From the past week, we have been discussing the wonderful creations of our Creator through Swayambhu Manu and Satyarupa—the Avataar of Sage Kashyapa and Aditi.
After Lord Vishnu had completed instructing the saintly couple, Swayambhu Manu and Satyarupa said, “My Lord, with great humility, we lay yet another prayer at your Lotus Feet. Since the soul in every human being is a reflection of your consciousness, grant us the great blessing of bearing You as our child.”
Smiling benevolently at them, Lord Vishnu said, “May it be so—tathastu.” In the Treta Yuga, the second epoch of creation, you will take birth as King Dasharatha and Queen Kausalya and I will be born as your son, Rama. In the Dwapara Yuga, the third epoch, when you incarnate as King Vasudeva and Queen Devaki, I will grace your family as Krishna.”
Overjoyed with this boon, Swayambhu Manu and Satyarupa commenced their task on Earth. Thus began the Satya Yuga, which is the first epoch of creation and the first manvantara called the Swayambhu Manu Manvantara. We are at present in the seventh manvantara called the Vaivaswata Manvantara.
Having assimilated this divine wisdom of Lord Vishnu, Sage Kashyapa immediately composed fifteen Sutras that contain the ethical and spiritual principles of how to conduct a human life. In Sanskrit this is called ‘Manava Dharma’. When these Sutras are implemented conscientiously, they have the power to transform a human life into a divine life.
“Su” means excellent, magnificent, great, very pure, beautiful or blissful. “Tra” is that which churns or generates from within. “Sutra” is an excellent formula, a small phrase or a sentence which contains the truth of the whole Cosmos in itself.
While Kashyapa Sutras are known to very few, there is another well known treatise that has also been attributed to Swayambhu Manu. This is the Manu Samhita, which is a group of laws and creeds set forth based on the philosophy of Sanatana Dharma.
It is the first and the foremost among the Eastern Scriptures classified as “Smriti” or “those which are in the written form”.
This is also the most important record of the traditions that were followed in the ancient order of society set up by Sanatana Dharma. Many records say that this precedes later schools of philosophy like Monism, Dualism and Dualistic Monism.
Some philosophers date Manu Samhita nearly thirty million years ago, while others say that it belonged to the 5th Century B.C.
It is said to have consisted originally of about a hundred thousand verses arranged in twenty-four chapters. It is believed that Sage Narada shortened it to about twelve thousand verses and that Sage Sumati modified it to about four thousand verses.
In its present form it contains only two thousand, six hundred and eighty verses.
This code of Manu is the very foundation of the law of Sanatana Dharma and is held in great reverence even today.
ashram-india@ shrinimishamba.org