The Avatar of Transformation: Ketu & Matsya Avatar ;

The Puranas, Scriptures and all the mythological stories holds timeless relevance to the individuals, they hold an inner meaning in it, whenever we read or listen to any such story with each story some divine part of the universe unfolds within us. To understand these big events of the universe, Puranas are the way to comprehend this divine knowledge in the form of stories, their meaning has to be intellectually and intuitively comprehended until the real essence of the story is delivered. The ancient wisdom not only conveys to us the deeper truths of Human existence but also teaches us to transform our lives through them.

यदा यदा हि धर्मस्य ग्लानिर्भवति भारत । अभ्युत्थानमधर्मस्य तदात्मानं सृजाम्यहम् ॥ परित्राणाय साधूनां विनाशाय च दुष्कृताम् । धर्मासंस्थापनार्थाय संभवामि युगे युगे ॥

“Whenever There Is A Decline In Righteousness And An Increase In Sinfulness, O Arjun, At That Time I Manifest Myself On Earth.”

Whenever the world is in Chaos, Dharma (Righteousness) is in trouble, Lord Vishnu as a Supreme Preserver of the Universe incarnates himself to destroy the darkness and restore the balance.

Matsya is one of the Dashaavatars of Lord Vishnu. Back in time, when the immoral and selfish acts of humans had increased, the time had come to restore balance. Lord Brahma, the creator of the world, while working tirelessly for the Vedas, fell asleep, While he was sleeping, a demon named Hayagriva, with a horse’s head, was born from his nose. Hayagriva stole the Vedas from Lord Brahma and escaped. Lord Vishnu noticed the theft and descended to Earth in the form of a small fish known as the Matsya avatar, the first avatar of Lord Vishnu, to retrieve the stolen Vedas and restore balance to the world. He appeared before the great King Vaivasata Manu. Manu was washing his hands in a river when a fish swam into his palm and requested him to save his life. Manu put it into a jar and took it home. Eventually, the fish became big, and Lord Vishnu revealed himself to Manu and told him about the end of the Yuga.

Lord Vishnu warned about the fire to be opened from the ocean and burn it all, and the catastrophic flood would cover the earth in no time. He instructed Manu that he must prepare to leave his land forever, and He would guide him to the next destination. Matsya Avatar instructed him to build a huge ship and take the Vedas, Seven Sages, Medicinal herbs, seeds, and all Flora and Fauna with him. As the flood swept over, Manu asked Lord Vishnu why humanity had to face such destructive fate. Vishnu ji told Manu that he was the only moral man alive and he would be the father of future generations of the human race.

Matsya Avatar tied himself to the ship by Vasuki (King of Nagas) as the rope and protected them from the great deluge. When the catastrophe ended, Matsya left Manu and others in the Himalayas, where they could begin human civilization again. All the nine planets have been assigned as avatars of Lord Vishnu; the first avatar, Matsya, is attributed to Ketu and the sign Pisces. The planet Ketu has a significant connection with Matsya Avatar, as it is the planet of Destruction, Transformations, and New beginnings.
Only the destructions of our life wake up our consciousness to the point that we learn the importance of complete surrender to that supreme energy. The planet Ketu has the capacity to transform our mentality upside down. Rahu & Ketu are the nodes of the Moon, so they leave their impact on our mind. Ketu is about internal perception; it does not have a head; it functions in us as our core instincts. Ketu doesn’t have domain of Mind, as it’s a headless planet; one cannot get Moksha without dropping the Head/Ego; it’s Moksha Karka for a reason.

The journey of learning and growth cannot be begun without utmost faith and surrender. In the 8th house, where all this destruction takes place, only faith (9th House/Higher knowledge) takes us out of that darkness, and then begins the journey of Liberation (12th House). Ketu is co-lord of Scorpio, which is the Darkness and Depth, whereas it gets exalted in Sagittarius, the sign of Dharma and Faith. And it is Karka of the 12th house, the Final Liberation and most comfortable in Pisces. The planet Ketu shows the path of self-actualization and liberation. Here sign Pisces is connected to the Matsya Avatar cos Pisces denotes the end of one cycle, preservation and preparation for another. It is sign of letting things go.
Just as mentioned above, Lord Vishnu in Matsya Avatar instructs Manu to leave (Detach) his land, which has been polluted with immorality and selfish deeds, and prepare for the next destination (Higher purpose). Here, in the story of Matsya Avatar, the symbolic meaning of the cyclonic oceans is connected with the negativities of our minds and troubles of our lives. The big ship suggests surrendering to the divine to steer our lives. Preservation of Ancient wisdom, Species and Seeds collected by Manu represents the importance of carrying forward Knowledge and Heritage (Roots) for the humanity. The Vedas suggest that only true knowledge can guide us through tough times in life, and without that wisdom, we remain stuck in a loop of complexities of the human mind. As Lord Vishnu establishes Peace and Dharma on earth; we must align ourselves with that supreme divine consciousness which maintains the cosmos. It is only the transformations of life that have the potential to take our lives to a higher level, if understood well. Instead of being stuck in the loop of darkness, we should learn to have faith and let the divine steer our ships.