सप्ताश्वस्

{ saptāśvas }

Puranic Encyclopaedia

SAPTĀŚVAS   The seven horses of the Sun. The chariot of the Sun is nine thousand yojanas long and its shaft is eighteen-thousand yojanas long. The length of the axle is fifteen million seven lakhs yojanas. The wheel is secured to this axle. The entire wheel of ‘Time’ (Kālacakra) stuck fast in the undiminishing figure of ‘year’ with three naves of the wheel, five spokes and sixty rings. The chariot is drawn by seven horses. They are the seven Vedic metres with their theory. They are Gāyatrī, Bṛhatī, Uṣṇik, Jagatī, Triṣṭup, Anuṣṭup and Paṅkti. [Viṣṇu Purāṇa, Aṁśa 2, Chapter 8] .