Shloka 28
भारतवर्षमहात्म्यम् — कर्मभूमित्वम्, नवभेदाः, कुलपर्वताः-नद्यः-जनपदाः, युगचक्रविशेषः, यज्ञपुरुषविष्णुपूजा
जम्बूद्वीपं समावृत्य लक्षयोजनविस्तरः मैत्रेय वलयाकारः स्थितः क्षारोदधिर् बहिः
jambūdvīpaṃ samāvṛtya lakṣayojanavistaraḥ maitreya valayākāraḥ sthitaḥ kṣārodadhir bahiḥ
हे मैत्रेय! जम्बूद्वीप को चारों ओर से घेरकर बाहर की ओर एक लाख योजन विस्तृत क्षारोदधि वलयाकार रूप से स्थित है।
Sage Parāśara (addressing Maitreya)
FAQs
It functions as the first encircling ocean around Jambūdvīpa, marking a structured boundary in the Purāṇic map of the world and emphasizing an ordered, concentric design of creation.
Parāśara presents the cosmos as a measured, ring-like arrangement—continents and oceans laid out concentrically—using distances (yojanas) to convey a deliberate, intelligible order.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana frames such cosmic order as sustained by Vishnu’s supreme sovereignty—creation arranged not as chaos, but as a purposeful, upheld reality.