Worshiping the sun

DLegend

Member
Many ancient religions worship the sun and they represent it with a mythological god. This might mean that most ancient religions started with one religion and it might just branched out into different beliefs, like how diverse Christianity is now. So which religion started the worship of the sun?
 

Isis

Member
I respectfully disagree with your speculation that most religions started as one. The sun is an obvious point of worship as it gives us light, gives us life, and seasons change as its location in the sky changes.
 

Rhonda Tharp

Active Member
I think that if we discuss the sun, it's difficult to leave out the moon.

In Sumerian, Babylonian and Akkadian myths, Shamash was the child of Nannar, the moon. Shamash was the Sun-god of Justice and rode in a chariot across the sky each day. It's interesting to me that the moon would be seen as the "parent" and the sun would be the dependent. The moon was responsible for most cultures' calendars for thousands of years, until Julius Caesar forced everyone to convert from the lunar to the solar calendar before his death in 44 BCE.

In Japan, Amaterasu was the Sun-goddess and the sister of Sosanowo, the moon
In Egypt, Aten was the Sun deity forced upon the Egyptians by Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV), converting the Egyptians from a polytheistic culture to a monotheistic one, Ra was also considered a Sun God, Thoth the moon

In Greek, Helios or Apollo and Artemis
In Celtic, Lugh was the Savior/Dying God associated with the Sun, Brigit the moon
In Norse, Balder was the Savior/Dying God - Sun, and Hodur the night (possibly the moon)

As far as age is concerned, it's difficult to say who the "first" culture was to worship the sun. When nomadic tribes converted to agriculture, the sun's movements became more important, and possibly deified. I've got a date of about 10,000 - 15,000 years ago when that transition started to occur. (source - Pandora's Seed)
 

Rhonda Tharp

Active Member
Many ancient religions worship the sun and they represent it with a mythological god. This might mean that most ancient religions started with one religion and it might just branched out into different beliefs, like how diverse Christianity is now. So which religion started the worship of the sun?
I think you would enjoy the book "Myths of Light" by Joseph Campbell. Check it out :)
 

DLegend

Member
I think you would enjoy the book "Myths of Light" by Joseph Campbell. Check it out :)
Thanks for sharing the information. I will try to look for that book in the nearest library or bookstore. This will be a good read for this weekend.

About the sun and moon, I agree with you that we cannot leave the moon out when we are talking about the sun.
 
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