Shloka 36
प्रलय-प्रक्रिया (Pralaya Process) — Guṇa-Withdrawal and Pratisaṃcara
अयन तस्य षण्मासानुत्तरं दक्षिणं तथा । येन संयाति लोकेषु शीतोष्णे विसृजन् रवि:
ayanaṃ tasya ṣaṇmāsān uttaraṃ dakṣiṇaṃ tathā | yena saṃyāti lokeṣu śītoṣṇe visṛjan raviḥ ||
Śakra berkata: “Baginya ada dua lintasan—ke utara dan ke selatan. Enam bulan adalah Uttarāyaṇa dan enam bulan adalah Dakṣiṇāyaṇa. Dengan menempuhnya, Surya menjelajah dunia-dunia, menampakkan silih bergantinya dingin dan panas.”
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse points to a stable cosmic order: the Sun’s two half-yearly courses (northward and southward) regulate seasonal experience (cold and heat). Ethically, it supports the Mahābhārata’s broader theme that dharma is aligned with orderly, law-governed rhythms rather than arbitrariness.
Śakra (Indra) explains the Sun’s movement in two ayanas—Uttarāyaṇa and Dakṣiṇāyaṇa—each lasting six months, and states that through this movement the Sun produces the alternation of cold and heat across the worlds.