The Great Fish

"My turn!" Saraswati settled into a cross-legged position. " I love creation. And what I really like about this story is it comes up in so many other forms, across different eras and religions, which to me really emphasizes its importance." And with that, she began.

This tale begins not with the origin of the universe, but during the Satya Yuga, when the people of earth had become corrupt, greedy and power-hungry. Our gods made the decision that the world must be flooded so that it can be restarted from scratch. Lord Vishnu gave specific instructions, written into four key books known as the Vedas, to my dear Brahma to ensure the preservation of the world.

As Brahma was resting before his grand task, however, a horse-headed demon snuck slyly out of his nose and stole the Vedas. This demon was known as Hayagriva, and before he was noticed, he fled with the Vedas to the bottom of the ocean.

Brahma remained at rest, but Lord Vishnu noticed this, and knew he had to act to save humanity.

"You bet he did!" Lakshmi interjected proudly.

Now, there was a king on earth who wasn't as corrupt as the others. His name was Satyavrata, who later was known simply as Manu, and he was a good king, pure of heart, who worshipped Vishnu. So Lord Vishnu decided to pay him a visit.

One day, Manu was washing his hands in a stream when a tiny fish, no bigger than a minnow, swam into his hands. "O great king," cried the fish in a nervous squeal. "I'm so afraid that the larger fish will eat me in this stream; please rescue me!"

Manu, being the kind ruler that he was, could never turn down a creature in need. So he took the little fish and placed him in a water jug, and brought him home. He went to bed, only to be awoken in the early hours by a stronger voice, saying "O great king, this jug has gotten a little tight. Could you move me to a larger one?"

Manu looked in shock at the tiny fish that had indeed grown to strain the jug he had left him in. Quickly, he grabbed the jug and ran to his bathtub. He filled the jug with water and poured the fish in. No sooner had he finished eating his breakfast, however, when he heard a now deep voice.

"O great king, I'm afraid I may need more space than you have here as well."

More surprised than ever, Manu nevertheless took the fish and ran to the nearby river. He threw the fish in, but as he walked away, he checked over his shoulder to see that the fish was still growing, and rapidly filling the river.

"O great king, don't leave me here..." the fish said despairingly.

Finally, Manu carried the fish to the ocean, where it continued growing. As it filled half the ocean, Manu came to the realization of who he was in the presence of. Humbled, he bowed down on the shores of the ocean. "Vishnu, you are Vishnu, my lord."

The golden fish smiled. "You wanted to see me and I have come. But now, I must warn you. A great flood is coming that will wash away the damage humanity has done. I want you to build a great ship, and fill it with plants and animals, and when the flood comes I will return to you and help you."

"But what about the demon and the Vedas??" Durga said anxiously, egging on the story.

"Don't worry, don't worry, I'm getting there," Saraswati continued.

And with that, the fish flipped away to the other side of the ocean to complete his next task.

The demon Hayagriva had felt the disturbance that shook the ocean when Vishnu entered it. He clutched the Vedas closer to him, and waited for Vishnu's arrival.

When Hayagriva saw the great fish, he was terrified. Nonetheless, he stood his ground and fought for the knowledge that he had stolen. He was no match for the huge and powerful fish though, and soon the great fish destroyed the demon.

Author's Note:

This story is my retelling of Matsya Avatar, Matsya meaning fish. Matsya is the first avatar of Vishnu, and this is the story of how Vishnu saves humanity by rescuing the Vedas and helping Manu (man) survive. Great floods are stories that come up consistently in other contexts, such as Noah's Ark and the Epic of Gilgamesh, which is why I made sure to include this one. It's a little different from the previous story, because the universe is already established when it takes place, so the two don't directly contradict each other which I like. It really highlights how cyclical Hinduism's approach is, because it's talking about the Pralaya, or dissolution, of the world that comes with the changing of the yugas.

Some versions of the story show the demon Hayagriva as Madhu and Kaitabha, wherein Hayagriva is the avatar of Vishnu who saves the Vedas. In the version I based my retelling off of, Hayagriva is the demon. Here's a link to a list of different forms that Hayagriva shows up in.

Thus continues our journey through different tales of creation, as told by our lovely Tridevi goddesses. This one is told by Saraswati, the goddess of intellect, Brahma's consort.

Bibliography:

Matsya Avatar. Stories from Hindu Mythology. November 2011. Online Source.

Matsya Avatar Story--Why was Lord Vishnu Born as Matsya Avatar? Temple Purohit. April 2017. Online Source.

Banner Image: Vishnu pulling Manu's Ark. Source.

Embedded Image: Vishnu speaking wisdom to Manu and the Sages. Source.