From ancient India comes this Eastern version of Noah’s Ark.
When good King Manu prays for God Vishnu to protect the world, his prayers are answered in a most unexpected way. Vishnu appears as a small fish that grows and grows, obliging the king to find larger and larger aquariums to hold him. Eventually, Vishnu reaches a gigantic size and enters the ocean. He announces that a terrible flood will drown the world and that Manu should fill an ark with plants and animals of every species. As in the biblical tale, the floods eventually subside and peace returns to the earth.
Emma Moore’s luminous artwork is reminiscent of Maxfield Parrish’s Garden of Allah,” creating a magical realm of shimmering waters and rainbow-colored deities that complements her simple prose retelling of this ancient, universal story. This is an ideal introduction to a wisdom tale that appears across cultures worldwide.
