भानु

Sanskrit

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-Aryan *bʰaHnúṣ, from Proto-Indo-Iranian *bʰaHnúš, from Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂-nú-s, from *bʰeh₂- (“to shine, glow light”), whence भाति (bhā́ti, “to shine”). Cognate with Ancient Greek φῶς (phôs), Latin iubar.

Pronunciation

• (Vedic) IPA^(key): /bʱɑː.nú/
• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈbʱɑː.n̪u/

Noun

भानु • (bhānú) stem, m or f

1. ray of light, light
   • c. 1700 BCE – 1200 BCE, Ṛgveda 1.92.1:

     ए॒ता उ॒ त्या उ॒षस॑: के॒तुम॑क्रत॒ पूर्वे॒ अर्धे॒ रज॑सो भा॒नुम॑ञ्जते।
     नि॒ष्कृ॒ण्वा॒ना आयु॑धानीव धृ॒ष्णव॒: प्रति॒ गावोऽरु॑षीर्यन्ति मा॒तर॑:॥

     etā́ u tyā́ uṣása: ketúmakrata pū́rve árdhe rájaso bhānúmañjate.
     niṣkṛṇvānā́ ā́yudhānīva dhṛṣṇáva: práti gā́vóʼruṣīryanti mātára:.

     These divinities of the morning have spread light over the world; they make and manifest the light in the eastern portion of the firmament, brightening all things, like warriors burnishing their weapons; the radiant and progressing mothers of the earth, they travel daily on their course.

2. brightness, splendour
3. appearance
4. the Sun
5. king, prince
6. (feminine) beautiful woman
7. (in the plural) the Ādityas

Declension

Related terms

• भानुचन्द्र (bhānucandra, “ray-moon”)

Descendants

• Tamil: பானு (pāṉu)
• Bengali: ভানু (bhanu)

References

• Monier Williams (1899) “भानु”, in A Sanskrit–English Dictionary, , new edition, Oxford: At the Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 751/1.