Matsya Moorthy Temple, Thuvarimaan – Legends
Matsya Avatharam:
Matsya Avatar
took place in the vicinity of Madurai on the banks of river Kritamala. Lord
appeared as a fish to great devoted king Satyavrata. The first Avatar of
Lord Vishnu is in the form of a Fish, when He rescued the Vedas, the scriptures
of the Hindus from the depths of the ocean. There are only a few temples for
the Matsya Moorthy. One is in Nagalapuram, Andhra Pradesh and another
at Thuvariman Agraharam, situated near Madurai in Tamil Nadu.
One day
of Brahma is called Kalpa. At the end of the day felt sleepy and yawned. The
Vedas slipped out of his mouth, a Demon Somakudu stole them and hid them in the
Ocean. The Vedas are required for creation by Brahma after Dissolution of the
earth and it was approaching. Responding to the Prayers of Brahma, Lord Vishnu
took the form of a small fish and reached the beach where Satyavrata Manu was
performing his morning Sandhyavandanam, morning Ritual to the Sun god Surya.
Manu was
a Dravidian King, yet another proof that the Santana Dharma originated in the
South. The fish sought refuge from Manu. He kept it in a small vessel filled
with water. It grew larger than the receptacles irrespective of the size of the
receptacle. Manu realized it was Lord Vishnu and Lord Vishnu explained to him
about the theft of the Vedas and assigned Manu the task of collecting Herbs,
seeds of plants and animals with the help of the Divine serpent Vasuki and the
Saptha Rishis (Seven Sages).
As Manu
went about this job, Vishnu Killed Somakuda, restored the Vedas and handed them
back to Brahma. Generally, this Avatar is to save the world from Deluge. As the
deluge began, the Fish tied to a Boat with the Serpent Vasuki, with all
the seeds, sages, Manu and animals, dragged it to safety.
Migration from Northern India due to famine to this
Place:
In days
of yore, rain failed in the northern regions of India forcing people to migrate
to the south. The famine was so acute that people had no hopes of survival
then. A group came to the place, presently known as Thuvariman. They took up
agriculture for their livelihood. They prayed to God that a famine of the
intensity they experienced in the north should never revisit them and their
lives should be ever peaceful and happy. Perumal Lord Vishnu appeared in the dream of one of the devotees and
assured that not only during their life time but their next generations too
would not have to see famines and they would ever be happier. People, recording
their gratitude to the Perumal, constructed a small temple and were worshipping
him.