Listen, O sage, as I recount the unfolding of cosmic ages and the succession of Manus, Indras, gods, sages, and kings who uphold the order of the world. In the twelfth Manvantara, Sāvarṇi, born of Rudra, will be the Manu, and Ṛtudhāmā will preside as Indra. The gods of that era will be five groups—Haritā, Rohitā, Sumanasas, Sukarmāṇas, and Surāpās—each group consisting of ten deities. The seven sages will be Tapasvī, Sutapas, Tapomūrti, Taporati, Tapodhṛti, Dyuti, and Tapodhana. As for the sons of Sāvarṇi Manu, they will be mighty kings: Devavān, Upadeva, Devaśreṣṭha, and others. After Sāvarṇi, the thirteenth Manu will be named Ruci. In his period, the gods will be the Sutrāmāṇas, Sukarmāṇas, Sudharmāṇas, and Amarās, forming thirty-threefold groups. Among them, the lord of the day, powerful and radiant, will be Indra. The seven sages of this era will be those who are free from delusion, seers of truth, unshakable, without longing, steadfast, and imperishable, with Sutapa as the seventh. The sons of Ruci Manu will be rulers such as Citrasena, Vicitra, and others. Then, O Maitreya, comes the fourteenth Manvantara, with Manu himself as the Manu, pure Indra as the king of gods, and five groups of deities: the Cākṣuṣas, Pavitras, Kaniṣṭhas, Bhrājikas, and Vācavṛddha. The seven sages will be Agnibāhu, Śuci, Śukra, Māgadha, Ognīdhra, Yukta, and Jita. The sons of this Manu—Ūruga, Gambhīra, Buddhi, and others—will rule the earth as has been described. At the close of each cycle of four ages, confusion arises in the Vedas. At this time, the seven sages descend from heaven to earth, restoring the sacred knowledge and setting the Vedas in motion once more. At the beginning of each cycle, Manu is born as the lawgiver, and the gods who receive the offerings of sacrifice remain throughout that Manvantara. The sons of Manu and their descendants protect the earth for as long as they endure, maintaining the world’s order. Thus, in every Manvantara, there exist Manu, the seven sages, the gods, the kings who are Manu’s sons, and Indra as their chief. When fourteen Manvantaras pass, O twice-born, a complete Kalpa is said to have elapsed, equal to a thousand ages. The night of the same duration follows, during which Brahmā, assuming the form of Śeṣa, sleeps in the flood of waters. The blessed Lord, Janārdana, the source of all beings, abides in his own Māyā, having swallowed the three worlds, and remains. When the Blessed Lord awakens, he, the imperishable one endowed with passion, creates the world anew in each Kalpa, just as before. The Manus, rulers of the earth, Indras, gods, and seven sages are the sattvic portions that maintain the world. That very Viṣṇu, whose activity is the preservation of the world, establishes the order of the four ages. In the Kṛta age, Viṣṇu assumes the form of Kapila and others, bestowing supreme knowledge for the welfare of all beings. In the Treta age, he protects the three worlds as a universal emperor, subduing the wicked. In Dvapara, he takes the form of Vyasa, dividing the single Veda into four and multiplying it into hundreds of branches. At the end of Kali, Hari appears as Kalki, establishing the proper path for those of bad conduct. Thus, the infinite Self eternally protects, creates, and destroys the world; nothing surpasses him. The existence of all beings—past, present, and future—of the great soul has been described to you here and elsewhere. I have told you of all the Manvantaras and their rulers; what else would you like to hear, O Maitreya? Maitreya replied, “From you I have learned that all this world is Viṣṇu, in Viṣṇu, and from Viṣṇu; nothing exists beyond him. I wish to hear how the great soul, in the form of Vyasa, divides the Vedas in every age. In each age, who was Vyasa, O great sage? Tell me about each, and also about the divisions of the branches.” Śrī Parāśara answered, “O Maitreya, the divisions of the Veda and its branches are countless and beyond full description. Listen to them in brief. In every Dvapara, Viṣṇu, in the form of Vyasa, divides the single Veda into many for the welfare of the world. Seeing the diminished strength, energy, and power of humans, he divides the Vedas for the benefit of all beings. By whatever body he undertakes this division, that form of the enemy of Madhu is called Vedavyasa. In each Manvantara, there are Vyasas; learn from me who they are, and how the divisions of the branches are made by Vyasa. The Veda has been divided twenty-eight times by sages in the Dvapara ages of the Vaivasvata Manvantara, again and again. The twenty-eight past Vedavyasas, by whom the Veda was divided into four in each Dvapara, are as follows…” Thus, the cycle of ages, the succession of Manus, Indras, gods, sages, kings, and the division of the Vedas by Vyasa, all unfold under the eternal protection and guidance of the infinite Lord, who is the source and sustainer of all creation.