Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 7
The Orbit of the Sun, the Measure of Day and Night, and the Sun-God’s Chariot
एवं नव कोटय एकपञ्चाशल्लक्षाणि योजनानां मानसोत्तरगिरिपरिवर्तनस्योपदिशन्ति तस्मिन्नैन्द्रीं पुरीं पूर्वस्मान्मेरोर्देवधानीं नाम दक्षिणतो याम्यां संयमनीं नाम पश्चाद्वारुणीं निम्लोचनीं नाम उत्तरत: सौम्यां विभावरीं नाम तासूदयमध्याह्नास्तमयनिशीथानीति भूतानां प्रवृत्तिनिवृत्तिनिमित्तानि समयविशेषेण मेरोश्चतुर्दिशम् ॥ ७ ॥
evaṁ nava koṭaya eka-pañcāśal-lakṣāṇi yojanānāṁ mānasottara-giri-parivartanasyopadiśanti tasminn aindrīṁ purīṁ pūrvasmān meror devadhānīṁ nāma dakṣiṇato yāmyāṁ saṁyamanīṁ nāma paścād vāruṇīṁ nimlocanīṁ nāma uttarataḥ saumyāṁ vibhāvarīṁ nāma tāsūdaya-madhyāhnāstamaya-niśīthānīti bhūtānāṁ pravṛtti-nivṛtti-nimittāni samaya-viśeṣeṇa meroś catur-diśam.
Nagpatuloy si Śukadeva Gosvāmī—O Hari, sinasabi ng mga pantas na ang araw ay umiikot sa paligid ng Bundok Mānasottara sa bilog na may habang 9,51,00,000 yojana. Sa Mānasottara, sa silangan ng Bundok Sumeru ay ang Devadhānī ni Indra; sa timog ang Saṁyamanī ni Yamarāja; sa kanluran ang Nimlocanī ni Varuṇa; at sa hilaga ang Vibhāvarī ng diyos ng buwan. Ayon sa takdang oras, nagaganap doon ang pagsikat, katanghalian, paglubog at hatinggabi, kaya’t ang mga nilalang ay kumikilos at tumitigil sa kani-kanilang tungkulin.
FAQs
This verse states that on Mānasottara Mountain there are four directional cities around Meru—Devadhānī (east/Indra), Saṁyamanī (south/Yama), Nimlocanī (west/Varuṇa), and Vibhāvarī (north/Soma)—which correspond to time-markers like dawn, noon, sunset, and midnight for living beings.
In this cosmological mapping, the southern quarter is termed Yāmyā (of Yama) with the city Saṁyamanī; it reflects the Purāṇic directional guardianship where Yama presides over the south, tying cosmic geography to divine administration.
The verse highlights that daily time divisions govern activity and rest for all beings; a devotee can use this awareness to structure life around sādhana—beginning the day at dawn with remembrance, keeping discipline through midday duties, and ending at night with reflection and prayer.