Navagraha are nine planets rising and setting in the sky. They are:
- Sun (Suryan)
- Moon (Chandran)
- Mars (Chowwa / Mangal)
- Mercury (Budhan)
- Jupiter (Guru)
- Venus (Shukran)
- Saturn (Shani)
- Rahu
- Ketu
Astrology, Jyoti Sastra, consists of six branches namely Jathaka, Golam, Nimitha, Prasna, Muhurtham and Ganitham and it is based on the movements of these nine planets. These planets are divided into two categories : Benefics and Malefics.
BENEFICS : Moon, Mercury, Jupiter and Venus.
MALEFICS : Sun, Mars, Saturn, Rahu and Ketu.
These planets denote the following aspects of life :
SUN : Longevity of life, Father
MOON : Mother, Body and mind
MARS : Brothers
MERCURY : Learning
JUPITER : Children, Wealth
VENUS : Wife, Marriage, Fine Arts
RAHU : Magic, Medicine, Mantra - Tantra, Serious illness
KETU : Deliverance, Foreign language learning
SATURN : Illness, Death
The above planets have great influence on the earth and human beings. Benefics and Malefics, when placed in a good position in the horoscope, do good, and when placed in bad position, harm the individual. The chaos that Seven - and - a - half Sani brings about is well known to even lay man.
Our great Rishis, knowing this, have found out by meditation, and research that propitiating these planets with prayers, rituals enhance the good effects of the Benefics and minimize the bad effects of the Malefics.
Keeping the exhortation of the Rishis in view, temples for the Navagrahas are constructed for us to propitiate them and derive benefits so that we can live this span of life with more comforts.
The installation of Navagraha at Ayyappa Temple Rohini has been completed on 5th April 2000 by the Thanthri of Sabarimalai, Brahmashree Thazhamon Madam Kantaru Rajeevaru Thanthri.