Introduction
Varuna is one of the oldest gods of India. In the Rigveda, he is a great sovereign god who upholds the cosmic and moral order (rita), watches over truth and falsehood, and rules the sky and the waters. In the later tradition, he shrinks to the god of the ocean and the guardian of the western direction, but he remains important in ritual, in law and in folk religion.
Family
- Father: Kashyapa
- Mother: Aditi
- Siblings: Vishnu, Surya, Indra, Mitra, Aryaman, Bhaga, Dhata, Amsha, Pushan, Tvashtri, Savitri (aspect of Surya), Garuda, Aruna
Names and epithets
Varuna is called Asura, in the old sense of "lord", Samrat, "universal ruler", and Pracheta, "wise". He is also called Jaleshvara, "lord of the waters", and Pashi, "one with the noose", in later texts.
In the Rigveda
About a dozen hymns are addressed to Varuna alone, and many more to him with Mitra. He is the guardian of rita, the order of the universe and the moral order. He is said to have set the sun in the sky, to have made the rivers flow and to have spread out the earth. He watches everything through his spies and sees the lies of humans. His punishments are fearful, and those who break their vows are bound with his nooses (pashas). Rigvedic hymns to him are very personal, in which a person asks for forgiveness of sins (RV 7.86-89).
Varuna is an Aditya, a son of Aditi, and together with Mitra, forms a pair of sovereign gods, Mitra-Varuna. Mitra is the friendly aspect of sovereignty and Varuna its fearful aspect. Vasishtha and Agastya are said to be born of Mitra and Varuna.
Comparative studies
Scholars have compared Varuna to the Iranian Ahura Mazda, and to Greek Ouranos, in the study of Indo-European religion. These connections are debated, though the pairing of Mitra and Varuna is very old. The Mitanni treaty of the fourteenth century BCE names Mitra and Varuna among its divine witnesses.
Puranic Varuna
As Indra became the chief god of the Vedic pantheon and later Vishnu and Shiva became dominant, Varuna's functions narrowed to the waters. In the Puranas he is one of the Lokapalas, the guardians of the directions, and rules the west. He is shown riding a sea creature (makara), holding a noose, and his wife is Varuni, the goddess of wine or the waters. He also has a mythical realm beneath the waters.
Stories
- Shunahshepa: in the Aitareya Brahmana, King Harishchandra promised Varuna to sacrifice his first-born son in return for a son. When he was reluctant to do it, Varuna afflicted him. The sage's son Shunahshepa was bought as a substitute, and was freed by praying to the gods, including Varuna.
- The churning of the ocean: Varuna is among the gods who took part in the churning and receive a share of what emerged.
Worship
Varuna is invoked in rituals related to water, oaths and rain. Sindhi Hindus worship Jhulelal (Uderolal), the patron saint of the Sindhi community, as an incarnation of Varuna, and celebrate Cheti Chand. In Japan, the water deity Suiten is regarded as a form of Varuna.
Meaning
Varuna represents the idea that the universe is governed by law, and that moral and cosmic order are connected. His decline in later Hinduism reflects the changes of religious emphasis from Vedic ritual to devotional worship.