Shloka 19

सोमचक्रः, ग्रह-रथाः, ध्रुवबन्धनं, शिशुमारसंनिवेशः, विष्णु-सर्वात्मकता

Moon, Planets, Dhruva-Tethering, Śiśumāra, and Vishnu as All

Devanagari script

अष्टाभिः पाण्डरैर् युक्तैर् वाजिभिः काञ्चने रथे तस्मिंस् तिष्ठति वर्षं वै राशौ राशौ बृहस्पतिः

Transliteration

aṣṭābhiḥ pāṇḍarair yuktair vājibhiḥ kāñcane rathe tasmiṃs tiṣṭhati varṣaṃ vai rāśau rāśau bṛhaspatiḥ

Translation

Harnessed to eight pale steeds and borne upon a golden chariot, Bṛhaspati abides there—remaining a full year in each zodiacal sign, moving from sign to sign in the ordained order.

Word by Word

• अष्टाभिः: with eight
• अष्टाभिः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अष्टन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: त्रिलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; संख्याविशेषण

• पाण्डरैः: white, pale
• पाण्डरैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाण्डर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• युक्तैः: yoked
• युक्तैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: युज् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; ‘युक्त’ = yoked

• वाजिभिः: by steeds
• वाजिभिः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाजिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन

• काञ्चने: in the golden
• काञ्चने: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काञ्चन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; विशेषण—रथे विशेषणत्वेन

• रथे: in the chariot
• रथे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• तस्मिन्: in that (chariot)
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• तिष्ठति: stands, remains
• तिष्ठति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• वर्षम्: for a year
• वर्षम्: Kala-adhikarana (Time extent/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; कालपरिमाण (duration)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha/Emphasis particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात—निश्चय/प्रसिद्ध्यर्थे

• राशौ: in a zodiac sign
• राशौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राशि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• राशौ: in each sign
• राशौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राशि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति (repetition)

• बृहस्पतिः: Bṛhaspati (Jupiter)
• बृहस्पतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बृहस्पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Timed revolutions of planets through the zodiacal signs (rāśi)

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: precise and instructional

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Cosmic order is expressed through fixed temporal measures—Bṛhaspati’s year-long stay in each rāśi—revealing a regulated universe rather than randomness.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Use cyclical time (seasons, months, auspicious observances) to structure consistent practice rather than impulse-driven spirituality.

Vishishtadvaita: Regular cosmic law is a mode of the Lord’s governance of His body-universe, aligning worldly rhythms with divine order.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Bṛhaspati (Jupiter)
• Rāśi (zodiac signs)

FAQs

What is the significance of Bṛhaspati staying one year in each rāśi in the Vishnu Purana?

It presents Jupiter’s motion as a regulated cosmic measure of time—an orderly transit that supports calendrical reckoning and reflects the universe’s divinely maintained rhythm.

How does Sage Parāśara explain planetary motion in this chapter’s context?

Parāśara describes grahas through vivid imagery—chariots, horses, and fixed durations—emphasizing that celestial movements proceed in a determined sequence across the zodiac.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this cosmological description?

Though Vishnu is not named in this verse, the Purāṇic cosmology treats such precise celestial order as operating under the Supreme Reality’s governance—Vishnu as the sustaining principle of cosmic law and time.