Surya Namaskara | Salutations to the sun

Prostration to Him
who is affectionate to all.

Prostration to Him
who moves in the sky.

Prostration to Him
who is God of gods.

Brahma once recounted to the sages the one hundred
and eight sacred names of Surya. The Brahma Purana lists these names
and we reproduce them in nine groups of twelve names each.

(1) Surya, Archana, Bhagavana, Tvashta, Pusha, Arka, Savita, Ravi, Gabhastimana,
Aja, Kala, Mrityu.

(2) Dhata, Prabhakara, Prithivi, Jala, Teja, Akasha, Vayu, Parayana,
Soma, Brihaspati, Shukra, Budha.

(3) Angaraka, Indra, Vivasvana, Diptamshu, Shuchi, Shouri,Shanaishvara,
Brahma, Vishu, Rudra, Skanda, Vaishravana.

(4) Yama, Vaidyuta, Jathara, Agni, Aindhana, Tejohapti, Dharmadhvaja,
Vedakarta, Vedanga, Vedavahana, Krita, Treta.

(5) Dvapara, Kali, Sarvasurashraya, Kala, Kashtha, Muhurta, Kshapa, Yama,
Kshana, Samvatsara, Ashvattha, Kalachakra.

(6) Vibhavasu, Shashvata, Purusha, Yogi, Vyaktavyakta, Sanatana, Kaladhyaksha,
Prajadhyaksha, Vishvakarma, Tamonuda, Varuna, Sagara.

(7) Amsha, Jimuta, Jivana, Ariha, Bhutashraya, Bhutapati, Sarvalokanamaskrita,
Shrashta, Samvartaka, Vahni, Sarvadi, Alolupa.

(8) Anata, Kapila, Bhanu, Kamada, Sarvotamukha, Jaya, Vishala, Varada,
Sarvabhutasevita, Mana, Suparna, Bhutadi.

(9) Shighraga, Pranadharana, Dhanvantari, Dhumaketu, Adideva, Aditinandana,
Dvadashatma, Ravi, Daksha, Pita, Mata, Pitamaha.

"O Lord Surya! O Sun of
suns, the eye of the world, the eye of the Virat-Purusha.

Thou art All-energy, All-strength, All-powerfu, please give me health,
strength, vigour and vitality."

Repeat the above Mantras and Names of the Sun at sunrise. He who repeats
these before sunrise, early in the morning, will possess wonderful health,
vigour and vitality. He will be free from every kind of disease of the
eye. He will have wonderful eye-sight. Offer Arghya to the sun
during the three Sandhyas morning, noon and evening. Offer prostrations
to the sun, with these Mantras and Names.

hiranmayena patrena / satyasyapihitam mukham

tat tvam pushann apavrinu / satya-dharmaya drishtaye

O my Lord, sustainer of all that lives, Your real face is covered by
Your dazzling effulgence. Kindly remove that covering and exhibit Yourself
to Your pure devotee. O Pushan, nourisher of all, please remove your glaring
effulgence. (Isopanishad, Verse 15)

pushann ekarshe yama surya prajapatya

vyuha rasmin samuha

tejo yat te rupam kalyana-tamam

tat te pasyami yo 'sav asau purushah so 'ham asmi

"O my Lord, O primeval philosopher, maintainer of the
universe, O regulating principle, destination of the pure devotees, well-wisher
of the progenitors of mankind, please remove the effulgence of Your transcendental
rays so that I can see Your form of bliss. You are the eternal Supreme
Personality of Godhead, like unto the sun, as am I." (Isopanishad,
Verse 16)

Om Suryam Sundar Loka Natham / Amritam Vedanta Saram
Sivam

Jnanam Brahmamayam Suresham / Amalam Lokaika Cittam Swayam

Indraditya Naradhipam Sura Gurum / Trailokya Chudamanim

Brahma Vishnu Siva Swarupa Hridayam / Vande Sada Bhaskaram

"I eternally adore Surya, the sun, the beautiful Lord
of the world, the immortal, the quintessence of the Vedanta, the auspicious,
the absolute knowledge, of the form of Brahman, the Lord of the gods,
ever-pure, the one true consciousness of the world himself, the Lord of
Indra, the gods and men, the preceptor of the gods, the crest-jewel of
the three worlds, the very heart of the forms of Brahma, Vishnu and Siva,
the giver of light."

"I eternally salute the Maker of Light, the beautiful
Lord of all the world Surya who energizes all, who lives forever, the
very essence of Vedanta He is truly auspicious, the embodiment of knowledge
His nature is Brahman and He is absolute purity Lord and Master of the
Gods, the consciousness of this world Ruler even over Indra, the King
of the Gods and all men and sun deities He is the crowning jewel of the
three worlds The Heart of the Lords Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva."

PURPORT Sri Isopanishad, Verse15:
In the Bhagavad-gita (14.27), the Lord explains His personal rays (brahmajyoti),
the dazzling effulgence of His personal form, in this way:

brahmano hi pratishthaham / amritasyavyayasya ca

sasvatasya ca dharmasya / sukhasyaikantikasya ca

"I am the basis of the impersonal Brahman, which is immortal, imperishable
and eternal and is the constitutional position of ultimate happiness."
Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan are three aspects of the same Absolute
Truth. Brahman is the aspect most easily perceived by the beginner; Paramatma,
the Supersoul, is realized by those who have further progressed; and Bhagavan
realization is the ultimate realization of the Absolute Truth. This is
confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita (7.7), where Lord Krishna says that He
is the ultimate concept of the Absolute Truth: mattah parataram nanyat.
Therefore Krishna is the source of the brahmajyoti as well as the all-pervading
Paramatma. Later in the Bhagavad-gita (10.42) Krishna further explains:

atha va bahunaitena / kim jnatena tavarjuna

vishtabhyaham idam kritsnam / ekamsena sthito jagat

"But what need is there, Arjuna, for all this detailed knowledge?
With a single fragment of Myself I pervade and support this entire universe."
Thus by His one plenary expansion, the all-pervading Paramatma, the Lord
maintains the complete material cosmic creation. He also maintains all
manifestations in the spiritual world. Therefore in this sruti-mantra
of Sri Isopanishad, the Lord is addressed as pushan, the ultimate maintainer.

The Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna, is always filled with transcendental
bliss (ananda-mayo 'bhyasat). When He was present at Vrindavana in India
five thousand years ago, He always remained in transcendental bliss, even
from the beginning of His childhood pastimes. The killings of various
demons -- such as Agha, Baka, Putana and Pralamba -- were but pleasure
excursions for Him. In His village of Vrindavana He enjoyed Himself with
His mother, brother and friends, and when He played the role of a naughty
butter thief, all His associates enjoyed celestial bliss by His stealing.
The Lord's fame as a butter thief is not reproachable, for by stealing
butter the Lord gave pleasure to His pure devotees. Everything the Lord
did in Vrindavana was for the pleasure of His associates there. The Lord
created these pastimes to attract the dry speculators and the acrobats
of the so-called hatha-yoga system who wish to find the Absolute Truth.

Of the childhood play between the Lord and His playmates, the cowherd
boys, Sukadeva Gosvami says in Srimad-Bhagavatam (10.12.11):

ittham satam brahma-sukhanubhutya / dasyam gatanam
para-daivatena

mayasritanam nara-darakena / sakam vijahruh krita-punya-punjah

"The Personality of Godhead, who is perceived as the impersonal,
blissful Brahman by the jnanis, who is worshiped as the Supreme Lord by
devotees in the mood of servitorship, and who is considered an ordinary
human being by mundane people, played with the cowherd boys, who had attained
their position after accumulating many pious activities."

Thus the Lord is always engaged in transcendental loving activities with
His spiritual associates in the various relationships of santa (neutrality),
dasya (servitorship), sakhya (friendship), vatsalya (parental affection)
and madhurya (conjugal love).

Since it is said that Lord Krishna never leaves Vrindavana-dhama, one
may ask how He manages the affairs of the creation. This is answered in
the Bhagavad-gita (13.14-18): The Lord pervades the entire material creation
by His plenary part known as the Paramatma, or Supersoul. Although the
Lord personally has nothing to do with material creation, maintenance
and destruction, He causes all these things to be done by His plenary
expansion, the Paramatma. Every living entity is known as atma, soul,
and the principal atma who controls them all is Paramatma, the Supersoul.

This system of God realization is a great science. The materialistic
sankhya-yogis can only analyze and meditate on the twenty-four factors
of the material creation, for they have very little information of the
purusha, the Lord. And the impersonal transcendentalists are simply bewildered
by the glaring effulgence of the brahmajyoti. If one wants to see the
Absolute Truth in full, one has to penetrate beyond the twenty-four material
elements and the glaring effulgence as well. Sri Isopanishad points toward
this direction, praying for the removal of the hiranmaya-patra, the dazzling
covering of the Lord. Unless this covering is removed so one can perceive
the real face of the Personality of Godhead, factual realization of the
Absolute Truth can never be achieved.

The Paramatma feature of the Personality of Godhead is one of three plenary
expansions, or vishnu-tattvas, collectively known as the purusha-avataras.
One of these vishnu-tattvas who is within the universe is known as Kshirodakasayi
Vishnu. He is the Vishnu among the three principal deities -- Brahma,
Vishnu and Siva -- and He is the all-pervading Paramatma in each and every
individual living entity. The second vishnu-tattva within the universe
is Garbhodakasayi Vishnu, the collective Supersoul of all living entities.
Beyond these two is Karanodakasayi Vishnu, who lies in the Causal Ocean.
He is the creator of all universes. The yoga system teaches the serious
student to meet the vishnu-tattvas after going beyond the twenty-four
material elements of the cosmic creation. The culture of empiric philosophy
helps one realize the impersonal brahmajyoti, which is the glaring effulgence
of the transcendental body of Lord Sri Krishna. That the brahmajyoti is
Krishna's effulgence is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita (14.27) as well
as the Brahma-samhita (5.40):

yasya prabha-prabhavato jagad-anda-koti- / kotishv
asesha-vasudhadi vibhuti-bhinnam

tad brahma nishkalam anantam asesha-bhutam / govindam adi-purusham tam
aham bhajami

"In the millions and millions of universes there are innumerable
planets, and each and every one of them is different from the others by
its cosmic constitution. All of these planets are situated in a corner
of the brahmajyoti. This brahmajyoti is but the personal rays of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, Govinda, whom I worship." This mantra from
the Brahma-samhita is spoken from the platform of factual realization
of the Absolute Truth, and the sruti-mantra of Sri Isopanishad under discussion
confirms this mantra as a process of realization. The Isopanishad mantra
is a simple prayer to the Lord to remove the brahmajyoti so that one can
see His real face. This brahmajyoti effulgence is described in detail
in several mantras of the Mundaka Upanishad (2.2.10-12):

hiranmaye pare kose / virajam brahma nishkalam

tac chubhram jyotisham jyotis / tad yad atma-vido viduh

na tatra suryo bhati na candra-tarakam / nema vidyuto bhanti kuto 'yam
agnih

tam eva bhantam anu bhati sarvam / tasya bhasa sarvam idam vibhati

brahmaivedam amritam purastad brahma / pascad brahma dakshinatas cottarena

adhas cordhvam ca prasritam brahmai- / vedam visvam idam varishtham

"In the spiritual realm, beyond the material covering, is the unlimited
Brahman effulgence, which is free from material contamination. That effulgent
white light is understood by transcendentalists to be the light of all
lights. In that realm there is no need of sunshine, moonshine, fire or
electricity for illumination. Indeed, whatever illumination appears in
the material world is only a reflection of that supreme illumination.
That Brahman is in front and in back, in the north, south, east and west,
and also overhead and below. In other words, that supreme Brahman effulgence
spreads throughout both the material and spiritual skies."

Perfect knowledge means knowing Krishna as the root of this Brahman effulgence.
This knowledge can be gained from such scriptures as Srimad-Bhagavatam,
which perfectly elaborates the science of Krishna. In Srimad-Bhagavatam,
the author, Srila Vyasadeva, has established that one will describe the
Supreme Truth as Brahman, Paramatma or Bhagavan according to one's realization
of Him. Srila Vyasadeva never states that the Supreme Truth is a jiva,
an ordinary living entity. The living entity should never be considered
the all-powerful Supreme Truth. If he were the Supreme, he would not need
to pray to the Lord to remove His dazzling cover so that the living entity
could see His real face.

The conclusion is that one who has no knowledge of the potencies of the
Supreme Truth will realize the impersonal Brahman. Similarly, when one
realizes the material potencies of the Lord but has little or no information
of the spiritual potencies, he attains Paramatma realization. Thus both
Brahman and Paramatma realization of the Absolute Truth are partial realizations.
However, when one realizes

the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna, in full potency after
the removal of the hiranmaya-patra, one realizes vasudevah sarvam iti:
[Bg. 7.19] Lord Sri Krishna, who is known as Vasudeva, is everything --
Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan. He is Bhagavan, the root, and Brahman
and Paramatma are His branches.

In the Bhagavad-gita (6.46-47) there is a comparative analysis of the
three types of transcendentalists -- the worshipers of the impersonal
Brahman (jnanis), the worshipers of the Paramatma feature (yogis) and
the devotees of Lord Sri Krishna (bhaktas). It is stated there that the
jnanis, those who have cultivated Vedic knowledge, are better than ordinary
fruitive workers, that the yogis are still greater than the jnanis, and
that among all yogis, those who constantly serve the Lord with all their
energies are the topmost. In summary, a philosopher is better than a laboring
man, a mystic is superior to a philosopher, and of all the mystic yogis,
he who follows bhakti-yoga, constantly engaging in the service of the
Lord, is the highest. Sri Isopanishad directs us toward this perfection.

PURPORT Sri Isopanishad, Verse16:
The sun and its rays are one and the same qualitatively. Similarly, the
Lord and the living entities are one and the same in quality. The sun
is one, but the molecules of the sun's rays are innumerable. The sun's
rays constitute part of the sun, and the sun and its rays conjointly constitute
the complete sun. Within the sun itself resides the sun-god, and similarly
within the supreme spiritual planet, Goloka Vrindavana, from which the
brahmajyoti effulgence is emanating, the Lord enjoys His eternal pastimes,
as verified in the Brahma-samhita (5.29):

cintamani-prakara-sadmasu kalpa-vriksha-

lakshavriteshu surabhir abhipalayantam

lakshmi-sahasra-sata-sambhrama-sevyamanam

govindam adi-purusham tam aham bhajami

"I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, the first progenitor, who
is tending the cows fulfilling all desires in abodes filled with spiritual
gems and surrounded by millions of wish-fulfilling trees. He is always
served with great reverence and affection by hundreds of thousands of
Lakshmis, or goddesses of fortune."

The brahmajyoti is described in the Brahma-samhita as the rays emanating
from that supreme spiritual planet, Goloka Vrindavana, just as the sun's
rays emanate from the sun globe. Until one surpasses the glare of the
brahmajyoti, one cannot receive information of the land of the Lord. The
impersonalist philosophers, blinded as they are by the dazzling brahmajyoti,
can realize neither the factual abode of the Lord nor His transcendental
form. Limited by their poor fund of knowledge, such impersonalist thinkers
cannot understand the all-blissful transcendental form of Lord Krishna.
In this prayer, therefore, Sri Isopanishad petitions the Lord to remove
the effulgent rays of the brahmajyoti so that the pure devotee can see
His all-blissful transcendental form.

By realizing the impersonal brahmajyoti, one experiences the auspicious
aspect of the Supreme, and by realizing the Paramatma, or all-pervading
feature of the Supreme, one experiences an even more auspicious enlightenment.
But by meeting the Personality of Godhead Himself face to face, the devotee
experiences the most auspicious feature of the Supreme. Since He is addressed
as the primeval philosopher and maintainer and well-wisher of the universe,
the Supreme Truth cannot be impersonal. This is the verdict of Sri Isopanishad.
The word pushan ("maintainer") is especially significant, for
although the Lord maintains all beings, He specifically maintains His
devotees. After surpassing the impersonal brahmajyoti and seeing the personal
aspect of the Lord and His most auspicious eternal form, the devotee realizes
the Absolute Truth in full.

In his Bhagavat-sandarbha, Srila Jiva Gosvami states: "The complete
conception of the Absolute Truth is realized in the Personality of Godhead
because He is almighty and possesses full transcendental potencies. The
full potency of the Absolute Truth is not realized in the brahmajyoti;
therefore Brahman realization is only partial realization of the Personality
of Godhead. O learned sages, the first syllable of the word bhagavan (bha)
has two meanings: the first is 'one who fully maintains,' and the second
is 'guardian.' The second syllable (ga) means 'guide,' 'leader' or 'creator.'
The syllable van indicates that every being lives in Him and that He also
lives in every being. In other words, the transcendental sound bhagavan
represents infinite knowledge, potency, energy, opulence, strength and
influence -- all without a tinge of material inebriety."

The Lord fully maintains His unalloyed devotees, and He guides them progressively
on the path toward devotional perfection. As the leader of His devotees,
He ultimately awards the desired results of devotional service by giving
Himself to them. The devotees of the Lord see the Lord eye to eye by His
causeless mercy; thus the Lord helps His devotees reach the supermost
spiritual planet, Goloka Vrindavana. Being the creator, He can bestow
all necessary qualifications upon His devotees so that they can ultimately
reach Him. The Lord is the cause of all causes. In other words, since
there is nothing that caused Him, He is the original cause. Consequently
He enjoys His own Self by manifesting His own internal potency. The external
potency is not exactly manifested by Him, for He expands Himself as the
purushas, and it is in these forms that He maintains the features of the
material manifestation. By such expansions, He creates, maintains and
annihilates the cosmic manifestation.

The living entities are also differentiated expansions of the Lord's
Self, and because some of them desire to be lords and imitate the Supreme
Lord, He allows them to enter into the cosmic creation with the option
to fully utilize their propensity to lord it over nature. Because of the
presence of His parts and parcels, the living entities, the entire phenomenal
world is stirred into action and reaction. Thus the living entities are
given full facilities to lord it over material nature, but the ultimate
controller is the Lord Himself in His plenary feature as Paramatma, the
Supersoul, who is one of the purushas.

Thus there is a gulf of difference between the living entity (atma) and
the controlling Lord (Paramatma), the soul and the Supersoul. Paramatma
is the controller, and the atma is the controlled; therefore they are
in different categories. Because the Paramatma fully cooperates with the
atma, He is known as the constant companion of the living being.

The all-pervading feature of the Lord -- which exists in all circumstances
of waking and sleeping as well as in potential states and from which the
jiva-sakti (living force) is generated as both conditioned and liberated
souls -- is known as Brahman. Since the Lord is the origin of both Paramatma
and Brahman, He is the origin of all living entities and all else that
exists. One who knows this engages himself at once in the devotional service
of the Lord. Such a pure and fully cognizant devotee of the Lord is fully
attached to Him in heart and soul, and whenever such a devotee assembles
with similar devotees, they have no engagement but the glorification of
the Lord's transcendental activities. Those who are not as perfect as
the pure devotees -- namely, those who have realized only the Brahman
or Paramatma features of the Lord -- cannot appreciate the activities
of the perfect devotees. The Lord always helps the pure devotees by imparting
necessary knowledge within their hearts, and thus out of His special favor
He dissipates all the darkness of ignorance. The speculative philosophers
and yogis cannot imagine this, because they more or less depend on their
own strength. As stated in the Katha Upanishad (1.2.23), the Lord can
be known only by those whom He favors, and not by anyone else. Such special
favors are bestowed upon His pure devotees only. Sri Isopanishad thus
points to the favor of the Lord, which is beyond the purview of the brahmajyoti.

The Sun is also called
Surya-Narayana, the Supreme Lord of the Universe.

He is the Self of all the gods and most effulgent. He is the abode of
all the glorious rays of purity and knowledge. It is he who rules and
protects the whole universe through his unfailing and penetrating beams.
He is the Lord Brahma, Vishnu and Siva, that is Parameshwara or the Supreme
Lord who assumes the creation, preservation and dissolution of the world.
He is the formless and nameless Godhead who has taken the forms of Skanda,
Prajapati, Mahendra, Kubera, Kala, Yama, Soma and Varuna. He is the Pitrus,
the Vasus, the Sadhyas, the two Aswins, the Maruts and the lawgiver Manu.
He is also Vayu, Agni, all beings, Hiranyagarbha or the Cosmic Prana,
the maker of seasons and the light-maker.

His celebrated names are Aditya, Savitar and Surya, the son of Aditi,
the impeller and the creator. He is seen dwelling in the sky outside,
and he should be realized as the inner Self seated in the space of the
heart inside. For, it is said in the Taittireeya Upanishad, “He who
is here in the human being, and he, who is there in the sun, are one and
the same.” (sa yas-cayam purushe, yas-chasavaditye, sa ekah).
Nourishing all beings, he is Pushan, the nourisher, Possessed of sparkling
rays, he shines like gold. Being ever effulgent and golden by nature,
it is always daytime for him. He is far away from the darkness of ignorance

Seven coloured Ray horses draw his chariot, and he is possessed of thousands
of fire tongues. His splendor is outshining, and he dispels all darkness.
He bestows happiness on his devotees, and he withdraws all beings into
himself at the time of cosmic dissolution. Though possessed of parching
heat, he is like the cool season for the worshippers who are scorched
by sufferings. And as couched in poetical terms by Kalidasa, the Sun God
Ravi absorbs water to pour it back a thousand fold (sahasragunam-utsrashtum-adat
te hi rasam ravih). He looks like a shell, and he removes all frost
from the mind.

Being the Lord of the sky and the knower of the three vedas, he scatters
away the darkness of ignorance. He showers the rain- clouds of virtue
and divine grace, as the friend of waters. And he jumps over the skyline
easily. He gives heat by his powerful rays. His form is that of an orb.
In due time, he is even death for the mortals. Yet his golden luminousness
pervades one and all, since he is omniscient, omnipresent and supremely
radiant. In fact he is the origin for the existence of all, and the Lord
of all planets, constellations and stars. The Light even of lights, he
is the creator of all, and the Self of the twelve solar deities presiding
over the year. He is both the eastern and the western skylines. He is
the ruler of all heavenly bodies and of the day.

Being most powerful, he is victorious over all beings and highly auspicious.
He is a source of fear for the ignorant, and the gold jewel of the wise.
By his radiance, the lotus is made to blossom. The Lord Brahma, Vishnu
and Siva, he is the wisest. Most brightful, he is the supreme glory of
the solar deities. Having an impetuous bodily form, he consumes everything.
He destroys all darkness and makes the snow melt. He defeats evil forces,
and his nature is boundless. He inspires gratefulness as the divine ruler
of all luminaries. His divine nature is such that he sports in creation,
he wishes to conquer the enemies of gods, he functions in all beings,
he shines as the Self, he is praised by the most praiseworthy and he resides
everywhere.

His brilliance is like that of refined gold warding off the recurring
circle of birth and death along with its cause ignorance, as well as all
sins, he is one with the Lord Hari. As the agent of all acts, as the world
creator possessed of wonderful powers of creation, and as the celestial
architect, he is known as Viswakarma. Unlike the individual soul who becomes
self-identified with worldly and other - worldly objects, he is free from
all kinds of nescience, and he is the glorious witness of the worlds.
That means he cognizes everything directly by his own awareness without
help of any sense organs. Yet, due to the limiting adjuncts body, senses
and mind, and as their indwelling Self, it seems as if he were the agent
of acts, but truly speaking he is mere onlooker, not being involved in
actions.

This is taught in Mundaka Upanishad through the simile of two birds,
viz. The jivatma and paramatma : “Two birds that are ever associated
and have similar names, cling to the same tree (the body). Of these, one
eats the fruit of divergent tastes, and the other looks on without eating.
On the same tree, the individual soul remains drowned as it were, and
so it moans, being worried by its impotence. When it sees thus the other,
the adored Lord, and his glory, then it becomes liberated from sorrow.
When the enlightened seer sees the Purusha, the golden-hued, creator,
lord and the source of the inferior Brahman, then that sage completely
shakes off both virtue and vice, becomes taintless and attains supreme
equality.” So the eyewitness of the worlds is the immutable consciousness
permeating the three states of waking, dream and deep sleep, which are
ever changeful. The Sun God who is unchanging is known as “the fourth”
(caturtha) in the Mandukya Upanishad, and as “the witness” (sakshin)
or “the onlooker” (upadrashta) in the Bhagavadgita. His glory
is eternal.

As the supreme Lord, being both the efficient and material cause of the
universe, he first creates the world, then he protects it, and at last
he withdraws everything into himself. By some powerful rays he gives heat
during eight months, and by some other rays he showers water during the
rainy season. As the everlasting witness even of deep sleep state, he
keeps awake in beings asleep, as taught to Janaka by the sage Yajnavalkya:
“That it does not know in that state is because, though knowing then,
it does not know; for the knower’s function of knowing can never
be lost, because it is imperishable. But there is not that second thing
separate from it which it can know.” To summarize, all the sacrifices
along with their fruits, as will as all the gods, and also all the religious
duties of people, are nothing but the Sun God.

Remembering and praising him in difficult or painful situations, and
in the midst of wilderness or in times of danger, one does not sink in
disheartenment. With concentration and devotion, one should worship the
God of gods who is the great Lord of the universe. Reciting this hymn
known as the Holy Heart of Aditya, and enshrining the Sun God in one’s
heart, one will become victorious in the battlefield of life. Just as
Sri Rama vanquished the ten- headed Ravana, one can conquer the ten sensory
and motor organs by worshipping the glorious Sun of wisdom. Regaining
one’s innate strength and dispelling the clouds of sorrow, one becomes
self-controlled and very happy. That is being so, the Sun of Self- knowledge
shines forth in the heart, spreading its warm rays of pure bliss.