Its name came from Machhenarayan, an avatar of god Vishnu. It is said that during ancient time, Manu found a small fish about to die while he was having a bath in a river. He brought the fish to his home and put it into a small pot of water. Next day, the fish grew in its size amazingly and was no longer fit in the small pot. So he put the fish in a pond just to find next day that the fish had grown larger and no longer fit in the pond as well. Knowing that this fish is no ordinary fish, Manu bowed with respect and asked to show the fish who he was. Then god Vishnu emerged from the mouth of the fish. To remember this event, Manu established Machhenarayan temple in the center of the pond.