Shloka 7
मन्वन्तर-क्रमः (अतीत-सप्तमन्वन्तराः) तथा मन्वन्तरावताराः
षड् एते मनवो ऽतीताः साम्प्रतं तु रवेः सुतः वैवस्वतो ऽयं यस्यैतत् सप्तमं वर्तते ऽन्तरम्
ṣaḍ ete manavo 'tītāḥ sāmprataṃ tu raveḥ sutaḥ vaivasvato 'yaṃ yasyaitat saptamaṃ vartate 'ntaram
Six Manus have already passed. Now, in the present age, the son of the Sun—Vaivasvata Manu—presides; and this period of his is the seventh Manvantara now unfolding.
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Creation Stage: Manvantara
Manvantara: Vaivasvata
Concept: We are situated within the seventh Manvantara, ruled by Vaivasvata Manu, after six have elapsed.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Use the Purana’s time-map to contextualize history and ethics: practice dharma as appropriate to one’s era while honoring timeless principles.
Vishishtadvaita: Temporal succession (kāla) is a real mode of the Lord’s governance; the present Manvantara is part of His ordered administration.
FAQs
This verse identifies the current cosmic era as the seventh Manvantara, ruled by Vaivasvata Manu, establishing where we are situated within the Vishnu Purana’s time-cycle framework.
Parāśara frames history as a sequence of Manu-led periods: six have elapsed, and the present administration belongs to Vaivasvata, marking the seventh interval now in progress.
Even when not named in the verse, the Manvantara structure functions as Vishnu’s ordered governance of time—cosmic continuity and dharma unfold through these divinely sustained eras.