Out of 101 verses, one hundred verses are benedictory in nature. The last one speaks out the intention of the poet to pray for the well-being of the world. It invokes God Sūrya, group of horses yoked, the chariot, charioteer, and the orb of the Sun.
Tribhuvanapāla, in his commentary, makes six divisions of this work. Verses from 1 to 43 speak of praise to the rays of the Sun-God. Verses 44 to 49 deal with the horses of the Sun-God. Verses 50 to 61, the charioteer Aruṇa is praised. Verses 62 to 72 describe the chariot of the great God. Verses 73 to 80 describe the Sūrya-Maṇdala minutely. The last twenty verses depict the Sun in many ways. The poet compares the rays of the Sun with ships by which an individual can cross the ocean of rebirth, the root of prolonged torture. The orb of the Sun is the door of emancipation. Aruṇa the charioteer is compared with the stage-manager who recites the prologue verse in the beginning of a drama. Mayūrabhaṭṭa has given more emphasis on the language, rather than the content.
Ᾱcārya B. Upadhyay has rightly pointed out that Sūryaśatakam is the first kāvya which has been written entirely in Sragdharā metre. The metre Mandākrāntā of Mēghadūtam written by Kāḷidāsa must have impressed Mayūrabhaṭṭa. As a result, Mayūrabhaṭṭa decided to adopt one metre for his work, the Sūryaśatakam. He may have chosen Sragdharā as it is a befitting one for benedictory stanzas.
Mayūrabhaṭṭa is a better-known lyric poet. The poetry of the Sūryaśatakam is appreciated by critique writers for its imagination and style. Most of the ideas are suggested and not directly expressed. Mayūrabhaṭṭa has used various figures of speech in his poem like śleṣa, Upamā, Rūpaka and Utprekṣā. From a metrical point of view, the entire poem has been composed in Sragdharā metre. This metre contains twenty-one syllables and in every seventh there is a pause. Since seven syllables form a group and the poet describes the seven horses of the Sun, many scholars are of the view that Mayūrabhaṭṭa deliberately chose this metre.
1. अस्तव्यस्तत्वशून्यो निजरुचिरनिशानश्वरः कर्तुमीशः। विश्वं वेश्मेव दीपः प्रतिहततिमिरं यः प्रदेशस्थितोऽपि । दिक्कालापेक्षयासौ त्रिभुवनमटतस्तिग्मभानोर्नवाख्याम्| यातः शातक्रतव्यां दिशि दिशतु शिवं सोऽर्चिषामुद्गमो वः| [सूर्यशतकम् - १८]
astavyastatvaśūnyo nijaruciraniśānaśvaraḥ kartumīśaḥ।
viśvaṃ veśmeva dīpaḥ pratihatatimiraṃ yaḥ pradeśasthito'pi ।
dikkālāpekṣayāsau tribhuvanamaṭatastigmabhānornavākhyām|
yātaḥ śātakratavyāṃ diśi diśatu śivaṃ so'rciṣāmudgamo vaḥ| [sūryaśatakam - 18]
As a lamp burning steadily in a place removes darkness with its flame, so the rays of the Sun remove darkness of night with brilliant rays. Free from mortality and worries those rays traverse the three worlds regularly and appear new in the east- ern quarters every day. May those rays bring happiness to you.
2. यत् कान्तिं पङ्कजानां न हरति कुरुते प्रत्युतातीव रम्याम्।
नो धत्ते तारकाभां तिरयति नितरामाशु यन्नित्यमेव ।
कर्तुं नालं निमेषं दिवसमपि परं यत्तदेकं त्रिलोक्याः।
चक्षुः सामान्यचक्षुर्विसदृशमघभिद् भास्वतः स्तान्महो वः ।। [सूर्यशतकम् - २१]
yat kāntiṃ paṅkajānāṃ na harati kurute pratyutātīva ramyām।
no dhatte tārakābhāṃ tirayati nitarāmāśu yannityameva ।
kartuṃ nālaṃ nimeṣaṃ divasamapi paraṃ yattadekaṃ trilokyāḥ।
cakṣuḥ sāmānyacakṣurvisadṛśamaghabhid bhāsvataḥ stānmaho vaḥ ।। [sūryaśatakam - 21]
The luster of the Sun does not snatch away but enhances the beauty of the lotuses, it does not replenish the beauty of the stars (eye-balls), rather affects it. The Sun is not able to cause a twinkle even for a moment but heralds the beginning of the day. May that effulgence of the Sun which is an extra-ordinary eye of the three worlds, burn all your sins.