Matsya Avatar | First Avatar of Lord Vishnu

Long ago, during a time when people had become selfish and immoral, the gods decided to bring order back to the world by making the whole world drown in a flood.

Lord Brahma, responsible for recreating the world, worked tirelessly according to the wisdom found in the Vedas, the source of knowledge.

However, during his exhausting task, Lord Brahma fell asleep and a demon named Hayagriva, with a horse’s head, was born from his nose. Hayagriva cunningly stole the Vedas from Lord Brahma and escaped.

Thankfully, Lord Vishnu noticed the theft and descended to Earth in the form of a small fish known as the Matsya avatar, the first avatar of Vishnu. Why did Vishnu take the Matsya avatar?

To retrieve the stolen Vedas and restore balance to the world. He appeared before the great King Vaivasvat Manu, seeking his help and guidance to retrieve the stolen Vedas.

Lord Matsya, the divine fish, advised King Manu to gather representatives from every species of plants and animals, along with the seven great sages, and bring them aboard an ark to save them from the impending destruction caused by the flood.

On the seventh day, when the heavy rains and storms arrived, Lord Matsya appeared before the king and instructed him to secure the ark to his horn using the serpent Vasuki as a rope. Lord Matsya shielded the ark from destruction during the cataclysmic flood.

While safeguarding the ark and guiding it towards Mount Hemavan, Lord Matsya also defeated the demon Hayagriva and returned the stolen Vedas to Lord Brahma.

During the journey, Lord Matsya shared profound wisdom and revealed important truths to the king.

Upon reaching Mount Hemavan, Lord Matsya vanished from the earth after instructing King Manu on how to rebuild and govern the new world with a fresh set of rules and moral values.

This valuable knowledge became known as Manusmriti – the memories of Manu.