Surya or the sun, often identified with Aditya, Savitr and Pusan, is another important Vedic deity. He is compared to a bird that flies in the sky and is described as the jewel of the sky. He gives light, produces day and night, gives power and strength to the living beings, makes them active and destroys their laziness and disease.

Surya had three wives, namely, Sharanya (also called Saraniya, Saranyu, Sanjana or Sangya), Ragyi and Prabha. Saranyu was the mother of Vaivasvata Manu (the seventh, i.e., present Manu) and the twins Yama (the Lord of Death) and his sister Yami. She also bore him the twins known as the Ashvins, divine horsemen and physicians to the Devas. Saranyu, being unable to bear the extreme radiance of Surya, created a superficial entity from her shadow called Chhaya and instructed her to act as Surya’s wife in her absence. Chhaya mothered two sons Savarni Manu (the eighth, i.e., next Manu) and Shani (the planet Saturn), and two daughters, Tapti and Vishti. He has two more sons, Revanta or Raivata with Ragyi, and Prabhata with Prabha. Surya is the father of the famous tragic hero Karna, described in the Indian epic Mahabharata, by a human princess named Kunti.

Surya’s sons, Shani and Yama, are responsible for the judgment of human life. Shani provides the results of one’s deeds during one’s life through appropriate punishments and rewards while Yama grants the results of one’s deeds after death.

Karna from the Mahabharata is also believed to be a son of Lord Surya. Lord Surya is hailed by 108 names. The commonest among them are Aditya, Adideva, Angaraka, Arka, Bhaga, Brahma, Dhanwantari, Dharmadhwaja, Dhatri, Dhumaketu, Indra, Jaya, Maitreya, Prabhakara, Ravi, Rudra, Savitri, Soma, Teja, Vaisravana, Vanhi, Varun and Vishnu. Surya, or Vivasvata, had 3 queens, namely, Sharanya (also called Saraniya, Saranyu, Sanjana or Sangya), Ragyi and Prabha. Sharanya was the mother of Vaivasvata Manu (or Satyavrata, the present Manu) and the twins Yama (the God of Death) and his sister Yami. Later, she also gave birth to the Ashvin twins, who were the divine horsemen and physicians to the Devas.

Being unable to bear the extreme radiance emitted by Surya, Sharanya created a superficial shadow of herself, called Chhaya. She asked her to act as Surya's wife. In due course of time, Chhaya gave birth to 2 sons, namely, Savarni Manu and Shani (Planet Saturn) and 2 daughters, namely, Tapti and Vishti. Surya's other wife, Ragyi, gave birth to their son, Revanta or Raivata.

Incidentally, Surya Deva's sons, Shani and Yama, are the judges of human life and karma. While Shani Deva bestows positive or negative results for one's deeds committed during one's lifetime, Yama Deva grants these results after one's death.