Srila Prabhupada - ""But unless one is favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one cannot understand His supreme glories" SB 4:29:42-44 purport

Here the distance between Earth and the Sun is revealed

Srila Prabhupada  - "The distance from the sun to the earth is 100,000 yojanas" (8 hundred thousand miles away).

(NOTE - The late Sadaputa prabhu never accepted that figure to be taken literally and has a further deeper meaning. He agrees with modern science view that the Sun is 93 millions miles from Earth and the Moon is 238,000 miles from Earth)

Srila Prabhupada  - ""But unless one is favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one cannot understand His supreme glories" SB 4:29:42-44 purport

The polar star of the universe and the circle thereof is called the Śiśumāra circle, and therein the local residential planet of the Personality of Godhead (Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu) is situated.

Before reaching there, the mystic passes over the Milky Way to reach Brahmaloka, and while going there he first reaches Vaiśvānara-loka, where the demigod controls fire.

On Vaiśvānara-loka the yogī becomes completely cleansed of all dirty sins acquired while in contact with the material world.

The Milky Way in the sky is indicated herein as the way leading to Brahmaloka, the highest planet of the universe. (Srimad Bhagavatam 2:2:24 purport).

The individual soul is forever a servant of the Supersoul, and therefore his relationship with the Supersoul is to offer service.

That is called bhakti-yoga, or bhakti-bhāva.

Dhruva Mahārāja offered his prayers to the Lord not in the way of the impersonalist philosophers, but as a devotee.

Therefore, it is clearly said here, bhakti-bhāva. The only prayers worth offering are those offered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose reputation is spread far and wide.

Dhruva Mahārāja wanted to have the kingdom of his father, but his father refused even to allow him to get on his lap.

In order to fulfill his desire, the Lord had already created a planet known as the polestar, Dhruvaloka, which was never to be annihilated even at the time of the dissolution of the universe.

Dhruva Mahārāja attained this perfection not by acting hastily, but by patiently executing the order of his spiritual master, and therefore he became so successful that he saw the Lord face to face.

Now he was further enabled, by the causeless mercy of the Lord, to offer fitting prayers to the Lord. To glorify or offer prayers unto the Supreme, one needs the Lord's mercy.

One cannot write to glorify the Lord unless one is endowed with His causeless mercy. (Srimad Bhagavatam 4:9:5 purport).

Although the polestar existed before its occupation by Dhruva Mahārāja, it had no predominating deity.

Dhruvaloka, our polestar, is the center for all other stars and solar systems, for all of them circle around Dhruvaloka just as a bull crushes grains by walking around and around a central pole.

Dhruva wanted the best of all planets, and although it was a childish prayer, the Lord satisfied his demand.

A small child may demand something from his father which his father has never given to anyone else, yet out of affection the father offers it to the child; similarly, this unique planet, Dhruvaloka, was offered to Mahārāja Dhruva.

The specific significance of this planet is that until the entire universe is annihilated this planet will remain, even during the devastation which takes place during the night of Lord Brahmā.

There are two kinds of dissolutions, one during the night of Lord Brahmā and one at the end of Lord Brahmā's life.

At the end of Brahmā's life, selected personalities go back home, back to Godhead. Dhruva Mahārāja is one of them. (Srimad Bhagavatam 4:9:20-21purport).

In this verse the word nāvartate is very significant. The Lord says,

"You will not come back to this material world, for you will reach mat-sthānam, My abode."

Therefore Dhruvaloka, or the polestar, is the abode of Lord Viṣṇu within this material world. Upon it there is an ocean of milk, and within that ocean there is an island known as Śvetadvīpa.

It is clearly indicated that this planet is situated above the seven planetary systems of the ṛṣis, and because this planet is Viṣṇuloka, it is worshiped by all other planetary systems.

It may be questioned here what will happen to the planet known as Dhruvaloka at the time of the dissolution of this universe.

The answer is simple: Dhruvaloka remains, like other Vaikuṇṭhalokas beyond this universe.

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has commented in this connection that the very word nāvartate indicates that this planet is eternal. (Srimad Bhagavatam 4:9:25 purport).

According to astronomical calculation, along with the polestar there is another star, which is called Śiśumāra, where Lord Viṣṇu, who is in charge of the maintenance of this material world, resides.

Śiśumāra or Dhruvaloka can never be reached by anyone but the Vaiṣṇavas, as will be described by the following ślokas.

The associates of Lord Viṣṇu brought the special airplane for Dhruva Mahārāja and then informed him that Lord Viṣṇu had especially sent this airplane.
(Srimad Bhagavatam 4:12:27 purport).

Each and every planet within the universe travels at a very high speed.

From a statement in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is understood that even the sun travels sixteen thousand miles in a second.

And from Brahma-saṁhitā we understand from the śloka, yac-cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇām that the sun is considered to be the eye of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda, and it also has a specific orbit within which it circles.

Similarly, all other planets have their specific orbits.

But together all of them encircle the polestar, or Dhruvaloka, where Dhruva Mahārāja is situated at the summit of the three worlds.

We can only imagine how highly exalted the actual position of a devotee is, and certainly we cannot even conceive how exalted is the position of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. (Srimad Bhagavatam 4:12:39 purport).

The speculators, the jñānīs, go on speculating about the Supreme Personality of Godhead for many, many hundreds of thousands of years, "but unless one is favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one cannot understand His supreme glories".

All the great sages mentioned in this verse have their planets near Brahmaloka, the planet where Lord Brahmā resides along with four great sages—

Sanaka,
Sanātana,
Sanandana,
Sanat-kumāra.

These sages reside in different stars known as the southern stars, which circle the polestar.

The polestar, called Dhruvaloka, is the pivot of this universe, and all planets move around this polestar.

All the stars are planets, as far as we can see, within this one universe.

According to Western theory, all the stars are different suns, but according to Vedic information, there is only one sun within this universe.

All the so-called stars are but different planets.

Besides this universe, there are many millions of other universes, and each of them contains similar innumerable stars and planets.(Srimad Bhagavatam 4:29:42-44 purport).

We should always remember that the Ganges River comes from the Causal Ocean, beyond the covering of the universe.

After the water of the Causal Ocean leaks through the hole created by Lord Vāmanadeva, it flows down to Dhruvaloka (the polestar) and then to the seven planets beneath Dhruvaloka.

Then it is carried to the moon by innumerable celestial airplanes, and then it falls to the top of Mount Meru, which is known as Sumeru-parvata.

In this way, the water of the Ganges finally reaches the lower planets and the peaks of the Himalayas, and from there it flows through Hardwar and throughout the plains of India, purifying the entire land.

How the Ganges water reaches the various planets from the top of the universe is explained herein.

Celestial airplanes carry the water from the planets of the sages to other planets.

So-called advanced scientists of the modern age are trying to go to the higher planets, but at the same time they are experiencing a power shortage on earth.

If they were actually capable scientists, they could personally go by airplane to other planets, but this they are unable to do.

Having now given up their moon excursions, they are attempting to go to other planets, but without success. (Srimad Bhagavatam 5:17:4 purport).

Situated 8,800,000 miles above Saturn, or 20,800,000 miles above earth, are the seven saintly sages, who are always thinking of the well-being of the inhabitants of the universe.

They circumambulate the supreme abode of Lord Viṣṇu, known as Dhruvaloka, the polestar. (Srimad Bhagavatam 5:22:17 translation).

This chapter describes how all the planetary systems take shelter of the polestar, Dhruvaloka.

It also describes the totality of these planetary systems to be Śiśumāra, another expansion of the external body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Dhruvaloka, the abode of Lord Viṣṇu within this universe, is situated 1,300,000 yojanas (10,400,000 miles) from the seven stars.

In the planetary system of Dhruvaloka are the planets of the fire-god, Indra, Prajāpati, Kaśyapa and Dharma, all of whom are very respectful to the great devotee Dhruva, who lives on thepolestar.

Like bulls yoked to a central pivot, all the planetary systems revolve around Dhruvaloka, impelled by eternal time.

Those who worship the virāṭ-puruṣa, the universal form of the Lord, conceive of this entire rotating system of planets as an animal known as śiśumāra.

This imaginary śiśumāra is another form of the Lord. The head of the śiśumāra form is downward, and its body appears like that of a coiled snake.

On the end of its tail is Dhruvaloka, on the body of the tail are Prajāpati, Agni, Indra and Dharma, and on the root of the tail are Dhātā and Vidhātā.

On its waist are the seven great sages. The entire body of the śiśumāra faces toward its right and appears like a coil of stars.

On the right side of this coil are the fourteen prominent stars from Abhijit to Punarvasu.

And on the left side are the fourteen prominent stars from Puṣyā to Uttarāṣāḍhā.

The stars known as Punarvasu and Puṣyā are on the right and left hips of the śiśumāra.

And the stars known as Ārdrā and Aśleṣā are on the right and left feet of the śiśumāra.

Other stars are also fixed on different sides of the Śiśumāra planetary system according to the calculations of Vedic astronomers.

To concentrate their minds, yogīs worship the Śiśumāra planetary system, which is technically known as the kuṇḍalini-cakra. (Srimad Bhagavatam 5:23 summary).

Summarizing the entire description of the planetary systems of the universe, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says that one who is able to meditate upon this arrangement as the virāṭ-rūpa, or viśva-rūpa, the external body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and worship Him three times a day by meditation will always be free from all sinful reactions.

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura estimates that Dhruvaloka, the polestar, is 3,800,000 yojanas above the sun (30,400,000 miles)

Above Dhruvaloka by 10,000,000 yojanas is Maharloka.

Above Maharloka by 20,000,000 yojanas is Janaloka.

Above Janaloka by 80,000,000 yojanas is Tapoloka.

Above Tapoloka by 120,000,000 yojanas is Satyaloka.

Thus the distance from the sun to Satyaloka is 233,800,000 yojanas, or 1,870,400,000 miles.

The Vaikuṇṭha planets begin 26,200,000 yojanas (209,600,000 miles) above Satyaloka.

Thus the Viṣṇu Purāṇa describes that the covering of the universe is 260,000,000 yojanas or 2,080,000,000 miles away from the sun.

The distance from the sun to the earth is 100,000 yojanas (8 hundred thousand miles away).

And below the earth by 70,000 yojanas are the seven lower planetary systems called

Atala,
Vitala,
Sutala,
Talātala,
Mahātala,
Rasātala,
Pātāla.

Below these lower planets by 30,000 yojanas, Śeṣa Nāga is lying on the Garbhodaka Ocean.

That ocean is 249,800,000 yojanas deep.

Thus the total diameter of the universe is approximately 500,000,000 yojanas, or 4,000,000,000 miles (4 billion miles in diameter). (Srimad Bhagavatam 5:23:9 purport).

The seven stars revolving around the polestar at the zenith are called saptarṣi-maṇḍala.

On these seven stars, which form the topmost part of our planetary system, reside seven sages:

Kaśyapa,
Atri,
Vasiṣṭha,
Viśvāmitra,
Gautama,
Jamadagni,
Bharadvāja.

These seven stars are seen every night, and they each make a complete orbit around thepolestar within twenty-four hours. Along with these seven stars, all the others stars also orbit from east to west.

The upper portion of the universe is called the north, and the lower portion is called the south.

Even in our ordinary dealings, while studying a map, we regard the upper portion of the map as north. (Srimad Bhagavatam 9:16:24 purport).