This shortest of the Puranas is a question answer session in which four learned birds resolve the doubts arising in sage Jaimini's mind.
The Markandeya Purana is the shortest of the Puranas containing only 9,000 verses. It contains the wisdom given by four learned birds to sage Jaimini. Since the birds were speaking on behalf of sage Markandeya the Purana was named after the sage. The exact incident is described in Jaimini and the Birds.
The Manvantaras
One of the subjects the Markandeya Purana deals with in depth is the Manvantaras. One mahayuga consists of one cycle of the four yugas. A cycle of 71 mahayugas is called a manvantara. Each manvantara is ruled by a Manu. The first manvantara was ruled by Swayambhav Manu. The Markandeya Purana narrates the stories of the births of many of the Manus.
Svarochisha the Second Manu
Svarochah was the son of a gandharva named Kali and an apsara named Varuthini. In due time, he married three friends and sired a son from each of them. Once he was on a hunt when he encountered a doe. The doe asked Svarochah to embrace her and when he did so she turned into a beautiful woman. Svarochah then married her. From their union was born a powerful son. When he was born the apsaras danced, the gandharvas sang and the Devas showered flowers on earth. This was Svarochisha the Second Manu.
Outtama the Third Manu
Uttam was the son of King Uttanapada. His wife Vahula did not love him and he abandoned her in the forest. Later a Brahmin approached Uttam and said that his wife had been kidnapped. Since Uttam collected taxes it was his duty to locate and return the kidnapped wife. While searching for the Brahmin woman, Uttam reached a hermitage where he was not received with due courtesy. The sage told him that since he had forsaken his wife he had lost the claim to be courteously received. However the sage revealed that the demon Valaha had kidnapped the Brahmin woman. Uttam then accosted Valaha and demanded to know the reason for the kidnapping. Valaha said that the Brahmin was conducting a sacrifice against him but without his wife he could not proceed. Uttam patched up things between Valaha and the Brahmin. He then asked Valaha to bring back Vahula from the kingdom of the Nagas. Both Uttam and Vahula resolved to begin their married life afresh. A son Outtama was born to them, who later became the third Manu. The Bhagavata Purana gives a different account of Uttam. That story can be read at The Ascension of Dhruv.
Tamas the Fourth Manu
King Svarashtra was blessed with a long life. Unfortunately his wives did not share that boon and died leaving the king alone. The desolate king was once meditating by the banks of the River Vitasta. A storm arose and the river burst its banks. As Svarashtra was being carried away by the torrent he saw a doe and clung on to its tail. The doe pulled the sage into the underworld and emerged in a pleasure grove. There she narrated a story. A girl named Utpalavati had once chased a deer. Unfortunately the deer was sage Sutapah in disguise and she was cursed to become a doe in her next life. Later Utpalavati married Svarashtra. However she died and had to become a doe. Svarashtra was overjoyed to meet his favorite wife. The years of separation resulted in a fruitful union and a son was born. Since the boy was born in the darkness of the underworld he was named Tamas. Later Tamas became the fourth Manu.
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