Shloka 38
सूर्यरथ-कालचक्र-आयनविभागः, संध्योपासनम्, देवयान-पितृयानम्, विष्णुपद-गङ्गावतरणम्
त्रयोदशार्धम् अह्नैव ऋक्षाणां चरते रविः मुहूर्तैस् तावदृक्षाणि रात्रौ द्वादशभिश् चरन्
trayodaśārdham ahnaiva ṛkṣāṇāṃ carate raviḥ muhūrtais tāvadṛkṣāṇi rātrau dvādaśabhiś caran
In the span of a single day, Ravi (the Sun) traverses thirteen and a half nakṣatras; by night, moving through twelve muhūrtas, he passes through the same measure of nakṣatras.
Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)
Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas
Concept: The Sun’s traversal of nakṣatras by day and night establishes a precise rhythm through which time is measured and experienced.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Contemplate cyclicity (day/night, seasons) to cultivate steadiness (dhairya) and reduce anxiety about change.
Vishishtadvaita: Multiplicity of temporal moments is unified by a single cosmic rhythm, consistent with one Lord coordinating diverse functions in the universe.
FAQs
It presents time as an objective, regulated cosmic order: the Sun’s measured passage through nakshatras becomes a canonical way to describe and compute the rhythm of days, nights, and larger cycles.
He ties celestial motion to time-units: by stating the Sun’s traversal in terms of muhūrtas, Parāśara shows that day/night are not merely experiences but measurable segments grounded in the Sun’s course.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purāṇic framework treats cosmic regularity as upheld by the Supreme—Vishnu as the sustaining reality through whom order, measure, and continuity of time are maintained.