Overview
This temple no longer exists, and its exact location is unknown. It is included because it is among the best-documented Hindu temples of the pre-modern subcontinent, described by Arab, Persian and Chinese writers between the seventh and eleventh centuries as a major pilgrimage and revenue centre.
History
A legendary origin in the Samba Purana, itself composed around the seventh or eighth century CE, attributes a solar temple at Sambapura to Samba, son of Krishna, seeking a cure for leprosy. Most scholars hold the temple was destroyed under Mahmud of Ghazni around 1010. A further destruction is sometimes attributed to Aurangzeb, but scholars cannot reconcile that with his reign, and the chronology is genuinely disputed.
Spiritual Significance
The temple is described by Xuanzang, al-Istakhri and al-Biruni among others. Under Umayyad rule it was reportedly preserved deliberately because the pilgrim traffic it drew was worth more as revenue than its destruction was worth as policy, which makes it an unusually well-evidenced case of how conquest and shrine economics interacted.
Prayers at The Sun Temple of Multan
ॐ अस्य आदित्यहृदय स्तोत्रस्य अगस्त्यऋषिः अनुष्टुप्छन्दः आदित्यहृदयभूतो भगवान् ब्रह्मा देवता।
ॐ जय सूर्य भगवान जय हो दिनकर भगवान
कनक बदन कुण्डल मकर मुक्ता माला अङ्ग । पद्मासन स्थित ध्याइए शंख चक्र के सङ्ग ॥
आरती कुंजबिहारी की
बंशी शोभित कर मधुर,नील जलद तन श्याम। अरुण अधर जनु बिम्बा फल,पिताम्बर शुभ साज॥
अधरं मधुरं वदनं मधुरं नयनं मधुरं हसितं मधुरम्।
Pilgrimage Information
Current status: Gone. Nothing stands, and archaeology has not confirmed where within Multan Fort it was. Anyone planning to travel should check entry requirements and local conditions independently and close to the date. Indian passport holders face visa restrictions for Pakistan that change with the political weather, and access to several of these sites has historically depended on organised pilgrim groups rather than individual travel.
Sources
- Multan Sun Temple other
About this page
Researched and written by YatraBeyond from published sources, and not yet confirmed by the temple. Facts here are cross-checked against at least two independent sources, never written from memory, and every source is listed above.
Last reviewed by us: 2026-09-17. Timings, entry rules and access can change without notice; treat anything time-sensitive as a starting point and confirm before you travel.
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