The Story of Markandeya and the Child on the Banyan Leaf

Sage Markandeya was no ordinary rishi. Blessed with extraordinary longevity, he lived through cycles of time that few beings ever witness. He saw kingdoms rise and fall, generations come and go, and entire ages pass into memory. Yet despite his wisdom and devotion, one divine vision reshaped his understanding of existence itself.

During deep meditation, Markandeya was granted a vision of Pralaya, the cosmic dissolution that marks the end of a cycle of creation. In this vision, the familiar world began to disappear. The earth dissolved, mountains crumbled, rivers lost their course, and the sky collapsed into darkness. Soon, nothing remained but an endless, silent ocean stretching in all directions.

Markandeya found himself standing alone in these cosmic waters. There was no fear, only a profound stillness. Creation itself seemed to be holding its breath.

As he looked across the vast expanse, he noticed something extraordinary. Floating gently upon the waters was a single banyan leaf, green and alive, untouched by destruction. Resting upon that leaf was a small child.

The child slept peacefully, entirely unconcerned with the dissolution of the universe around him. His skin shone softly, his breath was steady, and one tiny foot rested near his mouth in a gesture both playful and mysterious. The waters of Pralaya moved all around him, yet never disturbed him. In that moment, Markandeya understood that this child was not subject to destruction but existed beyond it.

Drawn toward the child by a force he could not resist, Markandeya stepped closer. The child opened his eyes and smiled—a smile filled with recognition and timeless awareness. Then, with a gentle breath, the child inhaled.

Markandeya was pulled inside.

Within the child’s body, the sage witnessed a reality more vast than the cosmic ocean itself. Entire universes unfolded before him. He saw stars forming and dissolving, mountains rising and eroding, forests growing and vanishing. He saw gods performing their cosmic roles and mortals living out countless lifetimes. He even saw his own hermitage and himself seated in meditation, unaware of the vision he was experiencing.

Inside the child, time no longer flowed in a straight line. Past, present, and future existed together, woven into a single, boundless reality. Markandeya wandered through this inner universe, humbled by the realization that all of creation existed within this seemingly fragile form.

At last, as effortlessly as the vision had begun, Markandeya was released. He found himself once again on solid ground. The waters of Pralaya were gone. The sky was clear. Birds sang in the trees near his hermitage, which stood exactly as it had before.

Only Markandeya had changed.

With folded hands, he bowed in deep reverence. He understood now that creation is never truly destroyed. During Pralaya, the universe does not vanish into chaos; it returns to its source, resting quietly until the next cycle begins.

Some identify the divine child as Vishnu, the preserver of the cosmos. Others, in later tradition, recognize him as Krishna, the supreme divine reality. The name differs, but the truth revealed to Markandeya remains the same.

The entire universe rests gently, like a leaf upon water, within the eternal.