Syamantaka Ruby or Shyamantaka Blue Sapphire?
A common mistake of spelling it wrongly as "Shyamantaka" has led to the incorrect idea that Syamantaka was a blue sapphire (Saturn's gem). Even Amar Chitra Katha comic books and many Indian artists make this mistake by showing that the Sun God is giving a blue sapphire to Satrajit. Also according to Jyotish or Planetary Gemology in the Navaratna Ruby is the gem of the Sun.
Two verses from the Bhagavat Purana, which describe Satrajit wearing the gem given to him by Surya, the Sungod show that Syamantaka is a ruby.
- “Wearing the jewel on his neck, Satrajit entered Dvaraka. He shone as brightly as the sun itself, O King, and thus he went unrecognized because of the jewel's effulgence”. - Ref. SB 10.56.4
- “As the people looked at Satrajit from a distance, his brilliance blinded them. They presumed he was the sun-god, Surya”. - Ref. SB 10.56.5
The evidence and logic indicate that Syamantaka was a ruby.
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