Matsya is the first avatar of Vishnu, in the form of a big fish. Sometimes, it is said that he took the form of a half-man and half-fish. There is a story about this in Hindu mythology. The story tells about a very wicked demon (an "asura") who snatched the Vedas, the holy books of the Hindus, and went deep inside the sea. At this point, Vishnu came as the Matsya (fish) avatar, who went deep into the sea and brought back the Vedas. He gave the Vedas to Manu. The Hindu scriptures say that Manu was the first man in the world. He may also be compared with Noah.