Shloka 16
Qualities of the Five Great Elements; Description of Sudarśana-dvīpa and Mount Meru
एवं सुदर्शनो द्वीपो दृश्यते चक्रमंडलः । द्विरंशे पिप्पलस्तस्य द्विरंशे च शशो महान्
evaṃ sudarśano dvīpo dṛśyate cakramaṃḍalaḥ | dviraṃśe pippalastasya dviraṃśe ca śaśo mahān
Así se contempla la isla llamada Sudarśana como un disco circular, semejante a una rueda; en una de sus dos partes se alza un pippala, la higuera sagrada, y en la otra hay una gran liebre.
Unspecified narrator (contextual description within Svarga-khaṇḍa cosmography; speaker not explicit in the provided verse)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: hasya
Type: celestial_realm
Sandhi Resolution Notes: चक्रमंडलः = चक्र + मण्डलः; पिप्पलस्तस्य = पिप्पलः + तस्य
FAQs
It depicts Sudarśana-dvīpa as a wheel-like circular disk and notes two prominent features placed in its two divisions: a pippala tree and a great hare.
Puranic cosmography often blends geography with symbolic markers; the pippala is a widely revered sacred tree, while the hare can function as a mythic emblem used to distinguish regions or convey auspicious imagery.
Not explicitly. This verse is primarily descriptive; any ethical or devotional takeaway would be indirect, such as reverence for sacred symbols (like the pippala) within the Purana’s sacred worldview.