Shloka 23

Origins of the Maruts — Origins of the Maruts Across the Manvantaras (Pulastya–Narada Dialogue)

Devanagari script

तानादाय वियच्चारी मारुतानादिदेश ह ते त्वासन् मरुतस्त्वाद्या मनोः स्वायंभुवे ऽन्तरे

Transliteration

tānādāya viyaccārī mārutānādideśa ha te tvāsan marutastvādyā manoḥ svāyaṃbhuve 'ntare

Translation

“Taking them up, the sky-ranging (Brahmā) appointed those Maruts. And those were indeed the first Maruts, within the Manvantara of Svāyambhuva Manu.”

Speakers

• Narrator continuing the cosmogonic account (addressed to Nārada in the broader frame).

Primary Deities

• Brahmā
• Svāyambhuva Manu
• Maruts

Key Themes

• Manvantara chronology
• Classification of divine hosts across cosmic ages
• Purāṇic harmonization of Vedic deities

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

What is meant by ‘within Svāyambhuva Manu’s Manvantara’?

A Manvantara is a cosmic epoch presided over by a Manu. Svāyambhuva is the first Manu in standard Purāṇic lists. The verse locates this particular Marut-group as belonging to that first epoch, implying that later Manvantaras have different sets of Maruts.

Why do Purāṇas speak of multiple ‘sets’ of Maruts?

Purāṇic cosmology is cyclical and administrative: each Manvantara has its own Indra, sages, and divine groups (including Maruts). This allows the tradition to preserve Vedic deity-names while distributing them across repeating cosmic cycles.

Who is the ‘viyat-cārī’ here—Brahmā or the Maruts?

Grammatically it can describe a sky-moving agent; contextually, the one who ‘takes them’ and ‘appoints’ them is Brahmā. The epithet underscores his cosmic reach, though the Maruts themselves are also ‘sky-ranging’ by nature.