Adhyaya 53 — Rudrasarga and the Measure of the Manvantaras: Svayambhuva Manu, Priyavrata’s Line, and the Seven Dvipas
तस्मिन् राज्यं समावेश्य भरतोऽपि वनं ययौ ।
एतेषां पुत्रपौत्रैस्तु सप्तद्वीपा वसुन्धरा ॥
tasmin rājyaṃ samāveśya bharato 'pi vanaṃ yayau |
eteṣāṃ putra-pautrais tu saptadvīpā vasundharā ||
Habiéndolo establecido en el reino, Bharata también se internó en el bosque. Y por los hijos y nietos de estos reyes, la tierra con sus siete continentes llegó a ser gobernada y disfrutada.
A model of righteous transition: one should secure orderly succession and then detach—showing that power is a trust to be handed on, not a possession to cling to.
Vaṃśānucarita with cosmographic linkage: dynastic continuity is presented as the mechanism by which the ‘seven-dvīpa’ world-order is administered.
The move from throne to forest symbolizes the inward journey: sovereignty over ‘seven dvīpas’ mirrors mastery over the many ‘regions’ of the self, culminating in withdrawal (nivṛtti).