Surya
Marichi — lord of rays (Surya name 8 of 12)
ॐ मरीचये नमः
Oṁ Marīcaye Namaḥ
Simple reading: Om ma-ree-cha-ye na-mah
About this mantra
Marichi — 'lord of the rays' — the eighth name. A marichi is a single ray, almost a particle of light: the shimmer in dust, the glint at the edge of dawn. The name honours the sun not as the far disc but as the countless touches of light actually reaching things here.
Meaning
Om, salutations to Marichi — lord of the rays. The reciter bows to light at the point where it arrives: the beam through the window, the warmth on the skin, the glint that wakes the eye. The bow asks to be reached the same way — touched, warmed and woken by what the sun sends.
When to recite it
One of the twelve names of the Surya Namaskar cycle — recited one per posture at sunrise, or counted together as a Sunday (Ravivar) jaap. Marichi suits the earliest light — pre-dawn practice, and small moments of thanksgiving for daily graces.
Word by word
- ॐoṁ
- the primordial sound
- मरीचयेmarīcaye
- lord of the rays of dawn
- नमःnamaḥ
- I bow, salutations
Source: Sūrya Namaskāra mantra sequence (traditional twelve names of Sūrya)