Saptami Tithi is dedicated to Lord Surya. Shukla Paksha Saptami in Magha month is known as Ratha Saptami or Magha Saptami. It is believed that Lord Surya – The Sun – started enlightening the whole world on Ratha Saptami day which was considered as birthday of Surya, the Sun God. Hence this day is also known as Surya Jayanti, the Birth Day of The Sun.
In the Vedic view, there is an intimate connection between the Moon and the mind and between the Sun and the eye.
Gratitude is the most fundamental virtue of man. People while performing Suryanamaskaras, extol the Sun god in various ways. One of them is Kritaghnaghnaya Namah (salutations to the one who punishes the ungrateful). The effulgence of the Sun god is present in our eyes in a subtle form. Chandrama Manaso Jataha Chaksho Suryo Ajayata (the moon was born out of the mind and the sun out of the eyes of the Supreme Being). It is said that the Sun god withdraws his effulgence from the eyes of the ungrateful.
All are reflections of the same Atma (inner sun) which is common to all. This Atmic Principle is also Sun-principle and Truth Principle.. When one follows Truth, Love will be the reflection. When you walk on the road, your shadow may fall on bad patches like drains, garbage, etc., but you are not affected by it. You should proceed unmindful of the path of the shadow. So also you must follow your heart with good feelings unmindful of obstacles that may appear to come in the way. You should practice truth. You should be grateful to a person that came to your rescue in times of crisis. You should not forget the help done by others.
Worship of the Sun in Cultures
Many of the great religions and cultures past and present have worshipped in sun as a deity or a representation of God. It is interesting to reflect on this universal symbol of Divine radiance and power.
Many of the ancient Egyptian gods have a solar aspect. In ancient Egypt, the sun was worshipped as Amun/Ra and later as Aten, with the image of the sun disc. Ra travels across the sky in his sun-boat; at dawn he drives away the demon Apep of darkness. In Buddhism ‘Bodhisattva of the Sun’ is known as Ri Gong Ri Guang Pu Sa (The Bright Solar Bodhisattva of the Solar Palace). The Aztecs had Tonatiuh – The sun god. The Aztec people considered him the leader of Tollan (heaven). In the Norse and High German eras, Sol personified goddess of the sun. The Ancient Romans celebrated the winter solstice (Sol Invictus) on 25 December, the date later chosen by Christians to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. These are just a few of the ancient cultures that celebrated the greatness of the sun.
Surya literally meaning ‘the Supreme Light’ or ‘sun’ is the chief solar deity in Hinduism. Surya is one of the Adityas. The Adityas are a group of solar deities from the Brahmana period, numbering twelve. In later Hindu usage, the attributes of all other Adityas merged into that of Surya. Surya has hair and arms of gold. He is said to drive through the heaven in his triumphal chariot harnessed by seven horses or one horse with seven heads, which represent the seven colours of the rainbow or the seven chakras. He presides over Sunday. Surya represents the inner Truth, the inner Light resident in Man and all of God’s creation.
Praise to Surya, the Sun God
From time immemorial, seekers of the Divine have been intimately associated with the sun god. The heroes of India, the Kshathriyas – the warrior caste – are from the beginning attached to Surya. Even for ordinary men and women, Surya is so highly sacred that He has been raised to the status of the Great Guru. The sacred scriptures and legends have not assigned a status of similar glory to anyone else. Thus we present the great pean of praise to Lord Surya, the inner sun of All.
It is a unique position that Surya occupies.
Why, for the whole world, the sun is the visible manifestation of the Lord.
And the sun is the source of Time!
Surya is the father of Time (Kala) as the Sastras declare.
The sun limits and regulates the number of years each one lives.
The sun diminishes every day a fraction of the allotted span.
So, the sun is the supreme arbiter, the maker of man’s destiny.
Whether one wills or not, every deed of his is performed under His auspices and dedicated to Him.
Above all, consider the service the sun does to this world!
That is within the daily experience of all.
Everyone is witness for that.
The sun is the source of all life, plant and animal, upon this planet.
Without His rays, it will be a desolate waste.
He draws up into the sky the waters of seas and lakes,
And from the clouds He pours rain on the crops.
He is ever the Dharmadevatha (God of Righteousness),
Scattering His rays equally on all.
Surya is the great Thyagi (renunciate) for unequalled renunciation.
He is the great Yogi.
Without a second’s thought of His own glory or of rest,
He performs His Duty without thought of reward.
He is humble and steady in work.
The service He does is something no one else can fulfill.
The happiness He contributes is something no one else can confer.
But He has no pretensions to pride.
He moves above unconcerned with the consequences of His energising mission of service.
Imagine the patience with which the sun puts up with all that extreme heat for the sake of the world and of humanity.
It is He who keeps the human body warm and comfortable.
This material body is so full of energy and intelligence,
On account of the solar energy that it imbibes.
If the sun is idle for a moment, the world will be consumed in flames.
Instead, He is fostering the world.
He feels it as His Mission, His Purpose, and not as His Service.
The sun is teaching us that when one is oneself,
There will be no exhaustion or elation, no disgust or pride.
The task of Surya is not something imposed from outside and taken up under compulsion; that is why it is performed systematically and smoothly.
He is also exhorting mankind to use the time that He creates and allots, fully and fruitfully, not merely for living comfortably and safely, but for living a moral and elevating life, worthy of the destiny that is man’s.
Now, you can realise why the Gita was first taught by the Lord to the Sun.
He is the great Karma Yogi, the great Nishkama Karma Yogi. (One who undertakes action without desiring the result)
Sage Viswamitra and the Gayatri Mantra
The Gayatri Mantra is addressed to the energy of the sun or Surya (sometimes personified as the sun god). The mantra was discovered by Sage Viswamitra. Sai Baba says that the Gayatri Mantra has immense powers, for the sun is its presiding Deity. This chapter is an exploration of the sun as God (Surya Narayana) in Sai Baba’s words. He tells us that like Rama, we are all of the Solar Race.
Sage Viswamitra discovered the mantra named Gayathri, which is addressed to the energy of the Sun, Surya. This mantra has infinite potentiality. It is a vibrant formula. It has immense powers, powers that are truly amazing. For, the Sun is its presiding deity. Students of the Ramayana know hat the same sage, Viswamitra, initiated Rama into the mysteries of Sun-worship, through the mantra Aditya Hrdayam. The Gayathri enabled Viswamitra to use rare weapons which bowed to his will when the mantra was repeated with faith. Through the powers he attained in this way, Viswamitra was able to become a great scientist and create a counterpart of this cosmos. A person who is able to increase the capabilities of his hands and his senses is now considered a ‘scientist’, but, the term (Vijnani) was correctly applied in the past only to those who developed spiritual power and discovered the formulae for delving into the Divine within, those imbued with faith and devotion who could spontaneously demonstrate that power in actual day to day living.
Suryopanishad
All creatures are born of Surya and are protected by him, dissolve in him – Suryopanishad
Everything originates from the Sun for he is the Sol – soul of all. He is the king of the sky; the ruler of all that falls between the Earth and the celestial regions; the Sun is the lord of the East, the Sun rules both Sunday and the constellation Leo. The Sun delivers the Solar Rays, in which are embedded the energies of the Central Sun of all Universes. The non-luminous bodies receive, combine and recombine these solar rays and then reflect them to the human form in order that the four goals of life be achieved: Artha (wealth), Kama (needs and necessities), Dharma (eternal righteousness), and Moksha (absorption into the Divine; release from the cycle of birth and death).
it is told that in the times of Ascension, our Sun, Sol, had had an exchange of energies from the Central Sun of all Universes. These exchanges of energy will bring us to our birthright lost at the Fall of Atlantis. That birthright is existence in the Fourth, Fith and Sixth dimensions. To live on Earth is to live a spiritually enlightened life. The Earthling has the capacity to take the feeling of love, the emotion of love (e-motion -> something is set in motion) and turn that toward the Divine, with whatever name and form brings them to that inner connection: it is a connection with the inner sun which is reflected by the movement of the Outer Sun. May this day of Surya Jayanti (Birth Day of the Sun) bring all who live on Earth closer in love to their Source.
