Navagraha Planets And Navagraha Ganjifa Cards
Kishor Gordhandas
1 June 2009, 16:31Introductory Notes:
At the great festivals of the Hindus a small offering is made to all the planets at once, however, except on those occasions, they are never worshipped together. They are, however, frequently worshipped separately by the sick and unfortunate who suppose themselves to be under the baneful influence of one or the other of them. At these times they are worshipped one after the other in regular succession. Surya or Ravi are offered in burnt sacrifice small pieces of the shrub arka; Chandra those of the palasa, Mangala (Mars) those of the khudiru, Budha (Mercury) those of the aparmarga, Brihaspati (Jupiter) those of the asvattha, Sukra (Venus) those of the urumbara, Sani (Saturn) those of the sami, Rahu (the ascending node) blades of durva grass, and to Ketu (the descending node) blades of kusa grass.
Astronomers define planets as the major heavenly bodies that revolve around the sun in an orbit around the ecliptic. But to an astrologer planets are more than merely heavenly bodies. Each planet has a personality, a magnetic field, and subtle vibrations which influence life forces and human destiny. They also influence each other and are therefore called ‘graha’, those that seize, in Sanskrit. The planets known to ancient Indian astrology were: the sun, called Surya, Ravi, Bhanu, Aditya, and Dinakara; the moon, called Soma and Chandra; Mars, called Mangala, Kuja, and Angaraka; Mercury, called Budha; Jupiter,called Guru and Brihaspati; Venus, called Sukra; and Saturn, called Sani or more correctly Sanaischara, the slow moving. To this list are added two shadow planets called Dragon’s head (Rahu) and Dragon’s tail (Ketu). Rahu represents the ascending node where the orbit of the moon cuts the ecliptic in passing northwards. Ketu represents the descending node of the moon. Both Rahu and Ketu traverse the Zodiac from west to east as opposed to the other seven planets which appear to travel from east to west. As astrology is geocentric, the sun and the moon are regarded as planets while the earth is not.
Astrology is not a mere superstition of gazing at the stars and making fantastic predictions, but is based upon the firm tenets of the doctrine of Karma and rebirth of Hinduism. Every individual is born to go through his Prarabdha and exhaust his urgent Vasanas by performing certain actions. Thus he chooses a particular time and place to be born, when and where he can live a life suited for the purpose. The time of his birth at that particular conjunction of the planets indicates his fate if a correct assessment can be made by the astrologers.
As in all else, the Navagraha deities do not stop by this mere indication. They have a deeper message to convey. The position in which the deities have to be installed in the temples gives an inkling as to what they are actually meant to represent to man. The idols are to be installed with the Sun in the centre. The other eight deities stand surrounding him in such a way that no deity faces another. The Sun in the centre also faces none of them. The eight Grahas surrounding the Sun represent the eight-fold lower nature of the Lord, and the Sun represents the higher nature of the Lord which becomes the Jeeva. The world play is the play of the two natures of the Lord attracting, catching and pulling one another. Since the nine catch one another, they are called the Navagrahas, the nine Catchers. All the restlessness of a man is due to the mutual attraction of these two. When a man knows how to keep the two natures within him separate from one another, he stands at peace with himself and with the world around.
How to separate these two? A new understanding of the position has to be gained. ‘Nav Graha’ literally means a “New Grasp”. An investigation into the names of the deities and their vahanas gives us the new understanding about life and its mysteries as all celestial events have their parallel in man. This concept is visually represented as the planetary man (Graha Purusha), the zodiacal man (Rashi Pursusha) and the Asterisms man (Nakshatra Purusha). In the image of planetary man, Mars rules the Forehead, Venus the Face, Mercury the Shoulders, Moon the Chest, Sun the Abdomen, Jupiter the Genitals, Saturn the Thighs, Rahu the Ankles and Ketu the Feet.
Surya or Sun: Surya is one of the more important deities of the Vedas (the others being Agni, Soma, Indra and Vayu) and personifies the sun. As the brightest and largest luminary, the sun is the source of all the vital energies of our solar system. The power that keeps the sun shining is regarded as the deity, and was worshipped by many ancient civilizations throughout the world. Surya is the son of Kashyapa and Aditi.
He was represented in innumerable forms. On early coins, the sun is variously portrayed as a wheel, a golden disc or a fully opened lotus. Gradually Surya acquired a human form. The sun is represented as a handsome man with a high nose, forehead and cheeks well formed and with slightly fleshy thighs and chest. He is dressed from toes to chest in the northern fashion. He must hold a lotus flower by its stalk in each hand (Brihat Samhita). In the most common icons of the Sun, he is shown riding a wheeled chariot drawn by four or seven horses. Sapta Aswa or seven horses stand for seven types of appetites. The superior nature of the Lord entering into the individual vasana promotes the seven types of appetites – of the five senses, the mind and the intellect. His Charioteer, Aruna, sits in front of him shading the earth from the sun’s full fury. Two female companions, Pratyusha or Twilight and Usha or Dawn, are shown shooting arrows to dispel the darkness of the night.
Chandra or the Moon: The Moon shines with borrowed light from the sun. It also appears to be much smaller than the sun and hence less awesome. But the moon is endowed with a mysterious quality which the sun does not have as all that is unseen and occult is governed by the moon. Therefore the moon is called the mind of the universal world, while the sun is called the eye of the universe. The moon is a handsome, fair youth with four hands, each holding a lotus bud.
On his right stands, his wife Kanti (Lustre) and on his left his beloved wife Shobha (Elegance). He rides a silver chariot drawn by ten horses which are steered by his charioteer Ambara (Sky) (Vishnudharmottara Purana). According to Agni Purana, Soma has two hands. In one hand he holds a pot filled with nectar and in the other a rosary. In many paintings that take their iconography from popular folk sources rather than from the Sanskrit texts, the moon is frequently shown riding a chariot drawn by a deer. In the Tantras, the moon stands for sexual energy. Some esoteric cults look upon the moon as a female (Shakti) and the sun as a male (Shiva). They say that from the union of female (Moon-Shakti) and the male (Sun-Shiva), night and day are born. In astrology, though the Chandra is male, he has feminine characteristics and his effects on the native of a horoscope is soft and mild.
Mangala or Mars: In traditional order, the sun and moon are followed by Mars (Mangala), the ruling spirit of which is always associated with violence and war. Mars is identified with the adolescent god of war and the commander-in-chief of the god’s army, Kumara Karthikeya. Mangala is generally represented as a man with a red skin, riding a buffalo or a goat. He has four hands in which he holds weapons of war- a sword, a trident and a mace. The fourth hand makes the gesture implying that Mars is not totally bad and if well placed can give peace and happiness. Some icons show him with two hands holding lotus buds and riding a ram or a chariot drawn by eight horses. When Mangala is identified with Karthikeya, he is depicted holding a spear and making the gesture fearless. He rides a peacock. In the Matsya Purana, Mangala is called the anger of Shiva and therefore identified with Virabhadra.
Mercury (Budha): Budha means recognition. Budha is the planet of intellect, wisdom and speech. According to the Mythology, Budha was an illegitimate son, born out of adultery between Soma (Moon) and Tara (Star), wife of Brihaspati, the planet Jupiter. Though an illegitimate son, he turned out to be so handsome that both the Moon and Jupiter claimed him as their son. Astrologically, the reason for giving Budha such a mixed ancestry was probably to stress his relationship with the Moon and his importance in the horoscope. Visually, Budha is shown as a handsome man. According to Agni Purana, Mercury has two hands and holds a bow and a rosary. Sometimes he is shown with four hands, holding a sword, a shield and a mace and making a gesture of blessing. He rides a lion. In many horoscope paintings, Budha wears a king’s costume and rides a Yali— a mythical animal with a lion’s body and an elephant’s head.
Jupiter (Brihaspati): Brihaspati is known to be a beneficial planet, the giver of peace and harmony to the mankind. Brihaspati, in later literature, is said to be the teacher of Gods (Guru) and the high priest of Heaven (Devapurohita). In Vedas, Brihaspati is described as a god with seven faces, holding a bow, arrows and a golden axe, riding a chariot pulled by eight horses. As he is scholar by nature, he is shown holding a book, a pen, a rosary and a pot of sacred waters (Agni Purana). He rides either an elephant or rides a swan (Hamsa), a symbol of aspirations for a higher spiritual life.
In his human form he rides a silver chariot pulled by ten horses. In one hand he holds a book and in the other a vessel filled with gems (Vishnudharmottara Purana). According to Agni Purana he holds a variety of symbolic objects, a rosary for spirituality, a vase for plenty, a spear for power and a noose for discipline. In one traditional text, Venus is said to have been born from one of the seven rays of the sun (Vayu Purana).
Saturn (Shanischara): Shani, the slow moving, is, according to Mythology, the son of Surya and his second wife Chhaya (Shadow). He is depicted as a dark (black or blue) man riding an iron chariot drawn by eight serpents. Shani’s Chariot is also shown pulled by horses, eagles and crows, according to various local traditions. He is sometimes shown riding a buffalo. He has four hands in which he holds a spear, an arrow and a bow and the fourth hand makes a gesture of blessing. In South India, Shani is worshipped more than any other single planetary deity. Saturn is known throughout the world of astrology as an evil planet and as he moves very slowly, he gives much trouble to the native of a horoscope for a long time. In alchemy, Saturn is symbolized by iron, matter most solid. It is iron which is transformed into gold, the metal of sun. Shani is the son of Surya in mythology. These are the most powerful symbols of the dual nature of Saturn. At the gross level, Shani is an evil planet, but at a more subtle level, he is spiritually beneficial and a ‘transformer’ from that which is base to that which is precious.
Rahu and Ketu (Ascending and Descending Nodes of the Moon): Rahu is the fierce, four-armed, dragon-like demon. In Mythology, he is the son of Kashyapa and
Sinhika (lioness). Once she is said to have swallowed Hanuman, the monkey-headed god. Hanuman escaped by tearing open her stomach, and from that day Rahu has nurtured an unrelenting hate for all the gods. Rahu now lives in the sky as a shadow planet, and burns with much hatred for the sun and the moon that he races through the sky in his silver chariot, pulled by eight horses or lions, from the sun to the moon and back again. Rahu is generally depicted as a head, but occasionally as a body down to the waist. In such icons he has two hands, in one of which he holds the moon (Agni Purana). In some images, Rahu is shown with four hands holding a sword, a thunderbolt and making the salutation gesture. Ketu also lives in the sky and causes appearances of meteors and comets. Ketu has a human body without a head. In his two hands, he holds a sword and a lamp. In south India, Ketu is generally depicted as a human figure with a snake’s head. In western Indian miniature paintings, he is portrayed as a headless man with a long fish-like tail. This is probably a symbolic way of stressing his association with comets and meteors.
Besides anthropomorphic forms, the planets have symbolic Yantric forms as well. When worshipped as a group, they are generally worshipped in their geometric forms: the sun as a golden disc, the moon as a silver rectangle, Mars as a copper triangle, Marcury as a green arrow, Jupiter as a golden rectangle, Venus as a pentagon, Saturn as a bow, Rahu as a winnowing fan, and Ketu as a flag. Planets are said to have a magnetic force that affects man, and on account of this force they play a very central role in Indian astrology. They are considered to be so important that they are frequently compared to Vishnu, the Supreme deity.
The nine Grahas are said to have the greatest influence on the physical and psychic conditions of the living beings on the earth. Thus they have a very important place in Astrology. The future of a being is decided by the position of these nine in the Zodiac at that time of his birth. Whenever an individual or society is passing through difficult times, “Navagraha Santi” is performed in the temples according to prescribed rites. (Source: Astrology and Religion in Indian Art by Swami Sivapriyananda)
Navagraha Nine Planets -108 Cards Ganjifa
Mr. Shankar Sakharam Hendre, a staunch worshipper of “Nava Graha” or “Nine Planets” invented a nine-suited (9 X 12 = 108 Cards) Ganjifa card Game with the nine planets presiding over the suits, at the beginning of the 20th Century. The aim of inventing the game of Navagraha Ganjifa was to keep the names of the planets in memory. It was the inventor’s firm belief that those who would worship this game of Navagraha Ganjifa with all the attention would find that God would remove all their obstacles and problems and all their desires would be fulfilled.
The main motive behind all this work about Navagraha Ganjifa cards and the game was that a temple dedicated to the nine planets be built in the city of Bombay. Though there were numerous temples of other gods in Bombay (early 20th century), there was not a single temple dedicated to the Nine Planets. No one had taken up the work of building a Navagaraha Temple seriously till then. It was Mr. Hendre’s hope and faith that his effort would be blessed with fulfillment with the grace of Nine Planets. Hence, he presented this project of the Navagraha Ganjifa before the people at great personal expenses to himself. He had great hopes that bearing the above truth in mind, everyone would heed his request. He requested people and his friends to oblige and send in help according to their capabilities as early as possible. He did not know how much finance was required for this project, as it was difficult to gauge at that time. A lot of money was required to get a good place in Bombay and this was not an easy task. Money was also required for the establishment of the images and statues. Having considered all these points, he requested and hoped that worshippers would render help for this religious cause. He got the Navagraha Ganjifa Cards printed in Pune (Poona of the 20th century).
The original set of these 108 Navagraha Cards, Ca. 1911 is now in the Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museun, Pune, along with a small 31 page booklet of rules on how to play the game in the Marathi language called Navagrahancha Ganjifancha Dava Khelanyachi Mahiti, Poona 1911. According to the book, the chief motivation for the game of Navagraha is to be in constant touch with the name of God even while engaged in a game. Though such an attitude borders on religious naiveté, card playing as a game seems to have undergone cultural as well as formal metamorphosis, and is at present, predominantly linked with human greed, as a form of gambling. Unlike earlier times, contemporary playing cards are not painted with exquisite skill and stored reverentially in beautifully painted boxes, but are mass printed consumer goods easily discarded. It is not known whether there exists another set of Navagraha Ganjifa other than the one mentioned above. Mr. Hendre’s venture, however, to raise money for the construction of the Navagraha Temple in Bombay proved unsuccessful.
On seeing first a copy of some of the cards as printed on the pages of an earlier MARG Magazine (Bombay), and then seeing the original Navagraha Ganjifa cards in Raja Kelkar’s Museum, Pune, I thought of having a facsimile of this set, hand painted by Indian traditional Artists on 108 Round cards, maintaining the same tradition and style of painting. My first few sets of Navagraha Ganjifa Cards were hand painted by Artists from Sawantwadi, Maharashtra. It will be noticed, that not all, but most of the description pertaining to the nine Planet Gods, their dress, colour, vehicles/weapons etc. as found in various mythological texts, and also Puranas, and other early manuscripts mentioned above will be seen on the Raja and Pradhan cards of this Navagraha Ganjifa Cards.
The size of the cards is between 3” and 4” in diameter depending upon the art work required to be done on the cards. The back colour is painted orange/brown and lacquered. The painting is done on the medium thick cards. In this Navagraha Ganjifa of 108 cards, as is in 96- Card Moghul Ganjifa and 120-card Dashavatara Ganjifa, there are two court cards: Raja and Pradhan, and ten numeral cards, from one to ten in each suit thus making 9 X 12 = 108 cards in a set.
At a later date, as per the details submitted for these Ganjifa cards, the traditional Ganjifa Artists from Raghurajpur , Chikiti and Parlakhemundi of Orissa, from Bishnupur, W. Bengal and the artist from Bangalore also made the Navagraha Ganjifa cards as per their style of painting. Originally, Mysore Style Navagraha Ganjifa consists of 216 cards in a set, having 12 suits of 18 cards in each; the first three being the additional ones, namely, Chamunda (Durga), Shiva and Vishnu.
Shri Appana Mahapatro of Chikiti, Orissa, who died in 1995, made an interesting 12-suited 144 Navagraha Ganjifa cards with the addition of three Planets: namely, Pluto -Yamadev, Neptune – Varuna, and Uranus – Indradev. Each God’s respective animal vehicles served as suit symbols on the numeric cards. Two Navagraha Ganjifa of 108 cards were recently painted by Mrs. Sudha Venkatesh of Bangalore and Banamali Mahapatra of Raghrajpur and are quite beautiful examples of the style. An incomplete set of Navagraha Ganjifa Cards of 196 cards out of 216 cards in the Mysore style that originally belonged to the Maharaja of Mysore in the early 19th century is in the Jagmohan Palace Museum.
The rules for playing this 108 card Ganjifa are on the same principles and terms as 120 card Dashavatara Ganjifa and 96 card Moghul Ganjifa, but the game is a rather complicated one. The Aftab Rules: the holder who should start the game are as follows. In the 108-card Navagraha Ganjifa, the planets rule the days of the week, hence, the Rajas (Kings) of the various suits are the Aftabs on their respective days, while the Rajas of Rahu (Ascending Node) and Ketu (Descending Node) lead on the Full Moon day and the New Moon night, respectively. There are people who still play, although very rarely, Dashavatara Ganjfa of 120/144 cards and Moghul Ganjifa of 96 Cards games in Orissa, Maharashtra, Hyderabad and in Bishnupur, W. Bengal, and NAQSH Gambling games in Orissa and North India (Delhi side). But I have my doubts if anyone knows and has played this Navagraha Ganjifa game in modern times, although the game is worth an attempt to play!
Comment
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please i want a nine grahs clean photo.
please help me……
— vishwagayatri trust · Sep 20, 19:43 · #
please i want a nine grahs clean photo.
— rajiv · Oct 6, 22:42 · #
Read the details of navgraha ,which is very intersting.
— gk pramod · Nov 24, 19:24 · #
hello,
iam pradeepjaithal,from bangalore iam a ganjiffa artist , i am currently doing navagraha ganjiffa card set in mysore style can you please provide me the rules i have very less resourses about these cards
— pradeep.j · Oct 19, 03:42 · #
Pradeep and others.
Unfortunately Mr. Gordhandas passed away over the summer of 2010 after a long struggle with cancer. However, you may find the answer to your questions about the rules of the game in some of his other articles published at this site. Simply click on his name at the beginning of this article and you will be taken to a complete listing of everything he ever published with us.
— Richard Marcus · Oct 23, 21:35 · #
thanks a lot , i have got
enough information about the cards,
— pradeepjaithal · Dec 9, 02:00 · #