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Overview
After a destructive flood, Great Vishnu consults Saman about establishing land. Saman says that none among their gods can perform the needed task and directs him to the Asura chief Rāhu. Following Rāhu’s instruction, Vishnu plants a lotus seed in the water. Rāhu descends its stalk, retrieves a handful of sand and returns it to Vishnu, who squeezes it and sets it afloat with a resolution that the waters dry and the earth be created. The land emerges as the waters diminish; this witness gives Rāhu an essential assisting role.
Vishnu then asks Saman to help make people. They form a Brāhmaṇa from earth, give him breath and tell him to rise; empowered by them, he makes a woman, after which humanity increases. Parker attributes the tale only to the North-western Province. His commentary identifies Saman with Indra and compares other South Asian creation accounts, but those are editorial comparisons rather than statements made by the narrator. No boar form, serpent couch or eclipse episode occurs in this particular creation narrative.
Origins & earliest records
Sri Lankan narratives collected and translated by H. Parker
Records & interpretation
Complete tale and all its printed variants/comparative notes read; relevant introduction passages on collection and translation directly read.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Village Folk-Tales of Ceylon, Volume I
No. 1, The Making of the Great Earth, pp. 47–49; commentary pp. 49–51
Family & connections
A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.
Primary records and illustrations
Village Folk-Tales of Ceylon, Volume I
Volume I; No. 1. No. 1, The Making of the Great Earth, pp. 47–49; commentary pp. 49–51
Complete narrative and all appended comparisons/footnotes read. Public sacred account treated respectfully; narrator actions and Parker’s identifications/calculations separated. No individual teller named.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Historical collected oral narrative translationParker, Village Folk-Tales of Ceylon I — No. 1, The Making of the Great Earth, pp. 47–49; commentary pp. 49–51Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
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