King Pariksit said, Suka Goswami, I would like to hear the story of the Lord assuming the form of a fish. Why did the Supreme Lord accept the form of a fish, a lowly species whose existence must be intolerable? Would you please explain his activities because hearing them is favourable for everyone.
Suka Goswami said, The Supreme Lord accepts different forms in his incarnations in order to protect the brahmins, the cows, the enlightened souls, the Vedic literature and the principles of righteousness. Whatever form the Supreme Lord takes, he transcends the mode of material nature and so is unaffected by the status of those forms. At the end of Lord Brahma’s day, when he was tired and preparing to rest, Hayagriva stole the Vedic knowledge from Brahma. The Supreme Lord took the form of a fish to rescue the Vedic knowledge.
One day, a king named Satyavrata sat at the edge of the river performing worship by offering palmfuls of water, a small fish appeared in the water in his hands. After the King threw the fish back into the river, he heard a small voice say, O King, why are you throwing a helpless fish like me into the river when I am afraid of the other fish who will eat me. Please protect me.
The compassionate king put the fish in a water jar and took it home with him. But during the night the fish became so large that he filled the pot and he said to the king, It is difficult for me to move within this water jug, please find me a more spacious residence.
So the king took the fish out of the water-pot and put him in a larger pot. But within moments the fish had grown too big for the pot and said, My dear king, this pot is unsuitable for me. You have given me your protection. Please find me a more spacious residence.
The king threw the fish into a lake, but soon the fish had grown to a size that was larger than the lake. The fish said, This lake does not accommodate me, please find me a more permanent reservoir of water. The king took the fish to larger and larger bodies of water until eventually he threw the enormous fish into the ocean. When the fish was thrown into the ocean he said to the king, You should not throw me in here, there are powerful aquatic animals in the ocean who will eat me.
At these words from the fish, the king was confused and he said to the fish, Who are you? I have never heard of a fish like you. In one day you have grown to a size of a hundred miles. You must surely be the Supreme Lord Narayana who has come in the form of a fish to show your grace to all living beings. I bow down to you for you are the supreme master and the ultimate destination. All the activities you perform in your various incarnations are for the benefit of all living beings. Would you please tell me the reason you have appeared in this form of a fish?
The Supreme Lord replied, On the seventh day from today the entire universe will be submerged within the ocean of devastation. At that time I will send a large boat to you. To prepare for that time, please collect all types of herbs and seeds. Then along with the seven sages and all types of living beings you should get on that boat.
You will all travel on the flooded ocean without fear and with no illumination other than the effulgence of the seven sages. When the boat is tossed by strong gales I will be near to you. Use the serpent Vasuki to attach the boat to my horn. I will drag the boat with you and the seven sages on board until the night of Lord Brahma comes to an end.
After saying this to the king the Supreme Lord disappeared. The king waited for the time the Lord had spoken about. The king began to meditate on the Supreme Lord Vishnu. He saw how huge clouds began to rain and incessantly fill the ocean. The ocean overflowed its boundaries and inundated the entire earth. Remembering what the Lord had said to him, he collected the herbs and creepers and boarded the boat with the sages.
The sages said to the king, Please meditate on the Supreme Lord Keshava, for he will save us from this danger and set things right. While the king meditated on the Supreme Lord, a large golden fish appeared. The fish was millions of miles long and had one large horn. The king fastened the boat to that horn using the great serpent Vasuki as a rope the way the Lord had advised him previously. Then the king began to offer prayers to the Lord.
The king said, From the beginning of time, ignorance about the nature of the soul has been the cause of the material bondage that causes so much suffering. The living beings in the material world perform many activities in an attempt to be enjoy pleasure, but their activities bring them only grief. May the Supreme Lord cut the hard knot of attachment to material pleasure from the core of my heart.
By serving and adoring the Supreme Lord, one can be purified of all material contamination and revive their original blissful character. Those who are blind may accept someone who is equally blind for a leader, and those who do not know the goal of life may accept a teacher who is lacking in knowledge.
We seek you as our teacher, for you are self-illuminating like the sun. A spiritually ignorant teacher instructs his students in creating wealth and satisfying the senses and thus the students continue in the darkness of illusion. But you give eternal knowledge and with this knowledge a person will easily achieve their spiritual goal.
You are the dearest friend of everyone. You are the supreme ruler and teacher, the bestower of spiritual wisdom. People captured by lust and greed cannot see you, even though you are there within their heart. When the King had finished praying, the Lord in the form of a fish explained the highest truth to the king. The Supreme Lord then explained the instructions of the Vedic literature and the analytical spiritual science.
While he was sitting in the boat the king listened to the Supreme Lord explain all the Vedic literature regarding self realisation. Therefore the king and the seven sages had no doubts remaining about the true nature of the soul and the eternal truth. At the end of the inundation of the earth, the Supreme Lord delivered the Vedic literature to Lord Brahma when he awoke from his sleep.
This story of King Satyavrata and the fish incarnation of the Supreme Lord Vishnu is a spiritual story. Anyone who hears it is freed from karmic reactions to their deeds. Anyone who narrates this story will have all their desires fulfilled and will return to the spiritual world.
