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| Rahu | |
|---|---|
| Name | Rahu |
| Type | Mythological deity / celestial node |
| Cultural origin | Hinduism |
| Associated with | Eclipse, Shadow (spiritual), Asura |
| Equivalents | Ketu (mythology), North Node of the Moon |
Rahu is a mythological entity in Hinduism traditionally associated with eclipses and the ascending lunar node. In classical South Asian texts, Rahu appears alongside Ketu (mythology) in narratives involving the churning of the ocean and cosmic betrayal, and later becomes integrated into systems of astrology used across India, Tibet, and Southeast Asia. Rahu's imagery and function intersect with figures and institutions from Vedic, Puranic, and medieval astronomical traditions.
The name derives from Sanskrit lexical traditions preserved in texts of Vedic literature and later Puranas, where Rahu is presented as an Asura figure who impersonates a deva to drink the nectar of immortality during the episode of the Samudra Manthan. Puranic narratives such as the Bhagavata Purana, Vishnu Purana, and Mahabharata recount Rahu's decapitation by Vishnu in his form as Mohini, resulting in the bifurcation between Rahu and Ketu (mythology). Medieval commentaries by authors associated with the Sanskrit literary corpus and schools linked to Shaivism and Vaishnavism elaborate on Rahu's cosmological role, while devotional literature from figures like Kalidasa and later poets treats Rahu in hymns and allegory. Regional adaptations appear in narratives recorded in the Pali Canon-adjacent chronicles of Sri Lanka and the Ramayana-influenced epics of Indonesia.
By the late classical period, astronomers such as Aryabhata and commentators in the Siddhanta tradition began to equate Rahu with the ascending lunar node employed in eclipse prediction, a view further refined by scholars of the Kerala school of astronomy and mathematics and by medieval Islamic astronomers interacting with Indian texts. Treatises including the Siddhanta Shiromani and works ascribed to Varahamihira and Brahmagupta incorporate nodal theory, situating Rahu opposite Ketu (mythology) and identifying their motion with long-period precessional phenomena recorded by observatories in Ujjain and Kanchipuram. Iconographically, classical temple sculpture traditions of Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Karnataka render Rahu with a serpent-like torso and a human head, a motif paralleling depictions in the art of Khmer Empire and Javanese reliefs. Astronomical instruments and manuscripts from the Mughal Empire and Maratha courts show tables for nodal positions used in conjunction with planetary tables for Jupiter, Saturn, Mars, Venus, and Mercury.
Within the system of Jyotisha, Rahu functions as a shadow planet affecting natal charts, dasha sequences, and transit interpretations alongside classical graha such as Surya (Sun), Chandra (Moon), Mangala (Mars), Budha (planet), Shukra (planet), Brihaspati (Jupiter), Shani (Saturn), and the lunar node Ketu. Classical astrological authorities including Bharatiya Jyotisha texts and commentaries by figures associated with the Parashara and Jaimini traditions prescribe remedial rituals, mantras, and temple visits to mitigate Rahu's malefic influences, often invoking deities of the Navagraha group as performed in Varanasi, Tirupati, and Puri. Techniques such as transit analysis (gochara), divisional charts (vargas), and dashas including the Rahu dasha are standard in manuscripts circulated among astrologer guilds in Kolkata, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. Courts and patrons from the Chola dynasty to the Mughal Empire consulted court astrologers who factored Rahu into horoscopes for royal births, coronations, and military campaigns like those recorded for the Battle of Talikota and diplomatic missions tied to the Treaty of Purandar.
Rahu features in ritual, popular drama, and visual culture across South and Southeast Asia. In Kerala and Tamil Nadu temple calendars, festival rites timed to lunar eclipses include observances tied to Rahu and Ketu at Sabarimala, Meenakshi Temple, and Jagannath Temple. Folk performances—ranging from Kathakali and Bharatanatyam narratives to Wayang shadow plays of Java and ritual masked dances of Bali—portray Rahu in episodes derived from the Ramayana and Mahabharata cycles. Contemporary media adaptations in Bollywood and regional film industries, as well as depictions in modern Indian television series, use Rahu motifs when dramatizing eclipses or fate, while artists and sculptors in Kolkata, Jaipur, and international museums present Rahu imagery linked to exhibitions on Hindu cosmography and iconography.
Primary sources for Rahu narratives and theories span the Vedas, Ramayana, Mahabharata, and the corpus of Puranas—notably the Bhagavata Purana and Vishnu Purana—with medieval and early modern elaborations in works by Aryabhata, Varahamihira, Brahmagupta, and commentators of the Siddhantic schools. Court records, temple inscriptions in Tamil inscriptions and Kannada inscriptions, and manuscripts preserved in repositories such as libraries in Sanskrit College, Kolkata and archives in Istanbul and Leiden document the diffusion of Rahu-related astronomical tables and ritual prescriptions. Colonial-era scholarship by figures associated with the Asiatic Society of Bengal and comparative studies by Indologists in Oxford and Cambridge further trace the transmission of Rahu concepts into global histories of astronomy and astrology, while modern scholarship in departments at Jawaharlal Nehru University, University of Chicago, and SOAS University of London examines Rahu within broader debates on science, religion, and cultural exchange.
Category:Hindu deities