Chakshusha Manu: The Sixth Manvantara

A. Royden D'souza
Nov 14
5 min read

Very Late Satya (Krita Yuga)/Very Early Treta Yuga

When the Raivata Manvantara came to its serene and quiet end, the gentle radiance of the Abhūtarajasas faded, the Saptarṣis of that era withdrew into subtle realms, and Viṣṇu’s manifestation Vaikuṇṭha dissolved like a whisper into the endless stillness.

The cosmos inhaled. A heavier wind moved through creation. Another turning of the great wheel approached—one marked by instability, subtle imbalance, and the foreshadowing of a coming dissolution.

The Origin of Chakshusha

Chakshusha did not come from the line of Priyavrata, unlike the previous Manus. He came from the lineage of the Cakṣus, a race of semi-divine visionaries who were said to be born of the eye of Brahmā, hence the name:

Cākṣuṣa = “He who is of the Eye,”or “He who sees with the cosmic vision.”

His birth was unusual. His mother dreamt of a vast celestial eye opening in the sky, releasing a beam of pure clarity that struck her heart. When he was born, his eyes shone like deep amber, reflecting things beyond the physical world.

The sages whispered:

“This child sees the hidden currents of the world.”

He grew into a calm, tall youth with a penetrating gaze, not harsh, but absolutely truthful. A glance from him felt like a question: Do you see clearly? For clarity was his nature.

The Choosing of Cākṣuṣa

As the Fifth Manvantara ended, the gods tested him.

Test of Sight: They placed before him an illusion, a beautiful celestial palace with perfect symmetry. Most would be deceived. Cākṣuṣa said, “This is hollow. I see no life-source within.” The illusion dissolved instantly.

Test of Compassion: They brought him a wounded Asura child, a trick to test his impartiality. He healed the child without hesitation. “Vision without compassion,” he said, “becomes cruelty.”

Test of Steadiness: The earth was shaken under him; the sky roared; the winds shrieked. Cākṣuṣa stood, unmoving, as though his feet were roots reaching into the cosmos.

The Devas bowed. Thus Cākṣuṣa became the Sixth Manu, the lord of the manvantara preceding our own.

The Cākṣuṣa Manvantara Begins

The universe reshaped itself once more. This was an era of increasing turbulence. Light and shadow clashed in new ways, and the cosmic balance required a firm but sensitive hand.

The Devas of This Era, The Apyas: The gods of this age were the Apyas, beings with fluid brilliance like rippling water. Their movements were graceful, their bodies shimmering blue-white like moonlit rivers.

They excelled in healing, purification, and elemental harmony.

Indra of This Era, Manojava: The king of the gods was Indra Manojava (also called Manojapa, Manoja, and Camumān in variants).

The name means:

“He who moves with the speed of thought.”

Manojava was swift, sharp-minded, and deeply intuitive, a perfect complement to a Manu of vision.

The Seven Sages: The Saptarṣis of this era were: Havishmān, Prāṇa, Dāksha, Tapasvī, Sutapa, Jyotiṣmān, and Haviṣmat (with slight variations in different Purāṇas).

They became pillars of discipline in a world that was slowly losing stability.

Rising Chaos and the Asura Strain

During Cākṣuṣa’s reign, the world began to show signs of instability.

Rivers swelled beyond measure.
Sages reported disturbances in the sacrificial fires.
Seasons began slipping out of order.

The Daityas and Dānavas, long held back in previous ages, re-emerged with new cunning. They wielded psychic manipulation, bending minds and thoughts.

The Apyas Devas, fluid but not forceful, were intimidated. Indra Manojava fought swiftly, but the Asuras’ mental assaults disrupted even his clarity.

The worlds grew anxious. Whenever mental darkness obscures Dharma, Viṣṇu intervenes.

Viṣṇu’s Avatar: Aja (Ajita)

In this manvantara, Viṣṇu manifested as Ajita (“the Unconquered”)— also called Aja, the unborn one. He appeared not as a warrior, but as a radiant celestial shepherd, with eyes that seemed to hold the memory of cosmic dawn.

His glow was gentle, yet no darkness could survive it. Ajita descended among the Apyas, and with his soft voice alone, dispelled the psychic fog cast by the Asuras.

The Asuras of the underworld rose together, three warlords hardened by terrifying austerities, their minds sharpened like blades in the dark.

The first unleashed a storm of illusions: phantoms twisting the sky, forms that flickered between fear and desire. Ajita smiled gently, and the illusions crumbled like rotted cloth before the dawn of His presence.

The second, swollen with dual fury, charged with two mouths roaring contradictory truths, a cacophony meant to split the minds of gods. Ajita lifted His hand, and both voices fell silent, as though swallowed by a boundless calm.

The third summoned fire born of corrupted tapas, a heat meant to unravel creation. Ajita received the blaze without flinching, absorbing its force into His cool, luminous form, as a mother draws away a child’s fever.

The Asuras’ strength collapsed. Their minds cleared of their self-made storms. They retreated into the deeper caverns of Rasātala, stripped of the arrogance that had twisted their power.

Peace returned. The Apyas regained their fluid clarity. Indra Manojava found his certainty restored. The three worlds breathed again.

Cākṣuṣa’s Age of Watchfulness and Decline

Unlike earlier eras that moved in harmony, the Cākṣuṣa age was a period of gradual deterioration. Cākṣuṣa ruled wisely, but the universe itself was preparing for a great event —the flood that would someday sweep away his era and lead to the rise of Vaivasvata Manu, our present Manu.

Cākṣuṣa fathered noble sons —Uru, Puru, Satadyumna, Tapasvī, Sutapas, and others (depending on Purāṇic variations).

He taught them vigilance, for his era was one where:

Disorder rose slowly.
Beings struggled to maintain clarity.
Dharma had to be continuously reinforced.

In this era occurred the early omens of the coming dissolution —earthquakes, massive rains, disruptions in cosmic rhythms. Cākṣuṣa spent much of his reign mitigating imbalance, like a king holding back tides with vision and wisdom.

The End of the Cākṣuṣa Age

As the manvantara neared its end, the cosmic waters began to stir. The sages reported that the Garbhodaka Ocean was swelling. Animals behaved strangely. Seers foresaw an era-ending deluge.

This was the age immediately preceding the famous Flood that births Vaivasvata Manu, the Seventh Manu — our current one.

But the flood had not yet arrived. That story belongs to the next era. Cākṣuṣa, seeing the signs, retired to the forests near the celestial Sarasvatī, where he meditated upon the cycles of creation and dissolution.

In the final twilight of his reign, he closed his eyes, and his vision — the very gift that had defined him —expanded until his form dissolved into pure sight, merging with the cosmic Eye.

Thus ended the sixth manvantara, and the universe turned toward the Seventh Manu — Vaivasvata, the survivor of the great cosmic Flood.

REFERENCES:

Bhāgavata Purāṇa

8.1.12 — Cākṣuṣa listed as the Sixth Manu; Apyas Devas; Indra Manojava; Saptarṣis.
8.5.37 — Viṣṇu’s avatāra Ajita for the Cākṣuṣa Manvantara.
8.13.7 — Further structure of the sixth manvantara.

Viṣṇu Purāṇa