Ancient Beliefs and Legends About the Sun

It’s no surprise to many of us that the sun makes life as we know it possible on planet Earth. For centuries, people in cultures from around the world have revered the sun and it’s omnipresent power. We’re still in the heat of summer and only a few weeks ago, millions of American’s marveled at the total solar eclipse that swept our nation. The sun is definitely on everyone’s minds right now, and since it’s always on our minds at CC Sunscreens, we thought it might be fun to look at a few of the world’s ancient beliefs and legends about the sun.

It is important to remember that these stories and legends were not originally written to entertain, as they were a peoples’ understanding of nature’s phenomena. To the original storytellers, these accounts were as real as any scientific explanation.

Indigenous North Americans make up a group of hundreds of tribes, and thousands of cultural customs, beliefs and practices. One common theme, however, that has been uncovered in almost every tribe is the sun symbol. Almost all ancient native American peoples are thought to have held the sun in extremely high regard as the bringer of life, light, warmth, and food. Here are a few of the most common sun symbols found in indigenous American artifacts and what they mean.

Hopi Sun Symbol: The Hopi peoples often displayed a symbol of the sun with thick rays radiating around it. It was a marker of creativity and natural energy. The sun symbol was also the symbol for the supreme god because of their dependence on it. The sun symbol represents the heart of the cosmos and deals with passion, vitality and growth.

Mayan Sun Symbol: The Mayans also highly regarded the sun but in a different way to the Hopis. The Mayans thought about the sun internally, and how it could bring about philosophical productivity, rather than just healthy crops. Mayans brought the sun into their meditations to bring warmth into their consciousness and allow their divinity to blossom.

Indigenous Australians, or Aborigine peoples represent some of the most long-lived cultures anywhere in the world. Before intrusion by Europeans, indigenous tribes lived throughout the continent of Australian with complex social structures, over 700 native languages and distinct cultural and religious customs.

The perspective of the sun from an aborigine point of view is detailed by anthropologist Roslynn Haynes, in Sky and Telescope, September 1997. pp. 72-75:

“To the Aborigines, the Sun was seen as a woman who awakes daily in her camp in the east, lights a fire, and prepares the bark torch she will carry across the sky. Upon reaching the west, she reapplies her paint, again spilling reds and yellows in the sky. The Sun-woman then begins a long passage underground back to her camp in the east. During this subterranean journey her torch warms the earth, causing plants to grow.

“The Moon, by contrast, was regarded as male. Because of the association of the lunar cycle with the female menstrual cycle, the Moon was linked with fertility and was accorded great magical status. A solar eclipse was interpreted as the Moon-man uniting with the Sun-woman.”

In ancient Egyptian culture, many gods or deities were celebrated or even worshipped, but none so much as the sun god – Ra. Ra (pronounced ray) was considered the bringer of light, and life, and was also considered the ruler of the skies, earth, and the underworld.

Ra is different from many other ancient Egyptian gods in that he is often depicted as a falcon and is therefore not tied to the earth like the others. Because if his position in the sky, he is able to look after his children on earth, as well as control the underworld. According to legend, the sun moves throughout the universe as Ra rides throughout the skies in his chariot.

As with many cultures, ancient Egyptians saw Ra (or the sun) as the source of life and light, and as the bringer of healthy crops and calm weather. As Ra’s chariot moved through the sky during the day, it was thought that he died each evening as the sun set. Egyptians believed that Ra then descended into the underworld to rule there, where he was reborn each morning with the sunrise.

If you didn’t already know this from living in Arizona or reading these facts – the sun is extremely powerful. At CC Sunscreens, we are proud to be industry leaders in the installation of home window solar screens, patio shades and anti-golf ball screens to help you protect your home, family and wallet from the sun’s harmful UV rays. Reach out to us to schedule your free, no obligation, in home consultation and quote with one of our friendly professionals to see how CC Sunscreens can help you today.