Adhyaya 53 — The Great Flood
द्विपञ्चाशत्तथान्यानि सहस्राण्यधिकानि च ।
स्वायम्भुवो मनुः पूर्वं मनुः स्वारोचिषस्तथा ॥
dvipañcāśat tathānyāni sahasrāṇy adhikāni ca | svāyambhuvo manuḥ pūrvaṃ manuḥ svārociṣas tathā
ಇದಕ್ಕೆ ಹೆಚ್ಚಾಗಿ ಐವತ್ತೆರಡು ಸಾವಿರ. ಮೊದಲನೆಯವರು ಸ್ವಾಯಂಭುವ ಮನು; ಹಾಗೆಯೇ (ಮುಂದೆ) ಸ್ವಾರೋಚಿಷ ಮನು.
Orderly succession of Manus frames history as governed rather than random; dharma is renewed through designated stewards of each epoch.
Manvantara: identification of successive Manus, the defining feature of each epoch.
Manu represents archetypal ‘mind/law’: successive Manus can be read as successive modes by which cosmic intelligence structures experience.