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Canto 5 · Ch 22 · SB 5.22.1

The Orbits of the Planets

SB 5.22.1
Text
raJaaevac
rājovāca
yad etad bhagavata ādityasya meruṁ dhruvaṁ ca pradakṣiṇena parikrāmato
rāśīnām abhimukhaṁ pracalitaṁ cāpradakṣiṇaṁ bhagavatopavarṇitam amuṣya
vayaṁ katham anumimīmahīti.
Synonyms

rājā uvāca-the King (Mahārāja Parīkṣit) inquired; yat-which; etat-this; bhagavataḥ-of the most powerful; ādityasya-of the sun (Sūrya Nārāyaṇa); merum-the mountain known as Sumeru; dhruvam ca-as well as the planet known as Dhruvaloka; pradakṣiṇena-by placing on the right; parikrāmataḥ-which is going around; rāśīnām-the different signs of the zodiac; abhimukham-facing toward; pracalitam-moving; ca-and; apradakṣiṇam-placing on the left; bhagavatā-by Your Lordship; upavarṇitam-described; amuṣya-of that; vayam-we (the hearer);

katham-how; anumimīmahi-can accept it by argument and inference; iti-thus.

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?