Sangya's marriage to the Sun God¹⁶

Vishwakarma was a great sage. He asked his daughter, Sangya, to marry the sun, Surya. She was very happy and very proud to marry him. But alas, a very short time after their marriage, she became frightened to death whenever she saw her husband. He was extremely luminous and powerful. His brilliance and power tortured her, and she was unable to go near him.

So she created a lady exactly like herself and called her Chhaya. Then she left the lady with Surya and went back to her parents’ house. Her father was extremely annoyed with her. He said, “How can you do this? How can you deceive your husband? He is so kind, so good, so great.”

“But Father, what can I do? He is too powerful. His heat kills me. As soon as he comes near me, I die from his excessive heat.”

Vishwakarma said, “You should be very proud of him. You should ask him if there is a way to keep his heat from torturing you. He is so powerful. You must go. I don’t want you to come back to stay with me. After getting married, it is absurd to leave one’s husband and come back to one’s parents. Now you must go. I will not keep you with me.”

So Sangya left her father, but she did not go back to Surya. She took the form of a female horse and roamed around the earth.

In the meantime, Surya looked everywhere for his wife. He knew that Chhaya was not his real wife, so he searched for Sangya. Finally he came to know that she had taken the form of a horse and was roaming around. Surya also took the form of a horse and found her. He said, “I am so sorry that my heat tortured you. I am taking human form again. You also please take human form again. Let us remain happily married. I will not hurt you with my heat. I will reduce my heat and power to keep you. You were so beautiful, so kind to me once upon a time. I want you to be happy. Let us go home.”

Sangya went home with Surya. He kept his promise to her and reduced his heat and power, and they lived together peacefully and happily.