Adrika’s Love for Water

I loved the water, especially rivers. I played in them whenever I had the chance. Coming down to Earth and enjoying the cool waters was my favourite pastime, beating the water hard, watching the little animals in the water and outside it jump in fear, watching the birds get startled as they flew away. I was also a prankster. 

Many of my Apsara friends have mocked me both for my naughtiness and for this weird love of water. “You should have been a fish instead of an Apsara, Adrika.”

I didn’t mind the mockery and joined in their laughter. What mattered was the feel of water on my body. And secretly, I think my friends loved hearing stories of my pranks. They laughed heartily at many of them, asking me to repeat some of the tales again and again. 

Down on Earth, there are umpteen rivers flowing in all directions, all headed out to merge with the different seas scattered across Earth.  

Adrika Gets Cursed

One day, I found myself wading in the refreshing waters of the River Yamuna, enjoying the area’s greenery. My head bobbed in the gently swaying Yamuna while the rest of my body lay beneath it, savouring the water’s soothingness even as it cleansed me, mentally, physically, and spiritually.

But, of course, I was also in the mood for a prank. So when I saw a sage walking into the water for his ablutions, I silently glided beneath the surface and began tugging his legs. In sheer fright, the sage shrieked and fell into the water. I was in splits at the sight of his face and had no option but to get out of the water, laughing hysterically, wondering how I could make a great story of this for my Apsara friends back in Indraloka.

The sage quickly recovered from the fall and stood up. His eyes blazed with anger, cutting my laughter short. I realised my childishness has crossed a line today. My heart beat with fear even as the sage’s lived glare made my face flush with repentance. But before I could do or say anything, he cursed, “Since you like the water so much, may you become a fish until the end of time.”

Now thoroughly alarmed, I shook myself from my reverie and fell at the sage’s feet, words of apology tumbling out of my mouth, “I am extremely sorry, sire. I didn’t mean any disrespect. I only wanted a bit of fun. Yes, I love the water. But I am Apsara, and my home and all my friends are in Indraloka. Please forgive my error. I have learnt my lesson. I will be more careful, henceforth.

The sage’s anger had blunted a little. He replied, “I’m afraid I cannot take back that curse. But I can promise you one thing, since you are graceful enough to accept your mistake. Your life on Earth as a fish will set the trend for something extraordinary, a small but definite step towards a period that will be remembered until the end of this Yuga. And your curse will end when you give birth to two human children.”

Adrika’s Repentance

I was aghast. Yet, I knew curses are irreversible. But I hoped for some kind of redemption, and I had learnt my lesson. Falling at the sage’s feet, I said, “While the first part sounds promising, I wonder how I can have human children if I am a fish. Does that mean I will never be released from my curse?”

“Not at all. Nature has a way of finding a way! Go your way, live your fish life as best as possible and wait for events to unfold.”

Saying this, the sage went his way. And I, a beautiful Apsara, found herself in the form of a fish, utterly, irreversibly.

Adrika and King Uparichara Vasu

Adrika cried her heart out. But soon she got used to her aquatic life in the Yamuna River. The more she was in the water, the more she fell in love with it. Her regrets and her anger abated, and she was a happy fish.

One day, as she was swimming around in the banks of the river, she spied a handsome young man. He was busy cleaning his sword and washing himself of dirt, grim, and some bit of blood too.

Adrika was overcome with desire. She wanted to make love to him, and yet, as a fish, she wondered how. 

The young handsome prince was none other than King Uparichara Vasu, who had come deer-hunting on the behest of a few of his Pitris who desired to eat some deer meat.  Having finished his task, he thought of his wife, Girika, at home, eagerly awaiting his return to their nuptial bed. 

King Uparichara Vasu had chosen to fulfil his Pitris’ desire before fulfilling his desire to be with his wife on their wedding night. Yet, he couldn’t shake himself of his lustful feelings, and in a fit of intense desire, he ejected some semen, which fell into the river. At the same time, Adrika, in the form of a fish, felt an intense desire for King Uparichara Vasu.

The semen found its way into the fish’s mouth. As soon as she swallowed it, her desire was satiated, and she swam away.

A few months later, Adrika was captured by a fisherman. When he cut her open, he found a pair of human twins, one boy and one girl, in her stomach. As soon as the children were pulled out, the fish, Adrika’s curse, was released, and she assumed her original form of an Apsara. She flew heavenwards.

Author’s Note:

The story of Adrika is found in the Adi Parva of the Mahabharata and in the Devi Bhagavatam. In the original story, there is another layer. According to that version, King Uparichara Vasu packs his semen in a leaf and asks a hawk to carry it to his wife so she could get it while still during the ovulation period. 

However, during the journey, another hawk attacks this bird, and in the ensuing fight, the leaf package falls into the River Yamuna. The package is then swallowed by Adrika in the fish form. The rest of the story is the same as above. I just chose a slight variation to the original, under the excuse of “creative liberty.”

The first part of the prophecy of the sage who cursed Adrika initially took place as follows: 

The fisherman who found the twins in the fish’s stomach took them to King Uparichara Vasu. The king took the boy, Matsya, under his wings, who went on to become the founder of the Matsya kingdom. The girl, Satyavati, was adopted by the chief of the fishermen folk. Satyavati went on to become the mother of the Kurus after marrying King Santanu of the Kuru clan. She also gave birth to Sage Vyasa, the chronicler of the Mahabharata, through Sage Parashara.

Other stories from our puranas: The Story of Bhishma

All pictures in this post generated using ChatGPT.

This post is a part of BlogchatterA2Z Challenge 2026