Who was the first person on Earth according to Hindu mythology?

According to Matsyapurana, the first person on this Earth is Manu. The Sanskrit term Maanav meaning a human was derived from the name Manu denoting his children. Manu was the son of Prajapati (another name of Brahma) and Shatrupa (another name of Saraswati). God created Ananti as the wife of Manu. These two are said to be the parents of this world according to Hindu Mythology.

Manu and Manvantara

Manu is considered the author of ancient Sanskrit code of law called Manu Smriti. Manu is the head of each Kalpa (Aeon), which consists of fourteen Manvantaraas. Each Manvantara lasts for the lifetime of a Manu and hence there are 14 different Manus such as Swayambhu Manu, Svarochisha Manu, Uttama Manu, Tapasa Manu, Raivata Manu, Chakshusha Manu, Vaivasvata Manu, Savarni Manu, Daksha Savarni Manu, Brahma Savarni Manu, Dharma Savarni Manu, Rudra Savarni Manu, Deva Savarni Manu and Indra Savarni Manu heading 14 Manvantaras respectively.

Each Manvantara contains nearly 306,720,000 years. After these 14 Manvantaras, that particular Kalpa ends. Each Kalpa is nearly equal to 4.32 billion years. There are many kalpas while the name of the present Kalpa is Bhadra Kalpa, the previous Kalpa is Vyuhakalpa and the next one will be Nakshatrakalpa.

Vaivasvata Manvantara

The present Manvantara is the seventh one and is called as Vaivasvata Manvantara after its ruler Vaivasvata Manu. According to Vishnu Purana, Vaivasvata Manu who is also called as Sraddhadeva or Satyavrata. Vaivasvata Manu, his family and the seven sages (saptarishis) along with the four Vedas are saved by Matsya avatar of Lord Vishnu from the great flood or Pralaya. This is the end of all the life forms but not entire Universe. Later on, Vishnu made Vaivasvata Manu as the ruler of this Manvantara.

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Published on 22-Jan-2019 10:41:22

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