The System of Universal Management
VERSE 8.14.1
śrī-rājovāca
manvantareṣu bhagavan
yathā manv-ādayas tv ime
yasmin karmaṇi ye yena
niyuktās tad vadasva me
SYNONYMS
śrī-rājā uvāca — King Parīkṣit said; manvantareṣu — in the reign of each Manu; bhagavan — O great sage; yathā — as; manu-ādayaḥ — the Manus and others; tu — but; ime — these; yasmin — in which; karmaṇi — activities; ye — which persons; yena — by whom; niyuktāḥ — appointed; tat — that; vadasva — kindly describe; me — to me.
TRANSLATION
Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired: O most opulent Śukadeva Gosvāmī, please explain to me how Manu and the others in each manvantara are engaged in their respective duties, and by whose order they are so engaged.
VERSE 8.14.2
śrī-ṛṣir uvāca
manavo manu-putrāś ca
munayaś ca mahī-pate
indrāḥ sura-gaṇāś caiva
sarve puruṣa-śāsanāḥ
SYNONYMS
śrī-ṛṣiḥ uvāca — Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said; manavaḥ — all the Manus; manu-putrāḥ — all the sons of Manu; ca — and; munayaḥ — all the great sages; ca — and; mahī-pate — O King; indrāḥ — all the Indras; sura-gaṇāḥ — the demigods; ca — and; eva — certainly; sarve — all of them; puruṣa-śāsanāḥ — under the rule of the Supreme person.
TRANSLATION
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: The Manus, the sons of Manu, the great sages, the Indras and all the demigods, O King, are appointed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His various incarnations such as Yajña.
VERSE 8.14.3
yajñādayo yāḥ kathitāḥ
pauruṣyas tanavo nṛpa
manv-ādayo jagad-yātrāṁ
nayanty ābhiḥ pracoditāḥ
SYNONYMS
yajña-ādayaḥ — the Lord’s incarnation known as Yajña and others; yāḥ — who; kathitāḥ — already spoken of; pauruṣyaḥ — of the Supreme Person; tanavaḥ — incarnations; nṛpa — O King; manu-ādayaḥ — the Manus and others; jagat-yātrām — universal affairs; nayanti — conduct; ābhiḥ — by the incarnations; pracoditāḥ — being inspired.
TRANSLATION
O King, I have already described to you various incarnations of the Lord, such as Yajña. The Manus and others are chosen by these incarnations, under whose direction they conduct the universal affairs.
VERSE 8.14.4
catur-yugānte kālena
grastāñ chruti-gaṇān yathā
tapasā ṛṣayo ’paśyan
yato dharmaḥ sanātanaḥ
SYNONYMS
catuḥ-yuga-ante — at the end of every four yugas (Satya, Dvāpara, Tretā and Kali); kālena — in due course of time; grastān — lost; śruti-gaṇān — the Vedic instruction; yathā — as; tapasā — by austerity; ṛṣayaḥ — great saintly persons; apaśyan — by seeing misuse; yataḥ — wherefrom; dharmaḥ — occupational duties; sanātanaḥ — eternal.
TRANSLATION
At the end of every four yugas, the great saintly persons, upon seeing that the eternal occupational duties of mankind have been misused, reestablish the principles of religion.
VERSE 8.14.5
tato dharmaṁ catuṣpādaṁ
manavo hariṇoditāḥ
yuktāḥ sañcārayanty addhā
sve sve kāle mahīṁ nṛpa
SYNONYMS
tataḥ — thereafter (at the end of Kali-yuga); dharmam — the religious principle; catuḥ-pādam — in four parts; manavaḥ — all the Manus; hariṇā — by the Supreme Personality of Godhead; uditāḥ — being instructed; yuktāḥ — being engaged; sañcārayanti — reestablish; addhā — directly; sve sve — in their own; kāle — time; mahīm — within this world; nṛpa — O King.
TRANSLATION
Thereafter, O King, the Manus, being fully engaged according to the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, directly reestablish the principles of occupational duty in its full four parts.
VERSE 8.14.6
pālayanti prajā-pālā
yāvad antaṁ vibhāgaśaḥ
yajña-bhāga-bhujo devā
ye ca tatrānvitāś ca taiḥ
SYNONYMS
pālayanti — execute the order; prajā-pālāḥ — the rulers of the world, namely the sons and grandsons of Manu; yāvat antam — unto the end of Manu’s reign; vibhāgaśaḥ — in divisions; yajña-bhāga-bhujaḥ — the enjoyers of the result of yajñas; devāḥ — the demigods; ye — others; ca — also; tatra anvitāḥ — engaged in that business; ca — also; taiḥ — by them.
TRANSLATION
To enjoy the results of sacrifices [yajñas], the rulers of the world, namely the sons and grandsons of Manu, discharge the orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead until the end of Manu’s reign. The demigods also share the results of these sacrifices.
VERSE 8.14.7
indro bhagavatā dattāṁ
trailokya-śriyam ūrjitām
bhuñjānaḥ pāti lokāṁs trīn
kāmaṁ loke pravarṣati
SYNONYMS
indraḥ — the King of heaven; bhagavatā — by the Supreme Personality of Godhead; dattām — given; trailokya — of the three worlds; śriyam ūrjitām — the great opulences; bhuñjānaḥ — enjoying; pāti — maintains; lokān — all the planets; trīn — within the three worlds; kāmam — as much as necessary; loke — within the world; pravarṣati — pours rain.
TRANSLATION
Indra, King of heaven, receiving benedictions from the Supreme Personality of Godhead and thus enjoying highly developed opulences, maintains the living entities all over the three worlds by pouring sufficient rain on all the planets.
VERSE 8.14.8
jñānaṁ cānuyugaṁ brūte
hariḥ siddha-svarūpa-dhṛk
ṛṣi-rūpa-dharaḥ karma
yogaṁ yogeśa-rūpa-dhṛk
SYNONYMS
jñānam — transcendental knowledge; ca — and; anuyugam — according to the age; brūte — explains; hariḥ — the Supreme Personality of Godhead; siddha-svarūpa-dhṛk — assuming the form of liberated persons like Sanaka and Sanātana; ṛṣi-rūpa-dharaḥ — assuming the form of great saintly persons like Yājñavalkya; karma — karma; yogam — the mystic yoga system; yoga-īśa-rūpa-dhṛk — by assuming the form of a great yogī like Dattātreya.
TRANSLATION
In every yuga, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, assumes the form of Siddhas such as Sanaka to preach transcendental knowledge, He assumes the form of great saintly persons such as Yājñavalkya to teach the way of karma, and He assumes the form of great yogīs such as Dattātreya to teach the system of mystic yoga.
VERSE 8.14.9
sargaṁ prajeśa-rūpeṇa
dasyūn hanyāt svarāḍ-vapuḥ
kāla-rūpeṇa sarveṣām
abhāvāya pṛthag guṇaḥ
SYNONYMS
sargam — creation of progeny; prajā-īśa-rūpeṇa — in the form of the Prajāpati Marīci and others; dasyūn — thieves and rogues; hanyāt — kills; sva-rāṭ-vapuḥ — in the form of the king; kāla-rūpeṇa — in the form of time; sarveṣām — of everything; abhāvāya — for the annihilation; pṛthak — different; guṇaḥ — possessing qualities.
TRANSLATION
In the form of Prajāpati Marīci, the Supreme Personality of Godhead creates progeny; becoming the king, He kills the thieves and rogues; and in the form of time, He annihilates everything. All the different qualities of material existence should be understood to be qualities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
VERSE 8.14.10
stūyamāno janair ebhir
māyayā nāma-rūpayā
vimohitātmabhir nānā-
darśanair na ca dṛśyate
SYNONYMS
stūyamānaḥ — being sought; janaiḥ — by people in general; ebhiḥ — by all of them; māyayā — under the influence of māyā; nāma-rūpayā — possessing different names and forms; vimohita — bewildered; ātmabhiḥ — by illusion; nānā — various; darśanaiḥ — by philosophical approaches; na — not; ca — and; dṛśyate — the Supreme Personality of Godhead can be found.
TRANSLATION
People in general are bewildered by the illusory energy, and therefore they try to find the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, through various types of research and philosophical speculation. Nonetheless, they are unable to see the Supreme Lord.
VERSE 8.14.11
etat kalpa-vikalpasya
pramāṇaṁ parikīrtitam
yatra manvantarāṇy āhuś
caturdaśa purāvidaḥ
SYNONYMS
etat — all these; kalpa — in one day of Lord Brahmā; vikalpasya — of the changes in a kalpa, such as the change of Manus; pramāṇam — evidences; parikīrtitam — described (by me); yatra — wherein; manvantarāṇi — periods of Manu; āhuḥ — said; caturdaśa — fourteen; purā-vidaḥ — learned scholars.
TRANSLATION
In one kalpa, or one day of Brahmā, there take place the many changes called vikalpas. O King, all of these have been previously described to you by me. Learned scholars who know the past, present and future have ascertained that in one day of Brahmā there are fourteen Manus.