Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 10
The Orbit of the Sun, the Measure of Day and Night, and the Sun-God’s Chariot
यदा चैन्द्य्रा: पुर्या: प्रचलते पञ्चदशघटिकाभिर्याम्यां सपादकोटिद्वयं योजनानां सार्धद्वादशलक्षाणि साधिकानि चोपयाति ॥ १० ॥
yadā caindryāḥ puryāḥ pracalate pañcadaśa-ghaṭikābhir yāmyāṁ sapāda-koṭi-dvayaṁ yojanānāṁ sārdha-dvādaśa-lakṣāṇi sādhikāni copayāti.
Lorsque le soleil va de Devadhānī, demeure d’Indra, à Saṁyamanī, demeure de Yamarāja, il parcourt 23,775,000 yojanas en quinze ghaṭikās (six heures).
The distance indicated by the word sādhikāni is pañca-viṁśati-sahasrādhikāni, or 25,000 yojanas. That plus two and a half crores and twelve and a half lakṣa of yojanas is the distance the sun travels between each two cities. This comes to 23,775,000 yojanas, or 190,200,000 miles. The total orbit of the sun is four times that distance, or 95,100,000 yojanas (760,800,000 miles).
FAQs
This verse states that as the sun departs from Indra’s city, it travels southward for fifteen ghaṭikās and covers a vast distance measured in crores of yojanas, describing the sun’s regulated celestial course.
In this section, Śukadeva is explaining Purāṇic cosmology to Mahārāja Parīkṣit, using traditional Vedic units to convey the ordered movement of the sun and the structure of time and space.
By reflecting on the universe’s order and the precision of time, one can cultivate humility and remembrance of the Supreme Lord’s governance, strengthening gratitude and steady devotional practice.