Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.16.8
Sthāna· The universe in orderThe Northern Mountains and Their Boundaries
“Just north of Ilāvṛta-varṣa — and going further northward, one after another — are three mountains named Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅgavān. These mark the borders of the three varṣas named Ramyaka, Hiraṇmaya and Kuru and separate them from one another. The width of these mountains is 2,000 yojanas [16,000 miles]. Lengthwise, they extend east and west to the beaches of the ocean of salt water. Going from south to north, the length of each mountain is one tenth that of the previous mountain, but the height of them all is the same.”
What the purport teaches
- North of Ilāvṛta-varṣa stand Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅgavān, one after another. They mark the borders of Ramyaka, Hiraṇmaya and Kuru.
- These mountains are 2,000 yojanas wide and extend east and west to the saltwater ocean. The translation describes their lengths as decreasing northward while their heights remain equal.
- The purport cites Madhvācārya’s quotation from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa and describes an invisible planet called Rāhu. It attributes solar and lunar eclipses to Rāhu’s movements.
Try this today
Write Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅgavān in south-to-north order, with the corresponding regions beside them.
Ask yourself
How does following the south-to-north sequence help me organize what I read?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.