Hare Krishna Centre - Leicester, UK - Arka And The Temple Of The Sun

Written by James Robinson CooperMonday, 13 November 2017 08:45 - Last Updated Sunday, 04 March 2018 08:52

“Arka” is one of the most ancient and prominent names for the Sun. The root of Arka seems tobe “Rc” the “R” meaning “to arrive” “to reach” and the letter “C” represents “around” as in“arriving all around” “reaching all around”. It is not only “light” which “arrives all around” it alsosignifies “praise” “worship” they are synonymous “light” and “worship”. “Rc” is the root of theword “Rig" as in the "Rig Vedas" the “Rc” meaning “praise” “honour” the “Rca” meaning “sacredverse” and “Rcati” meaning “to praise”.

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Hare Krishna Centre - Leicester, UK - Arka And The Temple Of The Sun

Written by James Robinson CooperMonday, 13 November 2017 08:45 - Last Updated Sunday, 04 March 2018 08:52

“Rc” meaning “to praise” then becomes “Arc” which again reflects the synonymous meaning of“shining” and “worshipping”. The ancients observed daily, the movements of the Sun as it would“Arc” across the sky and recognising its divinity they would bow down and “Arc” their bodies insupplication. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanisads it says "one who prays ( Arc ) before mehappiness ( Ka ) will come". In the English language "Arc" refers to the coarse of the heavenlybodies and this is in keeping with this Sanskrit "Arc" which is referring to the nature and qualitiesof the Sun which is known in Sanskrit as "Arka”.

On the shores of Orissa, India, we find Konark, the ancient temple of the Sun. Kona means“angle” and Arka means “Sun” as in “that which measures the angle ( Kona ) of the Sun ( Arka)”. Rabindranath Tagore the great philosopher and poet describes Konark as "a language ofstone which surpasses the language of humans”.

The ancients of Vedic India glorified the life giving Sun in the shape of a huge chariot drawn byseven horses and twelve pairs of exquisitely decorated wheels, each serving as Sun dials,recording the time of day, changing seasons and solar and lunar cycles. The Devas are subtlebeings, ethereal, their bodies made of the mind element and their vehicles exhibit  the samecelestial nature.

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Hare Krishna Centre - Leicester, UK - Arka And The Temple Of The Sun

Written by James Robinson CooperMonday, 13 November 2017 08:45 - Last Updated Sunday, 04 March 2018 08:52

Orissan art decorates Konark with celestial dancers, musicians, lovers, erotic art, courtlyintrigue, animals, celestial creatures and intricate geometrical designs, all under the watchfuleye of Surya himself, whose life giving rays sustain this great dance of life. Beyond the arthowever, was a much greater attraction, the temple deity which floated in the air. The main temple of Konark soared to a height of 225 feet. The top of the temple housed a giantloadstone, a magnet which weighed some 52 ton. Another magnet was placed at the bottom ofthe temple and more magnets were placed throughout. The Sun God was made from variousiron elements and through this unique arrangements of magnets the deity would hang,suspended in the air. The temple was aligned in such a way that the first rays of the Sun, as it crossed the NataMandir, would fall upon and reflect the beautiful diamond upon the crown of the Sun. Thistemple, whose sole purpose is to glorify the Sun, without which life would not exist, was builtaround the 13th century. To discover its roots, however, we must go back some 5000 years tothe time of Lord Krsna and the cursing of Samba.

Jambavati lamented, although the wife of the Supreme Lord, she had yet to deliver a child.Krsna, playing the role of a pious king, advised her to approach Lord Siva, who, known asasotosa ( easily pleased ) would surely fulfill her desires. While Jambavati prayed, Lord Sivalistened, and in due course of time he appeared as the combined form of Siva and Sakti. Krsnanamed him Samba meaning "accompanied ( Sa ) by ( Amba )". As the lord of destruction, Lord Sivas role in Krsnas lila was to become a catalyst, one whichdestroys the Yadu dynasty and facilitates Lord Krsnas departure from this earthly realm. In sodoing Samba was cursed by the sages to become a leper and seeking a cure he worshippedthe Sun. Samba who is Siva and Durga combined, chose the appropriately named Chandra Bhaga riveras his place of meditations. Chandra is the name of the Moon and Bhaga means "portion"hence Chandra Bhaga means "the crescent moon". Each day Samba would bathe in itspurifying waters and meditate upon his effulgent lord. Satisfied, the king of the planets curedhim of his leprosy and requested he build a beautiful temple and these are the roots of Konark,the temple of the Sun.

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Hare Krishna Centre - Leicester, UK - Arka And The Temple Of The Sun

Written by James Robinson CooperMonday, 13 November 2017 08:45 - Last Updated Sunday, 04 March 2018 08:52

The ancient Vedas glorify the Sun as the "king" and "chief" of all the planets and in the prayersof Lord Brahma known as Sri Brahma Samhita, we find the following verse. "The Sun who is the king of all the planets, full of infinite effulgence, the image of the good soul,is as the eye of this world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda in pursuance of whose order theSun performs its journey, mounting the wheel of time". In ancient Greece this "kingly" "chieftan" nature of "Arka" is seen in the Greek "Arkhon" thename given to the chief magistrates of ancient Athens. "Archon" is a Greek word meaning"chief" "leader" "ruler" "commander" "captain" and this seems to be very much related to thisSanskrit "Arka" the "chief" planet in this universe, the "king" and "ruler" of the planets. In Byzantine ( Roman empire ) the rulers were known as "Archontes" which seems to mean"rulers ( archon ) of the land ( desa )" a name appointed to nobles, magistrates and provincialgovernors. Arka and Archon are the source of numerous words, over one hundred and fiftywhich include "monarch" "patriarch" "architect" "archangel" "archetype" "hierarchy" "matriarch""oligarch" "archbishop" "archaic" "archeology" "archduke" "archer" and "archipelago".

Above, the ancient city of Arkaim. Dated around 6000 years old, its been called the RussianStonehenge, its been called Swastika city and its been called the home of the Aryans. Arka theSanskrit  name for the Sun seems to be present in this ancient "Arkaim" which was once anastrological observatory and seems to have also been a temple of Sun worship. As the picture shows, Arkaim was a circular structure with a diameter of 160 metres. Therewere four gates all in line with the cardinal points, walls were some five metres thick and circlingaround the outside of the structure was a moat which helped to protect its citizens. Numerousarticles of pottery have been excavated bearing the ancient symbol of the swastika. At the site of Arkaim numerous burial sites have been found where horses and chariots wereburied with their owner and master, a procedure which mirror images the rituals found in theancient Rig Veda. This has of course led to claims that the so called Aryan race began inRussia, spreading to Europe, the Middle East and India. Gold Watches however, do not creategold mines, the ancient culture of Vedic India and the time scales involved dwarf thesearcheological discoveries and the correct conclusion is not that the culture of Vedic India spreadfrom Russia, it simply included Russia as 5000 years ago and beyond, Vedic Culture wasGlobal.

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Hare Krishna Centre - Leicester, UK - Arka And The Temple Of The Sun

Written by James Robinson CooperMonday, 13 November 2017 08:45 - Last Updated Sunday, 04 March 2018 08:52

It would be incomplete if “Arka” was not found amongst the great South American civilisations,whose very land became a monument to the Sun. The above picture shows Tiwanaku, anarcheological site which Arthur Posnansky expertly dates around 15,000 B.C. On the left of thepicture is the Akapana pyramid, its name is the Sanskrit “Arka” meaning “Sun” and “Pana” and“Pani” meaning “water” “drink” “drinking vessel” and “canal” as in “water of the Sun” or “canal ofthe Sun”. Atop the Akapana pyramid was built a huge water tank where water slowly seeped into acomplex system of channels used for irrigation. The water which flowed was warm, which, at aheight of some 12,000 feet above sea level, made it uniquely suited to farming, hence the name“water ( pani ) of the Sun ( Arka )” or “canal ( pana ) of the Sun ( Arka )”. As verification of this Sanskrit/Vedic connection, we see other Sanskrit names such as thetemple of Kalasasaya. Both “Kala” meaning “time” “era” and “Sasaya” meaning “ever flowing”“abundant” are Sanskrit names which seem appropriate for these temples which were alsoobservatories, and may have been its original meaning rather than the official “stopped stones”.At the top right hand side of the picture, once again we see this Sanskrit "Kala" in the temple of"Kerikala" a name which is also found in Tamil, "Kerikala" being one of the early kings of theCholas. No doubt the official name is also stone, which is quite strange when you think of theeffort expended on these structures, how they are related to the Gods, and after maybe ahundred years of monumental effort you would expect a name reflecting the divine, the mystical,the celestial, instead we are told it means "standing stones". In the picture we also see Kantatalita, in Sanskrit “Kanta” means “pleasing” “beautiful” “lovely”“Moon” and “Talita” means “fixed” “placed”. The meanings of these names can and will bedebated, however, its difficult to escape what seems to be the presence of many Sanskrit wordsand when we consider how the Akapana temple provided the water for its irrigation system itsdifficult to ignore it as a Sanskrit name when the Sanskrit words themselves explain the veryfunction of the temple.

The son of Zeus was Arkadas, in Sanskrit this means "the servant of the Sun" the Arka meaning"Sun" and Das meaning "servant". Arkadas became the founder of Arcadia, a Greek provincewithin the peninsula of Peloponessus. The Greeks were a civilisation of Sun worshippers, theiroriginal name was the Hellenes, worshippers of the Sun God "Heli". Heli is also a Sanskrit wordmeaning the "Sun" and from this we also get the famous "Helicon" a nearby mountain whichseems to be two Sanskrit words "Heli" meaning "Sun" and "Konda" and "Kunda" meaning "hill"as seen in the Indian place name "Nagarjunakonda" meaning "the hill of Nagarjuna". Vedic/Sanskrit footprints are found all around Arcadia, its capital is Tripoli, the "Tri" Sanskrit for"three" and poli is the Sanskrit Puri meaning "city" as in "three cities". Megalopoli is also aregion of Arcadia, Mega is the Sanskrit Maha meaning "great" and Poli is the Sanskrit Purimeaning "city" as in "great city". Just outside Arcadia is the city of Kalamata, an obviousSanskrit name, Kala meaning "time" "era" "black" and Mata is the Sanskrit "Matr" meaning"mother", in the Vedas Kalamata is known as the "mother of time" the "mother of death". Itsinteresting that next to Kalamata, a name for Durga, we find Gargaliani, the Garga beinganother name for Durga. Corinthia is very ancient, going back in time some 6000 years. Its original name was "Corinthus"and according to Edward G Pococke and his book India in Greece, its named after the KoriIndus, a creek which flows from the Indian ocean and connects with the Indus river and onewhich the ancient Greeks would navigate. Even older than Corinthia is its next door neighbour,the province of Argolis and the city of Argos which goes back over 7000 years. Argos is thesame Argo as seen in Jason and the Argonauts, its meaning being "shiny" "bright" "white""silver" its very much related to the Sanskrit/Vedic Arjuna meaning "white" "silver" "clear". And finally the above picture shows Arcadia as it was idealised, a pastoral utopia with itsmountainous terrain and sparsely populated land. The God of Arcadia was Pan, a nature spirit,the God of the forests, one of many Gods perverted by the church into something sinister andevil. The utopia of Arcadia is only so when seen through the eyes of the non utopian world oftoday. For the ancients who worshipped "the Gods" Arcadia was how it was, their propensity tosee the divine in the Sun, Moon, wind, rain, thunder, fire, all led to a paradigm which protectedforests, rivers, villages, oceans and countryside and which saw life as sacred. Inclusive monotheism was the ideal of the ancients, an empowered universe governed by divinebeings, whose worship cultivated a sacred paradigm centred around the Gods. The fanaticalmonotheism of today wipes out the Gods, as well as the ancient wisdom traditions whoworshipped them. In return we get a man centred universe with all its anomolies and servesonly a few at the expense of everyone and everything else.

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