Bhadra is a sister of Śani, since both are children of Sūrya and Chāyā. Traditional pañcāṅga calendars keep careful track of the Viṣṭi that belongs to Bhadra. Rites to calm her are done before any important act that falls within her period.

The monthly company of Sūrya in the Bhāgavata Purāṇa

The Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 12th Skandha, Chapter 11, tells how Bhagavān Viṣṇu, in the form of Sūrya, moves through the twelve months of the year with a company of seven, a different group for each month. This answers a question of Śaunaka Maharṣi at Naimiśāraṇya: how is Bhagavān Viṣṇu to be worshipped through knowing the Sun’s monthly forms? The teaching is that the inner ātmā of all beings, the Sun who gives light and life, and Bhagavān Śrī Hari are one reality. The Sūrya-maṇḍala is Bhagavān Śrī Hari’s own acintyā māyā-śakti (inconceivable power of māyā).

Each month Sūrya travels with seven companions:

• the Āditya, the solar form itself
• a Maharṣi, who praises Sūrya with Vedic mantras
• a Gandharva, who sings the glories of the Sun
• an Apsarā, who dances before him
• a Yakṣa, who makes ready the solar chariot
• a Rākṣasa, who pushes the chariot with great strength
• a Nāga, who binds the parts of the chariot together

In addition, sixty thousand Vālakhilya ṛṣis, sinless brahmarṣis of tiny size, go before Sūrya, face him and praise him all the time.

The twelve monthly groups are:

The Bhāgavata also teaches that Bhagavān Śrī Hari, through his beginningless māyā, has made himself into nine forms in the domain of Sūrya and yajña:

1. Kāla (time)
2. Deśa (place)
3. Yajña (the sacrificial action)
4. Kartā (the doer)
5. Karaṇa (the instruments)
6. Karma (the act of sacrifice)
7. Veda-mantra (the sacred words)
8. Dravya (the materials)
9. Phala (the fruit)

The whole system of yajña, from the moment it is done to its cosmic fruit, is Bhagavān Sūrya himself, who is one with Viṣṇu.

Whoever meditates on these names of Sūrya’s monthly companions at the three daily sandhyās (junctures of the day) will have all his stored pāpa destroyed.

The origin of the umbrella and sandals

The Anuśāsana Parva of the Mahābhārata (Chapters 95–96) tells of a clash between Sūrya and the ṛṣi Jamadagni, from which the umbrella and sandals became objects of dāna (gift). Jamadagni’s wife Reṇukā was late bringing back his spent arrows, because she had stopped in the shade to escape the noon heat. Jamadagni threatened to strike Sūrya down with his bow. Sūrya came to him as a brāhmaṇa and pleaded that his heat is needed. It draws up moisture that returns as rain. From the rain comes all food, and from food come all human rites: jātakarma, upanayana, vivāha, yajña and dāna.

Jamadagni was still not moved, and at last Sūrya gave himself up as one seeking refuge (śaraṇāgata). Jamadagni gave way, since harming one who seeks refuge is as bad as the gravest pāpa, and asked what remedy could be found. Sūrya then gave him the chatra (umbrella) to shield the head from his rays and the upānaha (sandals) to shield the feet. He made their dāna a source of imperishable puṇya (merit) for all time.

The five who break dharma

In the Anuśāsana Parva, Chapter 130, in the passage called the Arundhatī-Citragupta-Rahasya, Yama tells the assembled devas, pitṝs and ṛṣis what he once heard from Citragupta. No puṇya or pāpa, however small, is ever lost. The river Puṇyodakā in preta-loka is kept for those who gave drinking water during life.

Sūrya heard this account and named five dharma-drohis (enemies of dharma). For them there is no prāyaścitta (atonement) at all, and no one may ever speak to them:

1. the killer of a brāhmaṇa
2. the killer of a cow
3. the one who forces himself on another man’s wife
4. one without śraddhā (faith)
5. one who lives off a woman

When they die, these five are cast into preta-loka and naraka (hell). They are cooked like fish that feed only on filth and blood. Even pitṝs, devas, snātaka-brāhmaṇas or tapo-dhanas (those rich in tapas) may not speak to them.

Kuntī, Karṇa and Sūrya

In the Āśramavāsika Parva of the Mahābhārata (Chapters 30–31), Kuntī told Vyāsa the whole account of how Sūrya came to her. He warned her that the mantra could not be called back. When she tried to send him away, he refused, threatening to burn both her and the innocent Durvāsa. She asked for “a son equal to yourself”. He overcame her with his tejas, promised her a son and departed.

At the Gaṅgā, Vyāsa then told the assembled Kuru household that Karṇa, “foremost of those who give warmth and light to the worlds”, had been Bhagavān Sūrya himself. Bhagavān Sūrya had divided his own body into two. One part warms the worlds and the other came down as Karṇa.

Sources

• Varāha Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 9, 20, 26 and 62 (Book 2, Chapter 62: Ārogya Vrata)
• Mārkaṇḍeya Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 74–75 and 99–107
• Agni Mahā Purāṇa, Chapters 51, 73 and 99
• Brahmāṇḍa Mahā Purāṇa, Madhyama Bhāga, Chapter 59
• Bhaviṣya Purāṇa, Brahma Parva, Chapters 47–48, 50–51, 74, 75–76, 152–153 and 158–159
• Bhaviṣya Purāṇa, Uttara Parva, Chapter 117
• Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, 12th Skandha, Chapter 11
• Mahābhārata, Anuśāsana Parva, Chapters 95–96 and 130
• Mahābhārata, Āśramavāsika Parva, Chapters 30–31