Svarbhānu

Quality 0.50 · 1 view · Updated 2 months ago

Hindu mythological character associated with the eclipse

title: "Svarbhānu" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["asura", "sun-myths", "eclipses"] description: "Hindu mythological character associated with the eclipse" topic_path: "general/asura" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Svarbhānu" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Hindu mythological character associated with the eclipse ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox deity"]

Field	Value
type	hindu
deity_of	Asura of solar and lunar eclipses; original combined form of Rahu and Ketu
name	Svarbhanu
affiliation	Asura, Rahu and Ketu
father	Viprachitti
mother	Simhika
gender	Male
planet	North and south lunar node
abode	Patala
children	Prabha (wife of Ayus and Mother of Nahusha)
::

Svarbhānu () is an asura traditionally held responsible for solar eclipses and lunar eclipses in Vedic mythology. The name is also used as an attribute of the asuras Rahu and Ketu in Puranic mythology, who are also connected to the solar eclipse and the lunar eclipse.

Legend

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/BritishmuseumRahu.JPG" caption="Rahu"] ::

Svarbhānu is described as an asura twice in the Family Books of the Rigveda. Svarbhānu is described to strike Surya, overshadowing the sun with darkness. Stella Kramrisch considers this act as portraying Svarbhānu as a deity greater than the Sun. Svarbhanu again appears in the Yajurveda and the Brahmanas. According to the Brahmanas, Svarbhānu with darkness pierced Āditya (the Sun), whom, however, the gods set free by means of svara (accents).

An assistant of Shukra (Venus), Svarbhānu was also the teacher of the asuras. He deceitfully quaffed the amrita proffered by Mohini, thereby achieving immortality as two beings despite being beheaded immediately after: his head as Rahu and his body as Ketu.

According to the Mahabharata, the sun god Surya is also described as an "enemy of Svarbhānu". Svarbhānu was said to strike both the sun and moon with arrows, the celestial bodies being revived by Atri as in the Rigveda.

According to the text Hari-vaṃśa, Svarbhānu ushered Kalanemi through the galaxy. In a Purana, Svarbhānu is described as a son of the goddess Siṃhikā (marjar or cat) ('Little Lioness').

Notes

References

J. Sarat Chander : "Ketu and its Forms". 2000.
Sukumari Bhattacharji : The Indian Theogony. Cambridge University Press, 1970.
John E. Mitchiner : Traditions of the Seven Rishis. Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, 1982.

References

(1976). "The Hindu temple". Motilal Banarsidass Publ..
Wash Edward Hale. (1986). "Ásura- in early Vedic religion". Motilal Banarsidass.
[https://books.google.com/books?id=phGzVwTTp_gC&dq=Svarbhanu+Purana&pg=PA258 Mitchiner 1982, p. 258]
Antonio Rigopoulos. "Dattātreya: the immortal guru, yogin, and avatāra".
''Jaiminīya Brāhmaṇa'' 2:386; ''Maitrāyaṇi Brāhmaṇa'' 4:5:2
[https://www.scribd.com/doc/259992/9-Ketu-and-Its-Forms Chander 2000, p. 2]
B S Shylaja, H R Madhusudan. (1999). "Eclipse". Universities Press.
[http://www.booksboost.com/K/Kisari_Mohan_Ganguli_(Translator)/The_Mahabharata_of_Krishna_Dwaipayana_Vyasa/read_page16.html "Sambhava" parvan, Section LXVII]
Johannes Adrianus Bernardus van Buitenen. (1981). "The Mahabharata". [[University of Chicago Press]].
[http://www.mahabharata-resources.org/harivamsa/hv_1_47.html 1:47:52]
[http://www.cyberastro.com/articles/article_kaal_sarpa1.asp Kāla-Sarpa Yoga]

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::