Matsya Avatāra (Narasiṃha Purāṇa)
In Chapter 37 of the Narasiṃha Purāṇa, the Matsya avatāra (descent) of Bhagavān Vishṇu answers the theft of the Vedas. While Brahmā sleeps on the lotus that grew from the navel of Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa, two asuras, Madhu and Kaiṭabha, are born from drops from his ears. They steal the four Vedas and hide them in the cosmic ocean. Bhagavān Vishṇu becomes a great fish, slays the two asuras with his Śāraṅga bow and brings back the Vedas. The same account explains why the earth is called Medinī.
Brahmā in yoga-nidrā and the theft of the Vedas
At the close of one age of the world, Bhagavān Nārāyaṇa lay in his yoga-nidrā (yogic sleep) on the cosmic ocean. From the lotus on his navel Brahmā had arisen at the beginning of creation. In the deep quiet of that time, Brahmā himself fell into a yogic sleep on the lotus.
While Brahmā lay in this sleep, two drops of fluid fell from his ears into the cosmic waters. From these drops two strong asuras were born, Madhu and Kaiṭabha. They were very strong, proud and full of ill will. They saw the Vedas lying unguarded beside the sleeping Brahmā. They took the four Vedas, dived with them into the depths of the cosmic ocean and hid them in Pātāla. Without the Vedas, the knowledge of dharma, of creation and of moksha (liberation) would have been lost to the world at the very start of the new cycle.
Brahmā’s stuti to Bhagavān Vishṇu
Brahmā woke from his yoga-nidrā and found the Vedas gone. He was overcome with distress. He folded his hands and made a stuti (hymn of praise) of four ślokas in Sanskrit to Bhagavān Vishṇu. He praised him as the eternal, all-knowing Purusha, the one who holds the Vedas as his very breath, and the protector of all knowledge and all beings. Brahmā begged Bhagavān Vishṇu to bring back the Vedas and destroy the asuras who had taken them. This four-verse stuti is kept in Chapter 37. It is Brahmā’s stuti to Bhagavān Vishṇu for the Matsya avatāra.
Bhagavān Vishṇu takes the form of Matsya
Moved by Brahmā’s prayer, Bhagavān Vishṇu took the form of a mighty fish, the Matsya avatāra. It was of no limit in size and could fill and cross the whole cosmic ocean. Shining with divine light, with the brightness of a thousand suns, the divine Matsya plunged into the depths of the first waters to find Madhu and Kaiṭabha and the stolen Vedas.
The slaying of Madhu and Kaiṭabha
Bhagavān Vishṇu in the form of Matsya met the two mighty asuras at the floor of the ocean. For all their great power, Madhu and Kaiṭabha were no match for the Supreme Purusha. Bhagavān Vishṇu slew both Madhu and Kaiṭabha with his Śāraṅga bow, the great bow that is as old as creation itself. He took the four Vedas back from them and gave them to Brahmā. Brahmā could then go on with the new creation.
The earth is named Medinī
When Madhu and Kaiṭabha were slain, the fat (medas) from their huge bodies spread through the cosmic waters and set hard as the stuff of the earth. From that time the earth has the name Medinī, “she who arose from medas“. This is the meaning the Narasiṃha Purāṇa gives for one of the most sacred names of the earth. The earth herself was born from the act of Bhagavān Vishṇu in guarding the Vedas.
Sources
- Narasiṃha Purāṇa, Chapter 37