Water Offering to the Sun

The tradition of giving thanks to the Sun has continued in the Indian subcontinent over the millennia. There was a time when larger sections of the society recognized the logic behind this tradition and engaged in it. Today we all know, through science, that life on planet Earth can not exist without Sun's warmth and light. Rishis in the past created a short daily ritual to connect to the feeling of gratitude by remembering the role of Sun. The offering in this ritual is handfuls of water. Water signifies the care and love which nature showers on all creatures.

The thanks-giving ritual is very brief but is done thrice a day, namely, at sunrise, noon and sunset. These are considered traditional periods. The first water or Argya offering is ideally offered a bit before Sunrise. The second water offering is done when the Sun is overhead and the third one before the Sun sets. The Argya offering is generally followed with a short meditation using the powerful Gayatri mantra. The Gayatri mantra seeks the blessings of the Sun for a sharp intellect.

Idai-Kaattu (இடைக்காட்டு சித்தர்) Siddhar, a wise person, who lived a few thousand years ago, during the Sangam age, in Tamil Nadu, composed a witty verse on Arya offering. People can easily remember the idea timing for Argya offering. The following verse can be translated into "Without seeing, without tilting and while seeing! Take a dip, See it vanish! See it Vanish!". The verse is comical and cryptic but easy to
remember.  The fact that a person who grazed cattle wrote a popular poem about Argya offering, attests to the popularity of giving thanks to the Sun even in the southern parts of the Indian subcontinent

காணாமல் கோணாமல் கண்டு கொடு!

ஆடுகாண் போகுது பார் போகுதுபார்.