Rishi Agastya drinks up the ocean to trace hiding demons

The enmity between the Gods and the Demons, which started due to the sharing of Amrit, grew to an extent that numerous wars were fought between them. The strategy of the demons was clever as they hid in the ocean, and emerged from there time after time to destroy and trouble the forest dwellers who were loyal to Gods. The victims were brahmins and sages who lived in the forests and spent their time in prayers and meditation. These hapless people were no match to the power and strength of the mighty Asuras (demons). The asuras, angry with the Gods, were determined to destroy all religion and goodness from the world.

The main aim was, of course, to destroy the Gods. Intent on destroying the three worlds, they unleashed a reign of terror. They murdered and destroyed hermits and acetic, saints and holy men. The frightened people went to the Gods for protection. The Gods tried in vain to search for their enemies. The hiding place of the Asuras was such that all the efforts of the Gods came to naught. In desperation the Gods turned to their preserver, Vishnu. The omniscient Vishnu realised that unless the ocean was dry it would be impossible to kill the asuras who hid there. He asked the Gods to seek the help of Rishi Agastya, a great sage who was known for his powers of digestion.

Rishi Agastya is the son of Varun (god of winds) according to Hindu Mythology. The Gods requested him to drink the water of the ocean so that the demons could be seen and then eliminated. The sage drank from the ocean till the last drop disappeared and the demons had nowhere to hide. The Gods then killed most of the demons. A few managed to escape through the cracks in the ocean bed and hid in the underworld (Pataal). Now that the battle was over the, the Gods went to Rishi Agastya and requested him regurgitate the water of the ocean. But with his digestive abilities Agastya had already digested the water and he told the Gods to look for some other way to fill up the ocean. The Gods went to Brahma to help them refill the ocean. Brahma then told them that the ocean would be filled again when the holy River Ganga descends from the heaven to flow on Earth. A sage called Bhagirath in the time to come would do this.