Shloka 57
कलियुग-प्रवृत्तिः, सप्तर्षि-गणना, धरणीगीताः, च वंश-समाप्तिः
Kali-yuga onset, Saptarṣi reckoning, Dharaṇī-gītā, and closure of the dynastic account
इत्य् एष कथितः सम्यङ् मनोर् वंशो मया तव यत्र स्थितिप्रवृत्तस्य विष्णोर् अंशांशका नृपाः
ity eṣa kathitaḥ samyaṅ manor vaṃśo mayā tava yatra sthitipravṛttasya viṣṇor aṃśāṃśakā nṛpāḥ
Thus I have accurately recounted to you the lineage of Manu—that royal succession in which the kings are but portions of portions of Vishnu, the Lord who sustains the world and sets its order in motion.
Sage Parāśara (speaking to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Completion of the account of Manu’s lineage and its theological grounding in Viṣṇu as sustainer.
Teaching: Genealogical
Quality: authoritative and doctrinal
Concept: Royal authority is legitimate only as a derivative portion of Viṣṇu, the sustainer who maintains and impels worldly order (sthiti-pravṛtti).
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Treat leadership, talent, and power as entrusted by the Divine; exercise them as service, not possession.
Vishishtadvaita: The world’s governance proceeds from Viṣṇu’s immanence (antaryāmitva) while He remains the transcendent cause—kings act as dependent modes/parts under His sovereignty.
Vishnu Form: Narayana (cosmic)
Antaryamin: Yes
Jagat Karana: Yes
FAQs
It functions as a sacred genealogy that frames political history as dharmic order, presenting royal succession as part of the cosmic governance upheld by Vishnu.
Parāśara states that the kings in this lineage are aṁśāṁśa—partial manifestations—of Vishnu, implying that legitimate sovereignty reflects divine preservation and ordered activity in the world.
Vishnu is affirmed as the supreme sustaining reality behind worldly stability and rightful rule, with kings depicted as derivative expressions of his preserving power.