Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 9
Kāla-cakra and the Motions of the Sun, Moon, Stars, and Grahas
Bhāgavata Jyotiṣa Framework
अथ चापूर्यमाणाभिश्च कलाभिरमराणां क्षीयमाणाभिश्च कलाभि: पितृणामहोरात्राणि पूर्वपक्षापरपक्षाभ्यां वितन्वान: सर्वजीवनिवहप्राणो जीवश्चैकमेकं नक्षत्रं त्रिंशता मुहूर्तैर्भुङ्क्ते ॥ ९ ॥
atha cāpūryamāṇābhiś ca kalābhir amarāṇāṁ kṣīyamāṇābhiś ca kalābhiḥ pitṝṇām aho-rātrāṇi pūrva-pakṣāpara-pakṣābhyāṁ vitanvānaḥ sarva-jīva-nivaha-prāṇo jīvaś caikam ekaṁ nakṣatraṁ triṁśatā muhūrtair bhuṅkte.
月亮在盈时，光明分量日日增长，成为天神的白昼、祖灵（pitṛ）的黑夜；在亏时，便成为天神的黑夜、祖灵的白昼。如此，月亮以三十个牟呼尔塔（整整一日）穿行一宿一宿。月神散发甘露般清凉，滋养谷物生长，因此被视为一切众生的生命之气，称为“吉瓦”(Jīva)。
FAQs
This verse states that the Moon passes through one nakṣatra in thirty muhūrtas, moving from one lunar mansion to the next in a measured cycle.
He explains how the Moon’s waxing and waning kalās structure time as the bright and dark fortnights, affecting the reckoning of day and night for devas and Pitṛs.
It encourages mindful living with sacred time—seeing days, nights, and lunar cycles as divinely ordered, and aligning one’s sādhana and gratitude (especially toward ancestors and devas) with disciplined rhythms.