The Sun: From a Mythological and Symbolic Perspective

astrology
Written By Jasmine

As I’ve been on my astrology journey, one of the ways I’ve connected to the planets has been through their mythological and archetypal correspondences, accompanied by the symbolism astrologers use to describe what the planets signify.

With that in mind, this series of posts, where I’ll cover each planet in our solar system (plus Pluto), I’ll write about their mythology, archetypes, and some general symbolism, including my own observations.

In this post, I will focus on the Sun.

[I will add to this post when I broaden my knowledge of myths, deepen my knowledge of the planets, and make new observations concerning them.]

The Mythology of the Sun

The Sun has a significant position in most, if not all, mythological pantheons across the world.

In Egyptian mythology, the Sun sailed in a barque, while other cultures believed it was transported on a solar chariot.

In Egypt, the Sun was associated with Ra. Every night, as the Sun passed through the underworld, it had to fight off attackers, including a great snake called Apep (also known as Apophis and “The Lord of Chaos”). Later, the Sun would be associated with Horus.

In Norse mythology, Sól is the personification of the Sun. She travels across the sky in a Sun chariot drawn by horses while being chased by a wolf who will swallow her during Ragnarök.

In the Hindu pantheon, Surya is the Sun deity, also riding a chariot drawn by horses.

In the Greco-Roman pantheon, Helios was the personification of the Sun, while, in some sources, Apollo drove the solar chariot.

Eclipses have had significance in mythology, too. For the Japanese, an eclipse was seen as the moment when the Shinto Sun goddess Amaterasu fled to a cave and plunged the world into darkness. For the Chinese, an eclipse was the result of the Sun being devoured by a dragon. The Egyptians viewed eclipses as a sign that the Sun had, momentarily, lost its fight against Apep.

Helios

We don’t get a lot of stories about Helios (also known as Sol in Roman mythology). However, he’s said to be the child of the Titans Theia and her brother Hyperion.

One of Helios’s qualities is that he sees everything because the Sun sees it all. For example, Helios was the one who saw that Hades had kidnapped Persephone and brought her down into the underworld with him. Helios also saw Ares and Aphrodite having an affair behind Hephaestus’s back (Aphrodite’s husband) and told him. Being all-seeing meant that Helios could shine light on things and influence the course of events.

Helios is described as a god who “rides in a chariot pulled by a team of four splendid stallions. He shines both upon humans and the deathless gods, bright rays beaming dazzlingly from him. His all-seeing eyes flash like fire, and his golden locks stream gracefully around his face. He wears a golden helmet and a rich, finely spun garment that glows and flutters in the wind” (Giesecke 2020).

The most well-known story with Helios is the one where his son with Clymene, Phaethon, is involved. Phaethon asks to fly the chariot one time, which results in catastrophe as he scorches the earth in some places when flying too low and freezes the earth in other places when flying too high. In some sources, it ends when Zeus shoots Phaeton with a thunderbolt.

In some Roman sources, Apollo had been conflated with Helios and was the one who drove the chariot, passing the duty over to Helios after Phaeton’s disastrous adventure.

Either way, the Sun needed to pass over the sky every day for the well-being of Earth to continue, and whether Zeus threatened Helios to continue riding the chariot or if Helios gladly took over after Apollo doesn’t really matter.

The Symbolism of The Sun

General Overview

  • Domicile: Leo

  • Detriment: Aquarius

  • Exaltation: Aries

  • Fall/Depression: Libra

  • Joy in the 9th House of the God

  • It takes the Sun a year to go through all twelve signs of the zodiac.

Symbolism

The Sun is at the center of our solar system and is the light bringer. In order for us to see things, there needs to be light. The Sun illuminates things.

Because the Sun is at the center of our solar system, it’s also connected to the ego and “being the center of the universe” or the center of attention. It can also indicate the core of someone’s being, which might be why the Sun in modern astrology is often associated with the spirit/soul and our personality. The Sun’s placement often shows where we or our power shines brightest.

The Sun also connects to leadership, the King, the father, etc. It signifies notable figures who are often at the top of the hierarchy, but it can also refer to those at the “center of the stage” at any given time (like famous people at the height of their careers or fame). Since it is connected to leadership, it’s also connected to decisiveness, getting organized, and taking action. That’s what leaders do to get the job done. In that way, it also signifies willpower and where and how it is strongest.

The Sun can also connect to individuality since it is connected to leaders and people who are in the limelight at any given time.

In contrast to the Moon, the Sun is more abstract than tangible. While the moon is connected to the body, the sun is connected to the mind.

Also, in contrast to the Moon, the Sun can symbolize communities of men.

Of course, the Sun is as important to us as individuals (in our birth charts) as it is to all life here on earth, which is, most likely, one of the reasons why it’s one of the big three talked about in astrology (the Sun, the Moon, and the Rising sign).

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Sources

Jasmine https://www.themultidisciplinarycreative.com/
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