Srimad Bhagavatam — Ashtama Skandha, Shloka 35
Matsya-avatāra: The Lord as Fish Saves the Vedas and Guides Satyavrata
त्वं तावदोषधी: सर्वा बीजान्युच्चावचानि च । सप्तर्षिभि: परिवृत: सर्वसत्त्वोपबृंहित: ॥ ३४ ॥ आरुह्य बृहतीं नावं विचरिष्यस्यविक्लव: । एकार्णवे निरालोके ऋषीणामेव वर्चसा ॥ ३५ ॥
tvaṁ tāvad oṣadhīḥ sarvā bījāny uccāvacāni ca saptarṣibhiḥ parivṛtaḥ sarva-sattvopabṛṁhitaḥ
Thereafter, O King, you shall collect all types of herbs and seeds and load them on that great boat. Then, accompanied by the seven ṛṣis and surrounded by all kinds of living entities, you shall get aboard that boat, and without moroseness you shall easily travel with your companions on the ocean of inundation, the only illumination being the effulgence of the great ṛṣis.
FAQs
In this verse, the Lord (as Matsya) assures Manu that by boarding the great boat with the sages, seeds, herbs, and living beings, he will safely traverse the dark ocean of dissolution by the sages’ spiritual potency and the Lord’s arrangement.
Seeds and medicinal plants are preserved so life and dharma-based civilization can be restored after the flood; Manu becomes the caretaker of continuity for the next cycle of creation.
Prepare with faith and responsibility: preserve what sustains life and virtue (knowledge, essentials, good habits) and stay guided by saintly counsel—then fear reduces even in “dark” uncertain times.