A few nice animal pound images I found:
Fish story
Image by Jean-François Chénier
Divine fish appears with message for mankind
by J.F. Chénier
Chennai, India In what is believed to be his tenth incarnation, Lord Vishnu “the Preserver” appeared to 87 year old Sag Aloo, a fisherman from the state of Tamil Nadu in India, as a 0.73 kg (1.6 pound) red snapper.
Sag had just pulled in his nets after a long day without a single catch, and was despondently rowing back to shore, when he heard a loud thud behind him. “When I turned around, I saw that a fish had leapt into the boat. He was a good size and very meaty - definitely a fryer.”
It was then that the fish spoke, announcing that he was the Lord Vishnu, and had an important message for mankind. At first, Sag was skeptical, “After all, it is not every day that you meet the Lord Vishnu – Ganesha or Hanuman, sure thing, but Lord Vishnu? It all seemed very fishy to me.”
A discussion ensued, and eventually Sag was convinced. “He just knew too many things that only Vishnu would know.”
Sag, who had received a cell phone for his last birthday, immediately called his family on shore so they could prepare for Vishnu’s arrival. “My wife is very, very devout, and was tremendously excited – and my grandson, who has been wanting a pet, asked if we could keep him.” Looking to the horizon, and choked with emotion, Sag added, “Everyone was so very happy.”
When his call ended, Sag turned back to find that Lord Vishnu, who had been making an “annoying throat clearing noise” just a few moments before, was dead. Sag was despondent – and then a miracle happened. The image of Buddha appeared in the dead fish’s eye.
“There is no question the fish was Lord Vishnu,” says Professor Nehru of Chennai Community College. “The image was very clear, and any semi-literate person would have immediately realized that there was nothing unusual about Vishnu coming to Earth as a fish. In his first incarnation, Lord Vishnu was the fish Matsya, and warned of an impending flood. Unfortunately, the message he wished to share this time will forever remain a mystery.”
Thanks to the miracle image, Lord Vishnu brought a very good price at the Kottivakkam market, and was, according to the purchaser (who asked to remain anonymous), “a bit tough, but really quite tasty.”
[picture above is of Lord Vishnu in a bin at Kottivakkam fish market]
