Shloka 12

The Orbit of the Sun, the Measure of Day and Night, and the Sun-God’s Chariot

Devanagari script

एवं मुहूर्तेन चतुस्त्रिंशल्लक्षयोजनान्यष्टशताधिकानि सौरो रथस्त्रयीमयोऽसौ चतसृषु परिवर्तते पुरीषु ॥ १२ ॥

Transliteration

evaṁ muhūrtena catus-triṁśal-lakṣa-yojanāny aṣṭa-śatādhikāni sauro rathas trayīmayo ’sau catasṛṣu parivartate purīṣu.

Translation

Thus, within a single muhūrta, the sun-god’s chariot—trayīmaya, worshiped by the Vedic utterance “oṁ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ”—moves through the four abodes mentioned above, traveling at a speed of 3,400,800 yojanas.

Synonyms

एवम्thus

मुहूर्तेनby (one) muhūrta

चतुस्त्रिंशत्-लक्ष-योजनानि(a distance of) thirty-two lakhs of yojanas

अष्ट-शत-अधिकानिand eight hundred more

सौरःsolar

रथःchariot

त्रयी-मयःconsisting of the three Vedas

असौthat (chariot)

चतसृषुin four

पुरीषुcities/abodes

परिवर्ततेrevolves/turns around

Characters & Entities

Śukadeva Gosvāmī

Mahārāja Parīkṣit

Sūrya (the Sun-deity)

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about the Sun’s movement in Canto 5 Chapter 21?

This verse states that in one muhūrta the Sun’s chariot travels 34 lakh yojanas plus 800, and that it continually rotates through four stations (cities) along its course.

Why does Śukadeva Gosvāmī describe the Sun’s chariot as ‘trayī-maya’ (made of the three Vedas)?

He indicates that the Sun’s cosmic function is aligned with Vedic order—upholding regulated time, seasons, and dharma—so the Sun’s motion is portrayed as rooted in the authority and harmony of the three Vedas.

What is a practical application of this Bhagavatam teaching about cosmic order in modern life?

It encourages living with discipline and reverence for time—structuring daily life around steady principles (dharma), just as the cosmos moves by an ordained, purposeful order.