Svāyambhuva Manvantara

A manvantara is one of the fourteen long ages that make up a kalpa (a great cycle of the universe). Each has its own Manu (the first father and ruler of humankind for that age), its own Indra (king of the devas), its own devas and its own Saptarshis (seven great ṛshis).

The Svāyambhuva Manvantara is the first of the fourteen manvantaras. It is ruled by Svāyambhuva Manu, who was born directly from Brahmā’s form, which was half male and half female. This manvantara set up the founding family lines of humankind — through his sons Priyavrata and Uttānapāda and his daughters Ākūti and Prasūti. It also saw the first division of the earth into seven dvīpas (continents) by Priyavrata.

Svāyambhuva Manu

Svāyambhuva Manu was the first Manu, born from Brahmā’s own form. At the dawn of creation Brahmā took on a body that was half male and half female. The male half became Svāyambhuva Manu, and the female half became Śatarūpā, who then became his wife. From this first union came the founding stock of humankind.

Svāyambhuva Manu and Śatarūpā had two sons, Priyavrata and Uttānapāda, and two daughters, Ākūti and Prasūti. Through these children, all the human and divine family lines of the first age spread out.

Priyavrata and the Seven Dvīpas

Priyavrata, the elder son of Svāyambhuva Manu, married the daughter of Kardama Prajāpati. They had ten sons and two daughters. Priyavrata divided the whole earth into seven dvīpas (continents) and gave the rule of each to one of his sons:

• Āgnīdhra received Jambū-dvīpa
• Medhātithi received Plaksha-dvīpa
• Vapushmān received Śālmali-dvīpa
• Jyotishmān received Kuśa-dvīpa
• Dyutimān received Krauñca-dvīpa
• Bhavya received Śāka-dvīpa
• Savana received Pushkara-dvīpa

His other children were Samrāṭ and Kukshi (the daughters), Medha, Agnibāhu and Mitra.

The Line of Uttānapāda

Uttānapāda, the younger son of Svāyambhuva Manu, carried on the Manu’s line through his own descendants. His son Uttama went on to become the third Manu, ruler of the Uttama Manvantara. In this way the Svāyambhuva and Uttama manvantaras are joined by an unbroken line from father to son.

Priyavrata and the Seven Dvīpas in the Agni Purāṇa

Chapter 107 of the Agni Purāṇa tells how Priyavrata, the eldest son of Svāyambhuva Manu, divided the whole earth among his seven sons, who became the first rulers of the seven dvīpas. The chapter also says that from Svāyambhuva Manu came Priyavrata, and from Priyavrata’s eldest son’s line came Ṛshabhadeva, whose son was Bharata. The land of Bhārata-varsha takes its name from him.

The seven sons of Priyavrata and their dvīpas are recorded like this:

Each of these sons became the first ruler and ancestor of the people of his dvīpa. The sons of Āgnīdhra in turn received the nine varshas (regions) of Jambū-dvīpa. Nābhi received the central southern part, Bhārata-varsha. From Nābhi and Merudevī was born Ṛshabhadeva, and from Ṛshabhadeva came Bharata, the first of the great kings of Bhārata-varsha. The whole southern region of Jambū-dvīpa is named after him.

The Three Daughters and Their Marriages in the Bhāgavata Purāṇa

Skanda 3 of the Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa adds important family details about the daughters of Svāyambhuva Manu, which complete the picture of the family lines of this manvantara. Here Svāyambhuva Manu and Śatarūpā have three daughters:

1. Ākūti, given in marriage to Ruci Prajāpati. From this union came Yajña, who is known as an avatāra of Vishṇu and was the ruling devatā of the Svāyambhuva Manvantara. The Bhāgavata’s list of avatāras in Skanda 2 mentions him as the one who protected the order of the universe in this age.
2. Devahūti, given in marriage to Kardama Prajāpati at Bindu-saras. She is the mother of Bhagavān Kapila, and she reached moksha (liberation) at Siddhapada.
3. Prasūti, given in marriage to Daksha Prajāpati. Through her came the great line of Daksha’s daughters, who became wives of Kaśyapa and other great ṛshis, and so the mothers of all the many kinds of beings in creation.

Skanda 3 tells the story of Devahūti’s marriage to Kardama in full. Manu himself travelled with Śatarūpā from Brahmāvarta to Bindu-saras in a golden chariot to offer Devahūti to Kardama, moved by his daughter’s firm resolve to marry only this ṛshi. His sorrow at parting from her at the āśrama is described with great tenderness.

The Family Lines of the Svāyambhuva Manvantara in Skanda 4 of the Bhāgavata

Skanda 4 opens with Maitreya telling Vidura about the whole web of families that spread out from Svāyambhuva Manu’s three daughters.

Ākūti’s Line and the Twelve Tushitas

Svāyambhuva Manu gave Ākūti to Ruci Prajāpati on the condition of putrī-dharma: the first son born of the marriage was to be given back to Manu. Ruci shone with brahma-varcas (spiritual radiance) from his constant dhyāna (meditation) on Parameśvara. With Ākūti he had a son and a daughter. The son was Vishṇu himself, come down as Yajña, the ruling devatā of all Vedic yajñas (sacred fire offerings). The daughter, Dakshiṇā, was an aṃśa (portion) of Lakshmī Devī, born together with him because Lakshmī never leaves Vishṇu. Svāyambhuva Manu joyfully welcomed the child Yajña into his household.

Yajña married Dakshiṇā, and they had twelve sons, the Tushitas, who were the ruling devas of the Svāyambhuva Manvantara. Each of their names points to a form of spiritual joy: Tosha, Pratosha, Santosha, Bhadra, Śānta, Iḍaspati, Idhma, Kavi, Vibhu, Svahna, Sudeva and Rocana. Yajña himself served as Indra, ruler of the devas, in this manvantara, and the seven maharshis headed by Marīci were its Saptarshis.

Kardama’s Nine Daughters and Their Families

The nine daughters of Kardama Prajāpati became wives of the great brahmarshis (ṛshis of the highest spiritual rank), and from them came the many family lines that filled all the worlds.

Kalā married Marīci and bore him two sons, Kaśyapa and Pūrṇima. Kaśyapa’s huge family — the devas, asuras, nāgas, birds and every kind of being — filled the universe. Pūrṇima had two sons, Viraja and Viśvagu, and a daughter, Devakulyā. Because in an earlier birth Devakulyā had washed the lotus feet of Śrī Hari, she was reborn in svarga (the heavenly world) as the divine river Mandākinī.

Anasūyā married Atri. Atri did intense tapas (spiritual discipline) on Ṛksha mountain, living on prāṇāyāma (breath control) alone, until fire blazed from the top of his head and heated all three worlds. Brahmā, Vishṇu and Maheśvara came down together to his āśrama. When Atri asked why three had come when he had meditated on one, they said: “We are that one — there is no difference among us.” They gave him three sons, each carrying an aṃśa of one of them: Candra from Brahmā’s aṃśa, Dattātreya from Vishṇu’s aṃśa, and Durvāsā from Śiva’s aṃśa.

Śraddhā married Aṅgiras and bore as daughters the devīs of the lunar tithis (days): Sinīvālī (the fourteenth of the dark fortnight), Kuhū (the new moon, amāvāsyā), Rākā (the full moon, pūrṇimā) and Anumati (the fourteenth of the bright fortnight). Aṅgiras and Śraddhā also had two sons: Utathya (whom some regard as a partial avatāra of Bhagavān Vishṇu) and Bṛhaspati. Both became famous in the Svārocisha Manvantara.

Havirbhū married Pulastya and bore two sons, Agastya and Viśravas. In a later birth Agastya became Jaṭharāgni (the digestive fire). Viśravas was a great tapasvī (one given to tapas). By his first wife Iḍaviḍā he became the father of Kubera, the sāttvika (pure-natured) ruler of the yakshas. By his second wife Keśinī he became the father of Rāvaṇa, Kumbhakarṇa and Vibhīshaṇa.

Gati married Pulaha and bore him three sons: Karmaśreshṭha, Varīyas and Sahishṭha.

Kriyā married Kratu, and from them were born sixty thousand Vālakhilya ṛshis, ṛshis the size of a thumb who blazed with spiritual radiance.

Arundhatī married Vasishṭha and bore seven great brahmarshis: Citraketu, Suroci, Viraja, Mitra, Ulbaṇa, Vasudhyāna and Dyumanta. By another wife, Vasishṭha was the father of Śakti and others.

Citti married Atharvan and bore Dadhyañc, also called Aśvaśiras, the famous knower of the Self (ātmajñānī).

Khyāti married Bhṛgu and bore Dhātā, Vidhātā and a daughter, Śrī, an aṃśa of Lakshmī who is always devoted to Bhagavān Vishṇu. Meru gave his daughters Āyati and Niyati in marriage to Dhātā and Vidhātā. Dhātā and Āyati had a son, Mṛkaṇḍu; Vidhātā and Niyati had Brauṇa. From Mṛkaṇḍu came the great Mārkaṇḍeya Muni. Bhṛgu also had a son, Kavi, whose son was Śukrācārya.

Prasūti’s Line, Daksha’s Daughters and the Birth of Nara-Nārāyaṇa

Svāyambhuva Manu gave his daughter Prasūti to Daksha, a son of Brahmā. They had sixteen daughters, whose marriages spread families through all three worlds:

• Thirteen were given to Dharma: Śraddhā, Maitrī, Dayā, Śānti, Tushṭi, Pushṭi, Kriyā, Unnati, Buddhi, Medhā, Titikshā, Hrī and Mūrti
• Svāhā was given to Agni
• Svadhā was given to the pitṛ-devatās (the ancestors)
• Satī was given to Śiva

Each of Dharma’s wives bore a son who carried her quality: Śubha from Śraddhā, Prasāda from Maitrī, Abhaya from Dayā, Sukha from Śānti, Muda from Tushṭi, Yoga from Pushṭi, Darpa from Kriyā, Artha from Unnati, Smṛti from Buddhi and Kshema from Medhā.

From Mūrti, the brightest of Dharma’s wives, were born Nara and Nārāyaṇa, the own descent of Bhagavān Vishṇu into this manvantara. Their birth was greeted with joy throughout the universe: flowers rained from the sky, divine music played, apsarās danced and all the devas sang stutis (hymns of praise). The devas said: “Parabrahman, though one and undivided, has brought forth this world of names and forms through māyā — and now comes down to show his true nature (svarūpa) to his bhaktas (devotees).” Nara-Nārāyaṇa then went to Gandhamādana mountain. These two are none other than Arjuna and Kṛshṇa, who came down in the Dvāpara Yuga to free the earth from adharma (wrongdoing).

Agni’s Forty-Nine Fires and the Pitṛ-devatās

Agni’s wife Svāhā bore three sons, Pāvaka, Pavamāna and Śuci, who are themselves fire-devas. These three had forty-five more sons between them, making forty-nine sacred fires in all. These are the fires called on by name in the yajñas performed by those who know the Veda.

The pitṛ-devatās are of four orders: the Agnishvāttas, the Barhishadas, the Saumyas and the Ājyapas. Some receive offerings in the fire, and others do not. By Svadhā the pitṛs had two daughters, Dhāriṇī and Vayunā. Both were mahātmās (great beings) who not only realised ātma-jñāna (knowledge of the Self) but also passed it on to sincere seekers.

Satī Gives Up Her Body Through Yoga

Satī, the daughter of Daksha who was given to Śiva, served him with deep devotion. Yet she had no children to match her own excellence. When her father Daksha turned against Śiva — the story of this hostility is told in Chapters 2–7 of this Skanda — the young Satī, by her own resolve and the power of yoga-śakti (the power of yoga), gave up her body. She was under no duty to hold on to a life that her father’s hostility had made impossible, and she left her body through the yoga-agni (fire of yoga) that rose from within.

The Svāyambhuva Manvantara in the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa

The Brahmāṇḍa Mahā Purāṇa (First Part, Chapters 8–9 and 35) adds these important details about the Svāyambhuva Manvantara.

Śatarūpā from Brahmā’s Body

The Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa tells how Brahmā, after many rounds of creation that did not bring enough growth, divided his own body into two halves. The male half became Svāyambhuva Manu (the Vairāja Purusha, the first ruler). The female half became Śatarūpā, the first woman, who had a hundred forms because she was born from Brahmā’s own body. Śatarūpā did tapas for a hundred thousand years and won Svāyambhuva Manu as her husband. Her being filled the earth and the sky. They had two sons, Priyavrata and Uttānapāda, and two daughters, Ākūti and Prasūti.

The Nine Mind-Born Sons and Where They Came From

The Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa records that alongside the creation through the body and the founding of the Svāyambhuva line, Brahmā created nine mānasa-putras (mind-born sons) from particular parts of his body and from his prāṇas (life-breaths):

These nine, together with Rudra and Dharma/Ruci (who were born earlier), are called the nava-brahmās or brahma-putra ṛshis (the ṛshis who are sons of Brahmā). They are self-ruled, born from Brahmā’s own body, and in every kalpa they bring forth the peoples of the worlds again and again.

Karma Carries On from Kalpa to Kalpa

The Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa’s account of this manvantara carries a deep teaching. Even when beings are created anew at the start of each kalpa, they return to the same karmas they practised in their earlier births. Violent and gentle tendencies, cruel and kind natures, dharma and adharma — all are carried over from past karma across the boundary between kalpas. The order of creation is not random. It is the working out of stored-up karma, flowing into new forms in each new cycle.

The Debate About Yajña in the Svāyambhuva Manvantara

In the Tretā Yuga (the second of the four ages) of the Svāyambhuva Manvantara, the rains came, farming began, varṇa and āśrama (the social orders and stages of life) were set up, and Indra performed the first Aśvamedha (horse yajña). At that time a great debate on dharma arose between the maharshis and Indra over paśu-hiṃsā, the killing of animals in yajña. The maharshis objected to it; Indra held that the Veda called for it. Both sides asked King Vasu (a son of Uttānapāda) to judge. Vasu declared that the killing of animals was allowed, and at once the earth swallowed him down into Rasātala (a lower world). This event, at the very dawn of the Tretā Yuga of the first manvantara, shows that the practice of yajña took shape through tension and debate about dharma.

In the Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa

The Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa tells of the Svāyambhuva Manvantara through Mārkaṇḍeya’s account to Vajra.

• The ten sons of Svāyambhuva Manu: Agnīdhra, Atibāhu, Medha, Medhātithi, Vastu, Jyotishmān, Dyutimān, Hava, Savana and Satura
• The Saptarshis: the well-known seven — Marīci, Atri, Āṅgirasa, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu and Vasishṭha
• Indra: Viśvadhṛk
• The daitya (asura) opponent: Keśibaya, son of Bāshkali

Bhagavān Vishṇu came down riding on Garuḍa and carrying the Sudarśana cakra (discus) to destroy him and protect this age.

Sources

• Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa, Chapter 50
• Agni Mahā Purāṇa, Chapter 107
• Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, Skanda 3, Chapters 21–24
• Bhāgavata Mahā Purāṇa, Skanda 4, Chapter 1
• Brahmāṇḍa Mahā Purāṇa, Pūrva Bhāga (First Part), Chapters 8–9 and 35
• Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa, Pūrvārdha (First Part), Chapter 176