Editing Varuna (section)

{{short description|Hindu deity associated with water}}
{{for-multi|the possible dwarf planet|20000 Varuna|other uses}}
{{Infobox deity
| type = Hindu
| image = File:Rajarani Temple 03 (cropped).jpg
| caption = Sculpture of Varuna at the 11th-century Rajarani [[Hindu temple]].<ref name="Michell1977p45">{{cite book |author=George Michell |title=The Hindu Temple: An Introduction to Its Meaning and Forms |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ajgImLs62gwC |year=1977 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-53230-1 |pages=4, 44–45 with Figure 15}}</ref>
| name = Varuna
| god_of = '''[[Vedic mythology|Vedic]]:''' God of Sky, [[Ṛta|Order]], [[Satya|Truth]], [[Ap (water)|Water]] and [[Māyā|Magic]]
----
'''[[Itihasa-Purana|Itihasa-Puranic]]:''' God of Water, Lakes, Streams, Rivers and Oceans
| member_of = [[Adityas]] and [[Dikpala]]
| affiliation = '''Vedic:''' [[Asuras]], [[Deva (Hinduism)|Devas]], [[Adityas]]
----
'''Itihasa-Puranic:''' [[Deva (Hinduism)|Devas]], [[Adityas]], [[Dikpala]]s
| abode = Ocean
| mantra = ''Oṃ jala bimbāya vidmahe<br>nīla puruṣāya dhīmahi<br>tanno varuṇaḥ pracodayāt<br>Oṃ Varunāya Namaḥ''
| weapon = [[Noose]], [[Varunastra]], [[Gandiva]]
| mount = [[Makara (Hindu mythology)|Makara]]
| father = [[Kashyapa]]
| mother = [[Aditi]]
| planet = [[Neptune]]<ref>{{Cite web |date=2007-12-17 |title=Planetary Linguistics |url=http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/days.html |access-date=2025-01-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071217070734/http://seds.lpl.arizona.edu/nineplanets/nineplanets/days.html |archive-date=17 December 2007 }}</ref>
| spouse = '''Itihasa-Puranic:''' {{hlist|[[Varunani]]|Gauri|Charshani|Jyeshtha<ref name=":2" />}}
| children = '''Itihasa-Puranic:'''
* Bala (son)
* [[Varuni#Varuna's daughter|Varuni or Sura]] (daughter)<ref name=":2" />
* Pushkara (son)
* [[Vasishtha]] and [[Agastya]] (twin-sons)
* Go (son)
* Vandi (son)
* Sushena (son, a [[vanara]])
* [[Shrutayudha]] (son)
* [[Adharma|Andharmaka]] (son)
* Kali (son, [[Jaya-Vijaya|Jaya and Vijaya]]'s father)<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/BrahmandaPuranaG.V.TagarePart3|title=Brahmanda Purana – English Translation – Part 3 of 5|last=G.V.Tagare|date=1958|pages=[https://archive.org/details/BrahmandaPuranaG.V.TagarePart3/page/n77 794]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.wisdomlib.org/definition/stuta|title=Stuta, Stutā: 5 definitions|last=www.wisdomlib.org|date=2017-10-09|website=www.wisdomlib.org|access-date=2020-01-15}}</ref>
* [[Manu (Hinduism)|Dakshasavarni Manu]] (son)
| greek_equivalent = [[Poseidon]]
| roman_equivalent = [[Neptune (mythology)|Neptune]]
| norse_equivalent = [[Njörðr]]
}}
{{Hinduism |deities}}

'''Varuna''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|v|ɜr|ʊ|n|ə|,_|ˈ|v|ɑː|r|ə|-}};<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/varuna "Varuna"]. ''[[Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary]]''.</ref> {{langx|sa|वरुण}}, {{IAST3|Varuṇa}}) is a [[Deva (Hinduism)|Hindu god]]. He is one of the earliest deities in pantheon, whose role underwent a significant transformation from the [[Vedic period|Vedic]] to the [[Puranic Hinduism|Puranic]] periods. In the early [[Vedism|Vedic]] era, Varuna is seen as the god-sovereign, ruling the sky and embodying divine authority. He is also mentioned as the king of [[asuras]], who gained the status of a [[Deva (Hinduism)|deva]], serving as the chief of the [[Adityas]], a group of celestial deities. He maintains truth and ''[[ṛta]]'', the cosmic and moral order, and was invoked as an omniscient ethical judge, with the stars symbolizing his watchful eyes or spies. Frequently paired with [[Mitra (Hindu god)|Mitra]], Varuna represents the magical and speculative aspects of sovereignty, overseeing the relationship between gods and humans.<ref name="Williams2003p294" /><ref name="Lochtefeld2002p741">{{cite book |author=James G. Lochtefeld |title=The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: N-Z |url=https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc0000loch |url-access=registration |year=2002 |publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8239-3180-4 |page=[https://archive.org/details/illustratedencyc0000loch/page/741 741]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DH0vmD8ghdMC&q=Kashyapa+Varuna&pg=PA274|title=Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide|isbn=9780143414216|last1=Dalal|first1=Roshen|year=2010|publisher=Penguin Books India }}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Bauer |first=Susan Wise |title=The History of the Ancient World: From the Earliest Accounts to the Fall of Rome |publisher=[[W. W. Norton]] |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-393-05974-8 |edition=1st |location=New York |pages=265 |author-link=Susan Wise Bauer}}</ref>

The transition from the Vedic to later periods saw Varuna's domain begin to shift from the firmament to waters. He became associated with celestial waters, marking the initial phase of his transformation. By the time of the ''[[Itihasa-Purana]]'', Varuna had transformed into the lord of all waters, ruling over oceans, rivers, streams, and lakes. Depicted as residing in a magnificent underwater palace, akin to [[Poseidon]] in [[Greek mythology]], he is attended by river goddesses like [[Ganga (goddess)|Ganga]] and [[Yami|Yamuna]]. Varuna’s earlier supremacy diminished, and he was relegated to a lesser role as a [[dikpala]], or guardian of the western direction. He is depicted as a youthful man, mounted on [[Makara (Hindu mythology)|Makara]] (crocodile-like creature) and holding a [[Pasha (Hinduism)|Pasha]] (noose, rope loop) and a pitcher in his hands.<ref name="Williams2003p294" /><ref name="Snodgrass1992p121" /><ref name="Lochtefeld2002p741" /> He is depicted as having multiple wives and children, the most notable of the latter being the sages [[Vasishtha]] and [[Agastya]].<ref name="Williams2003p294">{{cite book |author=George Mason Williams |title=Handbook of Hindu Mythology |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9791576071068 |url-access=registration |year=2003 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-1-57607-106-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9791576071068/page/294 294]}}</ref>

Varuna is also mentioned in the [[Tamil language|Tamil]] grammar work ''[[Tolkāppiyam]]'', as Kadalon the god of sea and rain.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZjoRAAAAYAAJ|title=Journal of Tamil Studies|date=1969|publisher=International Institute of Tamil Studies|pages=131|language=en}}</ref> He is found in Japanese Buddhist mythology as [[Suijin|Suiten]].<ref name="Snodgrass1992p121">{{cite book |author=Adrian Snodgrass |title=The Symbolism of the Stupa |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nzqK8dDCM0UC |year=1992 |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass |isbn=978-81-208-0781-5 |pages=120–122 with footnotes}}</ref> He is also found in [[Jainism]].<ref>{{cite book |author=Sehdev Kumar |title=A Thousand Petalled Lotus: Jain Temples of Rajasthan : Architecture & Iconography |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nSDACkmA_ukC&pg=PA18 |year=2001 |publisher=Abhinav Publications |isbn=978-81-7017-348-9 |page=18}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |author=Kristi L. Wiley |title=The A to Z of Jainism |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kUz9o-EKTpwC&pg=PA248 |year=2009 |publisher=Scarecrow |isbn=978-0-8108-6821-2 |page=248}}</ref>