The sky · the planets
The grahas
ग्रह
Eighty-eight planets to every moon, stacked on five shelves at the top of the sky — Budha lowest at 888, Śani highest at 900.
The named five keep the classical order upward: Budha at 888, Śukra at 891, Bṛhaspati at 894, Maṅgala at 897 and Śani at 900 — Saturn walks the very ceiling of the sky. Each moon commands 88 grahas in all; the texts count them without naming the other eighty-three.
Each graha's vimāna is carried by 8,000 gods — half a great light's escort. They circle Meru like everything else in this sky, faster than the moon and the sun but slower than the constellations.
Measurements and counts
| Per moon | 88 |
|---|---|
| Named shelves | Budha 888 · Śukra 891 · Bṛhaspati 894 · Maṅgala 897 · Śani 900 |
| Bearers each | 8,000 |