Long ago, the wise sages established the duty of women: to be steadfast companions in righteousness to their husbands, and this duty was meant for one man only. It was customary that a woman should have only one husband in her youth; yet, in times of distress, the prescribed rule allowed her to take another as husband. She was not to go to a third, for that was considered her atonement. If she went to a fourth, she was said to be fallen; with a fifth, she would be regarded as a prostitute. Thus, following the path of righteousness, one declared, “I do not choose polyandry; how then shall I be freed from the confusion caused by acting against custom?” In ancient times, women were unrestrained and purified at the seasonal period, and since the request was made only once, it would not be unrighteous. “If I have five husbands and desire pleasure with them, let my youth be preserved with each union. By serving my husband, I have attained success before; I have gained the desire for enjoyment, and that enjoyment shall be mine.” But pleasure and success, gentle one, do not coexist; both enjoyment and accomplishment are obtained through yoga and greatness. In another body, endowed with beauty, fortune, and virtues, youth will be attained with five, and great blessings will follow. “Go, O lovely one, and while standing in the waters of the Ganga, bring to me the man you see there, the king of the gods, O pure-smiling one.” Thus addressed by Vishvarupa, she circumambulated Rudra and went toward the sacred river Ganga, the triple-flowing stream. Once, in the Naimisha forest, the gods were performing a sacrificial session. There, Vaivasvata made peace with Shamitri. During that time, Yama, consecrated there, did not take the life of any beings; as a result, creatures became numerous, and with the passage of time, death ceased. Soma, Shakra, Varuna, Kubera, the Sadhyas, Rudras, Vasus, and the Ashvins, along with Prajapati, the lord of the world, and other gods, all assembled there. Gathered together, they addressed the teacher of the worlds, fearful because of the great increase of humans. Out of fear and desiring happiness, they came seeking refuge. The teacher asked, “What fear do you have from humans, when you are all immortals? No fear should arise for you from mortals.” Yet, mortals and immortals had become alike; there was no distinction at all. Disturbed by this lack of difference, they sought a way to restore distinction. Vaivasvata was engaged in sacrifice; for this reason, humans did not die. When he, intent on a single purpose, completed all his tasks, then their time of death would surely come. Only a portion of Vaivasvata had manifested, strengthened by the energy of the gods. The end would come at the appointed time, and then among men, the gods’ power would not prevail. Having heard the words of the ancient gods, they went to the place where the gods performed sacrifice. Gathered together, those mighty ones sat and saw a lotus on the Bhagirathi. Seeing this, they were amazed. Among them, Indra, the valiant one, went forward. There he saw a maiden, radiant like fire, where the goddess Ganga is ever born. The maiden, weeping and longing for water, entered the goddess Ganga and stood there. A tear of hers fell into the water, and at that spot a golden lotus appeared. Beholding this wonder, Indra, wielder of the thunderbolt, asked the maiden, “Who are you, good lady, and why do you weep? Tell me the truth—I wish to hear it.” She replied, “You will know who I am here, O Shakra, and why I, unfortunate, am weeping. Come, O king, before me—I will go, and you will see for what reason I weep.” As she went, he followed her, and saw from afar a handsome young man, seated in the posture of accomplishment, playing dice with maidens on the summit of the mountain king. The king of the gods said to him, “Know that this world is under my control, O wise one. I am the lord!”—so he spoke, angered, seeing him deeply absorbed in dice. Seeing Shakra angry, the god abandoned him and looked at Shakra with a fierce gaze. Then, fixed in place by the king of the gods’ look, he stood motionless like a pillar. But when his play had gone on long enough, he spoke to the weeping goddess, “Bring him here, for I am weary; let pride not enter him again.” Then, as Shakra was touched by her, his limbs slackened and he fell to the ground. The blessed one of fierce energy said to him, “Never act thus again, Shakra, in any way.” “Restrain him, O great mountain king, for your strength and power are immeasurable. Enter the opening of the middle one, where those like you, shining like the sun, dwell.” The mountain king opened the cave and saw four others of equal splendor. Seeing them, he became troubled, “Will I too become like these?” Angrily, the lord of mountains addressed Vajrapani, opening his eyes, “Enter this cave, O Shatakratu, because you once scorned me in your youth.” Thus addressed, the king of the gods trembled greatly, struck with fear. His limbs slack, he was like a leaf of the ashvattha tree shaken by the wind, on the mountain’s summit. With joined palms, trembling before the bull-bannered one, he was suddenly addressed thus. He spoke to the fierce god of many forms, “You are the first of all the worlds today.” Ugravarca, laughing, said to him, “Those of such conduct do not attain what remains here. These too will meet the same fate in the future; therefore, enter this hollow tree and remain there.” “She will become your wife, without doubt. All of you should enter a human womb. There, after performing many difficult deeds and sending many others to their end, you must accomplish other tasks, connected with various purposes. We shall go from the world of the gods to the world of humans, where the difficult path to liberation is established. The gods—Dharma, Vayu, Maghavan, and the Ashvins—will enter us as fathers in the womb of a woman.” Hearing these words, the wielder of the thunderbolt, foremost among the gods, spoke again, “For the sake of this task, by my power, I will give them a fifth son, born from me.” Vishvabhuk, the supporter of all beings; Shibi, the mighty king; Shanti, the fourth; and Tejasvi are remembered as the fifth among them. Thus, the gods, consenting to their fate, prepared to descend to the world of mortals, to fulfill the divine purposes through many deeds, and to restore balance and distinction between gods and men.