Shloka 65

सूर्यरथ-कालचक्र-आयनविभागः, संध्योपासनम्, देवयान-पितृयानम्, विष्णुपद-गङ्गावतरणम्

Devanagari script

दशपञ्चमुहूर्तं वै अहर् वैषुवतं स्मृतम्

Transliteration

daśapañcamuhūrtaṃ vai ahar vaiṣuvataṃ smṛtam

Translation

Indeed, a day consisting of fifteen muhūrtas is remembered as ahar vaiṣuvata, the equinoctial day, when the balance of time is held even in the cosmic order.

Word by Word

• दशपञ्चमुहूर्तम्: fifteen muhūrtas
• दशपञ्चमुहूर्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दश (संख्या) + पञ्च (संख्या) + मुहूर्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; द्विगु-समास (fifteen-muhūrta (measure))

• वै: certainly
• वै: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निश्चयार्थक

• अहः: a day
• अहः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहन्/अह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; अत्र ‘स्मृतम्’ इत्यनेन सह कर्मरूपेण (as the thing defined)

• वैषुवतम्: equinox (day)
• वैषुवतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वैषुवत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणं ‘अहः’ (equinox-related)

• स्मृतम्: is called/considered
• स्मृतम्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृत (कृदन्त, √स्मृ धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि: ‘is called/considered’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The ‘equinoctial day’ (vaiṣuvata) is defined as a day of fifteen muhūrtas, expressing balance in temporal order.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Seek balance (samatā) in daily life—regular sleep, work, worship—using time discipline as a spiritual support.

Vishishtadvaita: Cosmic balance in kāla hints at a purposeful, divinely sustained order where harmony of parts serves the whole (jagat as Viṣṇu’s body).

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Time (Kāla)

FAQs

What is the significance of the equinoctial day (vaiṣuvata ahar) in the Vishnu Purana?

It marks the balanced division of day-time as defined through muhūrta-counting, reflecting the Purana’s concern with cosmic regularity and sacred time.

How does Sage Parāśara explain time-measurements like muhūrtas?

He presents them as standardized units within a graded cosmological system—linking daily measures to larger cycles that structure ritual, astronomy, and Purāṇic chronology.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here, even though he is not named in the verse?

Time (kāla) functions in the Vishnu Purana as a manifestation of the Supreme’s governance: the orderly balance of temporal measures is an aspect of Vishnu’s sustaining sovereignty over the cosmos.