Navagraha

Navagraha

the nine grahas

Navagraha is the designation of the group of nine grahas in traditional Indian astrology (jyotish) and Hinduism. Navagraha consists of:

• Surya — Sun (Ravi),
• Chandra — Moon (Soma),
• Mangala — Mars,
• Budha — Mercury,
• Brihaspati — Jupiter (Guru),
• Shukra — Venus,
• Shani — Saturn,
• Rahu,
• Ketu.

There is a tendency to call grahas planets, although it is obvious that not all grahas are actually planets: Rahu and Ketu are generally two points in the Moon's orbit. The word "graha" can be translated as "something that captures, has power and influence" (meaning influence on the life of a person).

Grahas are considered as certain energies personified in the form of deities. Through worshiping them, sadhaka can reduce or completely eliminate the negative influence of the graha.

Worship can be carried out in the form of reading mantras and stotras, but a more popular way is to perform a special Navagraha-puja, in which all nine figures are worshiped at once. It can be conducted using Navagraha-yantra or Navagraha-murti (for example, in the temple). Grahas in yantra are located in a strictly defined order, setting the order of their veneration. The order corresponds to the sequence of the days of the week (the first seven grahas), whose Sanskrit names reflect their connection with one or another graha:

• Ravivar (Sunday),
• Somvar (Monday),
• Mangalvar (Tuesday),
• Budhavar (Wednesday),
• Guruvar (Thursday),
• Shukravar (Friday),
• Shanivar (Saturday).