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India · Shatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1

Manu and the fish

EvidenceDocumentedThe text exists and is quoted from a published translation. What it describes is a separate question.What this means
ReferenceShatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1
Writtenc. 800–600 BCE
SetThe Flood
In the morning they brought to Manu water for washing… As he was washing himself, a fish came into his hands. It spake to him the word, 'Rear me, I will save thee!'

Translation: Eggeling, 1882 · About the translator

Read it literally

A creature grows huge, warns Manu of a flood, and tows his ship to a northern mountain. A fourth independent flood account.

What scholars say

The oldest Indian flood story; later versions make the fish Vishnu's first avatar.

Strange time From the sky

Quick answers about Shatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1

Where is Shatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1 found?

Shatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1 (India). Translation quoted: Julius Eggeling, The Satapatha-Brahmana, Sacred Books of the East 12 (1882).

When was Shatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1 written?

c. 800–600 BCE.

What do scholars say about Shatapatha Brahmana 1.8.1?

The oldest Indian flood story; later versions make the fish Vishnu's first avatar.

Sources

  1. Julius Eggeling, The Satapatha-Brahmana, Sacred Books of the East 12 (1882)Primary text

Scholarly dates are rounded. The wording follows the named public-domain translation.

Updated