Aarti · Surya
Jai Kashyap Nandan: Surya Dev aarti lyrics with meaning
The aarti of Surya, the Sun god, son of the sage Kashyapa and of Aditi: seven short verses about light, health and clear understanding, in Hindi, in English letters and with a plain meaning.
Listen: Surya Aarti: Jai Kashyap Nandan
A computer-voiced recitation over a soft aarti rhythm of claps, bell and manjira, checked line by line against the text. It is an aid to reading along, not a replacement for a priest or a family elder.
What this aarti is
Surya is the Sun worshipped as a god: the visible source of light, warmth and time. In the Puranas he is the son of the sage Kashyapa and of Aditi, which is why this aarti opens “Jai Kashyap-nandan… jai Aditi-nandan”, glory to the son of Kashyapa, glory to the son of Aditi. He rides a chariot drawn by seven horses that has a single wheel.
The aarti is a traditional composition of unknown authorship, printed in the Gita Press “Aarti Sangrah”. Its verses are full of the Sun's old names (Divakar, Savita, the eye of the world) and end with a request for true knowledge in place of ignorance. Once through takes about four minutes.
When it is sung
- Sundays (Ravivar), the Sun's day, often after offering water to the rising Sun.
- Chhath Puja, Makar Sankranti and Ratha Saptami, the great Sun festivals.
- Every morning in homes that begin the day with Surya puja.
How to do the aarti, step by step
You need no priest. Aarti is the closing part of any puja, and it can also be done on its own, morning or evening, in about five minutes.
- Wash your hands and face and stand or sit before a picture or murti of Surya, or simply facing the rising Sun.
- Prepare a plate (thali) with a ghee diya or a piece of camphor, a little roli and rice, a flower and red flowers, a little jaggery or wheat sweet.
- Light the diya or camphor. Someone rings a small bell, or everyone claps along while singing.
- Sing the aarti below and slowly wave the plate clockwise before the deity. A common household way: four times at the feet, twice at the middle, once at the face, then seven times around the whole form.
- After the last verse, circle a little water around the plate and set it down.
- Everyone takes the aarti: hold both palms briefly over the flame and touch them to your eyes and head. Share the prasad.
Tunes and a few words differ from family to family. Sing it the way your home does; the feeling matters more than the exact wording.
Jai Kashyap Nandan, with meaning
The first verse is the refrain: it is sung at the start and repeated after every verse.
Refrain
जय कश्यप नन्दन, ॐ जय अदिति नन्दन।
त्रिभुवन तिमिर निकन्दन, भक्त हृदय चन्दन॥
Jai Kashyap nandan, Om jai Aditi nandan,
tribhuvan timir nikandan, bhakt hriday chandan.
अर्थ: जय हो कश्यप ऋषि के पुत्र, जय हो अदिति माता के पुत्र! आप तीनों लोकों का अंधकार मिटाते हैं, और भक्तों के हृदय को चंदन जैसी शीतलता देते हैं।
Meaning: Glory to the son of Kashyapa, glory to the son of Aditi! You destroy the darkness of the three worlds, and are cool sandalwood to your devotees' hearts.
Verse 1
सप्त अश्वरथ राजित, एक चक्रधारी।
दुःखहारी, सुखकारी, मानस मलहारी॥
Sapt ashvarath rajit, ek chakradhari,
dukhhari, sukhkari, manas malhari.
अर्थ: आप सात घोड़ों वाले रथ पर विराजते हैं, जिसका एक ही पहिया है। आप दुख हरते हैं, सुख देते हैं और मन का मैल धो देते हैं।
Meaning: You shine on a chariot of seven horses that runs on a single wheel. You take away sorrow, bring happiness and wash the mind clean.
Verse 2
सुर मुनि भूसुर वन्दित, विमल विभवशाली।
अघ दल दलन दिवाकर, दिव्य किरण माली॥
Sur muni bhoosur vandit, vimal vibhavshali,
agh dal dalan Divakar, divya kiran mali.
अर्थ: देवता, मुनि और ब्राह्मण आपको प्रणाम करते हैं; आप निर्मल और महान वैभव वाले हैं। हे दिवाकर (दिन बनाने वाले), आप पापों के ढेर को कुचलते हैं और दिव्य किरणों की माला पहनते हैं।
Meaning: Gods, sages and the learned bow to you; you are pure and full of glory. Divakar, maker of the day, you crush heaps of wrongdoing and wear a garland of divine rays.
Verse 3
सकल सुकर्म प्रसविता, सविता शुभकारी।
विश्व विलोचन मोचन, भव बन्धन भारी॥
Sakal sukarm prasavita, Savita shubhkari,
vishva vilochan mochan, bhav bandhan bhari.
अर्थ: हे सविता, आप सब अच्छे कर्मों को जन्म देने वाले और शुभ करने वाले हैं। आप संसार की आँख हैं, और संसार के भारी बंधन से छुड़ाने वाले हैं।
Meaning: Savita, you bring every good deed to birth and do only good. You are the eye of the world, and you free us from the heavy bonds of worldly life.
Verse 4
कमल समूह विकासक, नाशक त्रय तापा।
सेवत सहज हरत अति, मनसिज संतापा॥
Kamal samooh vikasak, nashak tray tapa,
sevat sahaj harat ati, manasij santapa.
अर्थ: आप कमलों के समूह को खिलाते हैं और तीनों तरह के दुख (शरीर-मन के, दूसरों से मिले, और प्रकृति से आए) मिटाते हैं। आपकी सेवा करने से कामना की भारी जलन सहज ही दूर हो जाती है।
Meaning: You open whole ponds of lotuses and end the three kinds of suffering (of body and mind, from others, and from nature). Simply serving you eases the strong burning of desire.
Verse 5
नेत्र व्याधि हर सुरवर, भू पीड़ा हारी।
वृष्टि विमोचन संतत, परहित व्रतधारी॥
Netra vyadhi har survar, bhoo peeda haari,
vrishti vimochan santat, parhit vratdhari.
अर्थ: हे श्रेष्ठ देव, आप आँखों के रोग और धरती की पीड़ा हरने वाले माने जाते हैं। आप सदा वर्षा कराते हैं और दूसरों की भलाई का व्रत निभाते हैं।
Meaning: Best of gods, you are held to cure ailments of the eyes and to ease the pains of the earth. You keep the rains coming, true to your vow of doing good to others.
Verse 6
सूर्यदेव करुणाकर, अब करुणा कीजै।
हर अज्ञान मोह सब, तत्त्वज्ञान दीजै॥
Suryadev karunakar, ab karuna keejai,
har agyan moh sab, tattvagyan deejai.
अर्थ: हे करुणा के भंडार सूर्य देव, अब हम पर करुणा कीजिए। सारा अज्ञान और मोह हर लीजिए, और सच्चा ज्ञान दीजिए।
Meaning: Surya Dev, treasury of compassion, show us your compassion now. Take away all ignorance and delusion, and give us knowledge of the truth.
Questions
Who wrote the Surya aarti?
The author is not known. It is a traditional aarti, printed in the Gita Press “Aarti Sangrah” and sung in homes and temples across North India, and free for everyone.
Isn't the Surya aarti “Om Jai Surya Bhagwan”?
That is a second, popular Surya aarti (“Om jai Surya Bhagwan, jai ho dinkar Bhagwan”). We give “Jai Kashyap Nandan” because it is the one printed in the Gita Press collection and on Drik Panchang and Bhakti Bharat, so its text could be checked line by line. Sing whichever your family knows.
When is the best time to sing it?
At sunrise, after offering water (arghya) to the Sun, especially on Sundays, at Chhath and on Makar Sankranti.
Text and sources
The text is a traditional aarti of unknown authorship, in the public domain. Every line was checked against the Gita Press “Shri Aarti Sangrah” (under Bhagwan Surya), Drik Panchang and Bhakti Bharat. We follow Gita Press, whose refrain Drik Panchang shares: “Jai Kashyap-nandan, Om jai Aditi-nandan”. Many people sing it as “Om jai Kashyap nandan, prabhu jai Aditi nandan” (Bhakti Bharat). Other differences are spelling only (“dukh”/“duhkh”, “bandhan” with or without a half-n). The transliteration and meanings are our own.
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