Chapter 34 - The enumeration of Manvantaras

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Śaunaka said:—

1. Please describe in detail all the Manvantaras. I wish to hear of all the Manus too.

Sūta said:—

2-3. O great sage, six Manus have already been mentioned to you viz. Svāyambhuva, Svārociṣa, Uttama, Tāmasa, Raivata and Cākṣuṣa. The present Manu is called Vaivasvata, O great sage.

4-6. The Manus of future are Sāvarṇi, Raucya, Brahmasāvarṇi, Dharmasāvarṇi, Rudrasāvarṇi, Devasāvarṇi and Indrasāvarṇi. All these constitute the Manus of the past, present and future. These have been enumerated by me as I have heard.

7. O sage, these fourteen Manvantaras extending over the period past, present and the future have been mentioned to you. A Kalpa consisting of a thousand Yugas is constituted by these.

8. O Śaunaka, listen. I shall explain the sages, their sons and the gods; all are famous. Listen with pleasure.

9. Marīci, Atri, the holy lord Aṅgiras, Pulaha, Kratu, Pulastya and Vasiṣṭha—these seven are Brahmā’s sons.

10. O sage, the seven sages are in the northern quarter. In the Svāyambhuva Manvantara there were the gods named Yāmas.

11-12. The ten noble-souled sons of Svāyambhuva Manu were—Āgnīdhra, Agnibāhu, Medhā, Medhātithi, Vasu, Jyotiṣmat, Dhṛtimat, Havya, Savana and Śubhra. O great sage, the Indra there was Yajña.

13. Thus O dear, the first divine Manvantara has been mentioned to you. I shall explain the second one. Know as it is.

14-15. In the second Svārociṣa Manvantara these must be known as the great sages, viz.—Ūrjastambha, Parastambha, Ṛṣabha, Vasumat, Jyotiṣmat, Dyutimat and the seventh Rociṣmat. Then the Indra was Rocana. The gods were known as Tuṣitas.

16-17. O great sage, the ten noble-minded sons of Svārociṣa Manu, all of great heroism and exploits were Harighna, Sukṣti, Jyotis, Ayomūrti, Ayasmaya, Prathita, Manasyu, Nabha and Sūrya.

18. O sage, the second Manvantara has been mentioned by me. I shall explain the third one. Know it factually.

19-20. Vasiṣṭha’s seven sons famous as Vāsiṣṭhas and Hiraṇyagarbha’s sons of great splendour known as Ūrjas are mentioned as the sages. Uttama the Manu had ten sons, O great sage.

21-22. They were Iṣa, Ūrjita, Ūrja, Madhu, Mādhava Śuci, Śukravaha, Nabhasa, Nabha and Ṛṣabha. The gods were Satyavedaśruta and others. O sage, the Indra then was Satyajit. He was the ruler of the three worlds.

23. The great third Manvantara has been explained. O sage, listen. I shall mention the fourth Manvantara.

24. The seven sages were Gārgya, Pṛthu, Vāgmin, Janya, Dhātā, Kapīnaka and the seventh Kapīvat. The groups of gods were Satyas.

25-26. The Indra there was Triśikha. O sage, listen to the names of Manu’s sons. The ten sons of great rites of the Manu Tāmasa were Dyutipota, Sautapasya, Tapaḥśūla, Tāpana, Taporati, Akalmāsa, Dhanvin, Khaḍgin, Mahat and Ṛṣi.

27. The fourth Manvantara of Tāmasa Manu has been mentioned to you. O dear, now listen to the great fifth Manvantara.

28-29. Devabāhu, Jaya, the sage Vedaśiras, Hiraṇyaroman, Parjanya, Ūrdhva Bāhu, Somapa—These and others constituted the seven sages. They were engaged in truth. The gods were Bhūtarajasas of the nature of performing penance.

30. Indra was named Vibhu and he was the lord of the three worlds. The name of the Manu was Raivata. He shall be known as the brother of Tāmasa.

31. O sage, Arjuna, Paṅktivindhya and others shall be known as his sons. They are endowed with great penance. They stay on the mountain Meru.

32. Raucya son of Ruci the patriarch was the Manu. His son born of the queen Bhūti was Bhautya.

33. The future Manus in this Kalpa will be seven. The future great sages will also be seven in each Manvantara in the heaven.

34. Rāma, Vyāsa, Ātreya, Dīptimat, Subahuśruta, Bharadvāja, and the lustrous Aśvatthāman son of Droṇa will be seven sages in this Manvantara.

35-37. Śaradvat son of Gautama, Gautama, Kṛpa, Kauśika, Gālava, Rum and Kaśyapa will be future seven sages. The future gods are three in number as mentioned by Svayambhu. They are the sons of the noble-souled Kaśyapa the son of Marīci. Bali the son of Virocana will become their Indra.

38-39. O Śaunaka, the future ten sons of Sāvarṇi the Manu will be Viṣāṅga, Avanīvat, Sumanta, Dhṛtimat, Vasu, Sūri, Sura, Viṣṇu, Rājā and Sumati. Thus the eighth Manvantara has been mentioned. Now listen to the ninth Manvantara.

40-42. I shall mention Dakṣasāvarṇi Manu at the outset. Listen. Medhātithi, Paulastya, Vasu, Kaśyapa, Jyotiṣmat, Bhārgava, Dhṛtimat, Aṅgiras, Savana son of Vasiṣṭha, Havya son of Atri, and Pulaha—these seven are the sages in the Rauhita Manvantara. O great sage, the groups of gods are three.

43-44. They are the sons of the patriarch Rohita, son of Dakṣa. These are the nine sons of great strength of the first Sāvarṇi—Dhṛṣṭaketu, Dīptaketu, Pañcahasta, Nirākṛti, Pṛthuśravas, Bhūridyurana, Ṛcīka, Bṛhata and Gaya.

45-47. In the tenth Manvantara of the second Sāvarṇi the following are the sages, viz. Haviṣmat, Pulaha, Prakṛti, Bhārgava, Āya, Mukti, Ātreya and the imperishable Vasiṣṭha along with the seven great sages viz, Paulastya, Prayati, Bhāmāra, Kaśyapa, Aṅgirā, Anenasa, and Satya. Those known as Dviṣimant are the groups of gods.

48-49. Śambhu, Maheśvara himself is as their Indra. The ten sons of the Manu are Akṣatvat, Uttamaujas, Bhūriṣeṇa the powerful, Śatānīka, Nirāmitra, Vṛṣasena, Jayadratha, Bhūridyumna, Suvarcā and Arcis.

50. In the eleventh Manvantara of the third Sāvarṇi there are seven sages. Understand them as they are glorified by me.

51-52. Haviṣmat Kaśyapa, Vapuṣmat Vāruṇa, Ātreya, Vasiṣṭha, Anaya, Aṅgiras, Cārudhṛṣya, Paulastya, Niḥsvara, Taijasa Agni. The first seven are the sages and the last three groups are of gods.

53-54. There are the sons of Brahmā known as Vaidhṛtas. The grandsons of Sāvarṇa and the sons of the third Sāvarṇi are—Sarvaga, Suśarman, Devānīka, Kṣemaka, Dṛḍheṣu, Khaṇḍaka, Darśa, Kuhu and Bāha, nine in all.

55-57. Now know the seven sages of the fourth Sāvarṇi from me—Dyuti son of Vasiṣṭha, Ātreya of good penance, Aṅgiras an embodied form of penance, Kaśyapa the ascetic. Paulastya the sage, Pulaha interested in penance and Bhārgava the storehouse of penance. The groups of gods are known as five and they are the mental sons of Brahmā.

58-60. The Indra then is Ṛtadhāman. He is the happy ruler of the three worlds. In the future twelfth Manvantara, O, sage, the seven great sages are Dhṛtimat, Aṅgiras, Havyavat Paulastya, Tattvadarśin Paulaha, Nirutsava Bhārgava, Niṣprapañca Ātreya, Nirdeha, Kaśyapa and Sutapa the descendant of Vasiṣṭha.

61-62. The groups of gods are three in number as mentioned by Svayambhū. They are: Divaspati Indra, Vicitra and Citra Naya, Dharmadhṛta, Andhra, Sunetra, Kṣatravṛddhaka, Nirbhaya, and Sutapas Droṇa are the sons of Raucya Manu.

63-65. In the fourteenth Manvantara of Satya Manu the seven sages are Āgnīdhra Kāśyapa, Māgadha, Paulastya Atibāhya Bhārgava, Śuci Aṅgirasa, Yukta Ātreya, Ajita grandson of Vasiṣṭha, and Pulaha. They are the final seven sages. The gods are the holy Cākṣuṣas. Śuci will become Indra.

66. After getting up early in the morning the repetition of the names of these sages of the past and future increases the happiness of men.

67-68. O great sage, listen. The groups of gods are five. The sons of this Manu are—Taraṅgabhīru, Budhna, Tanūgra, Anugra, Abhimānin Pravīṇa, Viṣṇu, Saṅkrandana, Tejasvin, and Sabala.

69. The earlier Kalpa is in the authority of Bhauma, Thus I have explained the Manus past and future.

70-71. These were mentioned to Vyāsa by Sanatkumāra of great splendour. When the thousand Yugas are complete they, of good penance, return to Brahmaloka when their task of protecting the people is over. Each Manvantara consists of seventy-one Yugas with some period left over.

72. These fourteen Manus are glorified. In each Manvantara there is re-creation after annihilation.

73. It is difficult to explain Manvantara even in hundreds of years. The Kalpa that follows a hundred thousand Kalpas is named Niśśeṣa.

74-75. There all the living beings are burnt by the sun’s rays. O sage, all of them enter Viṣṇu at the end of Kalpas along with the Ādityas. Viṣṇu then creates all living beings. This happens again and again.

76-77. Lord Rudra annihilates them I shall explain it at the end of Vaivasvata Kalpa. Thus I have mentioned all about the Manvantaras to you. It is a holy narrative conclusive to wealth and increase of the family.