Shloka 5
आदित्यकर्म, त्रयीमयी वैष्णवी शक्तिः, सवितुरन्तर्यामी
The Sun’s Function and Vishnu’s Vedic Śakti within Savitṛ
विवस्वान् उदितो मध्ये यात्य् अस्तम् इति किं जनः ब्रवीत्य् एतत् समं कर्म यदि सप्तगणस्य तत्
vivasvān udito madhye yāty astam iti kiṃ janaḥ bravīty etat samaṃ karma yadi saptagaṇasya tat
Why do people say, “Vivasvān rises, reaches the mid-sky, and then sets,” if, in truth, the sevenfold host performs one and the same uniform operation?
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Maitreya
Topic: Why sunrise–noon–sunset are attributed to Vivasvān if the sevenfold host acts uniformly; distinction between appearance and underlying operation.
Teaching: Cosmological
Quality: reasoned, skeptical-to-clarified
Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas
Concept: Common descriptions of rising and setting reflect perceptual convention, while the cosmos operates through a single regulated order with differentiated functions among celestial agents.
Vedantic Theme: Maya
Application: Distinguish appearances from governing principles; practice discernment (viveka) in interpreting experience.
Vishishtadvaita: Epistemic humility: appearances can mislead, yet the ordered reality remains real and purposeful under divine governance, not illusory chaos.
Vishnu Form: Narayana
FAQs
This verse frames sunrise and sunset as a perceptual description, while emphasizing an underlying uniform cosmic operation governed by higher celestial order.
Parāśara suggests that despite differing appearances (rise, mid-sky, set), the cosmic system functions through a consistent, regulated activity attributed to the coordinated action of the sevenfold host.
Even when not named directly, the passage aligns with the Vishnu Purana’s theology: cosmic regularity and governance ultimately rest on the Supreme Reality—Vishnu—as the sustaining principle behind celestial order.