When the Blessed Lord awakens from his cosmic slumber, the cycle of existence begins anew. Just as in ages past, so again does the imperishable one, endowed with the power of passion, set about creating the world at the dawn of each Kalpa. In this act of creation, certain beings arise—Manus, rulers of the earth, Indras, gods, and the seven sages—who are the luminous, sattvic portions that uphold and sustain the world, O best of the twice-born. It is that very Viṣṇu, whose divine purpose is the preservation of all, who establishes the order of the four great ages. Listen, O Maitreya, to how he manifests in each Yuga for the welfare of beings. In the Kṛta age, he assumes the form of Kapila and others—embodiments of supreme knowledge—offering wisdom to all and seeking the good of every soul. In the Treta age, the Lord takes the form of a universal emperor, protecting the three worlds and subduing those who turn to wickedness. In Dvapara, the mighty one appears as Vyasa. He divides the single, vast Veda into four, multiplying it into hundreds of branches so that knowledge may be preserved and accessible. Then, at the end of Kali, Hari himself descends as Kalki, reestablishing the path for those who have strayed from righteousness. Thus, the infinite Self is eternally engaged in the protection, creation, and dissolution of the world. Nothing is greater than him. O sage, I have described to you the existence of all beings—past, present, and future—born of the great soul, here and elsewhere. I have told you of all the Manvantaras and their rulers. What else would you wish to hear? Maitreya replied with reverence: “From you I have learned how all this world is Viṣṇu, in Viṣṇu, and from Viṣṇu—nothing exists beyond him. Yet I wish to hear more: how does the great soul, in the form of Vyasa, divide the Vedas in every age? Who was Vyasa in each age, O great sage? Tell me of each, and of the divisions of the Vedic branches.” Śrī Parāśara responded: “O Maitreya, the divisions of the Veda and its branches are countless; I cannot relate them all in detail, but listen to a summary. In every Dvapara age, Viṣṇu, as Vyasa, divides the single Veda into many parts for the welfare of the world. Observing that humans’ strength, energy, and power have diminished, he thus makes the Vedas more accessible. Whichever form he assumes to divide the Veda, that form of the enemy of Madhu is called Vedavyasa. In each Manvantara, there are Vyasas; listen as I tell you who they are and how they divided the branches. The Veda has been divided twenty-eight times by great sages in the Dvapara ages of the present Vaivasvata Manvantara. The twenty-eight ancient Vedavyasas, who divided the Veda into four in each Dvapara, are as follows: In the first Dvapara, Svayambhu divided the Veda; in the second, it was Prajapati; in the third, Ushanas; in the fourth, Brihaspati; Savita in the fifth; Mrityu, the Lord, in the sixth. In the seventh, Indra is remembered; in the eighth, Vasishtha; in the ninth, Sarasvata; in the tenth, Tridhama. The eleventh is Trishikha; after him, Bharadvaja; the thirteenth is Antariksha; the fourteenth, Varni. The fifteenth is Trayyaruna; the sixteenth, Dhananjaya; the seventeenth, Kratumjaya; and after him, Jaya. Then comes Vyasa, son of Bharadvaja; from Bharadvaja, Gautama; from Gautama, the next Vyasa, known as Haryatma. After Haryatma, the sage Vajashrava is remembered; from him, Somashushkayana; from him, Trinabindu. From Riksha, Bhudbhargava; from him, Valmiki; from him, my father Shakti; and from Vyasa, I myself, O sage. From me came Jatukarna; after him, Krishnadvaipayana. Thus, these twenty-eight ancient compilers of the Veda are known. Each of these divided the single Veda into four during Dvapara and other ages. In the future Dvapara, Drauṇi will become Vyasa, following my son Krishnadvaipayana. Know that the one-syllabled Brahman is established as ‘Om’; due to its greatness and capacity to expand, it is called Brahman. The eternal Pranava is established as ‘bhūḥ’, ‘bhuvaḥ’, and ‘svaḥ’; to that Brahman, which is the essence of the Ṛg, Yajus, Sāma, and Atharva Vedas, I offer my reverence. That which is called the cause of creation and dissolution, the supreme and most secret beyond the great, to that sublime Brahman I bow. This unfathomable, boundless, imperishable abode, which bewilders the world and whose own light and activity fulfill all human pursuits, is the foundation for those who know Sāṃkhya and the path for the self-controlled. That imperceptible, immortal, eternal Brahman is the source of all activity, called the primordial substance and the source of the self, residing in the cave of the heart—undivided, pure, imperishable, and manifold in nature. To that supreme Brahman, which is the true form of Vāsudeva, the Supreme Self, I offer constant reverence. This Brahman, the Lord, is threefold in distinction and yet undivided; in all distinctions, it remains whole, but appears divided to those with divided understanding. He is composed of Ṛg, Sāma, and Yajus, the very essence of all; he is the soul of Ṛg, Yajus, and Sāma, and the self of all embodied beings.