Shloka 6

लोकसंस्थानम्, ग्रहदूरी-प्रमाणम्, ब्रह्माण्डावरणानि, विष्णोः जगत्कारणत्वम्

Devanagari script

पूर्णे शतसहस्रे तु योजनानां निशाकरात् नक्षत्रमण्डलं कृत्स्नम् उपरिष्टात् प्रकाशते

Transliteration

pūrṇe śatasahasre tu yojanānāṃ niśākarāt nakṣatramaṇḍalaṃ kṛtsnam upariṣṭāt prakāśate

Translation

At a distance of a full hundred thousand yojanas above the Moon, the entire sphere of the nakṣatras—the whole host of stars—shines forth in the higher expanse.

Word by Word

• पूर्णे: complete/full
• पूर्णे: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (शतसहस्रे इत्यस्य)

• शत-सहस्रे: at (a distance of) a hundred thousand
• शत-सहस्रे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शत (प्रातिपदिक) + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (शतानां सहस्रम् = one hundred thousand)

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Discourse particle (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपातः

• योजनानाम्: of yojanas
• योजनानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योजन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• निशाकरात्: from the moon
• निशाकरात्: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निशाकर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन

• नक्षत्र-मण्डलम्: the circle of stars
• नक्षत्र-मण्डलम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नक्षत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + मण्डल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (नक्षत्राणां मण्डलम्)

• कृत्स्नम्: entire
• कृत्स्नम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृत्स्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (नक्षत्रमण्डलम्)

• उपरिष्टात्: above
• उपरिष्टात्: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरणार्थ)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उपरिष्टात् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषणम् (adverb of place: above)

• प्रकाशते: shines/appears
• प्रकाशते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: काश् (धातु) + प्र (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Relative position of the nakṣatra-maṇḍala above the moon.

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The ordered gradation of luminous realms invites contemplation of higher principles beyond the sensory world.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Practice night-sky contemplation as a support for śānta-bhāva and remembrance of the cosmic Lord.

Vishishtadvaita: Higher luminous realms are real modes within the Lord’s ordered body (jagat), not mere projections.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Moon (Niśākara)
• Nakṣatras (lunar mansions)

FAQs

What is the significance of the Nakshatra Mandala in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse places the nakṣatras as a distinct luminous sphere above the Moon, presenting the heavens as an ordered hierarchy rather than a random expanse—an expression of cosmic order.

How does Sage Parasara explain cosmic distances in this context?

Parāśara teaches Maitreya using yojanas as a standard measure, mapping the universe in layered zones (Moon, then above it the nakṣatra sphere), typical of the Purana’s systematic bhuvana-kośa description.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana’s cosmography functions as a theology of sovereignty: the universe is intelligible, graded, and sustained by the Supreme Reality (Vishnu) whose order makes the heavens coherent and luminous.