worship Surya Narayana for good health

[Guest guest]

The following is from a book, “Navagrahas,” in French, on the 9 planets, by

Pandit Vishvanath Shastri. (I have been informed that this katha is from the

Brahma-vaivarta Purana.)

 

One may worship Surya Narayana for good health so as to be able to better

serve Sri Sri Guru-gaurangah, however, in doing so, one must understand that

Suryadeva is Narayana. As Srila Prabhupada has written in the purport of

Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.23.3, Of the demigods "Only the predominating deity of

the sun, Surya Narayana, is an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of

Godhead."

 

In other words one must not worship the sun thinking he is simply a demigod,

as this leads one to committing the second offense in chanting the holy name

(see below).

 

In a lecture given in New York on Bhagavad-gita on the 8th December 1966,

Srila Prabhupada explains this mentality as alpa-medhasam (see below).

 

Begging to remain,

your servant,

Arjuna das

 

 

When Lord Krishna fought with Jambavan to win back the Syamataka jewel,

Jambavan was so pleased when he realized that Krishna was his beloved Lord

Rama that he immediately delivered not only the Syamantaka jewel but also

his daughter Jambavati, who was of marriageable age, and presented her to

Lord Krishna.

 

The episode of Jambavati’s marriage with Lord Krishna and the delivery of

the jewel known as Syamantaka were finished within the mountain cave.

 

After having married her, Lord Krishna had her transported to His palace in

Dvaraka. He had her placed in a hermetically sealed palanquin so that no one

could open the curtain to see inside.

 

Hearing the announcement heralding the arrival of Lord Krishna's newly-wed

young wife, His other wives, headed by Rukmini, hurried to the palanquin,

curious to see Jambavati. When they found themselves forbidden to open the

curtain, they experienced great annoyance. Rukmini felt especially hurt,

thinking that the reason that Lord Krishna's newly-wed young wife was kept

in seclusion was that Jambavati was more beautiful then herself. She

therefore proclaimed, "May she be as beautiful as me but not more so!"

 

Clever Krishna, Whose every action is a lesson, then allowed her to open the

curtain. Rukmini pushed aside the curtain with an apprehensive hand and

beheld Jambavati, no longer with hairy bear-like features, but as beautiful

as herself.

 

Enchantingly beautiful Jambavati became one of Lord Krishna's eight favorite

queens. She gave birth to a daughter and ten sons, led by Samba (Sa-amba -

like his mother), who became a very handsome, robust young man, expert in

handling weapons.

 

One day the great sage Durvasa Muni visited Dvaraka. He was emaciated from

having executed severe austerities, his bones visible through his skin and

his disheveled, matted hair still covered with ashes. Samba, who was proud

of his good looks, his strong well proportioned body, his broad chest like

that of a lion and his beautiful curly hair, dared to mock the sage.

Infuriated, Durvasa cursed him, "You will soon be afflicted with leprosy!"

 

Tormented with the thought of losing his beauty, Samba consulted the leading

physicians and magicians, taking all sorts of preventive and remedial

medicinal beverages and powders, and he even resorted to practicing tantric

rituals in order to preserve his perfect body, but to no avail. His highly

desirable body began to decompose.

 

Samba took refuge at the lotus feet of his divine father, Lord Krishna, and

humbly submitted his affliction, "O my dear father, I am tortured by this

hideous disease! No doctor can cure me. I can no longer tolerate this

condition and will surely die of remorse!"

 

Lord Krishna recommended that Samba should remain calm and be patient, which

would help him be less sensible to the disease. He advised Samba to worship

the sun-god Surya, the presiding Deity over health, as only he could save

him.

 

Samba followed his father's advice and went to a holy place associated with

Surya on the banks of the sacred Candrabhaga River. There he practiced

austerities and worshiped the sun-god, daily chanting the Surya-sahasranama

(the 1000 names of Surya). He continuously prayed to Suryadeva as follows,

"O Paramatma! You are the eye of the three worlds and the source of all

life. Time and the cosmic creation constitute your universal form. You bathe

the world with your effulgence. You protect and sustain all humans, animals

and other living creatures. Your powerful sun-rays are full of divine

energy, and thus purify and warm up everything and also banish all diseases.

You bestow your mercy on all those who take refuge in you. Please kindly

remove this leprosy that is afflicting me."

 

Pleased with Samba's austerities, Suryadeva eventually appeared before him

and blessed him with a remission of his disease. Samba shed his leprosy like

a snake shedding its skin. Samba, to his great satisfaction, again became as

handsome as before. Suryadeva further blessed him that this place would

remain for ever famous due his having practiced his austerities there. He

reassured Samba that he would regularly appear to him in his dreams.

 

Before disappearing, Suryadeva pronounced the following, "With faith and

perseverance, you continuously chanted my thousand names

(Surya-sahasranama). Henceforth, this pious act will no longer be necessary

for those who pray to me. They may simply chant these twenty one names that

I will now confide to you, and this will give them the same benefits as

chanting my thousand names. Hear now these twenty one names, which, if

chanted with reverence, will have the effect of removing disease and will

render the body in good health, as well as bestow fame and wealth.

 

Vikartana Vivasvan Martanda

 

Bhaskara Ravi Loka-prakasaka

 

Sriman Loka-caksur Grahesvara

 

Loka-sakshi Trilokesa Karta

 

Harta Tamisraha Tapana

 

Tapana Suchi Saptasva-vahana

 

Gabhasti-hasta Brahma

 

Sarva-deva-namaskrita "

 

 

 

SYNONYMS

vikartana—destroyer of evil: vivasvan—luminescent;

martanda—killer of the egg (womb); bhaskara—creator of light;

ravi—protector of the worlds; loka-prakasaka—illuminator of the worlds;

sriman—splendor; loka-caksur—eye of the worlds; grahesvara—lord of all the

planets; loka-sakshi—universal witness; trilokesa—lord of the three worlds;

karta—creator; harta—destroyer; tamisraha—remover of darkness; tapana—who

heats up; tapana—who burns; suchi—who purifies; saptasva-vahana—whose

vehicle is pulled by seven horses:

gabhasti-hasta—whose hands are the sunrays; brahma—giver of Vedic knowledge;

sarva-deva-namaskrita—who all demigods offer obeisances to;

 

 

 

jyotisam ravir amsuman

 

Of lights I am the radiant sun.

 

PURPORT

Among all the luminaries shining in the sky, the sun is the chief, and in

the Brahma-samhita the sun is accepted as the glowing eye of the Supreme

Lord. (Bhagavad-gita 10.21)

 

 

 

yac-caksur esa savita sakala-grahanam

raja samasta-sura-murtir asesa-tejah

yasyajnaya bhramati sambhrta-kala-cakro

govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami

(Sri Brahma-samhita 5.52,)

 

Srila Prabhupada's translation of this verse is given in the purport of

Srimad Bhagavatam 5.23.3 as follows:- "I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord,

the Supreme Personality of Godhead, under whose control even the sun, which

is considered to be the eye of the Lord, rotates within the fixed orbit of

eternal time. The sun is the king of all planetary systems and has unlimited

potency in heat and light."

In the same purport, Srila Prabhupada says:- It is also significant that the

predominating deities of even the greatest planets have been offered their

exalted posts because of the very valuable pious activities they performed

in previous births. Only the predominating deity of the sun, Surya Narayana,

is an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

 

 

 

Just see the Deity of Suryadeva situated in the Surya-mandira within this

forest. In great happiness, Srimati Radharani and Her sakhis came here to

worship Suryadeva. Krishna Himself became the priest and enjoyed performing

the puja. This Deity of Suryadeva is very merciful and gives love of

Krishna. I worship Suryadeva, who is the father of the Yamuna and the

destroyer of all diseases. He bestows attachment to the lotus feet of

Krishna and therefore he is the basis of all auspiciousness.

(From HH Mahanidhi Maharaja's book on Radha-kunda, describing Surya-kunda.

Quote taken from Bhakti-ratnakara.)

 

 

 

suryarca bhagavantam hiranmayam purusam ujjihane surya-mandale

'bhyupatisthan

 

Maharaja Bharata worshiped Lord Narayana, whose body was composed of golden

effulgence and who resided within the sun. Maharaja Bharata worshiped Lord

Narayana by chanting the hymns given in the Rg Veda, and he recited the

following verse as the sun rose.

 

PURPORT

The predominating Deity within the sun is Hiranmaya. Lord Narayana. He is

worshiped by the Gayatri mantra: om bhur bhuvah svah tat savitur varenyam

bhargo devasya dhimahi. He is also worshiped by other hymns mentioned in the

Rg Veda, for instance: dhyeyah sada savitr-mandala-madhya-varti. Within the

sun, Lord Narayana is situated, and He has a golden hue.(Srimad-Bhagavatam

5.7.13)

 

 

 

surye tu vidyaya trayya

 

My dear Uddhava, one should worship Me within the sun by chanting selected

Vedic mantras and by performing worship and offering obeisances.

 

PURPORT

If because of ignorance one forgets the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one

may become inclined to worship powerful material phenomena independent of

the Supreme Lord, or one may foolishly consider oneself to be supreme. One

should remain sane and accept the worshipable presence of the Supreme Lord

within everything. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.11.43-45)

 

 

 

sri-yajnavalkya uvaca

om namo bhagavate adityayakhila-jagatam

 

SYNONYMS

sri-yajnavalkyah uvaca—Sri Yajnavalkya said; om namah—I offer my respectful

obeisances; bhagavate—to the Personality of Godhead; adityaya—appearing as

the sun-god; akhila-jagatam—of all the planetary systems;

 

TRANSLATION

Sri Yajnavalkya said: I offer my respectful obeisances to the Supreme

Personality of Godhead appearing as the sun.

 

PURPORT

This prayer is not offered to the sun-god as an independent or autonomous

entity but rather to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, represented by His

powerful expansion the solar deity. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 12.6.67)

 

 

 

paro-rajah savitur jata-vedo

devasya bhargo manasedam jajana

 

SYNONYMS

parah-rajah—beyond the mode of passion (situated in the pure mode of

goodness); savituh—of the one who illuminates the whole universe;

jata-vedah—from which all the devotee's desires are fulfilled; devasya—of

the Lord; bhargah—the self-effulgence; manasa—simply by contemplating;

idam—this universe; jajana—created;

 

TRANSLATION

"The Supreme Personality of Godhead is situated in pure goodness. He

illuminates the entire universe and bestows all benedictions upon His

devotees.

 

PURPORT

The predominating Deity of the sun is another expansion of Narayana, who is

illuminating the entire universe. The Lord enters the hearts of all living

entities as the Supersoul, and He gives them intelligence and fulfills their

material desires. This is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gita. Sarvasya caham

hrdi sannivistah. "I am sitting in everyone's heart." (Bg. 15.15)

As the Supersoul, the Lord enters the hearts of all living entities. As

stated in Brahma-samhita (5.35), andantara-stha-paramanu-cayantara-stham:

"He enters the universe and the atom as well." In the Rg Veda, the

predominating Deity of the sun is worshiped by, this mantra: dhyeyah sada

savitr-mandala-madhya-varti narayanah sarasijasana-sannivistah. Narayana

sits on His lotus flower within the sun. By reciting this mantra, every

living entity should take shelter of Narayana just as the sun rises.

According to modern scientists, the material world rests on the sun's

effulgence. Due to the sunshine, all planets are rotating and vegetables are

growing. We also have information that the moonshine helps vegetables and

herbs grow. Actually Narayana within the sun is maintaining the entire

universe; therefore Narayana should be worshiped by the Gayatri mantra or

the Rg mantra.(Srimad-Bhagavatam 5.7.14)

 

 

 

(om) dhyeyah sada savitr-mandala-madhya-varti

narayanah sarasijasana-sannivistah

keyura-van kanaka-kundala-van kiriti

harir hiranmaya-vapur dhrta-sankha-cakrah

(Rg-veda-samhita)

 

Lord Narayana is seated on a lotus asana within the sun globe. He wears a

crown, golden earrings, and armlets on His gold-complexioned body, and in

His hands He holds His conch and disc weapons. All these features make Him

ever captivating. One should always meditate upon the Lord in this way.

 

 

 

TEXT 4

 

sandhya-vandanadi prabhu kari’ usah-kale

namaskari’ jananire padaite cale

 

 

TRANSLATION

The Lord performed His daily worship in the early morning, and after

offering obeisances to His mother, He left for school.

 

COMMENTARY (by Srila Bhaktisiddanta Sarasvati Thakur)

For a description of sandhya-vandana one may refer to the Hari-bhakti-vilasa

(3.140-155).

There are two types of sandhya—Vedic and Tantric. Of the two, Vedic sandhya

is briefly described as follows: “One should perform acamana while chanting

the mantra, om tad visnoh paramam padam sada pasyanti surayo diviva caksur

atatam—’The Personality of Godhead Visnu is the Absolute Truth, whose lotus

feet all the demigods are always eager to see. Like the sun-god, He pervades

everything by the rays of His energy. He appears impersonal to imperfect

eyes.’ Thereafter a Vaisnava should properly decorate himself with tilaka

and after washing his hands he should perform Vedic sandhya or Tantric

sandhya. It is stated in the Vyasa-gita of the Kurma Purana: ‘One should

properly sit facing east on a mat made of kusa grass and with a controlled

mind he should practice pranayama three times before engaging in sandhya

meditation. This is the injunction of the Vedic literature.’ It is described

in the Manu-samhita: ‘A brahmana should meditate on and chant the mantra of

goddess Savitri, who is situated within the sun globe. Thereafter he should

perform sandhya worship.’ It is also stated: ‘A learned person should sit

facing east and with a controlled mind he should chant the Savitri mantra.’

It is stated in Baudhayana-smrti: “A learned person worships Lord Hari by

pouring oblations of ghee in fire, by offering flowers in water, by

meditating on Him in the heart, and by meditating on Him as being present in

the sun globe.” In the conversation between Sri Vyasadeva and Ambarisa

Maharaja described in Padma Purana, it is stated: “Offering water to Hari in

the sun planet and in the water is the best form of worship.”

The process of Tantric sandhya is as follows: “Thereafter one should chant

the mula-mantra and meditate on the lotus feet of Sri Krsna while chanting,

‘I am offering You this oblation of water.’ Chanting this, an intelligent

person should offer oblations of water to the Lord three times. One should

properly meditate on Krsna, who is situated in the sun globe, while chanting

the Kama-gayatri mantra ten times. Thereafter one should pray to Krsna by

saying, ‘Please forgive my offences,’ and then he should offer oblations to

the sun.”(Chaitanya Bhagavata Adi-khanda 15.4)

 

 

 

The second namaparadha is described as follows:

sivasya sri-visnor ya iha guna-namadi-sakalam

dhiya bhinnam pasyet sa khalu hari-namahita-karah

In this material world, the holy name of Visnu is all-auspicious. Visnu’s

name, form, qualities and pastimes are all transcendental, absolute

knowledge. Therefore, if one tries to separate the Absolute Personality of

Godhead from His holy name or His transcendental form, qualities and

pastimes, thinking them to be material, that is offensive. Similarly, to

think that the names of demigods such as Lord Siva are as good as the name

of Lord Visnu—or, in other words, to think that Lord Siva and the other

demigods are other forms of God and are therefore equal to Visnu—is also

blasphemous. This is the second offense at the lotus feet of the holy name

of theLord.(CC Adi 8.24p)

 

 

Just like a man who is diseased, he is recommended to worship the sun. Sun.

Now, that is effective. I may worship... Because when sun is worshiped you

have to go to the sunshine and offer something, water and some pradipa.

There are some paraphernalia. So if a diseased man goes to the sunshine, he

is actually... He is cured. Sunshine has got... Scientifically also, it has

got ultraviolet rays. So one keeps... If he does not take any medicine, if

he simply sits down in sunshine, he will be cured. Nature's way. So either

you take this way or that way... But one thing is that those who are

worshiping sun for cure of disease, for them Bhagavad-gita says, antavat tu

phalam tesam tad bhavaty alpa-medhasam [bg. 7.23]. Antavat tu phalam tesam.

Now, suppose you are diseased and you are cured by worshiping sun, or

becoming in the sunshine. Do you think that is the solution of your life?

You may be cured. So how long you will remain cured? There will be again

disease. Again you worship sunshine. So this is called gatagatam, chewing

the chewed. The problem is why you shall be diseased at all? That should be

the problem of intelligent person, not that I become diseased and I worship

sun or go to the doctor and be cured and again become diseased. No. Sukham

atyantikam. You should cure from all diseases. The... So long you have this

material body, you have got life, you have got birth, you have got death,

you have got diseases, and you have got old age, besides other miseries.

This is a permanent thing. Now, your human form of life is meant for curing

for good all these inconveniences. You should not be satisfied by curing

disease and again falling diseased. No. That is not your business. Therefore

Lord Krsna says, antavat tu phalam tesam: [bg. 7.23] "Those who are

worshiping other demigods for some immediate result, their result is

antavat. It is to be ended at a certain point. It has got end. So such

things are desired by alpa-medhasam, alpa-medhasam, those who have got less

amount of brain substance." Why one should be satisfied by temporary cure?

He must see that "Why I shall die? Why I shall be diseased? Why I shall go

again into the womb of the mother? And why I shall become old? This is my

problem." So if you want to solve all these problems, then you have to

become to Krsna conscious. (Srila Prabhupada Bhagavad-gita lecture 8dec66NY)