Adhyāya 188: Mārkaṇḍeya’s Account of Yuga-Decline and the Restoration Motif
Kali-yuga to Kalki
उदकान्तमुपानीय मत्स्यं वैवस्वतो मनु: । अलिज्जरे प्राक्षिपत् तं चन्द्रांशुसदृशप्रभम्
udakāntam upānīya matsyaṃ vaivasvato manuḥ | alijjare prākṣipat taṃ candrāṃśu-sadṛśa-prabham ||
Sinabi ni Mārkaṇḍeya: Dinala ni Vaivasvata Manu ang isda sa gilid ng tubig at inilagay sa isang banga ang nilalang na kislap ay gaya ng sinag ng buwan.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Dharma begins with compassionate attention to the small and helpless; Manu’s careful protection of the fish models responsible action and reverence for life, suggesting that ethical choices, even seemingly minor ones, can shape larger destinies.
Mārkaṇḍeya narrates how Manu takes a radiant fish to the waterside and places it into a jar, an early step in the well-known Matsya-Manu episode that leads toward the larger flood-related events.