Chhath Puja, a renowned solar festival, is joyously celebrated throughout North and East India. While this festival honors solar energy, it also pays tribute to Chhathi Mai, the revered wife and consort of Surya, the Indian sun god.
Chhath Puja, celebrated six days after Diwali, is a significant festival that takes place in the month of Kartik (October-November). The name “chhat” is derived from “shasthi,” which means the sixth day of the new moon.
It is a solar festival, that honors the sun god Surya, making it also called Surya Shasthi Vrat. Interestingly, unlike other solar festivals, Chhath Puja begins at sunset instead of sunrise. This blog explores a bit more about the sun across scientific, spiritual, and religious realms.
Significance Of The Sun
The Sun holds paramount importance for life on Earth, as it provides vital elements necessary for our existence. Its warmth and luminosity play a crucial role in preventing our planet from becoming a frigid, barren wasteland.
The sun emits vast amounts of energy daily, illuminating the vastness of space. Although most of this energy disperses into the limitless expanse, a fraction reaches our Earth, yet even this small portion is capable of fueling an array of essential functions.
Let’s discuss how the sun is important to us in scientific, spiritual, and religious ways!
1. Importance of Sun According to Science
The sun is a star amidst a vast cosmic ensemble. By driving weather patterns, governing ocean currents, dictating the passage of seasons, and shaping climate, it serves as the life force behind Earth’s biosphere.
The Sun plays a vital role in numerous processes that are essential for life on Earth. It drives the water cycle, assists in the formation of fossil fuels, and is indispensable for plants to carry out photosynthesis.
For humans, the Sun provides essential benefits such as water for living organisms, a stable climate, the foundation of the food chain, and the potential for energy through fossil fuel utilization. Sunlight is essential for life. It promotes plant growth, provides warmth, and offers various health benefits. One well-known benefit is the production of vitamin D in our bodies when exposed to UVB rays. Sunlight has also been linked to lower blood pressure and reduced cardiovascular mortality rates. Additionally, it supports better sleep and regulates our circadian rhythms by balancing serotonin and melatonin levels.
Some other benefits:
- UVB rays stimulate the production of beta-endorphins in the skin, which reduces pain.
- Exposure to sunlight promotes a sense of well-being and improves mood.
- It boosts the immune system.
- Sun exposure can help in promoting relaxation.
- It aids in healing wounds.
- Sunlight helps people feel more alert.
- Access to sunlight in the workplace can increase job satisfaction.
- Sunlight also has the potential to reduce depression.
2. Spiritual Benefits of Sun
In our culture, the ancient Vedic tradition of Arghyam provides a unique opportunity to express reverence towards the sun, considered by Ayurveda as the ultimate life force. This sacred ritual involves filling a copper vessel and stepping outside to pour the water in a clockwise circle as an offering to the sun. By engaging in Arghyam, we connect with the profound significance of the sun’s energy in our lives.
- Start your day by directing your attention towards the sun. Doing so helps us realize that, much like the sun, we have the power to generate our light. By letting go of our expectations and dependency on others for fulfillment, we can nourish ourselves with love from within and embody love itself. Embrace this practice to find inner peace and radiate positivity throughout your day.
- Through the practice of sun gazing, individuals can experience a profound spiritual awakening by strengthening their bond with the natural world. This ancient technique not only enhances one’s meditative practice but also boosts energy levels and vitality. A deeper sensation of attention and presence during meditation sessions may be attained by connecting with the sun’s natural energy.
- For countless generations, individuals across civilizations have continued to honor and connect with the sun, recognizing it as the vital lifeline and boundless source of energy. Among these practices stands the Surya Namaskar, a Yogic ritual curated by Hanuman to pay homage to the Sun God. The Surya Namaskar series of 12 postures boosts the practitioner’s capacity for creativity, intuition, and leadership by strengthening the solar plexus. These asanas of the Surya namaskar are intended to keep you in a state of vitality and receptivity while supporting you in creating a body and spirit that act as stepping stones to bigger possibilities.
3. Religious Benefits of Sun
In Indian mythology, the sun holds a position of great significance and is revered as the highest god, Brahman. Considered the first being (adi-bhuta) and the source of illumination for all souls, the sun embodies an array of profound qualities. It symbolizes light, wisdom, truth, knowledge, and intelligence.
The sun encompasses wakeful consciousness, existence, continuity, immortality, stability, divinity, purity, and the quality of sattva. It also exemplifies mental brilliance, the eye, witness, fire, sacrificial fuel, and the highest heaven, known as Parandhama.
- The hymns dedicated to the Sun like Aditya Hrdayam compare him to various deities such as Shiva, Vishnu, and Brahma. By worshipping the Sun, one can be liberated from sorrow, suffering, sin, and other afflictions. The Sun is described as a solar deity, the son of Aditi, representing infinite space. The power of the Sun is personified by Savitr, associated with awakening and creation, and by Pusan, who represents nourishment, protection, and the enhancement of life.
- The Sun god holds great importance in Hinduism and is worshipped as a fundamental deity. In the Vedic religion, Sun worship is deeply ingrained and continues to be an essential part of Vedic rituals. Similar to how Brahman is composed of Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva, Surya also has three aspects. During the morning, Surya represents Brahma, appearing golden yellow. In the afternoon, he embodies Maheshvara, radiating a bright white light. As evening approaches, he takes on the form of Vishnu, displaying a dark blue hue.
- Surya is likened to a solitary chariot that traverses the sky, providing light to the seven realms. In certain hymns, he is described as the sky god, riding a golden chariot drawn by seven horses from east to west.
Also Read: The Laws Of Universe: Understanding Energy and Vibration
Sun In Different Mythologies
Sun gods have long been a significant presence in mythologies across different civilizations. One such example is the Mayan culture, where they revered Kinich Ahau, a sun god associated with the occurrence of diseases and droughts.
Likewise, in the ancient Sumerian civilization, Utu held sway as the sun god who also governed justice. In a similar vein, the Akkadian people, closely related to the Sumerians, worshipped Shamash, a sun god bearing comparable attributes to Utu. These venerable deities hold some of the oldest sun god names, each carrying their unique significance in their respective cultures.
1. Greek
Helios, sometimes known as “the Titan,” was the son of Hyperion and Theia, the Titans. He was both the sun’s god and its personification. Helios drove his chariot across the sky every day to bring light to the earth.
Helios watched everything that happened to both gods and mortals as he viewed the earth from his sun chariot, making him the most “all-seeing” of all the deities (possibly second only to Zeus). In this role, Helios was frequently considered an upholder of cosmic order and justice and was sometimes referred to as a guarantor of oaths Helios, as the deity of the sun and solar activity, was also associated with solar eclipses.
2. Egyptian
Ra, the ancient Egyptian sun god, is one of the oldest deities in their pantheon. Known also as Re, he represents the power and embodiment of the sun. Ra is often depicted riding in his barge across the sky during the day and descending into the underworld at sunset.
This solar deity has been merged with other gods such as Horus (the morning sun), Amun (noonday sun), and Atum(the evening sun), representing different aspects of the sun’s energy. The complex interpretations and depictions of Ra have generated a multitude of stories surrounding his divine and mortal significance.
Ra’s origins are explained in a variety of ways. These are classified according to whether Ra is regarded as the ultimate god or simply a highly significant god. In one story, there was nothing but darkness and an infinite ocean at the beginning of the world. Ra willed himself into being in this space and then produced other gods.
In one of the myths, Amun, the god who originated from nothingness, shaped an egg and gently placed it upon the sea. From this egg, Ra emerged. In ancient Egyptian texts, it is largely believed that Ra was responsible for the creation of humanity.
3. Indo-Iranian
Mithra, also spelled Mithras, is the god of light in ancient Indo-Iranian mythology, whose cult expanded from India in the east to Spain, Great Britain, and Germany in the west. The Vedic Mitra was first mentioned in writing around 1400 BC.
According to legend, Mithra was born with a flame and a knife near a sacred stream and under a sacred tree, a child of the earth itself. He soon rode, and later killed, the life-giving cosmic bull, the blood of which fertilizes all flora. Mithra’s slaughter of the bull was a prominent topic of Hellenic art and served as the pattern for a bull-slaying for fertility ritual in the Mithraic cult.
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To Conclude,
Throughout history, mankind has revered numerous natural elements, with the sun shining as one of the most significant. We are keen to learn about your culture’s worship of the Sun or any sun-related festivities you celebrate. Also, let us know the name by which the sun is known in your culture in the comment section below. Let’s know each other better!
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