तृतीयांशः (मन्वन्तर-वेदव्यास-प्रकरणम्)
Manvantaras and Divine Governance
In Amsha 3, the Parāśara–Maitreya guru–disciple dialogue turns from cosmic geography to the governance of time itself through the Manvantaras and the periodic safeguarding of Vedic revelation. Maitreya asks for a sequential account of the Manvantara rulers—Manus, Indras, deva-gaṇas, Saptarṣis, and Manu’s progeny. Parāśara answers by detailing the first seven Manvantaras up to the present Vaivasvata, and then the future seven, completing the fourteenfold structure of a kalpa. The theological center is Viṣṇu as Jagat-kāraṇa, the cause of the universe—both nimitta (efficient) and upādāna (material) cause. His śakti, sattva-pradhāna, stabilizes the cosmos in every age as a form of divine sovereignty. The offices of Manu, Indra, devas, ṛṣis, and kings are explicitly named as Viṣṇu’s vibhūtis, and the name “Viṣṇu” is explained from the root viś, “to pervade and enter.” The same sustaining Lord manifests in each Manvantara under distinct names—Yajña, Ajita, Satya, Hari, Saṃbhūta, Vaikuṇṭha, and Vāmana—showing dharma-protection as a regulated rhythm within the cycle of time. And in recurring Dvāpara ages, He becomes Vedavyāsa, re-dividing the one Veda according to human capacity, thereby preserving śruti-knowledge and dharma through ordered temporal cycles.
मन्वन्तर-क्रमः (अतीत-सप्तमन्वन्तराः) तथा मन्वन्तरावताराः
Maitreya, having heard the earlier accounts of cosmic order and the deeds of Dhruva and Prahlāda, asks Parāśara to teach the orderly succession of the Manvantaras, with their Manus and Indras. Parāśara names the first six Manus and confirms the present seventh as Vaivasvata (Śrāddhadeva), then for each Manvantara describes the deva hosts, the Indra-name, the Saptarṣis, and Manu’s sons and royal lines (especially from Svārociṣa to Vaivasvata). He then gives the doctrinal synthesis: Viṣṇu’s śakti, sattva-dominant, abides as the power of preservation through all Manvantaras. In every Manvantara the same Lord manifests with a particular name and form—Yajña, Ajita, Satya, Hari, Saṃbhūta, Vaikuṇṭha, Vāmana—to protect beings and restore cosmic governance, as when Vāmana’s three strides secure sovereignty for Indra. The chapter concludes by identifying all cosmic offices as Viṣṇu’s vibhūtis and explaining “Viṣṇu” from the root viś, emphasizing His all-pervasion and supreme causality.
भविष्य-मन्वन्तराः (अष्टम-चतुर्दश) तथा कल्प-युग-व्यवस्था
Maitreya asks to hear of the remaining Manvantaras yet to come. Parāśara first recounts the solar lineage around Saṃjñā and Chāyā, introducing Sāvarṇi Manu, and tells how Viśvakarmā tempered the Sun’s radiance, from which divine weapons were forged—especially Viṣṇu’s cakra. He then outlines the future Manvantaras (8–14), naming for each the Manu, the deva-gaṇas and their numbers, the Indra, the Saptarṣis, and Manu’s royal sons. The chapter widens to cosmic time: at yuga-ends Vedic transmission is disrupted and the Saptarṣis re-establish it; in every Kṛta age a Manu promulgates Smṛti; devas endure for the Manvantara’s span; and the earth is protected through Manu’s line. Parāśara defines a kalpa as the completion of fourteen Manvantaras within the thousand-yuga measure, followed by an equally long night of dissolution when Janārdana rests on Śeṣa, then recreates in successive kalpas. Finally, Viṣṇu is praised as the yuga-ordinator: Kapila-like in Kṛta (jñāna), a cakravartin in Tretā (curbing evil), Vyāsa in Dvāpara (dividing the Veda), and Kalki at Kali’s end (restoring dharma).
वेदव्यास-परम्परा तथा प्रणव-ब्रह्म-स्तुति
Maitreya affirms the siddhānta that all is of Viṣṇu, in Viṣṇu, and from Viṣṇu, and asks how the Lord repeatedly divides the Veda in every age while acting as Vedavyāsa. Parāśara explains the governing principle: in each Dvāpara, Viṣṇu becomes Vyāsa and reorders the one Veda into many divisions for the benefit of beings whose strength and capacity have declined, likening the Veda to a tree with innumerable branches. He says this has occurred twenty-eight times in the Vaivasvata Manvantara, lists the succession of the twenty-eight Vyāsas (from Svayambhū and Prajāpati, including Uśanā, Bṛhaspati, Savitṛ, Mṛtyu, Indra, Vasiṣṭha, and others), traces the genealogy to Parāśara and then Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana, and notes a future Vyāsa (Drauṇi). The chapter then becomes hymn-like: Brahman is established as Oṁ (praṇava), the source and essence of the Vedas, the cause of creation and dissolution, ultimately identical with Vāsudeva/Paramātman. Both the Veda’s differentiation and its total unity rest in the one Ananta Bhagavān, knowledge itself and the promulgator of all śākhās.
वेदव्यासः, चातुर्होत्रम्, ऋग्वेदशाखाः (Vyāsa’s Veda-division and Ṛgveda lineages)
Parāśara teaches Maitreyā that the primal Veda is “four-footed,” yet yajña, the cosmic sustaining principle, is even more expansive. In the 28th interval, Vyāsa—declared to be Nārāyaṇa—divides the single Veda into four to preserve its transmission through changing ages. At Brahmā’s urging he appoints Paila for the Ṛgveda, Vaiśampāyana for the Yajurveda, Jaimini for the Sāmaveda, Sumantu for the Atharvaveda, and Romaharṣaṇa for Itihāsa–Purāṇa. Parāśara explains the cāturhotra (four priestly functions) and aligns them with the Vedic corpora: Adhvaryu–Yajus, Hotṛ–Ṛk, Udgātṛ–Sāman, Brahman–Atharvan. The chapter then traces Ṛgvedic lineages: Paila’s two saṃhitās to Indrapramati and Bāṣkala; Bāṣkala’s fourfold division and subsidiary lines (Baudhya, Agni, Māṭhara, Yājñavalkya, Parāśara); Indrapramati’s transmission to Māṇḍūkeya and beyond; and Śākalya’s five saṃhitās to Mudgala, Galava, Vātsya, Śālīya, and Śiśira, with sub-branches such as Kālāyani, Gārgya, and Java—concluding the Bahvṛca recensions.
यजुर्वेदशाखाः, याज्ञवल्क्य–वैशम्पायनसंवादः, सूर्यस्तुतिः (Yajurveda branches and Yājñavalkya’s solar revelation)
Parāśara tells Maitreyā that Vaiśampāyana, Vyāsa’s disciple, brought forth twenty-seven branches of the Yajurveda and handed them down through lineage. Yājñavalkya, son of Brahmarāta, is a disciplined, dharma-knowing student. Recalling an old covenant of sages about Mahāmeru, Vaiśampāyana oversteps it and, after an insult, kills his sister’s child, incurring the sin of brahma-hatyā; he orders his disciples to undertake an expiatory vow for him. Yājñavalkya, claiming greater tejas, offers to do it alone; the guru, angered, commands him to “return” what he has learned. Yājñavalkya casts out the Yajus mantras; other brāhmaṇas become tittirī birds and gather them—thus the Taittirīya tradition. Then Yājñavalkya performs prāṇāyāma and praises Sūrya (Savitr/Bhāskara/Vivasvān) as the source of the three Vedas, the form of Viṣṇu, lord of time, and purifier of action. Sūrya appears as a horse and grants him the previously unknown Yajus called Ayātayāma; their learners are called Vājins, and fifteen Vājasaneyin branch-lineages beginning with the Kāṇvas are said to proceed from Yājñavalkya.
सामवेद–अथर्ववेदशाखाः, पुराणसंहिता, अष्टादशपुराणानि, विद्यास्थानानि (Sāma/Atharvan branches, Purāṇa compendium, 18 Purāṇas, knowledge taxonomy)
Parāśara continues teaching Maitreyā how Jaimini divided the Sāma Veda. Through Sumantu and Sukarmā the tradition is preserved; Sukarmā’s son expands the saṃhitā into a thousand recensions, received by two great-vowed disciples. Names and regional lines are given—Hiraṇyanābha, Kausalya, Pauṣpiñji, and fifteen Udīcya Sāmagas; from Hiraṇyanābha arise the Prācyasāmaga. Lokākṣi, Kuthumi, Kuṣīdī, and Lāṅgali multiply the recensions, and Kṛti teaches twenty-four saṃhitās. Turning to Atharvan transmission, Sumantu teaches Kabandha, who divides it for Devadarśa and Pathya; Devadarśa’s disciples include Maudga, Brahmabali, Śaulkāyani, and Pippalāda, while Pathya’s line includes Jājali, Kumudādi, and Śaunaka, who transmits to Babhrava and Saindhava (Saṃjñin) and names kalpas such as Āṅgirasa and Śāntikalpa. Parāśara then outlines the Purāṇic compendium entrusted by Vyāsa to Romaharṣaṇa and carried through six disciples, with root saṃhitās linked to Kāśyapa, Sāvarṇi, Śāṃśapāyana, and the Romaharṣaṇikā. The chapter lists the eighteen Purāṇas and the five lakṣaṇas (sarga, pratisarga, vaṃśa, manvantara, vaṃśānucarita), and declares this very narration to be the Vaiṣṇava Purāṇa—proclaiming that in all these subjects it is Bhagavān Viṣṇu alone who is taught, the supreme cause and meaning of cosmic history and sacred knowledge.
यमस्य अधिकारभङ्गः — वैष्णवस्य लक्षणम् (Freedom from Yama through Hari-śaraṇāgati)
Maitreya, after hearing the ordering of the cosmos, asks Parāśara what practice keeps humans from falling under Yama’s dominion after death. Parāśara replies through a chain of testimonies—Nakula and Bhīṣma, a Kāliṅga brāhmaṇa who remembers past births, and a dialogue among Yama’s attendants. Yama orders his noose-bearing servant to avoid those surrendered to Madhusūdana, declaring his lordship only over non-Vaiṣṇavas. Parāśara then describes the marks of a Viṣṇu-bhakta: steadfastness in svadharma, equal regard for friend and foe, non-violence, truthfulness, freedom from envy, detachment from wealth and from others’ property, and constant remembrance of Janārdana, especially remaining unstained by Kali’s impurity. Metaphors—gold within ornaments and darkness absent in sunlight—teach that Hari’s presence in the heart destroys sin. The chapter concludes that neither Yama, his servants, nor torments can touch one who rests solely in Keśava.
विष्ण्वाराधन-फलम् तथा वर्णधर्माः (Worship of Vishnu through Varṇa-dharma)
Maitreya asks how those who seek victory over saṃsāra worship Viṣṇu and what fruit such worship yields. Parāśara replies with an ancient exemplum (Sagara’s question to Aurva): worship of Govinda grants worldly aims, heaven, exalted stations, and even supreme nirvāṇa. The governing principle is that Viṣṇu is chiefly pleased through the observance of varṇa–āśrama conduct; there is no separate path, for Hari is the Self of all beings and every act therefore touches Him. Ethical restraints are taught as modes of ārādhana—avoiding slander, falsehood, and agitating speech; not desiring another’s spouse or wealth; non-violence; service to devas, dvijas, and gurus; universal welfare; and purity from rāga and other doṣas. The chapter then outlines varṇa-dharmas: the brāhmaṇa’s dāna, yajña, svādhyāya, and sacred-fire duties; the kṣatriya’s protection and governance; the vaiśya’s cattle-keeping, trade, and agriculture; and the śūdra’s charity and domestic rites, along with shared virtues and emergency allowances (āpaddharma) without karma-saṅkara, before turning toward āśrama-dharma.
चत्वारोऽाश्रमाः — ब्रह्मचर्यादि मोक्षाश्रमपर्यन्तम् (The Four Āśramas as a graded path to mokṣa)
Continuing from varṇa-dharma, Parāśara sets forth āśrama-dharma in order. In brahmacarya, the upanīta student lives in the guru’s household, keeps purity, serves, observes vows, performs sandhyā-upāsanā to Sun and Fire, studies only as instructed, and eats only with permission. Having completed Vedic study and repaid the guru-debt, he enters gārhasthya: lawful marriage, righteous livelihood, and fivefold honoring—Pitṛs by nivāpa, Devas by yajña, guests by food and hospitality, sages by svādhyāya, and Prajāpati by offspring. The householder is declared the support of the other āśramas; neglect of guests reverses merit and demerit. In old age he becomes vānaprastha, practicing forest austerities, honoring guests, and enduring hardships, thereby burning faults and attaining lasting worlds. Finally, the bhikṣu/parivrājaka renounces possessions and the aims of tri-varga, practices non-injury in thought, speech, and deed, stays only briefly in settlements, takes alms only to sustain life, and abandons kāma, krodha, and lobha. The mokṣa-āśrama culminates in inner sacrifice and calm like a fuel-less flame, leading to Brahmaloka.
पुंसां क्रिया-विभागः, संस्काराः, नामकरणम्, विवाहविधानम्
Continuing the guru–disciple dialogue, Maitreya asks Parāśara to explain the full range of human rites—nitya, naimittika, and kāmya. Parāśara begins with life-cycle saṁskāras from jātakarma onward and the ābhyudayika śrāddha for prosperity, prescribing the feeding of an even number of east-facing brāhmaṇas and the proper offerings to devas and pitṛs, including piṇḍa to the Nāndīmukha ancestors. He then describes nāmakaraṇa on the tenth day, giving varṇa-appropriate name endings (śarman/varman/gupta/dāsa) and auspicious phonetic rules. The account moves from education in the guru’s house to entry into gṛhastha through marriage, while acknowledging other āśrama paths (brahmacarya, vānaprastha/vaikhānasa, or saṁnyāsa). It concludes with norms for choosing a spouse, lunar timing guidance, the eight forms of marriage, insistence on varṇa-appropriate dharma, condemnation of adultery, and praise of the dharma-companion wife as the foundation of great fruit.
गृहस्थस्य सदाचारः: शौच, तर্পण, वैश्वदेव, अतिथिधर्म, भोजन-विधि, संध्योपासन, ऋतु-धर्मः
Maitreya asks for the gṛhastha’s sadācāra, the conduct that brings welfare in both worlds. Parāśara defines sadācāra as the established practice of sādhus, grounded in the authority of the Saptarṣis and the Manus. He begins with dawn discipline—at brahma-muhūrta reflecting on dharma, artha, and kāma—and then lays out detailed rules of purity for excretion, cleansing, ācamana, and personal grooming. He proceeds to livelihood in harmony with varṇa-dharma and to daily rites: bathing, tarpaṇa to devas/ṛṣis/pitṛs, and kāmya water-gifts with universal welfare formulas, praying even for beings in the narakas. He teaches offering arghya to Sūrya with a hymn linking solar radiance to Viṣṇu’s tejas, followed by home worship, agnihotra, and directional bali offerings, culminating in feeding “all beings,” with the giver identified through Viṣṇu’s all-pervasiveness. Hospitality (atithi-dharma) is central: waiting for guests, honoring unknown travelers, and the karmic result of neglect. The chapter regulates eating—purity, direction, order of tastes, five-morsel silence—and ends with digestion prayers where Viṣṇu is the eater, the food, and the transforming power. It closes with sandhyā discipline, evening vaiśvadeva, rules for sleep, and ṛtu-dharma, including prohibitions on parva-days and adultery.
सदाचार-नियमाः: शील, संयम, संग-निषेध, शुचिता, वाणी-नीति, परोपकारः
Parāśara continues teaching Maitreya, gathering sadācāra into a practical code of self-restraint, right association, and ethics of speech. He commands reverence for devas, cows, brāhmaṇas, siddhas, elders, and teachers; the keeping of sandhyā rites and household fires; and an auspicious personal order through clean garments, herbs, protective signs, and flowers. He then sets out small but guarding prohibitions: steal not even trifles, speak neither harshly nor falsely, do not broadcast others’ faults, avoid another’s wife and needless enmity, refuse corrupt company, and shun dangerous or impure places and habits. Bodily decorum—yawning, spitting, nail-biting, unclothed rites—is treated as an outward support for inner steadiness. Social prudence is urged: avoid quarrel, choose comparable alliances, and seek the proximity of the well-conducted even briefly. Speech is exalted: speak truth that benefits; if truth only harms, keep silence; and prefer beneficial words even when unpleasant. The chapter ends with dharma’s aim—paropakāra by deed, mind, and speech—presenting sadācāra as the lived path that protects beings and stabilizes the world-order upheld by Viṣṇu.
Nāndīmukha-śrāddha (Prosperity Rites), Preta-kriyā, Aśauca, Ekoddiṣṭa, and Sapiṇḍīkaraṇa Framework
Parāśara teaches Maitreya the dharma of gṛhastha life: at a son’s birth the father bathes with garments on (sacaila-snāna), performs jātakarma, and offers the auspicious Nāndīmukha-śrāddha. He explains honoring dvijas in proper order and offering piṇḍas of curds, rice, and badara while facing east or north, thus pleasing the Nāndīmukha Pitṛs—commended for all occasions of increase such as weddings, house-entry, naming, tonsure, sīmanta, and a child’s first sight. The teaching then turns to rites for the departed: bathing and adorning the body, cremation, post-cremation bathing, south-facing water-libations (tilodaka), restrained conduct, daily piṇḍa for the preta, brāhmaṇa-feeding on prescribed days, and special tilodaka on the 1st/3rd/7th/9th days. On the fourth day, collecting ashes and bones marks a shift in restrictions among sapiṇḍas. Parāśara sets aśauca periods by varṇa, describes ekoddiṣṭa (a single arghya/pavitraka, without deities) to be observed for a year, and introduces sapiṇḍīkaraṇa: merging the preta vessel into three pitṛ vessels to admit the departed into ancestorhood. He concludes with rules of who may perform (sons first, then wider kin including maternal relations, even women/community, and the king’s duty when lineages end) and classifies rites as pūrva, madhyama, and uttara.
Śrāddha’s Cosmic Reach and Kāla-Nirṇaya (Sacred Timings): Amāvāsyā, Nakṣatra-Yoga, Tīrtha, and Minimum Offerings
Parāśara teaches Maitreya that śrāddha done with śraddhā satisfies not only the Pitṛs but also gods, ṛṣis, humans, animals, and even creeping life, since the rite participates in the all-pervading governance of Lord Viṣṇu. He then gives kāla-nirṇaya: proper occasions such as the monthly kṛṣṇa-caturdaśī/Amāvāsyā and aṣṭakā days, as well as vyatīpāta, ayana, equinoxes, eclipses, and auspicious planetary transits; and also optional/remedial śrāddhas for planetary afflictions, ominous dreams, and the new harvest. Certain Amāvāsyā combinations with specific yogas and nakṣatras grant long-lasting Pitṛ-satisfaction (for years, even up to yuga-scale), authorized by Sanatkumāra’s teaching to Ilā. He stresses that in special contexts even tilodaka (sesame-water) can be a complete śrāddha, and that bathing and worship at tīrthas—Gaṅgā, Śatadrū, Vipāśā, Sarasvatī, Naimiṣa-Gomatī—remove ancestral demerit. The Pitṛs’ own verses proclaim sincerity over wealth: if one cannot feed brāhmaṇas, grain, a small dakṣiṇā, or even a few sesame seeds offered with devotion suffice; in utter poverty, a humble forest-prayer with honest labor is given as the last resort—teaching bhāva as the true source of ritual fruit.
Pātra-Nirṇaya and Ritual Procedure: Who to Feed, Who to Avoid, and Step-by-Step Śrāddha Performance
Maitreya asks which qualities make brāhmaṇas fit recipients for śrāddha. Parāśara names the highest qualifications—mastery of Veda and vedāṅga, śrotriya discipline, yogic steadiness, and ritual excellence—and also acceptable categories such as the ṛtvij, sister’s son, daughter’s son, in‑laws, maternal uncle, ascetics (yati), pañcāgni practitioners, disciples, and those devoted to their parents. He then lists disqualifications: betrayal of friends, impurity, sexual misconduct, neglect of sacred fires or Veda, selling Soma, theft, malice, commercialized priestcraft, teaching for hire, and devalaka, warning to avoid anger, lust, and haste during the rite. The procedure is detailed: invite on day one; honor unexpected dvija/yati guests; follow seating rules (odd for Pitṛs, even for Devas); feed by direction (Devas east, Pitṛs north); offer arghya (barley‑water to Devas; sesame‑water apasavya to Pitṛs); make fire offerings to Agni Kavyavāhana, Soma, and Vaivasvata; recite protective mantras; meditate that the Pitṛs are present in the brāhmaṇa bodies; place piṇḍas on south‑tipped darbha near the remnants; give dakṣiṇā, recite Vaiśvadeva, and dismiss in proper order. It concludes with purifiers (dauhitra, kutapa time, tila), prohibitions (anger, travel, haste), and praise of yogic composure as especially potent in śrāddha.
श्राद्ध-योग्य द्रव्य, निषेध, तथा गयाश्राद्ध-माहात्म्य (Śrāddha Materials, Prohibitions, and the Glory of Gayā)
Parāśara teaches Maitreya the rules of śrāddha and consecrated food (haviṣya), urging restraint of appetite under dharma while noting meats permitted in certain special rites. He extols Gayā as a uniquely fruitful tīrtha for the satisfaction of the Pitṛs. The chapter lists śrāddha-suitable grains and produce, and details prohibitions: unsanctified first-fruits (agra-yāṇa), certain pulses, specific vegetables and condiments, red-tinted foods, resins, coarse salt, unsuitable water, and particular milks. Parāśara warns that impurity conditions (aśauca), menstrual/postpartum contexts, or impure attendees nullify the rite and divert its ‘consumption’ away from the Pitṛs. Faith (śraddhā), proper place, and protective measures such as scattering sesame to ward off obstructive forces are emphasized. It concludes that offerings given with faith, naming one’s lineage, become real sustenance for the Pitṛs, and introduces an ancestral gāthā linked to Ikṣvāku, expressing the wish for descendants who offer piṇḍa at Gayā.
नग्न-परिभाषा तथा देव-स्तोत्रपूर्वक मायामोह-उत्पत्ति (Defining ‘Nagna’ and the Devas’ Hymn Leading to Māyāmoha)
Parāśara concludes the sadācāra teaching attributed to Aurva for King Sagara and warns Maitreya that violating right conduct never yields true auspiciousness. Maitreya asks who is called ‘nagna’ (naked) and by what conduct. Parāśara replies that the true covering of the twice-born is the Vedic triad (Ṛg–Yajus–Sāman); abandoning it is real nakedness and sin. He then turns to an older transmission (Vasiṣṭha to Bhīṣma) and recounts a Deva–Asura war: the defeated Devas perform austerities on the northern shore of the Milk Ocean and sing a stotra to Viṣṇu, praising Him as the elements, inner faculties, deities, time, dissolution, and the transcendent cause beyond all qualifiers—the cause of causes. Pleased, Viṣṇu appears and, at their request, emanates Māyāmoha to delude the Daityas away from the Vedic path, making them vulnerable so cosmic order is restored.
मायामोह-प्रवर्तन, वेदमार्ग-बहिष्कार, तथा पाषण्ड-संसर्ग-दोषः (Māyāmoha’s Delusion, Rejection of the Vedic Path, and the Fault of Heretical Association)
Parāśara relates how Māyāmoha approaches the Daityas on the bank of the Narmadā, first disguised as an ascetic—sky-clad, shaven, and peacock-feathered—and later as a red-robed renunciant. With many-sided, persuasive arguments he draws them away from the Vedic trayi-dharma, spreading deliberate ambiguity by calling the same thing dharma and adharma, real and unreal. The Daityas abandon sadmārga and multiply heterodox creeds that denounce the Veda, the devas, yajña, and the dvijas; once they stray, the Devas renew the war and defeat them. Parāśara then defines ‘nagna’ as those who forsake the varṇāśrama order—such as taking illicit renunciation by skipping the proper stages—and who neglect nitya-karma, stressing the impurity incurred through intimacy, shared meals, and conversation, and warning that even their sight can obstruct śrāddha. To show the peril of pāṣaṇḍa-saṃbhāṣa, he recounts King Śatadhanu’s fall into animal births for speaking with a heretic while fasting, and his later purification through remembrance, dharmic living, and the Aśvamedha’s avabhṛtha bath. The chapter concludes by enjoining strict avoidance of pāṣaṇḍins—especially during rites—to safeguard merit and the efficacy of dharma.
Amsha 3 explains the Manvantara framework of cosmic governance—Manu, Indra, deva-gaṇas, Saptarṣis, and royal lineages—across fourteen Manvantaras, and then describes how Viṣṇu repeatedly becomes Vedavyāsa to divide and preserve the Veda in recurring Dvāpara ages.
It presents Viṣṇu as the all-pervading reality whose śakti sustains the worlds, and explicitly declares that all offices—devas, Manus, Saptarṣis, Manu’s sons, and Indra—are Viṣṇu’s vibhūtis. Viṣṇu is thus both the immanent ground and the governing intelligence behind cosmic order.
There are fourteen Manvantaras in a kalpa; when these are completed, the kalpa reaches its full measure (connected with a thousand yuga-cycles), followed by a night of equal duration and cosmic dissolution before creation resumes.
Because the entire universe is ‘entered’ and pervaded by His power; the name is derived from the root viś (“to enter/pervade”), indicating His all-pervasive immanence.