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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 5 · The Creative Impetus · 26 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
  3. 3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
  4. 4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
  5. 5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
  6. 6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.
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Canto 5 · Chapter 22: The Orbits of the Planets
5.22.65.22.8

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.22.7

Sthāna· The universe in order
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 5.22.2inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

अथ च यावन्नभोमण्डलं सह द्यावापृथिव्योर्मण्डलाभ्यां कार्त्स्‍न्येन स ह भुञ्जीत तं कालं संवत्सरं परिवत्सरमिडावत्सरमनुवत्सरं वत्सरमिति भानोर्मान्द्यशैघ्र्यसमगतिभि: समामनन्ति ॥ ७ ॥

atha ca yāvan nabho-maṇḍalaṁ saha dyāv-āpṛthivyor maṇḍalābhyāṁ kārtsnyena sa ha bhuñjīta taṁ kālaṁ saṁvatsaraṁ parivatsaram iḍāvatsaram anuvatsaraṁ vatsaram iti bhānor māndya-śaighrya-sama-gatibhiḥ samāmananti.

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.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Solar and Lunar Years Are Reconciled

  1. 1

    The sun-god has slow, fast, and moderate speeds. Learned scholars name the periods of his complete journey Saṁvatsara, Parivatsara, Iḍāvatsara, Anuvatsara, and Vatsara.

  2. 2

    The purport explains that the solar year extends six days beyond the calendar year, while the lunar year is six days shorter. This produces a twelve-day difference between solar and lunar years.

  3. 3

    Two extra months are added within each five years. The purport describes these additions as an extra sixth saṁvatsara, while retaining the five names for the calculation.

Key points from the purport
  • 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.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Smallness → Awe and reverence. A vast cosmos changes the reader's perspective.

Chapters 15–25 of Canto 5: The cosmic regions and divine worship. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 22: The Orbits of the Planets

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

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.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.22
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. athanow
  2. caalso
  3. yāvatas long as
  4. nabhaḥ-maṇḍalamouter space, between the upper and lower world
  5. sahaalong with
  6. dyauof the upper world
  7. āpṛthivyoḥof the lower world
  8. maṇḍalābhyāmthe spheres
3

Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Sthāna · Planetary systems

    How is the universe arranged, and what is our right place in it? · Subject 3 of 10

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does the adjustment of months help me understand about the different measures of a year?

Practice

Write down the purport’s twelve-day difference and its adjustment of two extra months within five years.

Live this todaySolar and Lunar Years Are ReconciledThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 5.22.7? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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