1 - Unicorn Fish

Summary

In this episode of 'Stories from India', host Narad Muni explores the tale of King Manu, who encounters a talking fish that grows into a giant unicorn fish, Vishnu's avatar Matsya. Manu is granted the power to save the universe from a great flood, leading to a journey that parallels Noah's Ark. The episode also introduces Garuda, Vishnu's bird-like vehicle, and teases future stories.

Takeaways

• 🎙️ The podcast 'Stories from India' is hosted by Narad Muni, a mythological character with the gift of eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future.
• 📚 The podcast covers myths, legends, and folk tales from India, with each episode focusing on a standalone story for easy listening without the need for sequential order.
• 🌊 The story of King Manu, who was known as 'Manu the Merciful', involves him retiring and going to Malay Mountain to pray and practice yoga for a million years, eventually meeting Brahma, the Creator.
• 🐟 Manu saves a small fish that grows rapidly and is revealed to be an avatar of Vishnu, the preserver, who gives Manu the task of saving life during an impending apocalyptic flood.
• 🛶 Manu is given a rescue boat and instructions to tie it to the horn of the Matsya avatar of Vishnu during the flood, which will save all life, including the Vedas and other sacred elements.
• 🌍 The flood narrative includes a description of a world-wide calamity with scorching sun, volcanic eruptions, and acid rain, leading to a global deluge.
• 🚢 Manu, with the help of the serpent king Shesha, collects all remaining living beings and secures them on the boat, which is guided by Matsya to the top of the Himalayas.
• 🔁 The story parallels the narrative of Noah's Ark, indicating a commonality in great flood myths across different cultures.
• 📜 The Matsya Purana, from which the story is derived, is a significant Hindu text of about 14,000 verses, and one of the texts saved by Manu during the flood.
• 🦅 The character of the week, Garuda, is a powerful bird-like god who serves as Vishnu's vehicle and is known for his strength and appetite for snakes.
• 🎉 The podcast invites listeners to engage through comments, reviews, and social media, and promises future episodes on various characters and stories from Indian mythology.

Q & A

What is the podcast 'Stories from India' about?

The podcast 'Stories from India' is about myths, legends, and folk tales from India, hosted by Narad Muni, a mythological character with the gift of eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future.

What is the significance of the Okami fish in the story?

The Okami fish is significant as it grows rapidly to fill all available space and is later revealed to be an avatar of Vishnu, the preserver in the Hindu Holy Trinity.

Why did Manu the Merciful keep the fish instead of letting it go?

Manu kept the fish out of compassion, possibly to protect it from larger fish in the pond that might harm it.

What is the role of the character Matsya in the story?

Matsya, an avatar of Vishnu, guides Manu through the great flood, providing him with a boat and instructions on how to survive the apocalyptic event.

How does the story of Manu relate to the concept of an apocalypse in Hindu mythology?

The story of Manu is a tale of a great flood, which is considered an apocalyptic event or 'reset button' in Hindu mythology, leading to the rebirth of the world.

What is the importance of the character Maranda mentioned in the story?

Maranda is a wise man who, along with Manu, the Vedas, the Sun, the Moon, and the river NADA, is preserved during the great flood, symbolizing the preservation of wisdom and life.

What is the role of the king of serpents, Shesha, in the story?

Shesha, the king of serpents, helps Manu by collecting all the remaining living beings and putting them on the boat during the great flood.

What is the significance of the mountain Manu lands on after the flood?

The mountain, called Nandana, is significant as it is where Manu lands after the flood, and it literally means 'something tied to a boat,' reflecting the story's theme of survival.

How does the story of Manu's flood relate to the story of Noah's Ark?

Both stories feature a great flood as an apocalyptic event, a righteous man guided by divine intervention, and the preservation of life to repopulate the Earth.

What is the Matsya Purana and its relevance to the story?

The Matsya Purana is a Hindu scripture consisting of about 14,000 verses, from which the story of Manu and the great flood is derived, and it is also one of the texts saved by Manu during the flood.

What is the significance of Garuda in the context of the podcast?

Garuda is a god who is also a bird of prey and serves as Vishnu's vehicle. He is a powerful figure associated with the preservation of order and is mentioned as a character of the week in the podcast.

Outlines

00:00

🎵 Introduction to Stories from India Podcast

The script introduces the 'Stories from India' podcast, hosted by Narad Muni, a mythological character with eternal life and knowledge of past, present, and future. As a traveling musician and storyteller, Narad shares myths, legends, and folk tales from India through standalone episodes, making it easy for listeners to enjoy in any order. The first episode features a story about an Okami fish that grows into a giant unicorn fish. The character of the week is described as a man with wings and a beak or a large bird, not the Sesame Street variety but the Sinbad the Sailor kind. The story of King Manu, who retires and prays on the Malay Mountain for a million years, is highlighted, leading to an encounter with Brahma, who grants him the power to save the universe during the apocalyptic flood.

05:02

🐟 The Tale of King Manu and the Fish

This paragraph delves into the story of King Manu, who, after a million years of devotion, is granted a wish by Brahma to save the universe during an apocalyptic flood. Manu's life takes a turn when he rescues a small fish from a pond, which grows rapidly and eventually becomes a massive creature. Despite its size, Manu manages to transport the fish from a jar to a bucket, then to a well, a pond, and finally to the ocean. The fish, revealed to be Vishnu in the form of Matsya (the fish avatar), informs Manu about an impending flood and entrusts him with a boat to save life. Manu is instructed to tie the boat to Matsya's horn during the flood, setting the stage for a divine rescue mission.

10:05

🌊 The Great Flood and Manu's Rescue Mission

The narrative continues with the description of the great flood, as prophesied by Matsya (Vishnu's fish avatar). Manu is prepared for the cataclysm with a boat and instructions to tie it to Matsya's horn. The flood is described as a global event with intense sun rays, volcanic eruptions, and a unifying of all seas. Manu, along with the king of serpents, collects all remaining living beings and secures them on the boat. The boat is then guided by Matsya to the top of a mountain, where Manu and the creatures he saved repopulate the Earth. The story also touches on the parallels with the Noah's Ark tale and the significance of the Matsya Purana, one of the texts saved during the flood.

15:08

🌐 Conclusion and Upcoming Episodes

The script concludes with a brief overview of Vishnu's avatars, highlighting that Matsya is the first of many forms Vishnu will take. It also mentions the similarities between Manu's flood story and other great flood myths from different cultures. The episode ends with Manu and a woman emerging from the water, reestablishing life on Earth. The podcast host invites listeners to visit their website for more information and visual representations of the Matsya avatar. The character of the week, Garuda, is introduced as a powerful bird deity associated with Vishnu. The host teases upcoming episodes about Tali Raman and a bear character, promising more engaging stories in the future.

Keywords

💡Narad Muni

Narad Muni is a central figure in Hindu mythology, known for his eternal life and omniscience. In the context of the video, Narad Muni serves as the host of the podcast, guiding the listeners through Indian myths and legends. His character is integral to the theme as he provides the narrative and connects the stories to the audience.

💡Mythology

Mythology refers to a collection of stories, especially those involving deities, heroes, and the origins of natural phenomena, that are part of a culture's beliefs. In the video, mythology is the overarching theme, as the podcast discusses various myths from Indian culture, providing insights into the rich tapestry of Indian folklore.

💡Okami

Okami is a creature from Japanese folklore that can grow to fill all available space. In the script, the term is used to describe a fish that grows exponentially in size, which is a central element of the story about Manu and the great flood, illustrating the concept of divine intervention and the cyclical nature of creation and destruction.

💡Manu

Manu is a significant figure in Hindu mythology, known as the progenitor of humanity who survived a great flood. The video script narrates the story of Manu the Merciful, who is granted the power to save all life during an apocalyptic flood, showcasing the theme of divine providence and the responsibility of preserving life.

💡Avatar

In Hinduism, an avatar refers to the descent of a deity in a visible form on earth. The script mentions Matsya, the fish avatar of Vishnu, which is one of the ten avatars of Vishnu. This concept is crucial to the narrative, as it represents the divine's direct involvement in the preservation of life during a catastrophic event.

💡Flood Myth

A flood myth is a story that explains a great flood as a worldwide or near-worldwide deluge. The script recounts the story of Manu and the Matsya avatar, which parallels the flood myths found in various cultures, emphasizing the universality of such stories and their significance in explaining the origins and rebirth of the world.

💡Garuda

Garuda is a mythical bird-like creature, often depicted as a man with wings and a bird's beak or as a giant bird, and is the vehicle of Vishnu. In the script, Garuda is introduced as a character of the week, illustrating the rich bestiary of Hindu mythology and its connection to various deities.

💡Puranas

Puranas are a vast collection of ancient religious texts in Hinduism, containing stories about the universe, its creation, and destruction. The script mentions the preservation of the Vedas and Puranas during the flood, highlighting the importance of these texts in the continuity of Hindu tradition and knowledge.

💡Vishnu

Vishnu is a principal deity in Hinduism, known as the preserver and protector of the universe. The script describes Vishnu's Matsya avatar, which plays a pivotal role in the story of Manu, symbolizing the divine's role in the cycle of creation and the salvation of life during the great flood.

💡Reincarnation

Reincarnation is the philosophical concept that an individual's soul is reborn into a new body after death. The script implies the concept of reincarnation through the story of Manu repopulating the Earth with a woman who emerged from the water, illustrating the cyclical nature of life and the continuation of humanity.

💡Cultural Parallels

Cultural parallels refer to similar themes, stories, or concepts found across different cultures. The script notes the similarities between the story of Manu and the Matsya avatar and the story of Noah's Ark, demonstrating how different cultures may have independently developed similar myths to explain natural disasters and the origins of life.

Highlights

Introduction to the podcast 'Stories from India' by host Narad Muni, a mythological character with eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future.

The podcast format includes a story from Indian mythology followed by a 'Character of the Week' segment, with episodes designed to be standalone.

The first episode discusses the story of an Okami fish that grows into a giant unicorn fish, drawing parallels with creatures from Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts.

Character of the Week introduces a man with wings and a beak or a large bird, not related to Sesame Street's Big Bird, but rather a creature from Sinbad the Sailor tales.

Story of King Manu, known for his mercy, who retires to the top of the Malay Mountain to pray and practice yoga for a million years.

Brahma, the Creator, appears to Manu and grants him the power to save the universe during the apocalyptic flood.

Manu finds a small fish in a pond, which grows rapidly and is revealed to be Vishnu, the preserver, in the form of Matsya, an avatar.

Manu's compassion leads him to move the growing fish from a jar to a bucket, then to a well, a pond, a river, and finally the ocean.

Vishnu instructs Manu to prepare for the great flood by building a boat and saving the Vedas, the Puranas, and other sacred texts.

The story describes a series of catastrophic events leading up to the flood, including scorching sun, volcanic eruptions, and acid rain.

Manu, with the help of the king of serpents, Ananta, collects all living beings and secures them on the boat, which is tied to Matsya's horn.

The boat is steered to the top of the Himalayas, where Manu and a woman emerge from the water to repopulate the Earth.

Vishnu's avatars are discussed, with Matsya being the first of many forms, and the story draws parallels with the Noah's Ark narrative.

The Matsya Purana, a text of 14,000 verses, is the source of the story and is one of the texts saved during the flood, creating a paradox.

Garuda, the Character of the Week, is described as a powerful bird or man with wings and a beak, who is Vishnu's vehicle and loves to eat snakes.

Garuda's significance extends beyond India, appearing in various South Asian cultures and in movies like Night at the Museum and Tomb Raider.

Next week's episode will feature Tali Raman, a court jester known for his cruelty and wealth, and a bear character who could have leapt across an ocean.

Transcripts

[Music]

[Applause]

[Music]

[Applause]

hello and welcome to stories from India

a podcast where we talk about myths

Legends and folk tales from

India I am your host narad money and I'm

a mythological character myself

I have the gift of eternal life and

knowledge of the past the present and

the

future by profession I'm a traveling

musician and a

Storyteller so the way I'm doing my job

is by

podcast if this is your very first

episode you're welcome to check out the

trailer episode zero

Rockstar

but to give you a brief overview we'll

be talking about a story from Indian

mythology during each

episode this will be followed by a

character of the week

segment though I might change the format

in the

future as far as possible I'll keep the

episode

Standalone so you don't have to listen

to them in any particular

order that's going to be a bit hard

though when we get to the ramayan and

the Mahabharat but I'll try my

best everything else that I'll be

covering including the Akbar bebal

Stories the panchatantra the jatak tales

Vikram Bal Tali Ramen and Regional

folktales are much better suited to the

Standalone

format today's episode is about an Okami

fish that that later becomes a giant

unicorn

fish and Okami if you recall your Harry

Potter is a creature that can grow to

fill all available

space if you have seen the Fantastic

Beast movies you'll have seen

one the character of the week is either

a man with wings and a beak or just a

big

bird and when I say Big Bird

I don't mean the Sesame Street variety I

mean the Sinbad the Sailor

variety the kind that kills giant

snakes so let's Dive Right

In what happens to a King in

retirement Manu had been a good King he

had ruled well and presumably been

merciful on more than one occasion

because he was called Manu the

merciful now that his son was all grown

up Manu handed over the Reigns of the

kingdom and went to the top of the Malay

Mountain the name should not be confused

with a himalay mountain range in

Northern

India the Malay Mountain was in the

South and was part of a much smaller

range Manu went to the top of that

mountain to pray to the gods and to do

yoga which was as much a mental and

spiritual exercise as a physical

one after a million years of

praying seriously I'm not joking it was

a million

years Brahma the Creator appeared before

Manu Brahma is one of the Holy Trinity

the others being Vishnu the preserver

and Shiva the

Destroyer also Brahma is my

dad Brahma was pleased with manu's

devotion and asked him what he

wanted Manu had only one teeny tiny

wish it's almost nothing he

said may I please just have the power to

save all of the universe when the

apocalyptic floods

arrive Brahma paused a long time and

finally

said first it's pretty weird that you

said when and not

if and secondly you knew that the

apocalypse is a flood and not something

else like a nuclear

war and third of course you can have the

power to save all of the universe when

the apocalypse

arrives as we go through more episodes

you'll see much more of this Brahma is a

god who's particularly easy to please he

goes about scattering wishes to any and

all who pray to

him giving someone the power to save the

universe that's just a regular day in

the office for him

happy with himself Manu went back to a

little

Hermitage life went on until one day he

scooped up some water from a pond nearby

before offering it in prayer to his

dearly departed

relatives because that was a thing you

did every time you bathed

apparently normally dearly departed

relatives is supposed to mean

ancestors but seeing as Manu lived more

than a million

years it probably meant several thousand

generations of his descendants as

well anyway as Manu scooped up the water

he saw something in it it was a tiny

fish the fish was restless and it had

beautiful

eyes because the eyes are the first

thing you'd notice on a fish

right Manu the merciful out of

compassion put the fish in a

jar it's not clear why he didn't simply

let the fish

go maybe the pond was known to have

bigger fish that would be mean to this

little

fish whatever his reasons Manu took the

fish home with

him within a day and a night night the

fish had

grown it was 16 fingers in

length and was quite quite uncomfortable

in the

jar it asked Manu to

help this is the first mention of it

being a talking

fish but somehow Manu was not

surprised he transferred the fish to a

bucket but again within a day it had

grown and the bucket was too small for

it

Manu by now should have seriously

considered taking his fish to a wet

instead he simply transferred the fish

to a

well another day and night and the fish

had again grown too

big Manu moved it to a

pond but the fish quickly grew to be 8 m

miles in length and the pond was

insufficient

again the fish again asked Manu for

help the same thing happened with the

river ganga or the

Ganges until finally Manu put the fish

in the

ocean but seriously people don't try

this at home if you put a fr freshw

waterer fish in salt water it will

probably

die it isn't clear how Manu transferred

the fish from the well to the pond or

from the pond to the river or from the

river to the

ocean moving a beached whale a few dozen

feet is hard enough for us

today but Manu seems to have transported

an 8 mile long fish so effortlessly

that it wasn't even worth

mentioning but manu's fish was no

ordinary fish in case it isn't already

clear to everyone by

now it thrived in the ocean and grew in

size right in front of manu's eyes

almost filling up the entire

ocean Manu finally seems to have caught

on to the fact that his fish was no

ordinary one

he was a struck and he

said you must be

Vishnu who else could have the power to

turn into such a big

creature the fish

replied Bingo on your first

try I am

Vishnu and this is just the first of my

many

avatars you can call me

matsa you were right about the

apocalypse or as we Gods like to call it

the reset

button in a

century there will soon be a great

flood we gods have made this rescue

boat he tossed the keys over to Manu and

said you are going to be its

captain in the boat the Gods have placed

the four Vedas which are the religious

texts that underpin most of the Hindu

religion matsa continued his

instructions to

Manu if the winds are too strong tie the

boat to my

horn this is the first mention of a horn

on msia and it's called Theon not

aonn making matsa a unicorn

fish Manu who seemed remarkably precient

when talking to Brahma was now

completely the

opposite he was bursting with

questions apocalyptic floods when how

can I save everything when will I see

you

again msia said that from now there will

be no rain for a 100

years there will be f

all over the

world all the evil people will be

scorched to death by the Rays of the sun

which will suddenly turn seven times as

powerful there will be fire shooting out

of mouths in the

ground which is a very reasonable way to

describe lava from a

volcano from amongst all of these

fires there will emerge seven clouds and

it will rain until all the seas are

united the whole earth will be one giant

sea when that happens Manu take this

boat and this rope and fasten it to my

horn everything will be

destroyed except for you me The Vedas

the puranas the Sun the Moon A wise man

named

Maranda the river NADA those are the

only things that will be

preserved Manu said I don't understand

when the whole earth is a mass of water

what does it mean for the river Narada

to be

preserved matsa

replied why don't we leave it ambigious

so in the future podcast listeners can

try to figure that one out for

themselves

I don't know what a podcast listener is

said Manu but I'm okay with

that Manu was already a million years

old so what was another Century to

him he continued practicing yoga and

that probably helped him through the

famine the scorching sun and the

volcanic eruptions and the acid rain

that

followed when the Seas started

Rising msia appeared before him along

with the king of

serpents

snag a name that means ultimate

snake the king collected all the

remaining living beings and put them on

the boat and fastened it to msa's Horn

using snag as the

Rope this was followed by a really

really long Q&A session between Manu and

matsa many of the answers deserve an

episode of their

own some of the stories are about the

creation of the universe why Brahma has

four heads and so

on we'll cover some of those in later

episodes to cut back to the

story matsa safely steered the boat to

the top of a

mountain which if you think about it

does not not contradict the earlier

remark about the Seas being

united but it does contradict him saying

that the entire Earth will be just one

big

ocean I guess he did not expect me to

split hair over

this so anyway Manu landed at the top of

the

Himalayas the floods then slowly

receded Manu offered several

prayers and then as a response from the

water there emerged a

woman not quite like some women from the

James Bond movies who also emerged from

the

ocean but Manu and the lady did end up

repopulating the entire

Earth that's all I have for now a few

notes from the story

this is the first of vishnu's avatars or

forms conventional wisdom has it that

Vishnu has 10 avatars available to him

of which he has used up nine so

far but there are many more avatars in

actual

fact we'll eventually cover them

all there are some parallels with the

story of Noah's Ark but this is not

surprising because many cultures across

Asia Europe and America have a great

flood myth as

well the mountain that Manu landed his

boat on was called

nandana which literally means something

tied to a

boat the text that the story is derived

from is a huge book of about 14,000

verses called the mats

purana and we have just barely scratched

the surface

here and yes the matsa purana is one of

the texts that Manu saves during the

flood how's that for a

paradox there are a few variations of

what the mats Avatar is supposed to have

looked like I've linked some pictures of

sculptures and paintings on my site asfi

podcast.com if you want to have a

look having lived for several thousands

of years it's natural for my memory to

be imperfect at

times so if you see any errors in my

podcast please Point them out to me if

you have any questions comments or

suggestions please leave a comment or a

review on the site sfip podcast.com the

site is also linked in the show notes or

tweet @ SFI

podcast you can also find me on

Instagram and Facebook be sure to

subscribe to the show to get notified of

latest

episodes I'd like to thank my family and

friends there are far too many to call

out

individually everyone has shown

incredible support ever since I

announced that I'd be doing this

podcast the the character this week is

guda guda is a god who's also a bird of

prey he's either shown as a man with

wings and a bird's beak or just a giant

bird he is vishnu's

vehicle except when Vishnu is busy being

a unicorn

fish guda is incredibly powerful and

simply flapping his wings hard enough

can can stop the Earth from

spinning or stop the skies from spinning

as the Ancients thought of

it gura loves to eat

snakes I mean who wouldn't if they were

a giant

bird there are many symbols of guda not

just in India but in many South Asian

countries including Indonesia and

Cambodia guda appears in one of the

Night at the Museum movies and also in

the first Tomb Raider

movie I am going to do an episode on

guda later in the

podcast next week we'll be talking about

Tali Raman a court jester who humiliates

his King at every

opportunity is also very cruel to

animals and yet somehow makes a lot of

money money doing

this the character next week is a bear

who could have easily leapt across an

ocean if his doctor had not forbidden

it I'll see you next

[Music]

week