Manvantara - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.

org/wiki/Manvantara

Manvantara
Manvantara or Manuvantara or "Manvanter" ,[1] or age of a Manu,[2] the Hindu progenitor of humanity, is
an astronomical period of time measurement. Manvantara is a Sanskrit word, a compound of manu and antara,
manu-antara or manvantara, literally meaning the duration of a Manu, or his life span.[3]

Each Manvantara is created and ruled by a specific Manu, who in turn is created by Brahma, the Creator himself.
Manu creates the world, and all its species during that period of time, each Manvantara lasts the lifetime of a
Manu, upon whose death, Brahma creates another Manu to continue the cycle of Creation or Shristi, Vishnu on his
part takes a new Avatar, and also a new Indra and Saptarishis are appointed.

Fourteen Manus and their respective Manvantaras constitute one Kalpa, Aeon, or a Day of Brahma, according to
the Hindu Time Cycles and also the Vedic timeline. Thereafter, at the end of each Kalpa, there is a period - same as
Kalpa - of dissolution or Pralaya,[4] wherein the world (earth and all life forms, but not the entire universe itself) is
destroyed and lies in a state of rest, which is called the, Night of Brahma.

After that the creator, Brahma starts his cycle of creation all over again, in an endless cycle of creation followed by
Absorption for which Shiva, Hindu God of Absorption, and also renewal, is invoked towards the end of each such
cycle.[5]

The 14 appointed Indras for each kalpa are: Visvabhuk, vipascit, sukirti, sibi, vibhu, manobhuva, ojasvin, the
powerful bali, adbhuta, santi, ramya, devavara, vrsa rtadhaman, divassvamin and suci. These are the fourteen
sakras(indras).

Contents
1 Duration of a Manvantara
1.1 Sub-divisions
1.2 Comparison to the Age of the Universe from Modern Astronomy
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

Duration of a Manvantara
The actual duration of a Manvantara, according to the Vishnu Purana is seventy one times the number of years
contained in the four Yugas, with some additional years, adding up to 852,000 divine years, or 306,720,000
human years. [6] Seven Rishis, certain (secondary) divinities, Indra, Manu, the king and his sons, are created and
perish in one interval (called a Manvantara) equal to seventy-one times the number of years contained in the
four Yugas, with some additional years: this is the duration of the Manu, the (attendant) divinities, and the rest,

1 of 3 10/19/17, 7:10 PM
Manvantara - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manvantara

which is equal to 852,000 divine years, or to 306,720,000 years of

mortals, independent of the additional period. Fourteen times this
period constitutes a Brhma day, that is, a day of Brahm; the term
(Brhma) being the derivative form. The Brahma life span is 100
Brahma varshas. The following table will illustrate clearly the link to
our years and Brahma years.

Sub-divisions
1 human year (in Hindu calendar) = 1 Deva Ahoratra for God (1 day and
1 night)

360 Deva Ahoratras = 1 Deva Vatsara

12,000 Deva Vatsara = 1 Chaturyuga

(12,000 Deva Vatsaras are defined as, 4,800 Deva Vatsaras of satya
yuga, 3,600 Deva Vatsaras of Treta Yuga, 2,400 Deva Vatsaras of
Dvapara Yuga and 1,200 Deva Vatsaras of Kali Yuga (which is 1,200 *
360 = 432,000 human years); summing up to 12000)

71 Chaturyugas = 1 Manvantaram (1 life span of Manu)

14 Manvantaras = 1 kalpa (1 day of Brahma)

2 Kalpas = 1 day + 1 Brahma ratra

360 days of Brahma = 1 Brahma varsha

[7] [8]

Comparison to the Age of the Universe from

Modern Astronomy
Modern scientific astronomy estimates the Age of the Universe as
around 13 Billion years (13 * 109 years). Conversion of 1 day of Brahma
into human years yields 8.58816 * 109 years (derived as 2 kalpas * 14
Manvantaras * 71 Chaturyugas * 12,000 Deva vatsaras * 360 human
years). According to Vedas, there are 504 000 Manus manifested
during the lifetime of one Brahm (311,040,000,000,000 human
Earthly years), 5040 Manus in one year of Brahma, and 420 Manus in
one month of Brahma. (See for more details: List of numbers in Hindu
scriptures.)

See also

2 of 3 10/19/17, 7:10 PM
Manvantara - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manvantara

Manu Manvantara in Hindu units of time

Metrics of time in Hinduism measurement, on a logarithmic
Kalpa (aeon) scale.
Yuga
List of numbers in Hindu scriptures

References
1. Manuantara (http://www.sacred-texts.com/the/sd/sd1-2-07.htm) The Secret Doctrine by H. P. Blavatsky, Vol. 1,
p. 368, THE DAYS AND NIGHTS OF BRAHMA, THIS is the name given to the Periods called MANVANTARA
(Manuantara, or between the Manus) and PRALAYA (Dissolution); one referring to the active periods of the
Universe, the other to its times of relative and complete rest -- according to whether they occur at the end of a
"Day," or an "Age" (a life) of Brahma. These periods, which follow each other in regular succession, are also
called Kalpas, small and great, the minor and the Maha Kalpa; though, properly speaking, the Maha Kalpa is
never a "day," but a whole life or age of Brahma, for it is said in the Brahma Vaivarta: "Chronologers compute
a Kalpa by the Life of Brahma; minor Kalpas, as Samvarta and the rest, are numerous." In sober truth they are
infinite; as they have never had a commencement, i.e., there never was a first Kalpa, nor will there ever be a
last one, in Eternity.
2. Account of the several Manus and Manwantaras (http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp075.htm) Vishnu
Purana, translated by Horace Hayman Wilson, 1840, Book III: Chapter I. p. 259, The first Manu was
Swyambhuva, then came Swrochisha, then Auttami, then Tmasa, then Raivata, then Chkshusha: these
six Manus have passed away. The Manu who presides over the seventh Manwantara, which is the present
period, is Vaivaswata, the son of the sun...
3. Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.13.14-16 (http://namahatta.org/en/node/6996)
4. Pralaya (http://www.sacred-texts.com/the/sd/sd2-1-18.htm) The Secret Doctrine by H. P. Blavatsky, Vol. 2, p.
307 THE SEVEN AND FOURTEEN MANUS.
5. Manvantara (http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu/manu01.htm) The Laws of Manu, (Manu Smriti), Sacred
Books of the East Vol. 25, translated by Georg Bhler, 1886, Chapter I, 79. The before-mentioned age of the
gods, (or) twelve thousand (of their years), being multiplied by seventy-one, (constitutes what) is here named
the period of a Manu (Manvantara). The Manvantaras, the creations and Absorptions (of the world, are)
numberless; sporting, as it were, Brahman repeats this again and again.
6. Measure of time (http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/vp/vp037.htm), Vishnu Purana, translated by Horace
Hayman Wilson, 1840, Book I: Chapter III. p.26-28
7. Time Comparison from TransLiteral Foundation Vedic Time Converter (http://www.transliteral.org
/also/VedicTimeConverter.aspx)
8. Puranic Encyclopaedia by Vettam Mani

External links
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Manvantara&oldid=799880311"

This page was last edited on 10 September 2017, at 11:01.

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. By
using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia is a registered trademark of the
Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.

3 of 3 10/19/17, 7:10 PM