Srimad Bhagavatam — Dvadasha Skandha, Shloka 5
Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi Tested by Indra and Blessed by Nara-Nārāyaṇa
आहुश्चिरायुषमृषिं मृकण्डतनयं जना: । य: कल्पान्ते ह्युर्वरितो येन ग्रस्तमिदं जगत् ॥ २ ॥ स वा अस्मत्कुलोत्पन्न: कल्पेऽस्मिन् भार्गवर्षभ: । नैवाधुनापि भूतानां सम्प्लव: कोऽपि जायते ॥ ३ ॥ एक एवार्णवे भ्राम्यन् ददर्श पुरुषं किल । वटपत्रपुटे तोकं शयानं त्वेकमद्भुतम् ॥ ४ ॥ एष न: संशयो भूयान् सूत कौतूहलं यत: । तं नश्छिन्धि महायोगिन् पुराणेष्वपि सम्मत: ॥ ५ ॥
āhuś cirāyuṣam ṛṣiṁ mṛkaṇḍu-tanayaṁ janāḥ yaḥ kalpānte hy urvarito yena grastam idaṁ jagat
Authorities say that Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi, the son of Mṛkaṇḍu, was a sage of extraordinarily long life, the sole survivor at the end of Brahmā’s day, when the entire universe was swallowed by the flood of annihilation. Yet that same Mārkaṇḍeya, the foremost descendant of Bhṛgu, was born in our own lineage during the present day of Brahmā, and in this day we have not seen any total dissolution. It is also well known that, while helplessly wandering in the great ocean of destruction, he beheld in those dreadful waters a wondrous Person—a baby boy lying all alone within the fold of a banyan leaf. O Sūta, I am greatly bewildered and eager to know about this exalted sage, Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi. O great yogī, you are accepted as authority in all the Purāṇas; therefore please cut through my doubt and dispel my confusion.
Lord Brahmā’s day, consisting of his 12 hours, lasts 4 billion 320 million years, and his night is of the same duration. Apparently Mārkaṇḍeya lived throughout one such day and night and in the following day of Brahmā continued living as the same Mārkaṇḍeya. It seems that when annihilation occurred during Brahmā’s night, the sage wandered throughout the fearful waters of destruction and saw within those waters an extraordinary personality lying on a banyan leaf. All of these mysteries concerning Mārkaṇḍeya will be clarified by Sūta Gosvāmī at the request of the great sages.
FAQs
This verse points to the Supreme Lord appearing as a wondrous infant (often understood as Nārāyaṇa/Viṣṇu) whom Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi beholds during the oceanic dissolution—an intimate revelation of the Lord’s protection and transcendence beyond pralaya.
Because Mārkaṇḍeya is said to be born in their own lineage in the current kalpa, yet a universal deluge is not presently observed—so they request Sūta, renowned for Purāṇic knowledge, to reconcile and explain the apparent contradiction.
When spiritual narratives raise doubt, the Bhāgavatam models a healthy path: approach a qualified teacher, ask sincerely, and seek clarity—strengthening faith through understanding rather than ignoring questions.