Kāla-cakra and the Motions of the Sun, Moon, Stars, and Grahas
Bhāgavata Jyotiṣa Framework
तत उपरिष्टात्द्वि्लक्षयोजनतो नक्षत्राणि मेरुं दक्षिणेनैव कालायन ईश्वरयोजितानि सहाभिजिताष्टाविंशति: ॥ ११ ॥
tata upariṣṭād dvi-lakṣa-yojanato nakṣatrāṇi meruṁ dakṣiṇenaiva kālāyana īśvara-yojitāni sahābhijitāṣṭā-viṁśatiḥ.
月のさらに上、二十万ヨージャナの高さに星宿(ナクシャトラ)がある。至上主の御意志により、それらは時の輪に結び付けられ、須弥山を右にして(右旋して)太陽とは異なる運行で巡る。主要な星宿はアビジットを筆頭に二十八ある。
The stars referred to herein are 1,600,000 miles above the sun, and thus they are 4,000,000 miles above the earth.
In this verse, Śukadeva explains that the nakṣatras are positioned above at a measured distance and move around Mount Meru according to the precise arrangement of the Supreme Lord, totaling twenty-eight including Abhijit.
He is outlining the Bhāgavatam’s cosmic structure in Canto 5, showing that celestial movements are orderly and ultimately governed by Īśvara, not random.
It encourages seeing time and change as regulated by a higher intelligence, fostering humility, steadiness, and devotion rather than anxiety about the uncontrollable.