Puranic Encyclopaedia: A Comprehensive Dictionary with Special Reference to the Epic and Puranic Literature c8.529

c8.529

There are seventy one Caturyugas in each Manvantara. The four yugas namely Kṛtayuga, Tretāyuga, Dvāparayuga and Kaliyuga make np one Caturyuga. At the end of seventyone such Caturyugas, that is, at the end of every two hundred and eightyfour (71 × 4) yugas, a Manu completes his life-span. Along with that, the Devas who were born at the time of the birth of that Manu, also come to the end of their lives. Fourteen such Manvantaras make one day of Brahmā. It is at the end of that day that the original universe perishes. Brahmā’s life-span is 120 years. At the end of that period, that Brahmā perishes. That is to say, at the end of every 42,200 divine days (120 × 360) which is the life-span of a Brahmā, a deluge takes place. Thus in one Brahmā’s time 42,200 Kalpas take place. A Brahmā’s life span is known as “Mahākalpa” and the close of a Brahmā’s period is called “Mahāpralaya”.