RATHA SAPTAMI or Rathasapthami is an auspicious Hindu festival that falls on the seventh day in the bright Hindu month of Magha. It is considered to be the birth anniversary of God Surya. It is believed that on this day, the Sun God enlightened the world with his powerful rays. On this auspicious day, devotees across the country worship Sun God to seek his blessings and get rid of past sins.
Ratha Saptami 2023: Date And Shubh Muhurat
Ratha Saptami 2023: Saturday, January 28, 2023
Saptami Tithi begins: at 09:10 AM on January 27, 2023
Saptami Tithi ends: at 08:43 AM on January 28, 2023
Snan Muhurat on Ratha Saptami: 05:26 AM to 07:12 AM
Duration: 01 hours 46 mins
Civil Dawn on Ratha Saptami: 06:47 AM
Ratha Saptami 2023: Significance
It is symbolically represented in the form of the Sun God Surya turning his Ratha drawn by seven horses towards the northern hemisphere, in a north-easterly direction. Ratha Saptami is a Vedic festival celebrated in honor of the God Surya. It is celebrated across the country where devotees worship the God Sun as per Vedic rituals, it is also known as Achala Saptami. God Sun dispels darkness with his illumination, which symbolizes the removal of the darkness of ignorance with the illumination of wisdom. It is believed the observing fast on Ratha Saptami obliterates sins of past and present lives.
Ratha Saptami 2023: Puja Vidhi
1. Wake up before sunrise and pray to god.
2. Devotees take bath before sunrise. Holding Arka plant leaves on the head while taking bath is considered highly auspicious and rewarding.
3. At Arunodaya, offer Arghya to God Sun in a standing posture. Arghya is offering water to Surya Dev along with chanting Surya mantras or Ratha Saptami Stotra.
4. After this, devotees light a ghee lamp, offer red flowers, kumkum, and turmeric powder, jaggery, sacred thread along with other items to the Sun God while chanting sacred mantras.
5. Practising Surya Namaskar on Ratha Saptami has its own significance.
6. Devotees bow down to God's Sun with complete devotion and dedication and pray to god.
7. Items are donated to the needy with pure intentions.