The Fish, speaking with sharp precision, addressed the venerable Sage, “O Seer of noble lineage, delay not! The hour of dissolution hastens fast. Soon shall the animate and inanimate creation of the universe be overwhelmed. The oceans shall merge as one and engulf all things. This is the twilight between Manvantaras, the interval when worlds are renewed. The end draws near—prepare, therefore, a great vessel. Let it be firm, enduring, and fashioned to withstand the ages. Gather grains and pulses in abundance, preserve them well, and bring with you the Seven Sages—Vasishtha, Kashyapa, Atri, Jamadagni, Gautama, Vishvamitra, and Bharadwaja. When the waters rise, enter the vessel and remember me; I shall appear as a mighty fish bearing a single great horn.”
Vaivasvata Manu, heeding these words, built the ship with care, embarked with the sages, and called upon the Fish, who soon appeared vast as a mountain, crowned with the promised horn. By the Fish’s counsel, Manu fastened the ship to the horn with a stout rope, and swiftly the Fish drew them into the heart of the ocean. The waters surged; shores and mountains vanished beneath the deluge. Waves like mountains rolled in fury, roaring and foaming till the world itself seemed swallowed by the sea. For thousands of years the Fish guided their vessel across the endless expanse until the floods abated and land re-emerged.
Then the Fish brought them near the northern mountains and said, “Bind the ship to this peak.” They did so, and from that day the slope was known as Nouka Bandhana—the Mooring of the Ship. The Fish then spoke, “O Sages, O Manu, I have saved you from the night of doom. Know me as the One who created and governs all that exists. Out of affection, I warned you of the peril and showed you the path of survival. Go forth without fear, for this Vaivasvata shall people the worlds anew. By divine favour he shall gain wisdom and the knowledge of creation.” Having spoken, the Fish vanished, and Manu, through austere penance, brought forth life again. Vaivasvata thus stands as a luminous figure in the ancient world, a wellspring of knowledge whose tale, when heard with devotion, cleanses sin and brings peace in both realms.
When Dharmaraja praised Sage Markandeya, he said, “O Sage of surpassing virtue, at thy feet sins dissolve, and thy presence bestows abundance. Thou art peer to Brahma himself; thy penance commands reverence, thy glory confounds the wise. When stars and planets perish, thou alone remainest, witnessing the recreation of worlds. Thou hast beheld Brahma floating upon the lotus in the cosmic sea, blessed by his grace with divine power. Thou who hast struck down Yama with thy foot, thou art deathless, untouched by fear, age, or decay. Having seen both doom and genesis, I would ask of thee the nature of the world’s end.”
Markandeya replied, “O Dharmaraja, I shall speak by leave of the great soul Sri Krishna, thy dearest friend, the Eternal, the Indestructible, Lord of all powers, originless and endless, who performs wondrous deeds with effortless ease. He whom Indra and the Gods adore, clad in yellow, is none other than Vishnu himself. The cycles of Krta, Treta, Dvapara, and Kali together form twelve thousand divine years; a thousand such cycles make a single day of Brahma. At the close of that day, drought shall reign for a hundred years. The Sun shall divide into sevenfold brilliance, drying the seas and rivers dry, and scorching the world. Fierce winds shall carry his heat, reducing mountains, Gods, serpents, and demons alike to ash.
The heavens shall teem with storm-clouds—white, yellow, crimson, and black—rolling like mountains and thundering in all quarters. When the flames are spent, rain without end shall pour; rivers and oceans will rise, swallowing the lands. For centuries torrents shall fall till earth loses her form and mingles with the sea. Darkness shall engulf the three worlds; no boundary shall remain between sky and water. Then shall Brahma, by divine will, draw in the winds and sleep upon the lotus in the cosmic flood. Many such dissolutions have passed, and many shall come again.
During that night of creation, I wandered alone in the vast gloom. After long wandering, I beheld a wondrous sight—a great banyan tree rooted in the waters, and upon a leaf a radiant child, blue as the cloud, serene as the moon, smiling in blissful slumber. Amazed, I thought, ‘All is perished, yet this child lies in joy! Who is he?’ As I drew near, the boy opened his eyes, and in a voice sweet as nectar spoke: ‘O venerable one, thou art weary. Rest within me and be at peace.’ As he spoke, his mouth opened, and by a power beyond thought I was drawn within.
There I beheld rivers and mountains, cities and islands, beings of every kind—birds, beasts, serpents, men—each moving in the rhythm of life. I saw the sun and moon, the stars, and the abodes of gods—Indra, Varuna, Yama—and the realms of Yakshas, Nagas, Rakshasas, and Vidyadharas. In short, within that child I beheld the entirety of creation. For a hundred years I wandered within, until awe and fear seized me, and I bowed in meditation at his feet. Then, by his boundless grace, he breathed me forth again, and I saw him lying as before upon the banyan leaf.
He smiled and said, ‘O great soul, hast thou rested well within me?’ Trembling, I approached, touched his feet soft as lotus petals, and said, ‘O Lord, I have seen within thee all that exists—the living and the lifeless. Thy power defies understanding; though thou appear as a child, thou art the Infinite. What words can tell thy greatness? Thou floatest upon a tiny leaf, yet holdest the fourteen worlds within thyself. O mystery beyond thought, I seek refuge in thy grace. Remove my delusion and save me.’
Thus is the glory of Vishnu, whose compassion is without measure. Though even the gods proclaim his praise, the full truth of his being lies beyond all speech, the eternal secret of the universe.
