Navagraha litterally means Nine Graha. The number 9 has interesting significance in the Vedic stories. There are Nine grahas which are said to influence all life. These so called graha (literally meaning that which influences) together explain every aspect of human possibility and behavior.
In the vedic stories the nine grahas are Surya, Chandra, Mangal, Buddha, Guru, Shukra, Shani, Rahu, Ketu.
Seven of these have a physical form which can be sensed by human capabilities; two have no physical form yet they have a presence which can be felt though not completely understood.
Seven are referred to as the Devas or demigods who are said to be devotees of the supreme lord. These are the devas to whom each day of the week is dedicated:
Ravi, Surya or Sun God (whose name itself means Supreme power or light or knowledge) is the provider of light to all other grahas within the solar system. Surya represents the soul that resides within the physical body in all creatures. The physical is that which can be seen and all that can be seen is provided by the Sun. The sun's light is representative of all seven colors of the Rainbow. Sun is the signifactor of all life and all things living and non-living.
Soma, Chandra or Moon God is believed to have originated from the churning of ksheer sagar in the famous story called Samudra Manthan. Chandra represents the mind, the mental body and is considered the nurturer. It is the one who makes use of the Sun's light to nurture all beings. The moon is said to be represented by water which is colorless.
Mars is said to be the warrior. It represents a force that balances energy through destruction. Energy is produced when fuel is burned (or changed in form or destroyed) so while the Sun is the provider of light from which everything is created, Mars is the signifactor (or regulator) of our energy levels. It is thus represented by the colors of Rust, Red and Orange.
Buddha is said to be an illegitimate child of the Moon (Mind) & Guru's consort, shakti or energy (the wife of the teacher of the demigods as per mythology). It is said to have no gender and represents our intelligence. Note that energy can be described as masculine or feminine but intelligence is above the limitations of gender. It is what flourishes within a balanced state of energy oblivious to the dominant gender. Thus Buddha is the signifactor of our communication skills. Buddha is represented by colors Green and Blue.
Guru is the teacher of all demigods (the ones that follow rules). It represents heirarchy, order and guided learning in our lives. It is the signifactor of good/bad, right/wrong, etc. Guru helps us channel our energy, mind and intelligence on the path of righteousness. It is thus the signifactor of our conscience. Guru is said to be represented by the color yellow.
Shukra is the teacher of all the deamons (the ones that do not follow rules). Now the thing to remember here is deamons can be good, deamons can be bad. Deamons are not necessarily evil beings, they are just creatures who have managed to amass more energy than what they know to do with. So while Guru teaches you the rules and how to stay within limits, Shukra teaches you when it is appropriate to break rules and cross limits. We are all the products of a single energy and yet we are all individuals with a separate sense of identity. And Shukra is the signifactor of our individual identity or ego. Shukra is Represented by the colour white.
Shani is said to be the child of Surya & a shadow of Suryas wife. In the vedic stories he is described as gentle yet harsh, a freind as well as a foe. He is said to be the signifactor of our Accountability. Accountability comes when we understand the law of karma or actions and reactions. A strong Shani doesn't mean a problem-free life, it is rather, the ability to stand your ground in the face of all problems without breaking down. Shani is represented by the dark shades of colors like black or dark blue though he is born of the sun.
The life we live is thus a product of the sun's 'Light' in us. It is this light which powers our 'Mind'. Balance or imbalance of mind determines Energy levels, which sequentially determines Intelligence, Conscience, Ego and Accountability.
So, these are the seven suras or devas or gods which hold on togeather the system of righteousness or Dharma. The Sun being Supreme is the giver of light, all other grahas revolve around the Sun making use the sun's light and that is what helps us see them.
The other two forces are categorized as a-suras or in simple words deamons seated at the north and south nodes of the moon which represents the mind.
They are Rahu and Ketu, the two (north & south) nodes of the moon that can never meet. According to the puranas, there seems to be no physical body representing these two grahas yet their effect can be seen at the time of eclipses. They are unlike the devas so they can not be pleased with offerings and sacrifices.
There are many translations of a certain story from the Vedas that explain the nature and existence of these two grahas. But the base of all those stories is limited to the physical dimension which we can percieve because of the Sun. They try to paint a very moral picture of the world and hence Rahu and Ketu are both often under represented inorder to maintain the supremacy of the Sun, around which all grahas must revolve so the laws of the physical world are upheld.
To understand the message of the story, then, we need to understand all the characters without bias towards their existence within the physical dimension of space. The characters are actually natural forces that are personified to make them more 'approachable' lets say; or understandable to the human mind.
Rahu and Ketu have risen from an Asura called Swarabhanu. Understand that in all the mythological stories, an Asura differs from a deva only in terms of his intentions and devotion to an orderly world and not his ability. So, both 'devas' & 'asuras' derive their energies and agendas from the same trinity Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, the creator, sustainer and destroyer.
And Swarbhanu literally means the self-shining light of an atomic particle of matter. Note this is one graha which doesn't derive light we know from the sun and we are thus unable to see it as a physical form nor describe what it is made of.
If you know the story of Samudra Manthan, you would understand how Rahu and Ketu came into being. The objective of the whole excersize was to obtain the nectar of immortality which, as per the myth or legend whatever you choose to call it, Swarbhanu being a deamon managed to take a sip of. Now what we need to understand here is that deamon neednot mean evil. Deamon may mean incomplete if you study the story from a religious point of view. In that sense, Swarbhanu was an incomplete being who had everything that was required to sit amongst devas and take a sip of the Amritam (nectar of immortality) but he still lacked something vital due to which his head was separated from his body for attainment of immortality within the physical dimension.
Rahu represents the head (without a body) of the deamon Swarbhanu while Ketu represents the body (without a head).
Now if you forget the english translation of the story, you will realize that Rahu and Ketu are not tortured deamons (trying to make life hell for people in whose birth chart they appear) rather they are two parts of a 'god', or parts of a piece of 'knowledge', or a 'being' that can not be realized within the physical dimension of space or atleast so long as our energies are focused on the physical effects of creation.
Rahu and Ketu then represent in us the means to go (or take our knowledge) beyond the physical dimension of existence. The problem with the modern education system is that right and wrong is given far too much importance. So most scholars or educated people who can understand and explain a heliocentric universe will automatically consider the other models of a geocentric or lunarcentric universe wrong. So, with such a hampered intelligence one can obviously not expand his being (knowledge) beyond the physical dimensions of reality to attain god.
Understanding Rahu and Ketu then require understanding the moon beyond its physical nature which is beyond the purpose of this post.
In the vedic stories the nine grahas are Surya, Chandra, Mangal, Buddha, Guru, Shukra, Shani, Rahu, Ketu.
Seven of these have a physical form which can be sensed by human capabilities; two have no physical form yet they have a presence which can be felt though not completely understood.
Seven are referred to as the Devas or demigods who are said to be devotees of the supreme lord. These are the devas to whom each day of the week is dedicated:
Ravi, Surya or Sun God (whose name itself means Supreme power or light or knowledge) is the provider of light to all other grahas within the solar system. Surya represents the soul that resides within the physical body in all creatures. The physical is that which can be seen and all that can be seen is provided by the Sun. The sun's light is representative of all seven colors of the Rainbow. Sun is the signifactor of all life and all things living and non-living.
Soma, Chandra or Moon God is believed to have originated from the churning of ksheer sagar in the famous story called Samudra Manthan. Chandra represents the mind, the mental body and is considered the nurturer. It is the one who makes use of the Sun's light to nurture all beings. The moon is said to be represented by water which is colorless.
Mars is said to be the warrior. It represents a force that balances energy through destruction. Energy is produced when fuel is burned (or changed in form or destroyed) so while the Sun is the provider of light from which everything is created, Mars is the signifactor (or regulator) of our energy levels. It is thus represented by the colors of Rust, Red and Orange.
Buddha is said to be an illegitimate child of the Moon (Mind) & Guru's consort, shakti or energy (the wife of the teacher of the demigods as per mythology). It is said to have no gender and represents our intelligence. Note that energy can be described as masculine or feminine but intelligence is above the limitations of gender. It is what flourishes within a balanced state of energy oblivious to the dominant gender. Thus Buddha is the signifactor of our communication skills. Buddha is represented by colors Green and Blue.
Guru is the teacher of all demigods (the ones that follow rules). It represents heirarchy, order and guided learning in our lives. It is the signifactor of good/bad, right/wrong, etc. Guru helps us channel our energy, mind and intelligence on the path of righteousness. It is thus the signifactor of our conscience. Guru is said to be represented by the color yellow.
Shukra is the teacher of all the deamons (the ones that do not follow rules). Now the thing to remember here is deamons can be good, deamons can be bad. Deamons are not necessarily evil beings, they are just creatures who have managed to amass more energy than what they know to do with. So while Guru teaches you the rules and how to stay within limits, Shukra teaches you when it is appropriate to break rules and cross limits. We are all the products of a single energy and yet we are all individuals with a separate sense of identity. And Shukra is the signifactor of our individual identity or ego. Shukra is Represented by the colour white.
Shani is said to be the child of Surya & a shadow of Suryas wife. In the vedic stories he is described as gentle yet harsh, a freind as well as a foe. He is said to be the signifactor of our Accountability. Accountability comes when we understand the law of karma or actions and reactions. A strong Shani doesn't mean a problem-free life, it is rather, the ability to stand your ground in the face of all problems without breaking down. Shani is represented by the dark shades of colors like black or dark blue though he is born of the sun.
The life we live is thus a product of the sun's 'Light' in us. It is this light which powers our 'Mind'. Balance or imbalance of mind determines Energy levels, which sequentially determines Intelligence, Conscience, Ego and Accountability.
So, these are the seven suras or devas or gods which hold on togeather the system of righteousness or Dharma. The Sun being Supreme is the giver of light, all other grahas revolve around the Sun making use the sun's light and that is what helps us see them.
The other two forces are categorized as a-suras or in simple words deamons seated at the north and south nodes of the moon which represents the mind.
They are Rahu and Ketu, the two (north & south) nodes of the moon that can never meet. According to the puranas, there seems to be no physical body representing these two grahas yet their effect can be seen at the time of eclipses. They are unlike the devas so they can not be pleased with offerings and sacrifices.
There are many translations of a certain story from the Vedas that explain the nature and existence of these two grahas. But the base of all those stories is limited to the physical dimension which we can percieve because of the Sun. They try to paint a very moral picture of the world and hence Rahu and Ketu are both often under represented inorder to maintain the supremacy of the Sun, around which all grahas must revolve so the laws of the physical world are upheld.
To understand the message of the story, then, we need to understand all the characters without bias towards their existence within the physical dimension of space. The characters are actually natural forces that are personified to make them more 'approachable' lets say; or understandable to the human mind.
Rahu and Ketu have risen from an Asura called Swarabhanu. Understand that in all the mythological stories, an Asura differs from a deva only in terms of his intentions and devotion to an orderly world and not his ability. So, both 'devas' & 'asuras' derive their energies and agendas from the same trinity Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, the creator, sustainer and destroyer.
And Swarbhanu literally means the self-shining light of an atomic particle of matter. Note this is one graha which doesn't derive light we know from the sun and we are thus unable to see it as a physical form nor describe what it is made of.
If you know the story of Samudra Manthan, you would understand how Rahu and Ketu came into being. The objective of the whole excersize was to obtain the nectar of immortality which, as per the myth or legend whatever you choose to call it, Swarbhanu being a deamon managed to take a sip of. Now what we need to understand here is that deamon neednot mean evil. Deamon may mean incomplete if you study the story from a religious point of view. In that sense, Swarbhanu was an incomplete being who had everything that was required to sit amongst devas and take a sip of the Amritam (nectar of immortality) but he still lacked something vital due to which his head was separated from his body for attainment of immortality within the physical dimension.
Rahu represents the head (without a body) of the deamon Swarbhanu while Ketu represents the body (without a head).
Now if you forget the english translation of the story, you will realize that Rahu and Ketu are not tortured deamons (trying to make life hell for people in whose birth chart they appear) rather they are two parts of a 'god', or parts of a piece of 'knowledge', or a 'being' that can not be realized within the physical dimension of space or atleast so long as our energies are focused on the physical effects of creation.
Rahu and Ketu then represent in us the means to go (or take our knowledge) beyond the physical dimension of existence. The problem with the modern education system is that right and wrong is given far too much importance. So most scholars or educated people who can understand and explain a heliocentric universe will automatically consider the other models of a geocentric or lunarcentric universe wrong. So, with such a hampered intelligence one can obviously not expand his being (knowledge) beyond the physical dimensions of reality to attain god.
Understanding Rahu and Ketu then require understanding the moon beyond its physical nature which is beyond the purpose of this post.
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