Thereafter, in the seventeenth incarnation of Godhead, Śrī Vyāsadeva appeared in the womb of Satyavatī through Parāśara Muni, and he divided the one Veda into several branches and subbranches, seeing that the people in general were less intelligent.
Srimad Bhagavata Purana
श्रीमद्भागवतमहापुराणम्
मूल श्लोकः
ततः सप्तदशे जातः सत्यवत्यां पराशरात् । चक्रे वेदतरोः शाखा दृष्ट्वा पुंसोऽल्पमेधसः
tataḥ saptadaśe jātaḥ satyavatyāṃ parāśarāt | cakre vedataroḥ śākhā dṛṣṭvā puṃso'lpamedhasaḥ
SB 1.3.21