''The Movements of the Sun'' Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 21 text 1 to text 19

''The Movements of the Sun''

Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 21 text 1 to text 19

By His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

This chapter informs us of the movements of the sun. The sun is not stationary; it is also moving like the other planets. The sun’s movements determine the duration of night and day.

When the sun travels north of the equator, it moves slowly during the day and very quickly at night, thus increasing the duration of the daytime and decreasing the duration of night. Similarly, when the sun travels south of the equator, the exact opposite is true — the duration of the day decreases, and the duration of night increases.



When the sun enters Karkaṭa-rāśi (Cancer) and then travels to Siṁha-rāśi (Leo) and so on through Dhanuḥ-rāśi (Sagittarius), its course is called Dakṣiṇāyana, the southern way, and when the sun enters Makara-rāśi (Capricorn) and thereafter travels through Kumbharāśi (Aquarius) and so on through Mithuna-rāśi (Gemini), its course is called Uttarāyaṇa, the northern way. When the sun is in Meṣa-rāśi (Aries) and Tulā-rāśi (Libra), the duration of day and night are equal.

On Mānasottara Mountain are the abodes of four demigods. East of Sumeru Mountain is Devadhānī, where King Indra lives, and south of Sumeru is Saṁyamanī, the abode of Yamarāja, the superintendent of death.

Similarly, west of Sumeru is Nimlocanī, the abode of Varuṇa, the demigod who controls the water, and north of Sumeru is Vibhāvarī, where the demigod of the moon lives.

Sunrise, noon, sunset and midnight occur in all these places because of the movements of the sun. Diametrically opposite the place where the sunrise takes places and the sun is seen by human eyes, the sun will be setting and passing away from human vision.

Similarly, the people residing diametrically opposite the point where it is midday will be experiencing midnight. The sun rises and sets with all the other planets, headed by the moon and other luminaries.

The entire kāla-cakra, or wheel of time, is established on the wheel of the sun-god’s chariot. This wheel is known as Saṁvatsara. The seven horses pulling the chariot of the sun are known as Gāyatrī, Bṛhatī, Uṣṇik, Jagatī, Triṣṭup, Anuṣṭup and Paṅkti. They are harnessed by a demigod known as Aruṇadeva to a yoke 900,000 yojanas wide. Thus the chariot carries Ādityadeva, the sun-god.

Always staying in front of the sun-god and offering their prayers are sixty thousand sages known as Vālikhilyas. There are fourteen Gandharvas, Apsarās and other demigods, who are divided into seven parties and who perform ritualistic activities every month to worship the Supersoul through the sun-god according to different names.

Thus the sun-god travels through the universe for a distance of 95,100,000 yojanas (760,800,000 miles) at a speed of 16,004 miles at every moment.

SB 5.21.1

Translation:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: My dear King, I have thus far described the diameter of the universe [fifty crores of yojanas, or four billion miles] and its general characteristics, according to the estimations of learned scholars.

SB 5.21.2

Translation:

As a grain of wheat is divided into two parts and one can estimate the size of the upper part by knowing that of the lower, so, expert geographers instruct, one can understand the measurements of the upper part of the universe by knowing those of the lower part.

The sky between the earthly sphere and heavenly sphere is called antarikṣa, or outer space. It adjoins the top of the sphere of earth and the bottom of that of heaven.

SB 5.21.3

Translation:

In the midst of that region of outer space [antarikṣa] is the most opulent sun, the king of all the planets that emanate heat, such as the moon. By the influence of its radiation, the sun heats the universe and maintains its proper order. It also gives light to help all living entities see.

While passing toward the north, toward the south or through the equator, in accordance with the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, it is said to move slowly, swiftly or moderately. According to its movements in rising above, going beneath or passing through the equator — and correspondingly coming in touch with various signs of the zodiac, headed by Makara [Capricorn] — days and nights are short, long or equal to one another.

Purport:

Lord Brahmā prays in his Brahma-saṁhitā (5.52):

yac cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇāṁ

rājā samasta-sura-mūrtir aśeṣa-tejāḥ

yasyājñayā bhramati saṁbhṛta-kāla-cakro

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead under whose control even the sun, which is considered to be the eye of the Lord, rotates within the fixed orbit of eternal time. The sun is the king of all planetary systems and has unlimited potency in heat and light.”

Although the sun is described as bhagavān, the most powerful, and although it is actually the most powerful planet within the universe, it nevertheless has to carry out the order of Govinda, Kṛṣṇa.

The sun-god cannot deviate even an inch from the orbit designated to him. Therefore in every sphere of life, the supreme order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is carried out. The entire material nature carries out His orders.

However, we foolishly see the activities of material nature without understanding the supreme order and Supreme Person behind them. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ: material nature carries out the orders of the Lord, and thus everything is maintained in an orderly way.

SB 5.21.4

Translation:

When the sun passes through Meṣa [Aries] and Tulā [Libra], the durations of day and night are equal. When it passes through the five signs headed by Vṛṣabha [Taurus], the duration of the days increases [until Cancer], and then it gradually decreases by half an hour each month, until day and night again become equal [in Libra].

SB 5.21.5

Translation:

When the sun passes through the five signs beginning with Vṛścika [Scorpio], the duration of the days decreases [until Capricorn], and then gradually it increases month after month, until day and night become equal [in Aries].

SB 5.21.6

Translation:

Until the sun travels to the south the days grow longer, and until it travels to the north the nights grow longer.

SB 5.21.7

Translation:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued; My dear King, as stated before, the learned say that the sun travels over all sides of Mānasottara Mountain in a circle whose length is 95,100,000 yojanas [760,800,000 miles]. On Mānasottara Mountain, due east of Mount Sumeru, is a place known as Devadhānī, possessed by King Indra.

Similarly, in the south is a place known as Saṁyamanī, possessed by Yamarāja, in the west is a place known as Nimlocanī, possessed by Varuṇa, and in the north is a place named Vibhāvarī, possessed by the moon-god. Sunrise, midday, sunset and midnight occur in all those places according to specific times, thus engaging all living entities in their various occupational duties and also making them cease such duties.

SB 5.21.8-9

Translation:

The living entities residing on Sumeru Mountain are always very warm, as at midday, because for them the sun is always overhead. Although the sun moves counterclockwise, facing the constellations, with Sumeru Mountain on its left, it also moves clockwise and appears to have the mountain on its right because it is influenced by the dakṣiṇāvarta wind.

People living in countries at points diametrically opposite to where the sun is first seen rising will see the sun setting, and if a straight line were drawn from a point where the sun is at midday, the people in countries at the opposite end of the line would be experiencing midnight.

Similarly, if people residing where the sun is setting were to go to countries diametrically opposite, they would not see the sun in the same condition.

SB 5.21.10

Translation:

When the sun travels from Devadhānī, the residence of Indra, to Saṁyamanī, the residence of Yamarāja, it travels 23,775,000 yojanas [190,200,000 miles] in fifteen ghaṭikās [six hours].

Purport:

The distance indicated by the word sādhikāni is pañca-viṁśati-sahasrādhikāni, or 25,000 yojanas. That plus two and a half crores and twelve and a half lakṣa of yojanas is the distance the sun travels between each two cities. This comes to 23,775,000 yojanas, or 190,200,000 miles.

The total orbit of the sun is four times that distance, or 95,100,000 yojanas (760,800,000 miles).

SB 5.21.11

Translation:

From the residence of Yamarāja the sun travels to Nimlocanī, the residence of Varuṇa, from there to Vibhāvarī, the residence of the moon-god, and from there again to the residence of Indra. In a similar way, the moon, along with the other stars and planets, becomes visible in the celestial sphere and then sets and again becomes invisible.

Purport:

In Bhagavad-gītā (10.21) Kṛṣṇa says, nakṣatrāṇām ahaṁ śaśī: “Of stars I am the moon.” This indicates that the moon is similar to the other stars. The Vedic literature informs us that within this universe there is one sun, which is moving. The Western theory that all the luminaries in the sky are different suns is not confirmed in the Vedic literature.

Nor can we assume that these luminaries are the suns of other universes, for each universe is covered by various layers of material elements, and therefore although the universes are clustered together, we cannot see from one universe to another. In other words, whatever we see is within this one universe.

In each universe there is one Lord Brahmā, and there are other demigods on other planets, but there is only one sun.

SB 5.21.12

Translation:

Thus the chariot of the sun-god, which is trayīmaya, or worshiped by the words om bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ, travels through the four residences mentioned above at a speed of 3,400,800 yojanas [27,206,400 miles] in a muhūrta.

SB 5.21.13

Translation:

The chariot of the sun-god has only one wheel, which is known as Saṁvatsara. The twelve months are calculated to be its twelve spokes, the six seasons are the sections of its rim, and the three cātur-māsya periods are its three-sectioned hub.

One side of the axle carrying the wheel rests upon the summit of Mount Sumeru, and the other rests upon Mānasottara Mountain. Affixed to the outer end of the axle, the wheel continuously rotates on Mānasottara Mountain like the wheel of an oil-pressing machine.

SB 5.21.14

Translation:

As in an oil-pressing machine, this first axle is attached to a second axle, which is one-fourth as long [3,937,500 yojanas, or 31,500,000 miles]. The upper end of this second axle is attached to Dhruvaloka by a rope of wind.

SB 5.21.15

Translation:

My dear King, the carriage of the sun-god’s chariot is estimated to be 3,600,000 yojanas [28,800,000 miles] long and one-fourth as wide [900,000 yojanas, or 7,200,000 miles].

The chariot’s horses, which are named after Gāyatrī and other Vedic meters, are harnessed by Aruṇadeva to a yoke that is also 900,000 yojanas wide. This chariot continuously carries the sun-god.

Purport:

In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa it is stated:

gāyatrī ca bṛhaty uṣṇig

jagatī triṣṭup eva ca

anuṣṭup paṅktir ity uktāś

chandāṁsi harayo raveḥ

The seven horses yoked to the sun-god’s chariot are named Gāyatrī, Bṛhati, Uṣṇik, Jagatī, Triṣṭup, Anuṣṭup and Paṅkti. These names of various Vedic meters designate the seven horses that carry the sun-god’s chariot.

SB 5.21.16

Translation:

Although Aruṇadeva sits in front of the sun-god and is engaged in driving the chariot and controlling the horses, he looks backward toward the sun-god.

Purport:

In the Vāyu Purāṇa the position of the horses is described:

saptāśva-rūpa-cchandāṁsī

vahante vāmato ravim

cakra-pakṣa-nibaddhāni

cakre vākṣaḥ samāhitaḥ

Although Aruṇadeva is in the front seat, controlling the horses, he looks back toward the sun-god from his left side.

SB 5.21.17

Translation:

There are sixty thousand saintly persons named Vālikhilyas, each the size of a thumb, who are located in front of the sun-god and who offer him eloquent prayers of glorification.

SB 5.21.18

Translation:

Similarly, fourteen other saints, Gandharvas, Apsarās, Nāgas, Yakṣas, Rākṣasas and demigods, who are divided into groups of two, assume different names every month and continuously perform different ritualistic ceremonies to worship the Supreme Lord as the most powerful demigod Sūryadeva, who holds many names.

Purport:

In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa it is said:

stuvanti munayaḥ sūryaṁ

gandharvair gīyate puraḥ

nṛtyanto ’psaraso yānti

sūryasyānu niśācarāḥ

vahanti pannagā yakṣaiḥ

kriyate ’bhiṣusaṅgrahaḥ

vālikhilyās tathaivainaṁ

parivārya samāsate

so ’yaṁ sapta-gaṇaḥ sūrya-

maṇḍale muni-sattama

himoṣṇa vāri-vṛṣṭīṇāṁ

hetutve samayaṁ gataḥ

Worshiping the most powerful demigod Sūrya, the Gandharvas sing in front of him, the Apsarās dance before the chariot, the Niśācaras follow the chariot, the Pannagas decorate the chariot, the Yakṣas guard the chariot, and the saints called the Vālikhilyas surround the sun-god and offer prayers.

The seven groups of fourteen associates arrange the proper times for regular snow, heat and rain throughout the universe.

SB 5.21.19

Translation:

My dear King, in his orbit through Bhū-maṇḍala, the sun-god traverses a distance of 95,100,000 yojanas [760,800,000 miles] at the speed of 2,000 yojanas and two krośas [16,004 miles] in a moment.

Purport:

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the Fifth Canto, Twenty-first Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “The Movements of the Sun.”

The Śiśumāra Planetary Systems. Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 23 text 1 to text 9.

The Śiśumāra Planetary Systems

Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 23 text 1 to text 9.

By His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.

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 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 the polestar. 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 NOther 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.

SB 5.23.1

Translation:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: My dear King, 1,300,000 yojanas [10,400,000 miles] above the planets of the seven sages is the place that learned scholars describe as the abode of Lord Viṣṇu. There the son of Mahārāja Uttānapāda, the great devotee Mahārāja Dhruva, still resides as the life source of all the living entities who live until the end of the creation.

Agni, Indra, Prajāpati, Kaśyapa and Dharma all assemble there to offer him honor and respectful obeisances. They circumambulate him with their right sides toward him. I have already described the glorious activities of Mahārāja Dhruva [in the Fourth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam].

SB 5.23.2

Translation:

Established by the supreme will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the polestar, which is the planet of Mahārāja Dhruva, constantly shines as the central pivot for all the stars and planets. The unsleeping, invisible, most powerful time factor causes these luminaries to revolve around the polestar without cessation.

Purport:

It is distinctly stated herein that all the luminaries, the planets and stars, revolve by the influence of the supreme time factor. The time factor is another feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Everyone is under the influence of the time factor, but the Supreme Personality of Godhead is so kind and loves His devotee Mahārāja Dhruva so much that He has placed all the luminaries under the control of Dhruva’s planet and has arranged for the time factor to work under him or with his cooperation.

Everything is actually done according to the will and direction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but to make His devotee Dhruva the most important individual within the universe, the Lord has placed the activities of the time factor under his control.

SB 5.23.3

Translation:

When bulls are yoked together and tied to a central post to thresh rice, they tread around that pivot without deviating from their proper positions — one bull being closest to the post, another in the middle, and a third on the outside.

Similarly, all the planets and all the hundreds and thousands of stars revolve around the polestar, the planet of Mahārāja Dhruva, in their respective orbits, some higher and some lower. Fastened by the Supreme Personality of Godhead to the machine of material nature according to the results of their fruitive acts, they are driven around the polestar by the wind and will continue to be so until the end of creation.

These planets float in the air within the vast sky, just as clouds with hundreds of tons of water float in the air or as the great śyena eagles, due to the results of past activities, fly high in the sky and have no chance of falling to the ground.

Purport:

According to the description of this verse, the hundreds and thousands of stars and the great planets such as the sun, the moon, Venus, Mercury, Mars and Jupiter are not clustered together because of the law of gravity or any similar idea of the modern scientists.

These planets and stars are all servants of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda or Kṛṣṇa, and according to His order they sit in their chariots and travel in their respective orbits. The orbits in which they move are compared to machines given by material nature to the operating deities of the stars and planets, who carry out the orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead by revolving around Dhruvaloka, which is occupied by the great devotee Mahārāja Dhruva. This is confirmed in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.52) as follows:

yac-cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇāṁ
rājā samasta-sura-mūrtir aśeṣa-tejāḥ
yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakro
govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, under whose control even the sun, which is considered to be the eye of the Lord, rotates within the fixed orbit of eternal time. The sun is the king of all planetary systems and has unlimited potency in heat and light.”

This verse from Brahma-saṁhitā confirms that even the largest and most powerful planet, the sun, rotates within a fixed orbit, or kāla-cakra, in obedience to the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This has nothing to do with gravity or any other imaginary laws created by the material scientists.

Material scientists want to avoid the ruling government of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore they imagine different conditions under which they suppose the planets move. The only condition, however, is the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All the various predominating deities of the planets are persons, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead is also a person. The Supreme Personality orders the subordinate persons, the demigods of various names, to carry out His supreme will. This fact is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10), wherein Kṛṣṇa says:

mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ
sūyate sa-carācaram
hetunānena kaunteya
jagad viparivartate

“This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, and it is producing all moving and unmoving beings. By its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.”

The orbits of the planets resemble the bodies in which all living entities are seated because they are both machines controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (18.61):

īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
hṛd-deśe ’rjuna tiṣṭhati
bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni
yantrārūḍhāni māyayā

“The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone’s heart, O Arjuna, and is directing the wanderings of all living entities, who are seated as on a machine, made of the material energy.” The machine given by material nature — whether the machine of the body or the machine of the orbit, or kāla-cakra — works according to the orders given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead and material nature work together to maintain this great universe, and not only this universe but also the millions of other universes beyond this one.

The question of how the planets and stars are floating is also answered in this verse. It is not because of the laws of gravity. Rather, the planets and stars are enabled to float by manipulations of the air.

It is due to such manipulations that big, heavy clouds float and big eagles fly in the sky. Modern airplanes like the 747 jet aircraft work in a similar way: by controlling the air, they float high in the sky, resisting the tendency to fall to earth. Such adjustments of the air are all made possible by the cooperation of the principles of puruṣa (male) and prakṛti (female).

By the cooperation of material nature, which is considered to be prakṛti, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is considered the puruṣa, all the affairs of the universe are going on nicely in their proper order. Prakṛti, material nature, is also described in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.44) as follows:

sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya-sādhana-śaktir ekā
chāyeva yasya bhuvanāni bibharti durgā
icchānurūpam api yasya ca ceṣṭate sā
govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

“The external potency, māyā, who is of the nature of the shadow of the cit [spiritual] potency, is worshiped by all people as Durgā, the creating, preserving and destroying agency of this mundane world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda, in accordance with whose will Durgā conducts herself.”

Material nature, the external energy of the Supreme Lord, is also known as Durgā, or the female energy that protects the great fort of this universe. The word Durgā also means fort. This universe is just like a great fort in which all the conditioned souls are kept, and they cannot leave it unless they are liberated by the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Lord Himself declares in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9):

janma karma ca me divyam
evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ
tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma
naiti mām eti so ’rjuna

“One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.” Thus simply by Kṛṣṇa consciousness, by the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one can be liberated, or, in other words, one can be released from the great fort of this universe and go outside it to the spiritual world.

It is also significant that the predominating deities of even the greatest planets have been offered their exalted posts because of the very valuable pious activities they performed in previous births. This is indicated herein by the words karma-nirmita-gatayaḥ.

For example, as we have previously discussed, the moon is called jīva, which means that he is a living entity like us, but because of his pious activities he has been appointed to his post as the moon-god. Similarly, all the demigods are living entities who have been appointed to their various posts as the masters of the moon, the earth, Venus and so on because of their great service and pious acts.

Only the predominating deity of the sun, Sūrya Nārāyaṇa, is an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Mahārāja Dhruva, the predominating deity of Dhruvaloka, is also a living entity. Thus there are two kinds of entities — the supreme entity, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the ordinary living entity, the jīva (nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13)). All the demigods are engaged in the service of the Lord, and only by such an arrangement are the affairs of the universe going on.

Regarding the great eagles mentioned in this verse, it is understood that there are eagles so big that they can prey on big elephants. They fly so high that they can travel from one planet to another.

They start flying in one planet and land in another, and while in flight they lay eggs that hatch into other birds while falling through the air. In Sanskrit such eagles are called śyena. Under the present circumstances, of course, we cannot see such huge birds, but at least we know of eagles that can capture monkeys and then throw them down to kill and eat them. Similarly, it is understood that there are gigantic birds that can carry off elephants, kill them and eat them.

The two examples of the eagle and the cloud are sufficient to prove that flying and floating can be made possible through adjustments of the air. The planets, in a similar way, are floating because material nature adjusts the air according to the orders of the Supreme Lord.

It could be said that these adjustments constitute the law of gravity, but in any case, one must accept that these laws are made by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The so-called scientists have no control over them. The scientists can falsely, improperly declare that there is no God, but this is not a fact.

SB 5.23.4

Translation:

This great machine, consisting of the stars and planets, resembles the form of a śiśumāra [dolphin] in the water. It is sometimes considered an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa, Vāsudeva. Great yogīs meditate upon Vāsudeva in this form because it is actually visible.

Purport:

Transcendentalists such as yogīs whose minds cannot accommodate the form of the Lord prefer to visualize something very great, such as the virāṭ-puruṣa. Therefore some yogīs contemplate this imaginary śiśumāra to be swimming in the sky the way a dolphin swims in water. They meditate upon it as the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic form of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

SB 5.23.5

Translation:

This form of the śiśumāra has its head downward and its body coiled. On the end of its tail is the planet of Dhruva, on the body of its tail are the planets of the demigods Prajāpati, Agni, Indra and Dharma, and at the base of its tail are the planets of the demigods Dhātā and Vidhātā.

Where the hips might be on the śiśumāra are the seven saintly sages like Vasiṣṭha and Aṅgirā. The coiled body of the Śiśumāra-cakra turns toward its right side, on which the fourteen constellations from Abhijit to Punarvasu are located. On its left side are the fourteen stars from Puṣyā to Uttarāṣāḍhā.

Thus its body is balanced because its sides are occupied by an equal number of stars. On the back of the śiśumāra is the group of stars known as Ajavīthī, and on its abdomen is the Ganges that flows in the sky [the Milky Way].

SB 5.23.6

punarvasu-puṣyau dakṣiṇa-vāmayoḥ śroṇyor ārdrāśleṣe ca dakṣiṇa-vāmayoḥ paścimayoḥ pādayor abhijid-uttarāṣāḍhe
Translation:

On the right and left sides of where the loins might be on the Śiśumāra-cakra are the stars named Punarvasu and Puṣyā. Ārdrā and Aśleṣā are on its right and left feet, Abhijit and Uttarāṣāḍhā are on its right and left nostrils, Śravaṇā and Pūrvāṣāḍhā are at its right and left eyes, and Dhaniṣṭhā and Mūlā are on its right and left ears.

The eight stars from Maghā to Anurādhā, which mark the southern course, are on the ribs of the left of its body, and the eight stars from Mṛgaśīrṣā to Pūrvabhādra, which mark the northern course, are on the ribs on the right side. Śatabhiṣā and Jyeṣṭhā are on the right and left shoulders.

SB 5.23.7

Translation:

On the upper chin of the śiśumāra is Agasti; on its lower chin, Yamarāja; on its mouth, Mars; on its genitals, Saturn; on the back of its neck, Jupiter; on its chest, the sun; and within the core of its heart, Nārāyaṇa. Within its mind is the moon; on its navel, Venus; and on its breasts, the Aśvinī-kumāras. Within its life air, which is known as prāṇāpāna, is Mercury, on its neck is Rāhu, all over its body are comets, and in its pores are the numerous stars.

SB 5.23.8

Translation:

My dear King, the body of the śiśumāra, as thus described, should be considered the external form of Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Morning, noon and evening, one should silently observe the form of the Lord as the Śiśumāra-cakra and worship Him with this mantra: “O Lord who have assumed the form of time! O resting place of all the planets moving in different orbits! O master of all demigods, O Supreme Person, I offer my respectful obeisances unto You and meditate upon You.”

SB 5.23.9

Translation:

The body of the Supreme Lord, Viṣṇu, which forms the Śiśumāra-cakra, is the resting place of all the demigods and all the stars and planets. One who chants this mantra to worship that Supreme Person three times a day — morning, noon and evening — will surely be freed from all sinful reactions. If one simply offers his obeisances to this form or remembers this form three times a day, all his recent sinful activities will be destroyed.

Purport:

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. 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, and 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 (2,080,000,000 miles) away from the sun.

The distance from the sun to the earth is 100,000 yojanas, and below the earth by 70,000 yojanas are the seven lower planetary systems called Atala, Vitala, Sutala, Talātala, Mahātala, Rasātala and 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.

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports to the Fifth Canto, Twenty-third Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “The Śiśumāra Planetary Systems.”

A Description of the Hellish Planets 5th Canto Chapter 26 of Srimad Bhagavatam.

A Description of the Hellish Planets

Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 26 Text 1 to Text 40:

By His Divine Grace A C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.



The Twenty-sixth Chapter describes how a sinful man goes to different hells, where he is punished in various ways by the assistants of Yamarāja. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā (3.27):

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
kartāham iti manyate

“The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature.”

The foolish person thinks he is independent of any law. He thinks there is no God or regulative principle and that he can do whatever he likes.

Thus he engages in different sinful activities, and as a result, he is put into different hellish conditions life after life, to be punished by the laws of nature.

The basic principle of his suffering is that he foolishly thinks himself independent, although he is strictly under the control of the laws of material nature.

These laws act due to the influence of the three modes of nature, and therefore each human being also works under three different types of influence. According to how he acts, he suffers different reactions in his next life or in this life.

Religious persons act differently from atheists, and therefore they suffer different reactions.

Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes the following twenty-eight hells:

Tāmisra,
Andhatāmisra,
Raurava,
Mahāraurava,
Kumbhīpāka,
Kālasūtra,
Asi-patravana,
Sūkaramukha,
Andhakūpa,
Kṛmibhojana,
Sandaṁśa,
Taptasūrmi,
Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī,
Vaitaraṇī, Pūyoda,
Prāṇarodha,
Viśasana,
Lālābhakṣa,
Sārameyādana,
Avīci,
Ayaḥpāna,
Kṣārakardama,
Rakṣogaṇa-bhojana,
Śūlaprota,
Dandaśūka,
Avaṭa-nirodhana,
Paryāvartana,
Sūcīmukha.

A person who steals another’s money, wife or possessions is put into the hell known as Tāmisra. A man who tricks someone and enjoys his wife is put into the extremely hellish condition known as Andhatāmisra.

A foolish person absorbed in the bodily concept of life, who on the basis of this principle maintains himself or his wife and children by committing violence against other living entities, is put into the hell known as Raurava. There the animals he killed take birth as creatures called rurus and cause great suffering for him.

Those who kill different animals and birds and then cook them are put by the agents of Yamarāja into the hell known as Kumbhīpāka, where they are boiled in oil. A person who kills a brāhmaṇa is put into the hell known as Kālasūtra, where the land, perfectly level and made of copper, is as hot as an oven.

The killer of a brāhmaṇa burns in that land for many years. One who does not follow scriptural injunctions but who does everything whimsically or follows some rascal is put into the hell known as Asi-patravana.

A government official who poorly administers justice, or who punishes an innocent man, is taken by the assistants of Yamarāja to the hell known as Sūkaramukha, where he is mercilessly beaten.

God has given advanced consciousness to the human being. Therefore he can feel the suffering and happiness of other living beings. The human being bereft of his conscience, however, is prone to cause suffering for other living beings.

The assistants of Yamarāja put such a person into the hell known as Andhakūpa, where he receives proper punishment from his victims. Any person who does not receive or feed a guest properly but who personally enjoys eating is put into the hell known as Kṛmibhojana. There an unlimited number of worms and insects continuously bite him.

A thief is put into the hell known as Sandaṁśa. A person who has sexual relations with a woman who is not to be enjoyed is put into the hell known as Taptasūrmi. A person who enjoys sexual relations with animals is put into the hell known as Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī.

A person born into an aristocratic or highly placed family but who does not act accordingly is put into the hellish trench of blood, pus and urine called the Vaitaraṇī River. One who lives like an animal is put into the hell called Pūyoda. A person who mercilessly kills animals in the forest without sanction is put into the hell called Prāṇarodha.

A person who kills animals in the name of religious sacrifice is put into the hell named Viśasana. A man who forces his wife to drink his semen is put into the hell called Lālābhakṣa.

One who sets a fire or administers poison to kill someone is put into the hell known as Sārameyādana. A man who earns his livelihood by bearing false witness is put into the hell known as Avīci.

A person addicted to drinking wine is put into the hell named Ayaḥpāna. One who violates etiquette by not showing proper respect to superiors is put into the hell known as Kṣārakardama. A person who sacrifices human beings to Bhairava is put into the hell called Rakṣogaṇa-bhojana.

A person who kills pet animals is put into the hell called Śūlaprota. A person who gives trouble to others is put into the hell known as Dandaśūka. One who imprisons a living entity within a cave is put into the hell known as Avaṭa-nirodhana.

A person who shows unwarranted wrath toward a guest in his house is put into the hell called Paryāvartana. A person maddened by possessing riches and thus deeply absorbed in thinking of how to collect money is put into the hell known as Sūcīmukha.

After describing the hellish planets, Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes how pious persons are elevated to the highest planetary system, where the demigods live, and how they then come back again to this earth when the results of their pious activities are finished. Finally he describes the universal form of the Lord and glorifies the Lord’s activities.

SB 5.26.1

Translation:

King Parīkṣit inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī: My dear sir, why are the living entities put into different material situations? Kindly explain this to me.
Purport:

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura explains that the different hellish planets within this universe are held slightly above the Garbhodaka Ocean and remain situated there.

This chapter describes how all sinful persons go to these hellish planets and how they are punished there by the assistants of Yamarāja. Different individuals with different bodily features enjoy or suffer various reactions according to their past deeds.

SB 5.26.2

Translation:

The great sage Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: My dear King, in this material world there are three kinds of activities — those in the mode of goodness, the mode of passion and the mode of ignorance. Because all people are influenced by the three modes of material nature, the results of their activities are also divided into three.

One who acts in the mode of goodness is religious and happy, one who acts in passion achieves mixed misery and happiness, and one who acts under the influence of ignorance is always unhappy and lives like an animal. Because of the varying degrees to which the living entities are influenced by the different modes of nature, their destinations are also of different varieties.

SB 5.26.3

Translation:

Just as by executing various pious activities one achieves different positions in heavenly life, by acting impiously one achieves different positions in hellish life.

Those who are activated by the material mode of ignorance engage in impious activities, and according to the extent of their ignorance, they are placed in different grades of hellish life. If one acts in the mode of ignorance because of madness, his resulting misery is the least severe.

One who acts impiously but knows the distinction between pious and impious activities is placed in a hell of intermediate severity. And for one who acts impiously and ignorantly because of atheism, the resultant hellish life is the worst.

Because of ignorance, every living entity has been carried by various desires into thousands of different hellish planets since time immemorial. I shall try to describe them as far as possible.

SB 5.26.4

Translation:

King Parīkṣit inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī: My dear lord, are the hellish regions outside the universe, within the covering of the universe, or in different places on this planet?

SB 5.26.5

Translation:

The great sage Śukadeva Gosvāmī answered: All the hellish planets are situated in the intermediate space between the three worlds and the Garbhodaka Ocean. They lie on the southern side of the universe, beneath Bhū-maṇḍala, and slightly above the water of the Garbhodaka Ocean.

Pitṛloka is also located in this region between the Garbhodaka Ocean and the lower planetary systems. All the residents of Pitṛloka, headed by Agniṣvāttā, meditate in great samādhi on the Supreme Personality of Godhead and always wish their families well.

Purport:

As previously explained, below our planetary system are seven lower planetary systems, the lowest of which is called Pātālaloka. Beneath Pātālaloka are other planets, known as Narakaloka, or the hellish planets. At the bottom of the universe lies the Garbhodaka Ocean. Therefore the hellish planets lie between Pātālaloka and the Garbhodaka Ocean.

SB 5.26.6

Translation:

The King of the pitās is Yamarāja, the very powerful son of the sun-god. He resides in Pitṛloka with his personal assistants and, while abiding by the rules and regulations set down by the Supreme Lord, has his agents, the Yamadūtas, bring all the sinful men to him immediately upon their death.

After bringing them within his jurisdiction, he properly judges them according to their specific sinful activities and sends them to one of the many hellish planets for suitable punishments.

Purport:

Yamarāja is not a fictitious or mythological character; he has his own abode, Pitṛloka, of which he is king. Agnostics may not believe in hell, but Śukadeva Gosvāmī affirms the existence of the Naraka planets, which lie between the Garbhodaka Ocean and Pātālaloka.

Yamarāja is appointed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead to see that the human beings do not violate His rules and regulations. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (4.17):

karmaṇo hy api boddhavyaṁ
boddhavyaṁ ca vikarmaṇaḥ
akarmaṇaś ca boddhavyaṁ
gahanā karmaṇo gatiḥ

“The intricacies of action are very hard to understand. Therefore one should know properly what action is, what forbidden action is, and what inaction is.” One should understand the nature of karma, vikarma and akarma, and one must act accordingly.

This is the law of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The conditioned souls, who have come to this material world for sense gratification, are allowed to enjoy their senses under certain regulative principles.

If they violate these regulations, they are judged and punished by Yamarāja. He brings them to the hellish planets and properly chastises them to bring them back to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. By the influence of māyā, however, the conditioned souls remain infatuated with the mode of ignorance.

Thus in spite of repeated punishment by Yamarāja, they do not come to their senses, but continue to live within the material condition, committing sinful activities again and again.

SB 5.26.7

Translation:

Some authorities say that there is a total of twenty-one hellish planets, and some say twenty-eight. My dear King, I shall outline all of them according to their names, forms and symptoms. The names of the different hells are as follows:

Tāmisra,
Andhatāmisra,
Raurava,
Mahāraurava,
Kumbhīpāka,
Kālasūtra,
Asipatravana,
Sūkaramukha,
Andhakūpa,
Kṛmibhojana,
Sandaṁśa,
Taptasūrmi,
Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī,
Vaitaraṇī,
Pūyoda,
Prāṇarodha,
Viśasana,
Lālābhakṣa,
Sārameyādana,
Avīci,
Ayaḥpāna,
Kṣārakardama,
Rakṣogaṇa-bhojana,
Śūlaprota, Dandaśūka,
Avaṭa-nirodhana,
Paryāvartana,
Sūcīmukha.

All these planets are meant for punishing the living entities.

SB 5.26.8

Translation:

My dear King, a person who appropriates another’s legitimate wife, children or money is arrested at the time of death by the fierce Yamadūtas, who bind him with the rope of time and forcibly throw him into the hellish planet known as Tāmisra.

On this very dark planet, the sinful man is chastised by the Yamadūtas, who beat and rebuke him. He is starved, and he is given no water to drink. Thus the wrathful assistants of Yamarāja cause him severe suffering, and sometimes he faints from their chastisement.

SB 5.26.9

Translation:

The destination of a person who slyly cheats another man and enjoys his wife and children is the hell known as Andhatāmisra. There his condition is exactly like that of a tree being chopped at its roots. Even before reaching Andhatāmisra, the sinful living being is subjected to various extreme miseries.

These afflictions are so severe that he loses his intelligence and sight. It is for this reason that learned sages call this hell Andhatāmisra.

SB 5.26.10

Translation:

A person who accepts his body as his self works very hard day and night for money to maintain his own body and the bodies of his wife and children. While working to maintain himself and his family, he may commit violence against other living entities. Such a person is forced to give up his body and his family at the time of death, when he suffers the reaction for his envy of other creatures by being thrown into the hell called Raurava.

Purport:

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said:

yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke
sva-dhīḥ kalatrādiṣu bhauma-ijya-dhīḥ
yat-tīrtha-buddhiḥ salile na karhicij
janeṣv abhijñeṣu sa eva go-kharaḥ

“One who accepts this bodily bag of three elements [bile, mucus and air] as his self, who has an affinity for an intimate relationship with his wife and children, who considers his land worshipable, who takes bath in the waters of the holy places of pilgrimage but never takes advantage of those persons who are in actual knowledge — he is no better than an ass or a cow.” (Bhāg. 10.84.13)

There are two classes of men absorbed in the material concept of life. Out of ignorance, a man in the first class thinks his body to be his self, and therefore he is certainly like an animal (sa eva go-kharaḥ).

The person in the second class, however, not only thinks his material body to be his self, but also commits all kinds of sinful activities to maintain his body. He cheats everyone to acquire money for his family and his self, and he becomes envious of others without reason.

Such a person is thrown into the hell known as Raurava. If one simply considers his body to be his self, as do the animals, he is not very sinful.

However, if one needlessly commits sins to maintain his body, he is put into the hell known as Raurava. This is the opinion of Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura. Although animals are certainly in the bodily concept of life, they do not commit any sins to maintain their bodies, mates or offspring.

Therefore animals do not go to hell. However, when a human being acts enviously and cheats others to maintain his body, he is put into a hellish condition.

SB 5.26.11

Translation:

In this life, an envious person commits violent acts against many living entities. Therefore after his death, when he is taken to hell by Yamarāja, those living entities who were hurt by him appear as animals called rurus to inflict very severe pain upon him. Learned scholars call this hell Raurava. Not generally seen in this world, the ruru is more envious than a snake.
Purport:

According to Śrīdhara Svāmī, the ruru is also known as the bhāra-śṛṅga (ati-krūrasya bhāra-śṛṅgākhya-sattvasya apadeśaḥ saṁjñā). Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī confirms this in his Sandarbha: ruru-śabdasya svayaṁ muninaiva ṭīkā-vidhānāl lokeṣv aprasiddha evāyaṁ jantu-viśeṣaḥ. Thus although rurus are not seen in this world, their existence is confirmed in the śāstras.

SB 5.26.12

Translation:

Punishment in the hell called Mahāraurava is compulsory for a person who maintains his own body by hurting others. In this hell, ruru animals known as kravyāda torment him and eat his flesh.

Purport:

The animalistic person who lives simply in the bodily concept of life is not excused. He is put into the hell known as Mahāraurava and attacked by ruru animals known as kravyādas.

SB 5.26.13

Translation:

For the maintenance of their bodies and the satisfaction of their tongues, cruel persons cook poor animals and birds alive. Such persons are condemned even by man-eaters. In their next lives they are carried by the Yamadūtas to the hell known as Kumbhīpāka, where they are cooked in boiling oil.

SB 5.26.14

Translation:

The killer of a brāhmaṇa is put into the hell known as Kālasūtra, which has a circumference of eighty thousand miles and which is made entirely of copper. Heated from below by fire and from above by the scorching sun, the copper surface of this planet is extremely hot.

Thus the murderer of a brāhmaṇa suffers from being burned both internally and externally. Internally he is burning with hunger and thirst, and externally he is burning from the scorching heat of the sun and the fire beneath the copper surface.

Therefore he sometimes lies down, sometimes sits, sometimes stands up and sometimes runs here and there. He must suffer in this way for as many thousands of years as there are hairs on the body of an animal.

SB 5.26.15

Translation:

If a person deviates from the path of the Vedas in the absence of an emergency, the servants of Yamarāja put him into the hell called Asi-patravana, where they beat him with whips. When he runs hither and thither, fleeing from the extreme pain, on all sides he runs into palm trees with leaves like sharpened swords.

Thus injured all over his body and fainting at every step, he cries out, “Oh, what shall I do now! How shall I be saved!” This is how one suffers who deviates from the accepted religious principles.

Purport:

There is actually only one religious principle: dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam. The only religious principle is to follow the orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Unfortunately, especially in this Age of Kali, everyone is an atheist. People do not even believe in God, what to speak of following His words. The words nija-veda-patha can also mean “one’s own set of religious principles.”

Formerly there was only one veda-patha, or set of religious principles. Now there are many. It doesn’t matter which set of religious principles one follows: the only injunction is that he must follow them strictly. An atheist, or nāstika, is one who does not believe in the Vedas.

However, even if one takes up a different system of religion, according to this verse he must follow the religious principles he has accepted. Whether one is a Hindu, or a Mohammedan or a Christian, he should follow his own religious principles. However, if one concocts his own religious path within his mind, or if one follows no religious principles at all, he is punished in the hell known as Asi-patravana.

In other words, a human being must follow some religious principles. If he does not follow any religious principles, he is no better than an animal. As Kali-yuga advances, people are becoming godless and taking up so-called secularism. They do not know the punishment awaiting them in Asi-patravana, as described in this verse.

SB 5.26.16

Translation:

In his next life, a sinful king or governmental representative who punishes an innocent person, or who inflicts corporal punishment upon a brāhmaṇa, is taken by the Yamadūtas to the hell named Sūkaramukha, where the most powerful assistants of Yamarāja crush him exactly as one crushes sugarcane to squeeze out the juice. The sinful living entity cries very pitiably and faints, just like an innocent man undergoing punishments. This is the result of punishing a faultless person.

SB 5.26.17

Translation:

By the arrangement of the Supreme Lord, low-grade living beings like bugs and mosquitoes suck the blood of human beings and other animals. Such insignificant creatures are unaware that their bites are painful to the human being.

However, first-class human beings — brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas — are developed in consciousness, and therefore they know how painful it is to be killed. A human being endowed with knowledge certainly commits sin if he kills or torments insignificant creatures, who have no discrimination.

The Supreme Lord punishes such a man by putting him into the hell known as Andhakūpa, where he is attacked by all the birds and beasts, reptiles, mosquitoes, lice, worms, flies, and any other creatures he tormented during his life.

They attack him from all sides, robbing him of the pleasure of sleep. Unable to rest, he constantly wanders about in the darkness. Thus in Andhakūpa his suffering is just like that of a creature in the lower species.

Purport:

From this very instructive verse we learn that lower animals, created by the laws of nature to disturb the human being, are not subjected to punishment. Because the human being has developed consciousness, however, he cannot do anything against the principles of varṇāśrama-dharma without being condemned. Kṛṣṇa states in Bhagavad-gītā (4.13), cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ:

“According to the three modes of material nature and the work ascribed to them, the four divisions of human society were created by Me.”

Thus all men should be divided into four classes — brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and śūdras — and they should act according to their ordained regulations. They cannot deviate from their prescribed rules and regulations.

One of these states that they should never trouble any animal, even those that disturb human beings. Although a tiger is not sinful if he attacks another animal and eats its flesh, if a man with developed consciousness does so, he must be punished. In other words, a human being who does not use his developed consciousness but instead acts like an animal surely undergoes punishment in many different hells.

SB 5.26.18

Translation:

A person is considered no better than a crow if after receiving some food, he does not divide it among guests, old men and children, but simply eats it himself, or if he eats it without performing the five kinds of sacrifice. After death he is put into the most abominable hell, known as Kṛmibhojana.

In that hell is a lake 100,000 yojanas [800,000 miles] wide and filled with worms. He becomes a worm in that lake and feeds on the other worms there, who also feed on him. Unless he atones for his actions before his death, such a sinful man remains in the hellish lake of Kṛmibhojana for as many years as there are yojanas in the width of the lake.

Purport:

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.13):

yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo
mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ
bhuñjate te tv agham pāpā
ya pacanty ātma-kāraṇāt

“The devotees of the Lord are released from all kinds of sins because they eat food which is first offered for sacrifice. Others, who prepare food for personal sense enjoyment, verily eat only sin.”

All food is given to us by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān: the Lord supplies everyone with the necessities of life. Therefore we should acknowledge His mercy by performing yajña (sacrifice). This is the duty of everyone. Indeed, the sole purpose of life is to perform yajña. According to Kṛṣṇa (Bg. 3.9):

yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra
loko ’yam karma-bandhanaḥ
tad-arthaṁ karma kaunteya
mukta-saṅgaḥ samācara

“Work done as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu has to be performed; otherwise work binds one to this material world. Therefore, O son of Kuntī, perform your prescribed duties for His satisfaction, and in that way you will always remain unattached and free from bondage.”

If we do not perform yajña and distribute prasāda to others, our lives are condemned. Only after performing yajña and distributing the prasāda to all dependents — children, brāhmaṇas and old men — should one eat. However, one who cooks only for himself or his family is condemned, along with everyone he feeds. After death he is put into the hell known as Kṛmibhojana.

SB 5.26.19

Translation:

My dear King, a person who in the absence of an emergency robs a brāhmaṇa — or, indeed, anyone else — of his gems and gold is put into a hell known as Sandaṁśa. There his skin is torn and separated by red-hot iron balls and tongs. In this way, his entire body is cut to pieces.

SB 5.26.20

Translation:

A man or woman who indulges in sexual intercourse with an unworthy member of the opposite sex is punished after death by the assistants of Yamarāja in the hell known as Taptasūrmi. There such men and women are beaten with whips. The man is forced to embrace a red-hot iron form of a woman, and the woman is forced to embrace a similar form of a man. Such is the punishment for illicit sex.

Purport:

Generally a man should not have sexual relations with any woman other than his wife. According to Vedic principles, the wife of another man is considered one’s mother, and sexual relations are strictly forbidden with one’s mother, sister and daughter. If one indulges in illicit sexual relations with another man’s wife, that activity is considered identical with having sex with one’s mother.

This act is most sinful. The same principle holds for a woman also; if she enjoys sex with a man other than her husband, the act is tantamount to having sexual relations with her father or son. Illicit sex life is always forbidden, and any man or woman who indulges in it is punished in the manner described in this verse.

SB 5.26.21

Translation:

A person who indulges in sex indiscriminately — even with animals — is taken after death to the hell known as Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī. In this hell there is a silk-cotton tree full of thorns as strong as thunderbolts. The agents of Yamarāja hang the sinful man on that tree and pull him down forcibly so that the thorns very severely tear his body.

Purport:

The sexual urge is so strong that sometimes a man indulges in sexual relations with a cow, or a woman indulges in sexual relations with a dog. Such men and women are put into the hell known as Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī.

The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement forbids illicit sex. From the description of these verses, we can understand what an extremely sinful act illicit sex is. Sometimes people disbelieve these descriptions of hell, but whether one believes or not, everything must be carried out by the laws of nature, which no one can avoid.

SB 5.26.22

Translation:

A person who is born into a responsible family — such as a kṣatriya, a member of royalty or a government servant — but who neglects to execute his prescribed duties according to religious principles, and who thus becomes degraded, falls down at the time of death into the river of hell known as Vaitaraṇī. This river, which is a moat surrounding hell, is full of ferocious aquatic animals.

When a sinful man is thrown into the river Vaitaraṇī, the aquatic animals there immediately begin to eat him, but because of his extremely sinful life, he does not leave his body. He constantly remembers his sinful activities and suffers terribly in that river, which is full of stool, urine, pus, blood, hair, nails, bones, marrow, flesh and fat.

SB 5.26.23

Translation:

The shameless husbands of lowborn śūdra women live exactly like animals, and therefore they have no good behavior, cleanliness or regulated life. After death, such persons are thrown into the hell called Pūyoda, where they are put into an ocean filled with pus, stool, urine, mucus, saliva and similar things. Śūdras who could not improve themselves fall into that ocean and are forced to eat those disgusting things.

Purport:

Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has sung,

karma-kāṇḍa, jñāna-kāṇḍa, kevala viṣera bāṇḍa,
amṛta baliyā yebā khāya
nānā yoni sadā phire, kadarya bhakṣaṇa kare,
tāra janma adaḥ-pate yāya

He says that persons following the paths of karma-kāṇḍa and jñāna-kāṇḍa (fruitive activities and speculative thinking) are missing the opportunities for human birth and gliding down into the cycle of birth and death.

Thus there is always the chance that he may be put into the Pūyoda Naraka, the hell named Pūyoda, where one is forced to eat stool, urine, pus, mucus, saliva and other abominable things. It is significant that this verse is spoken especially about śūdras.

If one is born a śūdra, he must continually return to the ocean of Pūyoda to eat horrible things. Thus even a born śūdra is expected to become a brāhmaṇa; that is the meaning of human life. Everyone should improve himself.

Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.13), cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ: “According to the three modes of material nature and the work ascribed to them, four divisions of human society were created by Me.”

Even if one is by qualification a śūdra, he must try to improve his position and become a brāhmaṇa. No one should try to check a person, no matter what his present position is, from coming to the platform of a brāhmaṇa or a Vaiṣṇava. Actually, one must come to the platform of a Vaiṣṇava. Then he automatically becomes a brāhmaṇa.

This can be done only if the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is spread, for we are trying to elevate everyone to the platform of Vaiṣṇava. As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (18.66), sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja:

“Abandon all other duties and simply surrender unto Me.” One must give up the occupational duties of a śūdra, kṣatriya or vaiśya and adopt the occupational duties of a Vaiṣṇava, which include the activities of a brāhmaṇa. Kṛṣṇa explains this in Bhagavad-gītā (9.32):

māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya
ye ’pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ
striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās
te ’pi yānti parāṁ gatim

“O son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth — women, vaiśyas [merchants], as well as śūdras [workers] — can approach the supreme destination.” Human life is specifically meant for going back home, back to Godhead. That facility should be given to everyone, whether one be a śūdra, a vaiśya, a woman or a kṣatriya.

This is the purpose of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. However, if one is satisfied to remain a śūdra, he must suffer as described in this verse: tad evātibībhatsitam aśnanti.

SB 5.26.24

Translation:

If in this life a man of the higher classes [brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya and vaiśya] is very fond of taking his pet dogs, mules or asses into the forest to hunt and kill animals unnecessarily, he is placed after death into the hell known as Prāṇarodha. There the assistants of Yamarāja make him their targets and pierce him with arrows.

Purport:

In the Western countries especially, aristocrats keep dogs and horses to hunt animals in the forest. Whether in the West or the East, aristocratic men in the Kali-yuga adopt the fashion of going to the forest and unnecessarily killing animals.

Men of the higher classes (the brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas) should cultivate knowledge of Brahman, and they should also give the śūdras a chance to come to that platform. If instead they indulge in hunting, they are punished as described in this verse. Not only are they pierced with arrows by the agents of Yamarāja, but they are also put into the ocean of pus, urine and stool described in the previous verse.

SB 5.26.25

Translation:

A person who in this life is proud of his eminent position, and who heedlessly sacrifices animals simply for material prestige, is put into the hell called Viśasana after death. There the assistants of Yamarāja kill him after giving him unlimited pain.

Purport:

In Bhagavad-gītā (6.41) Kṛṣṇa says, śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo ’bhijāyate: “Because of his previous connection with bhakti-yoga, a man is born into a prestigious family of brāhmaṇas or aristocrats.” Having taken such a birth, one should utilize it to perfect bhakti-yoga.

However, due to bad association one often forgets that his prestigious position has been given to him by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and he misuses it by performing various kinds of so-called yajñas like Kālī-pūjā or Durgā-pūjā, in which poor animals are sacrificed. How such a person is punished is described herein.

The word dambha-yajñeṣu in this verse is significant. If one violates the Vedic instructions while performing yajña and simply makes a show of sacrifice for the purpose of killing animals, he is punishable after death. In Calcutta there are many slaughterhouses where animal flesh is sold that has supposedly been offered in sacrifice before the goddess Kālī.

The śāstras enjoin that one can sacrifice a small goat before the goddess Kālī once a month. Nowhere is it said that one can maintain a slaughterhouse in the name of temple worship and daily kill animals unnecessarily. Those who do so receive the punishments described herein.

SB 5.26.26

Translation:

If a foolish member of the twice-born classes [brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya and vaiśya] forces his wife to drink his semen out of a lusty desire to keep her under control, he is put after death into the hell known as Lālābhakṣa. There he is thrown into a flowing river of semen, which he is forced to drink.

Purport:

The practice of forcing one’s wife to drink one’s own semen is a black art practiced by extremely lusty persons. Those who practice this very abominable activity say that if a wife is forced to drink her husband’s semen, she remains very faithful to him.

Generally only low-class men engage in this black art, but if a man born in a higher class does so, after death he is put into the hell known as Lālābhakṣa. There he is immersed in the river known as Śukra-nadī and forced to drink semen.

SB 5.26.27

Translation:

In this world, some persons are professional plunderers who set fire to others’ houses or administer poison to them. Also, members of the royalty or government officials sometimes plunder mercantile men by forcing them to pay income tax and by other methods.

After death such demons are put into the hell known as Sārameyādana. On that planet there are 720 dogs with teeth as strong as thunderbolts. Under the orders of the agents of Yamarāja, these dogs voraciously devour such sinful people.

Purport:

In the Twelfth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is said that in this Age of Kali everyone will be extremely disturbed by three kinds of tribulations: scarcity of rain, famine, and heavy taxation by the government.

Because human beings are becoming more and more sinful, there will be a scarcity of rain, and naturally no food grains will be produced. On the plea of relieving the suffering caused by the ensuing famine, the government will impose heavy taxes, especially on the wealthy mercantile community.

In this verse, the members of such a government are described as dasyu, thieves. Their main activity will be to plunder the wealth of the people. Whether a highway robber or a government thief, such a man will be punished in his next life by being thrown into the hell known as Sārameyādana, where he will suffer greatly from the bites of ferocious dogs.

SB 5.26.28

Translation:

A person who in this life bears false witness or lies while transacting business or giving charity is severely punished after death by the agents of Yamarāja. Such a sinful man is taken to the top of a mountain eight hundred miles high and thrown headfirst into the hell known as Avīcimat.

This hell has no shelter and is made of strong stone resembling the waves of water. There is no water there, however, and thus it is called Avīcimat [waterless]. Although the sinful man is repeatedly thrown from the mountain and his body broken to tiny pieces, he still does not die but continuously suffers chastisement.

SB 5.26.29

Translation:

Any brāhmaṇa or brāhmaṇa’s wife who drinks liquor is taken by the agents of Yamarāja to the hell known as Ayaḥpāna. This hell also awaits any kṣatriya, vaiśya, or person under a vow who in illusion drinks soma-rasa. In Ayaḥpāna the agents of Yamarāja stand on their chests and pour hot melted iron into their mouths.

Purport:

One should not be a brāhmaṇa in name only and engage in all kinds of sinful activities, especially drinking liquor. Brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśyas must behave according to the principles of their order. If they fall down to the level of śūdras, who are accustomed to drink liquor, they will be punished as described herein.

SB 5.26.30

Translation:

A lowborn and abominable person who in this life becomes falsely proud, thinking “I am great,” and who thus fails to show proper respect to one more elevated than he by birth, austerity, education, behavior, caste or spiritual order, is like a dead man even in this lifetime, and after death he is thrown headfirst into the hell known as Kṣārakardama. There he must suffer great tribulation at the hands of the agents of Yamarāja.

Purport:

One should not become falsely proud. One must be respectful toward a person more elevated than he by birth, education, behavior, caste or spiritual order. If one does not show respect to such highly elevated persons but indulges in false pride, he receives punishment in Kṣārakardama.

SB 5.26.31

Translation:

There are men and women in this world who sacrifice human beings to Bhairava or Bhadra Kālī and then eat their victims’ flesh. Those who perform such sacrifices are taken after death to the abode of Yamarāja, where their victims, having taken the form of Rākṣasas, cut them to pieces with sharpened swords.

Just as in this world the man-eaters drank their victims’ blood, dancing and singing in jubilation, their victims now enjoy drinking the blood of the sacrificers and celebrating in the same way.

SB 5.26.32

Translation:

In this life some people give shelter to animals and birds that come to them for protection in the village or forest, and after making them believe that they will be protected, such people pierce them with lances or threads and play with them like toys, giving them great pain.

After death such people are brought by the assistants of Yamarāja to the hell known as Śūlaprota, where their bodies are pierced with sharp, needlelike lances. They suffer from hunger and thirst, and sharp-beaked birds such as vultures and herons come at them from all sides to tear at their bodies. Tortured and suffering, they can then remember the sinful activities they committed in the past.

SB 5.26.33

Translation:

Those who in this life are like envious serpents, always angry and giving pain to other living entities, fall after death into the hell known as Dandaśūka. My dear King, in this hell there are serpents with five or seven hoods. These serpents eat such sinful persons just as snakes eat mice.

SB 5.26.34

Translation:

Those who in this life confine other living entities in dark wells, granaries or mountain caves are put after death into the hell known as Avaṭa-nirodhana. There they themselves are pushed into dark wells, where poisonous fumes and smoke suffocate them and they suffer very severely.

SB 5.26.35

Translation:

A householder who receives guests or visitors with cruel glances, as if to burn them to ashes, is put into the hell called Paryāvartana, where he is gazed at by hard-eyed vultures, herons, crows and similar birds, which suddenly swoop down and pluck out his eyes with great force.

Purport:

According to the Vedic etiquette, even an enemy who comes to a householder’s home should be received in such a gentle way that he forgets that he has come to the home of an enemy. A guest who comes to one’s home should be received very politely.

If he is unwanted, the householder should not stare at him with unblinking eyes, for one who does so will be put into the hell known as Paryāvartana after death, and there many ferocious birds like vultures, crows, and herons will suddenly come upon him and pluck out his eyes.

SB 5.26.36

Translation:

One who in this world or this life is very proud of his wealth always thinks, “I am so rich. Who can equal me?” His vision is twisted, and he is always afraid that someone will take his wealth. Indeed, he even suspects his superiors. His face and heart dry up at the thought of losing his wealth, and therefore he always looks like a wretched fiend.

He is not in any way able to obtain actual happiness, and he does not know what it is to be free from anxiety. Because of the sinful things he does to earn money, augment his wealth and protect it, he is put into the hell called Sūcīmukha, where the officials of Yamarāja punish him by stitching thread through his entire body like weavers manufacturing cloth.

Purport:

When one possesses more wealth than necessary, he certainly becomes very proud. This is the situation of men in modern civilization. According to the Vedic culture, brāhmaṇas do not possess anything, whereas kṣatriyas possess riches, but only for performing sacrifices and other noble activities as prescribed in the Vedic injunctions.

A vaiśya also earns money honestly through agriculture, cow protection and some trade. If a śūdra gets money, however, he will spend it lavishly, without discrimination, or simply accumulate it for no purpose.

Because in this age there are no qualified brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas or vaiśyas, almost everyone is a śūdra (kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ). Therefore the śūdra mentality is causing great harm to modern civilization.

A śūdra does not know how to use money to render transcendental loving service to the Lord. Money is also called lakṣmī, and Lakṣmī is always engaged in the service of Nārāyaṇa. Wherever there is money, it must be engaged in the service of Lord Nārāyaṇa.

Everyone should use his money to spread the great transcendental movement of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If one does not spend money for this purpose but accumulates more than necessary, he will certainly become proud of the money he illegally possesses. The money actually belongs to Kṛṣṇa, who says in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29), bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram:

“I am the true enjoyer of sacrifices and penances, and I am the owner of all the planets.”

Therefore nothing belongs to anyone but Kṛṣṇa. One who possesses more money than he needs should spend it for Kṛṣṇa. Unless one does so, he will become puffed up because of his false possessions, and therefore he will be punished in the next life, as described herein.

SB 5.26.37

Translation:

My dear King Parīkṣit, in the province of Yamarāja there are hundreds and thousands of hellish planets. The impious people I have mentioned — and also those I have not mentioned — must all enter these various planets according to the degree of their impiety.

Those who are pious, however, enter other planetary systems, namely the planets of the demigods. Nevertheless, both the pious and impious are again brought to earth after the results of their pious or impious acts are exhausted.

Purport:

This corresponds to the beginning of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s instructions in Bhagavad-gītā. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ: within this material world, one is simply meant to change from one body to another in different planetary systems. Ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthā: those in the mode of goodness are elevated to the heavenly planets.

Adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ: similarly, those too engrossed in ignorance enter the hellish planetary systems. Both of them, however, are subjected to the repetition of birth and death. In Bhagavad-gītā it is stated that even one who is very pious returns to earth after his enjoyment in the higher planetary systems is over (kṣīṇe puṇye martya-lokaṁ viśanti).

Therefore, going from one planet to another does not solve the problems of life. The problems of life will only be solved when we no longer have to accept a material body. This can be possible if one simply becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious. As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9):

janma karma ca me divyam
evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ
tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma
naiti mām eti so ’rjuna

“One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.” This is the perfection of life and the real solution to life’s problems. We should not be eager to go to the higher, heavenly planetary systems, nor should we act in such a way that we have to go to the hellish planets.

The complete purpose of this material world will be fulfilled when we resume our spiritual identities and go back home, back to Godhead. The very simple method for doing this is prescribed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. One should be neither pious nor impious. One should be a devotee and surrender to the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. This surrendering process is also very easy. Even a child can perform it.

Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru. One must always simply think of Kṛṣṇa by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. One should become Kṛṣṇa’s devotee, worship Him and offer obeisances to Him. Thus one should engage all the activities of his life in the service of Lord Kṛṣṇa.

SB 5.26.38

Translation:

In the beginning [the second and third cantos of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam] I have already described how one can progress on the path of liberation. In the Purāṇas the vast universal existence, which is like an egg divided into fourteen parts, is described. This vast form is considered the external body of the Lord, created by His energy and qualities. It is generally called the virāṭ-rūpa.

If one reads the description of this external form of the Lord with great faith, or if one hears about it or explains it to others to propagate bhāgavata-dharma, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his faith and devotion in spiritual consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, will gradually increase. Although developing this consciousness is very difficult, by this process one can purify himself and gradually come to an awareness of the Supreme Absolute Truth.

Purport:

The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is pushing forward the publication of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, as explained especially for the understanding of the modern civilized man, to awaken him to his original consciousness.

Without this consciousness, one melts into complete darkness. Whether one goes to the upper planetary systems or the hellish planetary systems, he simply wastes his time.

Therefore one should hear of the universal position of the virāṭ form of the Lord as described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. That will help one save himself from material conditional life and gradually elevate him to the path of liberation so that he can go back home, back to Godhead.

SB 5.26.39

Translation:

One who is interested in liberation, who accepts the path of liberation and is not attracted to the path of conditional life, is called yati, or a devotee. Such a person should first control his mind by thinking of the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic universal form of the Lord, and then gradually think of the spiritual form of Kṛṣṇa [sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha] after hearing of both forms.

Thus one’s mind is fixed in samādhi. By devotional service one can then realize the spiritual form of the Lord, which is the destination of devotees. Thus his life becomes successful.

Purport:

It is said, mahat-sevāṁ dvāram āhur vimukteḥ: if one wants to progress on the path of liberation, he should associate with mahātmās, or liberated devotees, because in such association there is a full chance for hearing, describing and chanting about the name, form, qualities and paraphernalia of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, all of which are described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

On the path of bondage, one eternally undergoes the repetition of birth and death. One who desires liberation from such bondage should join the International Society for Krishna Consciousness and thus take advantage of the opportunity to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from devotees and also explain it to propagate Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

SB 5.26.40

bhū-dvīpa-varṣa-sarid-adri-nabhaḥ-samudra-
pātāla-diṅ-naraka-bhāgaṇa-loka-saṁsthā
Translation:

My dear King, I have now described for you this planet earth, other planetary systems, and their lands [varṣas], rivers and mountains. I have also described the sky, the oceans, the lower planetary systems, the directions, the hellish planetary systems and the stars.

These constitute the virāṭ-rūpa, the gigantic material form of the Lord, on which all living entities repose. Thus I have explained the wonderful expanse of the external body of the Lord.

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the Fifth Canto, Twenty-sixth Chapter, of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “A Description of the Hellish Planets.”

— Completed in the Honolulu temple of the Pañca-tattva, June 5, 1975.

The Orbits of the Planets. Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 22

The Orbits of the Planets

Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 5 Chapter 22: ‘The Orbits of the Planets’ text 1 to text 17 by His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

In this chapter the orbits of the planets are described. According to the movements of the moon and other planets, all the inhabitants of the universe are prone to auspicious and inauspicious situations. This is referred to as the influence of the stars.

The sun-god, who controls the affairs of the entire universe, especially in regard to heat, light, seasonal changes and so on, is considered an expansion of Nārāyaṇa. He represents the three Vedas — Ṛg, Yajur and Sāma — and therefore he is known as Trayīmaya, the form of Lord Nārāyaṇa.

Sometimes the sun-god is also called Sūrya Nārāyaṇa. The sun-god has expanded himself in twelve divisions, and thus he controls the six seasonal changes and causes winter, summer, rain and so on.

Yogīs and karmīs following the varṇāśrama institution, who practice haṭha or aṣṭāṅga-yoga or who perform agnihotra sacrifices, worship Sūrya Nārāyaṇa for their own benefit. The demigod Sūrya is always in touch with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa.

Residing in outer space, which is in the middle of the universe, between Bhūloka and Bhuvarloka, the sun rotates through the time circle of the zodiac, represented by twelve rāśis, or signs, and assumes different names according to the sign he is in.

For the moon, every month is divided into two fortnights. Similarly, according to solar calculations, a month is equal to the time the sun spends in one constellation; two months constitute one season, and there are twelve months in a year.

The entire area of the sky is divided into two halves, each representing an ayana, the course traversed by the sun within a period of six months. The sun travels sometimes slowly, sometimes swiftly and sometimes at a moderate speed. In this way it travels within the three worlds, consisting of the heavenly planets, the earthly planets and outer space. These orbits are referred to by great learned scholars by the names Saṁvatsara, Parivatsara, Iḍāvatsara, Anuvatsara and Vatsara.

The moon is situated 100,000 yojanas above the rays of the sunshine. Day and night on the heavenly planets and Pitṛloka are calculated according to its waning and waxing. Above the moon by a distance of 200,000 yojanas are some stars, and above these stars is Śukra-graha (Venus), whose influence is always auspicious for the inhabitants of the entire universe.

Above Śukra-graha by 200,000 yojanas is Budha-graha (Mercury), whose influence is sometimes auspicious and sometimes inauspicious. Next, above Budha-graha by 200,000 yojanas, is Aṅgāraka (Mars), which almost always has an unfavorable influence.

Above Aṅgāraka by another 200,000 yojanas is the planet called Bṛhaspati-graha (Jupiter), which is always very favorable for qualified brāhmaṇas. Above Bṛhaspati-graha is the planet Śanaiścara (Saturn), which is very inauspicious, and above Saturn is a group of seven stars occupied by great saintly persons who are always thinking of the welfare of the entire universe. These seven stars circumambulate Dhruvaloka, which is the residence of Lord Viṣṇu within this universe.

SB 5.22.1

Translation:

King Parīkṣit inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī: My dear lord, you have already affirmed the truth that the supremely powerful sun-god travels around Dhruvaloka with both Dhruvaloka and Mount Sumeru on his right. Yet at the same time the sun-god faces the signs of the zodiac and keeps Sumeru and Dhruvaloka on his left. How can we reasonably accept that the sun-god proceeds with Sumeru and Dhruvaloka on both his left and right simultaneously?

SB 5.22.2

Translation:

Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī clearly answered: When a potter’s wheel is moving and small ants located on that big wheel are moving with it, one can see that their motion is different from that of the wheel because they appear sometimes on one part of the wheel and sometimes on another.

Similarly, the signs and constellations, with Sumeru and Dhruvaloka on their right, move with the wheel of time, and the antlike sun and other planets move with them. The sun and planets, however, are seen in different signs and constellations at different times. This indicates that their motion is different from that of the zodiac and the wheel of time itself.

SB 5.22.3

Translation:

The original cause of the cosmic manifestation is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa. When great saintly persons, fully aware of the Vedic knowledge, offered prayers to the Supreme Person, He descended to this material world in the form of the sun to benefit all the planets and purify fruitive activities. He divided Himself into twelve parts and created seasonal forms, beginning with spring. In this way He created the seasonal qualities, such as heat, cold and so on.

SB 5.22.4

Translation:

According to the system of four varṇas and four āśramas, people generally worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa, who is situated as the sun-god. With great faith they worship the Supreme Personality as the Supersoul according to ritualistic ceremonies handed down in the three Vedas, such as agnihotra and similar higher and lower fruitive acts, and according to the process of mystic yoga. In this way they very easily attain the ultimate goal of life.

SB 5.22.5

Translation:

The sun-god, who is Nārāyaṇa, or Viṣṇu, the soul of all the worlds, is situated in outer space between the upper and lower portions of the universe. Passing through twelve months on the wheel of time, the sun comes in touch with twelve different signs of the zodiac and assumes twelve different names according to those signs.

The aggregate of those twelve months is called a saṁvatsara, or an entire year. According to lunar calculations, two fortnights — one of the waxing moon and the other of the waning — form one month. That same period is one day and night for the planet Pitṛloka. According to stellar calculations, a month equals two and one quarter constellations. When the sun travels for two months, a season passes, and therefore the seasonal changes are considered parts of the body of the year.

SB 5.22.6

Translation:

Thus the time the sun takes to rotate through half of outer space is called an ayana, or its period of movement [in the north or in the south].

SB 5.22.7

Translation:

The sun-god has three speeds — slow, fast and moderate. The time he takes to travel entirely around the spheres of heaven, earth and space at these three speeds is referred to, by learned scholars, by the five names Saṁvatsara, Parivatsara, Iḍāvatsara, Anuvatsara and Vatsara.

Purport:

According to solar astronomical calculations, each year extends six days beyond the calendar year, and according to lunar calculations, each year is six days shorter. Therefore, because of the movements of the sun and moon, there is a difference of twelve days between the solar and lunar years.

As the Saṁvatsara, Parivatsara, Iḍāvatsara, Anuvatsara and Vatsara pass by, two extra months are added within each five years. This makes a sixth saṁvatsara, but because that saṁvatsara is extra, the solar system is calculated according to the above five names.

SB 5.22.8

Translation:

Above the rays of the sunshine by a distance of 100,000 yojanas [800,000 miles] is the moon, which travels at a speed faster than that of the sun. In two lunar fortnights the moon travels through the equivalent of a saṁvatsara of the sun, in two and a quarter days it passes through a month of the sun, and in one day it passes through a fortnight of the sun.

Purport:
When we take into account that the moon is 100,000 yojanas, or 800,000 miles, above the rays of the sunshine, it is very surprising that the modern excursions to the moon could be possible. Since the moon is so distant, how space vehicles could go there is a doubtful mystery.

Modern scientific calculations are subject to one change after another, and therefore they are uncertain. We have to accept the calculations of the Vedic literature. These Vedic calculations are steady; the astronomical calculations made long ago and recorded in the Vedic literature are correct even now. Whether the Vedic calculations or modern ones are better may remain a mystery for others, but as far as we are concerned, we accept the Vedic calculations to be correct.

SB 5.22.9

Translation:

When the moon is waxing, the illuminating portions of it increase daily, thus creating day for the demigods and night for the pitās. When the moon is waning, however, it causes night for the demigods and day for the pitās.

In this way the moon passes through each constellation of stars in thirty muhūrtas [an entire day]. The moon is the source of nectarean coolness that influences the growth of food grains, and therefore the moon-god is considered the life of all living entities. He is consequently called Jīva, the chief living being within the universe.

SB 5.22.10

Translation:

Because the moon is full of all potentialities, it represents the influence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The moon is the predominating deity of everyone’s mind, and therefore the moon-god is called Manomaya. He is also called Annamaya because he gives potency to all herbs and plants, and he is called Amṛtamaya because he is the source of life for all living entities.

The moon pleases the demigods, pitās, human beings, animals, birds, reptiles, trees, plants and all other living entities. Everyone is satisfied by the presence of the moon. Therefore the moon is also called Sarvamaya [all-pervading].

SB 5.22.11

Translation:

There are many stars located 200,000 yojanas [1,600,000 miles] above the moon. By the supreme will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they are fixed to the wheel of time, and thus they rotate with Mount Sumeru on their right, their motion being different from that of the sun. There are twenty-eight important stars, headed by Abhijit.

Purport:

The stars referred to herein are 1,600,000 miles above the sun, and thus they are 4,000,000 miles above the earth.

SB 5.22.12

Translation:

Some 1,600,000 miles above this group of stars is the planet Venus, which moves at almost exactly the same pace as the sun according to swift, slow and moderate movements. Sometimes Venus moves behind the sun, sometimes in front of the sun and sometimes along with it. Venus nullifies the influence of planets that are obstacles to rainfall. Consequently its presence causes rainfall, and it is therefore considered very favorable for all living beings within this universe. This has been accepted by learned scholars.

SB 5.22.13

Translation:

Mercury is described to be similar to Venus, in that it moves sometimes behind the sun, sometimes in front of the sun and sometimes along with it. It is 1,600,000 miles above Venus, or 7,200,000 miles above earth.

Mercury, which is the son of the moon, is almost always very auspicious for the inhabitants of the universe, but when it does not move along with the sun, it forbodes cyclones, dust, irregular rainfall, and waterless clouds. In this way it creates fearful conditions due to inadequate or excessive rainfall.

SB 5.22.14

Translation:

Situated 1,600,000 miles above Mercury, or 8,800,000 miles above earth, is the planet Mars. If this planet does not travel in a crooked way, it crosses through each sign of the zodiac in three fortnights and in this way travels through all twelve, one after another. It almost always creates unfavorable conditions in respect to rainfall and other influences.

SB 5.22.15

Translation:

Situated 1,600,000 miles above Mars, or 10,400,000 miles above earth, is the planet Jupiter, which travels through one sign of the zodiac within the period of a Parivatsara. If its movement is not curved, the planet Jupiter is very favorable to the brāhmaṇas of the universe.

SB 5.22.16

Translation:

Situated 1,600,000 miles above Jupiter, or 12,000,000 miles above earth, is the planet Saturn, which passes through one sign of the zodiac in thirty months and covers the entire zodiac circle in thirty Anuvatsaras. This planet is always very inauspicious for the universal situation.

SB 5.22.17

Translation:

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.

Purport:

Śrīla Madhvācārya quotes the following verse from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa:

jñānānandātmano viṣṇuḥ
śiśumāra-vapuṣy atha
ūrdhva-lokeṣu sa vyāpta
ādityādyās tad-āśritā

“Lord Viṣṇu, who is the source of knowledge and transcendental bliss, has assumed the form of Śiśumāra in the seventh heaven, which is situated in the topmost level of the universe. All the other planets, beginning with the sun, exist under the shelter of this Śiśumāra planetary system.”

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the Fifth Canto, Twenty-second Chapter, of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “The Orbits of the Planets.”