Worship of the Sun occurred among many ancient peoples, especially in agrarian societies, in which survival depended on the light and heat of the Sun to bring crops to fruition. The daily journey of the Sun across the sky and its nightly disappearance and morning resurrection as well as the occurrence of solar eclipses formed a mystery that inspired various religious feelings among ancient peoples, who developed ceremonies, rituals, and sacrifices to honor and placate this life-force. The Sun appears as an element of religion and mythology in cultures as divergent as those of India, Africa, Mesopotamia, Greece, Britain, Aztec Mexico, and among many Indian tribes of North America. Among the ancient Egyptians, Amon-Re, the sun-god, was regarded as the first king of Egypt.
appears in:
further reading: