The Fish in the Palm
The wise king Manu was performing his morning ablutions in a river when a tiny golden fish swam into his cupped hands.
"Please protect me," the fish said in a small voice. "The larger fish will eat me."
Manu, touched, placed the fish in a small pot. By the next morning, the fish had outgrown the pot. He moved it to a larger vessel. By the following day, it had outgrown that too. This continued — tank, lake, river — until the fish outgrew the ocean itself.
Then the fish revealed its divine form — Vishnu as Matsya, holding the conch and discus.
The Warning
"Manu," Vishnu said, "a great flood is coming. It will submerge the entire earth. Build an enormous boat. Load it with the seeds of every plant, one pair of every animal, all the sages, and the sacred Vedas. Tie the boat to my horn when the flood comes."
The Flood
The rains fell. The waters rose. Manu had his boat ready. The cosmic serpent Shesha — in another form — served as the rope. The great fish pulled the boat through the flood, navigating by starlight, keeping all of life safe as the world below disappeared under water.
When the waters receded and the earth was reborn, Manu — the father of mankind — set foot on the new earth with the seeds of all creation.
The Vedas, which a demon named Shankhasura had stolen and hidden in the depths of the ocean, were also recovered by Vishnu-as-Matsya. Knowledge was restored along with life.