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Fish avatar of Vishnu

Matsya is the fish avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu. Often described as the first of Vishnu's ten primary avatars, Matsya is described to have rescued the first man, Manu, from a great deluge. Matsya may be depicted as a giant fish, often golden in color, or anthropomorphically with the torso of Vishnu connected to the rear half of a fish. The earliest account of Matsya is found in the Shatapatha Brahmana, where Matsya is not associated with any particular deity. The fish saviour later merges with the identity of Brahma in post Vedic era, and still later, becomes regarded with Vishnu. The legends associated with Matsya expand, evolve, and vary in Hindu texts. These legends have embedded symbolism, where a small fish with Manu's protection grows to become a big fish, and the fish saves the man who would be the progenitor of the next race of mankind. In later versions, Matsya slays a demon named Hayagriva who steals the Vedas, and thus is lauded as the saviour of the scriptures. The tale is ascribed with the motif of flood myths, common across cultures.

The deity Matsya derives his name from the word matsya , meaning "fish". Monier Williams and R. Franco suggest that the words matsa and matsya, both meaning fish, derive from the root mad, meaning "to rejoice, be glad, exult, delight or revel in". Thus, matsya means the "joyous one". The Sanskrit grammarian and etymologist Yaska (c. 600 BCE) also refers to the same stating that fish are known as matsya as "they revel in eating each other". Yaska also offers an alternate etymology of matsya as "floating in water" derived from the roots syand (to float) and madhu (water). The Sanskrit word matsya is cognate with Prakrit maccha ("fish").

The section 1.8.1 of the Shatapatha Brahmana (Yajur veda) is the earliest extant text to mention Matsya and the flood myth in Hinduism. It does not associate the fish Matsya with any other deity in particular. The central characters of this legend are the fish (Matsya) and Manu. The character Manu is presented as the legislator and ancestor king. One day, water is brought to Manu for his ablutions. In the water is a tiny fish. The fish states that it fears being swallowed by a larger fish and appeals to Manu to protect it. In return, the fish promises to rescue Manu from an impending flood. Manu accepts the request. He puts the fish in a pot of water where it grows. Then he prepares a ditch filled with water, and transfers it there where it can grow freely. Once the fish grows further to be big enough to be free from danger, Manu transfers it into the ocean. The fish thanks him, tells him the timing of the great flood, and asks Manu to build a ship by that day, one he can attach to its horn. On the predicted day, Manu visits the fish with his boat. The devastating floods come. Manu ties the boat to the horn. The fish carries the boat with Manu to the high grounds of the northern mountains (interpreted as the Himalayas). The lone survivor Manu then re establishes life by performing austerities and yajna (sacrifices). The goddess Ida appears from the sacrifice and both together initiate the race of Manu, the humans. According to Bonnefoy, the Vedic story is symbolic. The little fish alludes to the Indian "law of the fishes", an equivalent to the "law of the jungle". The small and weak would be devoured by the big and strong, and needs the dharmic protection of the legislator and king Manu to enable it to attain its full potential and be able to help later. Manu provides the protection, the little fish grows to become big and ultimately saves all existence. The boat that Manu builds to get help from the saviour fish, states Bonnefoy, is symbolism of the means to avert complete destruction and for human salvation. The mountains represent the doorway for ultimate refuge and liberation. Edward Washburn Hopkins suggests that the favour of Manu rescuing the fish from death, is reciprocated by the fish. Though Matsya does not appear in older scriptures, Narayan Aiyangar suggests that the ship from the Matsya legend alludes to the ship of Sacrifice referred in the Rigveda and the Aitareya Brahmana. In this context, the fish denotes Agni God as well as the sacrificial flames. The legend thus signifies how man (Manu) can sail the sea of sins and troubles with the ship of sacrifice and the fish Agni as his guide. In a prayer to kushta plant in the Atharvaveda, a golden ship is said to rest at a Himalayan peak, where the herb grows. Maurice Bloomfield suggests that this may be an allusion to Manu's ship.

The tale of Matsya also appears in chapter 12.187 of the Book 3, the Vana Parva, in the epic Mahabharata. The legend begins with Manu (specifically Vaivasvata Manu, the present Manu. Manu is envisioned as a title, rather than an individual) performing religious rituals on the banks of the Chirini River in Vishāla forest. A little fish comes to him and asks for his protection, promising to save him from a deluge in the future. The legend moves in the same vein as the Vedic version. Manu places him in the jar. Once it outgrows the jar, the fish asks to be put into a tank which Manu helps with. Then the fish outgrows the tank, and with Manu's help reaches the Ganges River (Ganga), finally to the ocean. Manu is asked by the fish, as in the Shatapatha Brahmana version, to build a ship and additionally, to be in it with Saptarishi (seven sages) and all sorts of seeds, on the day of the expected deluge. Manu accepts the fish's advice. The deluge begins. The fish arrives to Manu's aid. He ties the ship with a rope to the horn of the fish, who then steers the ship to the Himalayas, carrying Manu through a turbulent storm. The danger passes. The fish then reveals himself as Brahma and gives the power of creation to Manu. The key difference between the Vedic version and the Mahabharata version of the allegorical legend are the latter's identification of Matsya with Brahma, a more explicit discussion of the "law of the fishes" where the weak needs the protection from the strong, and the fish asking Manu to bring along sages and grains. The Matsya Purana identifies the fish savior (Matsya) with Vishnu, instead of Brahma. The Purana derives its name from Matsya and begins with the tale of Manu. King Manu renounces the world. Pleased with his austerities on Malaya mountains (interpreted as Kerala in Southern India), Brahma grants his wish to rescue the world at the time of the pralaya (dissolution at end of a kalpa). As in other versions, Manu encounters a little fish that miraculously increases in size over time and soon he transfers the fish to the Ganges and later to the ocean. Manu recognizes the fish as Vishnu. The fish warns him about the impending fiery end of kalpa accompanied with the pralaya as a deluge. The fish once again has a horn, but the gods gift a ship to Manu. Manu carries all types of living creatures and plant seeds to produce food for everyone after the deluge is over. When the great flood begins, Manu ties the cosmic serpent Shesha to the fish's horn. In the journey towards the mountains, Manu asks questions to Matsya and their dialogue constitutes the rest of the Purana. The Matsya Purana story is also symbolic. The fish is divine to begin with, and needs no protection, only recognition and devotion. It also ties the story to its cosmology, connecting two kalpas through the cosmic symbolic residue in the form of Shesha. In this account, the ship of Manu is called the ship of the Vedas, thus signifying the rites and rituals of the Vedas. Roy further suggests that this may be an allusion to the gold ship of Manu in the Rigveda. In the Garuda Purana, Matsya is said to have rescued the seventh Manu, Vaivasvata Manu, from the great deluge by placing him in a boat. The Linga Purana praises Vishnu as the one who saved various beings as a fish by tying a boat to his tail.

The Bhagavata Purana adds another reason for the Matsya avatar. At the end of the kalpa, a demon Hayagriva ("horse necked") steals the Vedas, which escape from the yawn of a sleepy Brahma. Vishnu discovers the theft. He descends to earth in the form of a little saphari fish, or the Matsya avatar. One day, the king of Dravida country (South India) named Satyavrata cups water in his hand for libation in the Kritamala river (identified with Vaigai River in Tamil Nadu, South India). There he finds a little fish. The fish asks him to save him from predators and let it grow. Satyavrata is filled with compassion for the little fish. He puts the fish in a pot, from there to a well, then a tank, and when it outgrows the tank, he transfers the fish finally to the sea. The fish rapidly outgrows the sea. Satyavrata asks the supernatural fish to reveal its true identity, but soon realizes it to be Vishnu. Matsya Vishnu informs the king of the impending flood coming in seven days. The king is asked to collect every species of animal, plant, and seeds as well as the seven sages (Saptarshi) in a boat. The fish asks the king to tie the boat to its horn with the help of the Vasuki serpent. The deluge comes. While carrying them to safety, the fish avatar teaches the highest knowledge to the sages and Satyavrata to prepare them for the next cycle of existence. The Bhagavata Purana states that this knowledge was compiled as a Purana, interpreted as an allusion to the Matsya Purana. After the deluge, Matsya slays the demon and rescues the Vedas, restoring them to Brahma, who has woken from his sleep to restart creation afresh. Satyavrata becomes Vaivasvata Manu and is installed as the Manu of the current kalpa. The Agni Purana narrative is similar to the Bhagavata Purana version placed around Kritamala river and also records the rescue of Vedas from the demon Hayagriva. It mentions Vaivasvata Manu only collecting all seeds (not living beings) and assembling the seven sages similar to the Mahabharata version. It also adds the basis of the Matsya Purana, being the discourse of Matsya to Manu, similar to the Bhagavata Purana version. While listing the Puranas, the Agni Purana states that the Matsya Purana was told by Matsya to Manu at the beginning of the kalpa. The Varaha Purana equates Narayana (identified with Vishnu) as the creator god, instead of Brahma. Narayana creates the universe. At the start of a new kalpa, Narayana wakes from his slumber and thinks about the Vedas. He realizes that they are in the cosmic waters. He takes the form of a gigantic fish and rescues the Vedas and other scriptures. In another instance, Narayana retrieves the Vedas from the Rasatala (netherworld) and grants them to Brahma. The Purana also extols Narayana as the primordial fish who also bore the earth. PPL

The Garuda Purana states that Matsya slew Hayagriva and rescued the Vedas as well as the Manu. In another instance, it states that Vishnu as Matsya killed the demon Pralamba in the reign of the third Manu Uttama. The Narada Purana states that the demon Hayagriva (son of Kashyapa and Diti) seized the Vedas of the mouth of Brahma. Vishnu then takes the Matsya form and kills the demon, retrieving the Vedas. The incident is said to have happened in the Badari forest. The deluge and Manu are dropped in the narrative. The Shiva Purana praises Vishnu as Matsya who rescued the Vedas via king Satyavrata and swam through the ocean of pralaya. The Padma Purana replaces Manu with the sage Kashyapa, who finds the little fish who expands miraculously. Another major divergence is the absence of the deluge. Vishnu as Matsya slays the demon Shankha. Matsya Vishnu then orders the sages to gather the Vedas from the waters and then presents the same to Brahma in Prayag. This Purana does not reveal how the scriptures drowned in the waters. Vishnu then resides in the Badari forest with other deities. The Karttikamsa Mahatmya in the Skanda Purana narrates that slaying of the asura (demon) Shankha by Matsya. Shankha (lit. "conch"), the son of Sagara (the ocean), snatches the powers of various gods. Shankha, wishing to acquire more power, steals the Vedas from Brahma, while Vishnu was sleeping. The Vedas escape from his clutches and hide in the ocean. Implored by the gods, Vishnu wakes on Prabodhini Ekadashi and takes the form of a saphari fish and annihilates the demon. Similar to the Padma Purana, the sages re compile the scattered Vedas from the oceans. The Badari forest and Prayag also appear in this version, though the tale of growing fish and Manu is missing. Another account in the Padma Purana mentions that a demon son called Makara steals the Vedas from Brahma and hides them in the cosmic ocean. Beseeched by Brahma and the gods, Vishnu takes the Matsya form and enters the waters, then turns into a crocodile and destroys the demon. The sage Vyasa is credited with re compilation of the Vedas in this version. The Vedas are then returned to Brahma. The Brahma Purana states that Vishnu took the form of a rohita fish when the earth was in the netherland to rescue the Vedas. The Krishna centric Brahmavaivarta Purana states that Matsya is an avatar of Krishna (identified with Supreme Being) and in a hymn to Krishna praises Matsya as the protector of the Vedas and Brahmins (the sages), who imparted knowledge to the king. The Purusottama Ksetra Mahatmya of Skanda Purana in relationship of the origin of the herb Damanaka states that a daitya (demon) named Damanaka tormented people and wandered in the waters. On the request of Brahma, Vishnu takes the Matsya form, pulls the demon from the waters and crushes him on land. The demon transforms into a fragrant herb called Damanaka, which Vishnu wears in his flower garland.

Matsya is generally enlisted as the first avatar of Vishnu, especially in Dashavatara (ten major avatars of Vishnu) lists. However, that was not always the case. Some lists do not list Matsya as first, and only later texts start the trend of Matsya as the first avatar.

The Vishnu Purana narrative of Vishnu's boar avatar Varaha alludes to the Matsya and Kurma avatars, saying that Brahma (identified with Narayana, an epithet transferred to Vishnu) took these forms in previous kalpas. The Agni Purana, the Brahma Purana and the Vishnu Purana suggests that Vishnu resides as Matsya in Kuru varsha, one of the regions outside the mountains surrounding Mount Meru.

Matsya is depicted in two forms: as a zoomorphic fish or in an anthropomorphic form. The Agni Purana prescribes Matsya be depicted zoomorphically. The Vishnudharmottara Purana recommends that Matsya be depicted as horned fish. In the anthropomorphic form, the upper half is that of the four armed man and the lower half is a fish. The upper half resembles Vishnu and wears the traditional ornaments and the kirita mukuta (tall conical crown) as worn by Vishnu. He holds in two of his hands the Sudarshana chakra (discus) and a shankha (conch), the usual weapons of Vishnu. The other two hands make the gestures of varadamudra, which grants boons to the devotee, and abhayamudra, which reassures the devotee of protection. In another configuration, he might have all four attributes of Vishnu, namely the Sudarshana chakra, a shankha, a gada (mace) and a lotus. In rare representations, his lower half is human while the upper body (or just the face) is of a fish. The fish face version is found in a relief at the Chennakesava Temple, Somanathapura. Matsya may be depicted alone or in a scene depicting his combat with a demon. A demon called Shankhasura emerging from a conch is sometimes depicted attacking Matsya with a sword as Matsya combats or kills him. Both of them may be depicted in the ocean, while the god Brahma and/or manuscripts or four men, symbolizing the Vedas, may be depicted in the background. The Meena community claim a mythological descent from Matsya, who is called Meenesh ("Lord of the Meenas"/ "Fish Lord"). Matsya Jayanti is celebrated as Meenesh Jayanti by the Meenas. The Varaha Purana and the Margashirsha Mahatmya of the Padma Purana recommends a vrata (vow) with fasting and worshipping Matsya (as a golden fish) in a three lunar day festival culminating on the twelfth lunar day of the month of Margashirsha. There are very few temples dedicated to Matsya. Prominent ones include the Shankhodara temple in Bet Dwarka and Vedanarayana Temple in Nagalapuram. A temple to Machhenarayan (Matsya) is found in Machhegaun, Nepal, where an annual fair is held in honour of the deity. The Koneswaram Matsyakeswaram temple in Trincomalee, Sri Lanka is now destroyed. There are three temples dedicated to Matsya in Kerala. The Sree Malsyavathara Mahavishnu Temple is located in the small town of Meenangadi situated on the highway between Kalpetta and Sulthan Bathery in Wayanad. Matsyamurti is the name of the principal deity, though the idol itself is that of Vishnu. The second temple dedicated to Matsya in the state is the Mootoli Sree Mahavishnu Temple in Kakkodi, Kozhikode. The third temple is the Perumeenpuram Vishnu Temple in Kakkur, Kozhikode. The idol is that of Matsya. The main ceremony of this temple for devotees is called mīnūt (feeding the fish).