The story of Matsya was narrated first in the Satapatha Brahmana. But many different versions of the same story are found in different puranas, like in Matysya Puran, Padma Puran, Bhagavat Puran, Garuda Puran, etc. This is a story of the incarnation of Shree Vishnu in the form of a fish (Matsya).
Many yugas back, there was a pious king in the Dravida country. His name was Satyavrata. He was the son of the Sun-god (Vivasvan) and his wife, Samjnia. One day, he was performing some religious rites on the bank of the river Kritamala (river Vaigai of Tamil Nadu?). When he was offering libation in the river-water, he noticed a beautiful small fish (Matsya) there.
The fish was able to talk, and he asked Satyavrata to protect his tiny life from the large fishes in the river. Satyavrata felt sympathy for the fish and, to perform his raj-dharma (duty of a king to protect the weak), he transferred the fish to a small jar and brought him to his palace. The next morning, the king was truly surprised as the fish outgrew the jar within the night. Hence, he transferred the fish to a large vessel. But within a couple of days, the fish grew too big to move in that vessel. Amused, Satyavrata transferred the fish into a very large tank this time. But within a week, the large tank became too small for the fish. Then the king transferred the fish to a large pond. But when the fish started to attain an enormous size, Satyavrata asked his men to dig a canal and ultimately transport the fish to the sea.
Satyavrata understood that the fish was not any ordinary creature and requested him to reveal his identity. The fish was none other than the Lord Vishnu himself, who revealed his identity and warned the king about an impending flood, marking the end of a Manvantara. The Matsya instructed Satyavrata to prepare a large boat. He was asked to collect all the seeds of different plants and assemble seven great Sages, or Sapta Rishis (Atri, Vashistha, Viswamitra, Kasyapa, Bharadwaj, Gautama, and Jamadagni).
When the deluge began, the Matsya reappeared and instructed Satyavrata to tie the boat with a rope to his horns. The Matsya guided the boat to the northern mountains (the Himalayas?) and on their journey to safety, the fish taught the sages the universal knowledge to make them prepare for the next Manvantara. On reaching the destination, the Matsya asked Satyavrata to repopulate and rule the earth and establish law and order, and asked the Sapta Rishis to assist him in his quest. Satyavrata became Vaivasvata Manu (also known as Shraddhadeva).
By this time, a demon, known as Haya-griva (horse-necked), had stolen the Vedas from Brahma and fled to the underwater. Lord Vishnu, after rescuing Satyavrata and other sages, killed Haya-griva in his Matsya Avatar (fish incarnation) and returned the Vedas to the Creator.
As Vaivasvata Manu had to repopulate the world, he decided to perform a sacrificial ritual to please Mitra and Varuna. A woman, Ida or Ila, emerged from the sacrificial alter. Both Mitra and Varuna claimed her, but she remained close to Manu and thus, came to be known as Manavi (daughter of Manu). She is also known as Ghritapadi. Ila used to give instructions to Manu during the performance of Vedic rites. Later, Ila was married to Budha and founded the Lunar dynasty (Chandravansham).
Vaivasvata Manu and his wife Shraddha had ten sons, Kavi, Saryati, Karusa, Ikshvaku (founder of the Suryavansham or Solar dynasty), Prasadhra, Nriga, Narishyanta, Dishta, Dhrista, and Nabhaga. The entire human race, including the cast system, has descended from the Manu.
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