There is a very interesting parallel between the Vedic - Puranic tradition and the Abrahamic tradition especially with regard to the ancient Patriarchs. I want to elaborate on this as this may indicate traces of shared heritage between the two traditions.
Everyone here is aware of Noah or Prophet Nuh so we do not need to go over his story.
However, I think that this Prophet Nuh is none other than Manu Vaivasvata of the Indian tradition.
Here are a few important events of his life :-
1. Manu Vaivasvata is known as the 7th Patriarch of humans in Indian tradition and the current age is his age or Manvantara where every human is descended from him. Before him there have been 6 ages or Manvantaras where in each age had its own patriarch from whom the people of that Manvantara descended.
2. Manu Vaivasvata is known to have been very devoted to meditation on the Supreme Creator. Once while meditating, he gets a revelation that all humanity was going to perish as the end of the age was coming near. He is told to built a boat for himself and also to bring the seeds of all kinds of life on board the boat.
3. The flood comes and destroys everything. Manu is saved by a large fish which is known in Indian tradition as the Matsya avatar of Lord Vishnu. Manu ties a knot on the fish's horn and the fish steers the boat across the vast stormy boundless ocean. It finally ties the boat to a mountain on the North. This mountain is called as the place of Navbandhana is the Mahabharata. Curiously enough, the Kashmiri Hindus have a tradition that this mountain known as Navbandhana is one adjacent to the Kausar Nag Lake.
4. In Indian Puranic tradition there is a long genealogical list of various dynasties and kings right upto the period of Mahabharata and even beyond upto the end of the Satavahana empire. All these genealogies trace their origin to Manu Vaivasvata. All of them accept that it is Manu Vaivasvata from whom everyone is descended.
Here is good link where people can see the parallels between the Sumerian and Indian flood myth
https://www.academia.edu/9981910/Some_Observations_on_the_Indian_and_the_Mesopotamian_Flood_Myths
-------------------------
It should become clear from the above account that Manu Vaivasvata and Prophet Nuh are one and the same person.
---
One Indian Muslim scholar has even argued that Prophet Nuh was from India -
http://khurshidimam.blogspot.in/2013/05/lost-prophets-of-hinduism-and-india.html
There is strong reason to believe that Prophet Nuh aka Manu Vaivasvata was Indian.
In the Abrahamic faiths while Prophet Nuh is a very important figure, none of the 3 religions trace their teachings to him. In contrast in the Vedas and elsewhere, Manu Vaivasvata is known as the person who taught the Vedic religion. Here is a list of quotes regarding him:-
From the Rigveda we learn,
i. 80, 16.
"Prayers and hymns were formerly congregated in that Indra, in the ceremony which Atharvan, father Manu, and Dadhyanch celebrated"
-------------------
i. 114, 2.
"Whatever prosperity or succour father Manu obtained by sacrifice, may we gain all that under thy guidance, Rudra."
----------------------
ii. 33, 13.
"Those pure remedies of yours, Maruts, those which are most auspicious, ye vigorous gods, those which are beneficent, those which our father Manu chose, those, and the blessing and succour of Rudra, I desire."
--------------------
viii 52, 1 (Sama-veda, i. 355).
"That ancient friend hath been equipped with the powers of the mighty (gods). Father Manu has prepared hymns to him, as portals of access to the gods."
------------------
x. 100, 5.
"Sacrifice is Manu, our protecting father."
-----------------
viii. 30. 3.
"Do ye (gods) deliver, protect, and intercede for us ; do not lead us far away from the paternal path of Manu."
--------------
i. 68, 4.
"He (Agni) who abides among the offspring of Manu as the invoker (of the gods), is even the lord of these riches."
--------------
iii. 3, 6.
"Agni, together with the gods, and the children of Manush, celebrating a multiform sacrifice with hymns," etc.
--------------
iv. 37, 1.
"Ye gods, Vajas, and Ribhukshans, come to our sacrifice by the path travelled by the gods, that ye, pleasing deities, may institute a sacrifice among these people of Manush on auspicious days."
------------
vi. 14, 2.
"The people of Manush praise in the sacrifices Agni the invoker."
-------------
viii. 23, 13.
"Whenever Agni, lord of the people, kindled, abides gratified among the people of Manush, he repels all Rakshasas."
--------------
x. 80, 6.
"Human people (or, people descended from Manush) praise Agni : (people) sprung from Manush, from Nahush, (praise) Agni."
-------------
i. 36, 19.
"Manu has placed (or ordained) thee, Agni, a light to all the people.''
------------
i. 76, 5.
"As thou, thyself a sage, didst, with the sages, worship the gods with the oblations of the wise Manush, so to-day, Agni, most true invoker, worship them with a cheerful flame."
--------------
v. 45, 6.
"Come, friends, let us perform the prayer .... whereby Manu conquered Visisipra ...."
--------------
viii, 10. 2.
"Or if ye (Asvins) sprinkled the sacrifice for Manu, think in like manner of the descendant of Kanva."
-------------
ix. 96, 11.
"For through thee, pure Soma, our early fathers, who were wise, performed their rites . . . As thou didst flow clear for Manu, thou upholder of life, destroyer of foes, possessor of wealth, rich in oblations, so (now) flow clear."
--------------
x. 63, 7.
"O ye Adityas, to whom Manu, when he had kindled fire, presented along with seven hotri priests the first oblation with a prayer, bestow on us secure protection."
--------------
x. 69, 3.
"That lustre of thine which Manu, which Sumitra, kindled is this same which is now renewed."
---------------
i. 13, 4.
"Agni, lauded, bring the gods hither in a most pleasant chariot. Thou art the invoker (of the gods) placed by Manush."
----------------
i. 14, 11.
"Thou, Agni, the invoker placed by Manush, art present at the sacrifices : do thou present this our oblation."
---------------
vi. 16, 9.
"Thou art the invoker placed by Manush . . . ."
-----------------
viii. 19, 21.
"With a hymn I laud that adorable bearer of oblations placed by Manush, whom the gods have sent as a ministering messenger."
-----------------
viii. 34, 8.
"May the adorable invoker placed by Manu bring thee (Indra) hither among the gods"
-----------------
i. 44, 11.
"Divine Agni, we, like Manush, place thee, the accomplisher of the sacrifice, the invoker, the priest,"
---------------
v. 21, 1.
"Agni, we place thee like Manush, we kindle thee like Manush. Agni, Angiras, worship the gods like Manush, for him who adores them."
-----------------
vii. 2, 3.
"Let us, like Manush, continually invoke to the sacrifice Agni who was kindled by Manu."
-----------------
viii. 27, 7.
"We invoke thee, Varuna, having poured out soma, and having kindled fire, like Manush."
---------------
viii. 43, 13.
"Like Bhrigu, like Manush, like Angiras, we invoke thee, bright Agni, who hast been invoked 27. Agni, most like to Angiras, whom men kindle like Manush, attend to my words."
----------------
Satapatha Brahmana explains this "like Manush" phrase as follows,
SB i,5,1,7 - "Manu formerly sacrificed with a sacrifice. Imitating this, these creatures sacrifice. He therefore says, Manushvat, 'like Manu.' Or, they say 'like Manu,' because men speak of the sacrifice as being Manu's."
-----------------
Coming back to Rigveda,
i. 112, 16.
"Come, Aswins, with those succours, whereby, o heroes, ye effected deliverance for Sayu, for Atri, and formerly for Manu, whereby ye shot arrows for S'yumarasmi. 18 whereby ye preserved the hero Manu with food."
---------------
viii. 15, 5.
"Exulting in this (exhilaration), wherewith thou didst make known the luminaries to Ayu, and to Manu, thou art lord of the sacrificial grass."
-----------------
vii. 91, 1.
"Certainly those gods who were magnified by worship were of old faultless. They displayed the dawn with the sun to Vayu (Ayu ?), to Manu when distressed."
---------------
i. 31, 4.
"Thou, Agni, didst display the sky to Manu, to the beneficent Pururavas, (thyself) more beneficent."
---------------
vi. 49, 13.
"Vishnu who thrice measured the terrestrial regions for Manu when distressed."
-----------------
vi. 46, 7.
"Indra, whatever force or vigour exists in the tribes of Nahush, or whatever glory belongs to the five races, bring it (for us) j yea all manly energies together."
The above quotes should make it clear that Manu Vaivasvata in Indian tradition is also considered the first person who established and taught the Vedic religion to his descendents. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krsna tells Arjun that the exalted knowledge he is revealing to Arjun, monotheism in essence, was earlier revealed to the Sun God Vivasvaan who then passed on to his son Manu Vaivasvata who in turn passed it on to his descendents.
--------------
Besides this, the Abrahamic faiths have little knowledge of the patriarchs who passed away between Prophet Nuh & Prophet Ibrahim. The Bible only lists about 10 generations or so. And Abraham is said to have lived around 2000 BC. By constrast, in Indian tradition, the Mahabharata is said to have happened around 3100 BC and the Puranas trace as many as 95 generations between Manu Vaivasvata and his descendents during the age of Mahabharata.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last of all, there is also a similarity between Adam and Swayambhuva Manu.
As I said, Manu Vaivasvata is the 7th human patriarch in Indian tradition. The 1st human patriach is known as Swayambhuva Manu. He is said to have been the father of all humanity. He is said to have had no human parents. He is known as Swayambhuva Manu because he was created directly by Lord Swyambhu or the Self-Existent Lord without any human parentage. It is also said that Swayambhuva Manu and his wife were created by separation from a single body.
All these show strong parallels between the Indian tradition and the Abrahamic tradition. This is something to reflect upon before we try to put down each other's religion.
