# Middle Planets Within the earthly sphere there is a combination of the happiness found in the heavens and the suffering of hell. As mentioned previously, birth in the earthly realm is considered most conducive for this reason – neither is there excessive happiness which may cause one to become complacent and comfortable, nor is there extreme suffering that can overshadow any deeper searching. Bhu- mandala is shaped like a lotus flower and the seven planetary systems are in the whorl of the lotus. As the sunshine reaches earth from 93,000,000 miles, this is the radius of the plane of Bhu-mandala. *“The residents of both heaven and hell desire human birth on the earth planet because human life facilitates the achievement of transcendental knowledge and love of Godhead, whereas neither heavenly nor hellish bodies efficiently provide such opportunities.”* [(SB 11.20.12)](https://vedabase.io/en/library/sb/11/20/12/) --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://bhagavata.keshavaswami.com/canto-05/r.e.a.p/p-planetary-systems-20-26/universal-map/middle-planets.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.