Ratha Saptami
About Ratha Saptami
Celebrated on Saptami of Shukla Paksha in Magha month, Ratha Saptami is an auspicious Hindu festival. It is also celebrated to commemorate the birth of Lord sun, thus also being known as the day of Surya Jayanti. In other words, the festival of Ratha Saptami is dedicated to Lord Sun. Devotees worship the lord by performing several religiously-pure rituals to please the divine lord Sun and attain peace, happiness, fortunes, harmonious living experience and prosperity in life.
What Is The Significance Of Ratha Saptami?
Ratha Saptami is significant, considering Lord Sun is believed to enlighten the whole world on this day, given it marks the birth of lord Surya. Moreover, the day is believed to be highly auspicious, considering it is dedicated to Lord Sun, the divine almighty believed to be the giver of blessings, peace and prosperity among many other results in the life of devotees.
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Devotees, who observe fast and perform religious activities on this day, are believed to get relief from all seven types of sins done wittingly or unwittingly. Even though someone may have sinned the past birth, following Ratha Saptami vrat can absolve that sin of the devotee. That’s the power and divine purity of Ratha Saptami festival.
The significance of Ratha Saptami also lies in the fact that it is associated with the reverence paid to the divine lord Sun, who is visible to human eyes and has been revered by Vedas as one of the supreme gods. For many people, the festival is a signal of the beginning of New Year or the start of the harvesting season. Devotees observe fast and various rituals, including visiting Lord Surya’s temples to worship god Surya.
In fact, worshipping the lord sun is a deep-rooted ritual as mentioned in Vedas while several mythologies accentuate the relevance and sanctity of Surya Puja.
Ratha Saptami Symbolism
As the name itself suggests, Ratha Saptami symbolizes the chariot of Lord Sun drawn by seven horses, whereas Aruna is its charioteer. Moreover, the seven horses and rath both are symbolic of the seven colours of the rainbow, while the horses stand for seven days of a week, with Sunday being the day dedicated to Lord Sun. In addition, the twelve wheels of the chariot collectively represent a full year, including twelve zodiac signs. Leo is the house of the Sun which traverses from one house to another monthly, thus totalling the cycle of one year.
One of the most significant features of Ratha Saptami is that it seeks the beneficial cosmic spread of energy from the lord Sun.
Story Of Ratha Saptami
Ratha Saptami is an important festival because Lord sun was born on this day to sage Kashyapa and his wife Aditi. From this standpoint, the festival is also regarded as Surya Jayanti.
According to a legend, there once lived a noble king. Sadly, the king had no heir to rule the kingdom after his demise. To rid of the problem, he observed years-long meditation and prayers to Lord Sun and finally was blessed with a son. However, the infant was fatally ill. When all the medical treatments failed to restore the health of the infant, the king sought counselling from a saint. He advised the angst-ridden king to perform Ratha Saptami rituals, saying that the reverence and Punya of the rituals will cure the infant of the illness. The king followed the advice of the saint, performed Ratha Saptami rituals and eventually, his son was cured of the terminal disease.
Conclusion The festival of Ratha Saptami is one of the most auspicious days in the Hindu religion. Dedicated to Lord Sun, the day is also remembered as Surya Jayanti, considering Lord Sun was born on this day to sage Kashyapa and his wife Aditi. Devotees observe fast and offer prayers to Lord Sun for peace, happiness, fortunes and prosperity.
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