Women in the Atharva-veda Samhita
by Pranab Jyoti Kalita | 2017 | 62,142 words
This page relates ‘Goddess Surya’ of the study on women in the Vedic society reflecting the Atharva-veda Samhita in English. These pages discusses the social aspects of women, education, customs of marriage, practices of polyandry and polygamy, descriptions of female deities and various rites and rituals. It is shown how women earned much praise in ancient Indian society. Included are Sanskrit text and references of the Atharvaveda and commentary by Sayana-Acharya.
24. Goddess Sūryā
Sūryā is the only goddess of the Vedic pantheon, who is named after her father. In the Ṛgveda,[1] she is called the daughter of Sūrya for several times. But, the author of the Nirukta knows her as the wife of Sūrya.[2]
About Sūryā, only a few references are there in the Vedic literature. But, she is presented as a bride in a myth both in the Ṛgveda[3] and the Atharvaveda.[4] Though the myth seems to be an enigmatic and an obscure one, yet, the role of Sūryā in the myth is an important one. In the Atharvaveda, she has become an ideal bride, as the following hymn,[5] describing the mythical marriage of Sūryā deals with a marriage in general.
In the myth, the Aśvins are portrayed as the grooms of Sūryā.[6] On behalf of the Aśvins, Agni proposed Sūrya for his daughter Sūryā.[7] When the Aśvins became the grooms of Sūryā, Soma was also her wooer.[8] Thus, throughout the myth, Sūryā is presented only as a bride and no personal activities are assigned to her. But, from her connection with the solar deities like Sūrya and the Aśvins, it may be conjectured that Sūryā is a solar goddess, though her identification in natural phenomena is still an obscure one.
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
sūryasya duhitā / Ṛgveda, 1.116.17; 118.5; 6.63.5
[3]:
Ṛgveda, 10.85
[4]:
Atharvaveda, 14.1
[5]:
Ibid., 14.2
[6]:
sūryāyā aśvinā varāgnirāsīt purogavaḥ / Ibid., 14.1.8