Navagraha

Navagraha, Sun at the center surrounded by the planets, Painting by Raja Ravi Varma

The navagraha are nine heavenly bodies and deities that influence human life on Earth according to Hinduism and Hindu mythology.^[1] The term is derived from nava (Sanskrit: नव "nine") and graha (Sanskrit: ग्रह "planet, seizing, laying hold of, holding"). The nine parts of the navagraha are the Sun, Moon, planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn, and the two nodes of the Moon.^[2]

A typical navagraha shrine found inside a Hindu temple

The term planet was applied originally only to the five planets known (i.e., visible to the naked eye) and excluded the Earth. The term was later generalized, particularly during the Middle Ages, to include the sun and the moon (sometimes referred to as "lights"), making a total of seven planets. The seven days of the week of the Hindu calendar also corresponds with the seven classical planets and European culture also following same patron and are named accordingly in most languages of the Indian subcontinent. Most Hindu temples around the world have a designated place dedicated to the worship of the navagraha.

List

Navagrahas:^[1]

No.	Image	Name	Western equivalent	Day	Stotra[3]
1.		Surya	Sun	Sunday	japākusuma saṅkāśaṃ kāśyapēyaṃ mahādyutim । tamō'riṃ sarva pāpaghnaṃ praṇatōsmi divākaram ॥1॥
2.		Chandra	Moon	Monday	dadhiśaṅkha tuṣārābhaṃ kṣīrōdārṇava sambhavam । namāmi śaśinaṃ sōmaṃ śambhō-rmakuṭa bhūṣaṇam ॥2॥
3.		Mangala	Mars	Tuesday	dharaṇī garbha sambhūtaṃ vidyutkānti samaprabham । kumāraṃ śaktihastaṃ taṃ maṅgaḻaṃ praṇamāmyaham ॥3॥
4.		Budha	Mercury	Wednesday	priyaṅgu kalikāśyāmaṃ rūpēṇā pratimaṃ budham । saumyaṃ saumya guṇōpētaṃ taṃ budhaṃ praṇamāmyaham ॥4॥
5.		Brihaspati	Jupiter	Thursday	dēvānāṃ cha ṛṣīṇāṃ cha guruṃ kāñchanasannibham । buddhimantaṃ trilōkēśaṃ taṃ namāmi bṛhaspatim ॥5॥
6.		Shukra	Venus	Friday	himakunda mṛṇāḻābhaṃ daityānaṃ paramaṃ gurum । sarvaśāstra pravaktāraṃ bhārgavaṃ praṇamāmyaham ॥6॥
7.		Shani	Saturn	Saturday	nīlāñjana samābhāsaṃ raviputraṃ yamāgrajam । Chāyā mārtāṇḍa sambhūtaṃ taṃ namāmi śanaiścharam ॥7॥
8.		Rahu	Ascending node of the Moon		ardhakāyaṃ mahāvīraṃ chandrāditya vimardhanam । siṃhikā garbha sambhūtaṃ taṃ rāhuṃ praṇamāmyaham ॥8॥
9.		Ketu	Descending node of the Moon		palāśa puṣpa saṅkāśaṃ tārakāgrahamastakam । raudraṃ raudrātmakaṃ ghōraṃ taṃ kētuṃ praṇamāmyaham ॥9॥

Music

Muthuswami Dikshitar (1776–1835), a Carnatic music composer from southern India, composed the Navagraha Kritis in praise of the nine grahas.^[4] Each song is a prayer to one of the nine planets. The Sahitya (lyrics) of the songs reflect a profound knowledge of the mantra and jyotisha sastras.

See also

• Jyotisha
• Nakshatra
• Saptarshi
• List of Hindu deities
• List of Hindu pilgrimage sites
• List of Navagraha temples
• List of Natchathara temples
• List of Hindu temples
• Planets in astrology

References

1. Roshen Dalal (2010). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin Books. p. 280. ISBN 978-0-14-341421-6.
2. Sanskrit-English Dictionary by Monier-Williams, 1899
3. "Nava Graha Stotram". Vignanam. Retrieved 2025-06-30.
4. "Dikshitar: Navagraha". www.medieval.org. Retrieved 2020-06-12.

External links

• Media related to Navagraha at Wikimedia Commons