Adhyāya 188: Mārkaṇḍeya’s Account of Yuga-Decline and the Restoration Motif
Kali-yuga to Kalki
अहं प्रजापतिर्ब्रहद्या मत्परं नाधिगम्यते | मत्स्यरूपेण यूयं च मयास्मान्मोक्षिता भयात्
ahaṁ prajāpatir bṛhadyā mat-paraṁ nādhigamyate | matsya-rūpeṇa yūyaṁ ca mayāsmān mokṣitā bhayāt ||
Disse Mārkaṇḍeya: “Eu sou Prajāpati Brahmā, o grande progenitor; ninguém pode compreender de fato o que está além de Mim. E vós também fostes libertos do medo por Mim, quando assumi a forma de um peixe.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
The verse emphasizes the transcendence of the divine source (Prajāpati) as ultimately beyond full human comprehension, while also affirming compassionate divine protection—rescue from fear through a manifested form.
Mārkaṇḍeya speaks of a divine identity as Prajāpati and recalls a past act of deliverance: those addressed were saved from danger when the deity took on a fish-form (matsya-rūpa), evoking a mythic rescue motif.