The Universal System of Astronomy

The redness in the path of the sun's rays is caused by their interaction with the atmosphere (41). When these rays are gathered in the sun, it creates an appearance that the wise call a rainbow term: Śakracāpa; literally "Indra's bow," the traditional name for a rainbow. 42.

When the rays of both the sun and the moon are swirled by the wind into a circular form, they create various colors in the cloudless sky known as a halo original: pariveṣa; often refers to a lunar or solar corona or halo caused by ice crystals or dust. 43.

The stars original: tārakāḥ move through the heavens. Some of them stay very far beyond all the wandering planets, while those that are unstable and move rapidly likely referring to meteors or "falling stars" reside below the moon and are dependent upon it. 44.

Between the junctions of the cold and hot water-filled regions and the Great Wind original: pravaha-māruta; in ancient Indian astronomy, this is the cosmic wind that keeps the planets in their orbits, and when the eastern wind becomes still, these stars fall to the earth like sparks of light. 45.

Waterless clouds, thinned out by the wind and containing only a trace of vapor, rain down upon the surface of the earth. 46. The earth, heated by the sun's rays and dried by the wind, supports particles in the form of smoke. 47.

When these are dissolved by the heat of the sun, they become a collection of dust. This causes the appearance of clouds during the twilights of the day. 48. Dust and smoke rising from the earth spread to the horizon; when mixed with the sun’s faint rays, the sky appears reddish. 49. This thinning and scattering of the sun's light creates various colors that are seen, just like a rainbow. 50.

This twilight glow original: sandhyā-rāga should be understood to occur at the beginning of the day (dawn) and the end of the day (dusk). On the night of a full moon, the moon likewise creates this effect with its rays at the start of the night. 51.

Thus, the description of the nature of fire and the influence of the Submarine Fire original: vāḍava located in the ocean has been explained incidentally. 52.

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An Objection Regarding the Bridge of Rama

Now, a question is raised: If the inhabited territory is strictly north of the ocean, how then could the Bridge term: Setubandha; the "Bridge of Rama" or Adam's Bridge, a chain of limestone shoals between India and Sri Lanka—so famous among the people and described in the history of the Raghu lineage—be possible or logical in this geographic model?

To this, the following is said: The earth was dug out by the sons of King Sagara A legendary king of the Solar Dynasty whose 60,000 sons dug the earth to find a lost sacrificial horse, thereby creating the ocean, which is called Sāgara in his honor while they were searching for the horse released for the horse-sacrifice term: Aśvamedha; a major Vedic ritual where a horse is set free to roam, and the land it traverses is claimed by the king. It was through this digging that the water flowed around Lanka...