Nine Planetary Gods in Hinduism

Nine planetary Gods are mentioned as Navagraha. It is believed that Hindus are worshipping the nine planets such as Surya or Sun, Chandra or Moon, Mangala or Mars, Budha or Mercury, Brihaspati or Jupiter, Sukra or Venus, Sani or Saturn, Rahu and Ketu as Gods. From these Sun, Moon, Rahu and Ketu are not Gods. Hindu devotees worship Navagraha for good luck and survive from the bad luck originating from the past deeds. Surya Surya or Sun is sitting in the central place facing east of Navagrahas. He is the son of Kashyapa and Aditi and also he is considered as Royal Planet. The major temples devoting to Lord Sun are Konark Sun temple in Orissa and Suryanar Kovil in Tamil Nadu. Lord Sun has a chariot with seven horses. These seven horses represent seven colours of white light and seven days of a week. Makar Sankranti, Pongal, Ratha Sapthami, Kumbh Mela are the major festivals of Lord Sun. Chandra Chandra refers feminine nature, beauty and happiness and it is the second Graha in Navagrahas. An individual's mental stability is based on the placement of moon in horoscope and wrong placement of moon causes diseases such as urinary infections, bronchitis etc..Soma is the another name of Chandra. Tingaloor Koil is famous for Lord Moon in South India. Mangala or Mars According to Hindu mythology, Mars is the son of Bhumi, Earth Goddess and Vishnu. Vaitheeswaran Koil is famous for Lord Mars . Disposition of Mangala causes great misfortune and losses. He is also called Angaraka or Bhauma. He uses ram as his vehicle and he holds weapons in his hands. Budha or Mercury According to Hindu belief Budha is the son of Soma(Lord Moon) and Taraka(wife of Brihaspati). He is riding upon a chariot made up of air and fire. Budha or Mercury has four hands and three of his hands holds a sword, a shield and mace. Fourth one is held by Varada Mudra. Thiruvenkadu temple is famous for Lord Budha. Jupiter or Brihaspati Brihaspati is the son of Angiras, but some puranas are depicting Brihaspati as the son of Agni. Alangudi temple is famous for Lord Brihaspati. He is riding on a chariot pulled by eight horses and these eight horses are representing eight branches of knowledge. Brihaspati is known as the Deva Guru of all Gods and also he is praised in Rig Veda. Sukra or Venus Sukra is the son of Bhrigu and Ushana. He is the Guru of Asuras. Sukra or Jupiter has four hands. A gold vessel, a rosary and a staff is hold in his three hands and the fourth hand is held Mudra. Kanjanoor temple is famous for Lord Sani. He is also known by some other names such as Kavyaha, Shukra Reta, Sudhihi, Asura Guru etc. Sani or Saturn Sani or Saturn is the son of Lord Surya and brother of God Yama. He has a chariot, or a buffalo or a vulture to ride. Sani has three hands holding an arrow, bow and javelin but the fourth one is held Varada Mudra. He is the ruler of Zodiac signs Capricorn and Aquarius and also he has the power to destroy and depress. Rahu Rahu is the son of Viprachitti and Sinhika. Like Budha, he carries all the weapons. Sceptre is the main weapon of Rahu. Thirunageswaram temple in Tamil Nadu is famous for Lord Rahu. Saturday is the best day for worshipping Rahu. Ketu According to Hindu mythology, Ketu is associated with Meena Avatar of Vishnu. He is the Lord of three Nakshatras such as Ashvini, Magha and Mula. Ketu is responsible for Moksha, Sanyasa and Self realisation. Lord Ganesha is the presiding deity of Ketu and he is generally represented as "Shadow Planet". Nagananthaswamy in Tamil Nadu and Lord Srikalahasteeswara temple in Andhra Pradesh are the famous temples of Ketu.