History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v7.c95.111

v7.c95.111

The Matsyapurāṇa begins the topic of creation in the same way as the Manusmṛti does and some of the verses of the former are identical (or almost identical) with the verses of the Manusmṛti.²⁴⁷⁶ The Matsya (2 27) states: Nārāyaṇa alone appeared first and being desirous of creating the manifold world, produced from his body waters, cast the seed therein and a golden egg emerged; inside that egg the Sun appeared, he is called Āditya as well as Brahmā, he made the two halves of the egg into heaven and earth and produced all directions and the sky between the two (heaven and earth). Then the Meru and other mountains and the seven seas (of salt, sugarcane juice &c.) were produced. Nārāyaṇa became Prajāpati who created all this world including gods and asuras The 3rd chap. of the Matsya speaks of the Vedas, Purāṇas and Vidyās as proceeding from his lips and states that he created from his mind ten sages, Marīci, Atri and others (3. 5-8). Then the Matsya launches on the Sāṅkhya scheme of creation (in 3. 14-29), stating that the three guṇas are *sattva*, *rajas*, *tamas*, and the state of their equilibrium is called *Prakṛti*, that some call it *Pradhāna*, others call it *Avyakta*, that this Pradhāna produces creation, that from the three guṇas rose Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara; that from Pradhāna arose Mahān, from the latter ahaṅkāra, then five Jñānendriyas and five Karmendriyas and the mind as the 11th sense and the five tanmātrās (subtle elements); that ākāśa was produced from the śabda-tanmātrā, vāyu from ākāśa, tejas from Vāyu and water from tejas, that the Puruṣa is the 25th *tattva* Then the Matsya (3 30-44) tells a fantastic story that Brahmā produced a woman (called Śatarūpā, Sāvitrī, Sarasvatī, Gāyatrī or Brahmāṇī) from himself, felt passion for her and had after a long time a son named Manu (called Svāyambhuva) and also Virāj from her, then Brahmā called upon his sons to create people. The Matsya in chapter four states that Brahmā had from Śatarūpā seven sons, Marīci and others (verses 25-26, contradicting chap. 3. 5-8), mentions two sons of Svāyambhuva Manu and also the descendants of those two sons. Some chapters from five onwards describe the descendants of Dakṣa, of Kaśyapa, of Diti, the coronation of Pṛthu, the solar and lunar dynastie and various classes of pitṛs.