Hari, the imperishable Lord, is the very same one whom great meditators perceive in the depths of their contemplation. When he withdrew himself from the world, the ocean rose and engulfed the city of Dvārakā, leaving it lost beneath the waves. After the destruction of the Yādavas, Arjuna—known also as Pārtha—performed the sacred rites for the departed souls. He offered water and wealth in their honor. Yet, because of the curse uttered by a crooked-hearted woman, the wives of Viṣṇu remained behind, unable to follow their beloveds. Again, as a result of that curse, cowherds armed with clubs seized those noble women. Arjuna, despite his valor, could not protect them, and his heart was consumed with grief and helplessness. The sage Vyāsa came to console him, and Arjuna reflected, “My strength was only because Kṛṣṇa was with me.” With heavy heart, he journeyed to Hastināpura and reported all that had transpired to King Yudhiṣṭhira, his elder brother and protector of men. There, Arjuna surrendered his bow, his weapons, his chariot, and his horses to Yudhiṣṭhira, for without Kṛṣṇa, all their might and glory had faded. These treasures were then given away to worthy brāhmaṇas. Hearing of all that had happened, King Yudhiṣṭhira, embodiment of Dharma, installed Parīkṣit as king upon the throne. Knowing the fleeting nature of worldly existence, Yudhiṣṭhira, accompanied by Draupadī and his brothers, set out on the great journey, reciting the hundred lost names of Hari as they walked. Along the arduous path, one by one, Draupadī, Sahadeva, Nakula, Arjuna (Phālguna), and Bhīma fell, leaving Yudhiṣṭhira alone, sorrowful yet steadfast. At last, Indra’s chariot descended and bore him, together with his brothers, to heaven. There, Yudhiṣṭhira beheld Duryodhana and others, and also Vasudeva, and his heart was filled with delight. Then Agni spoke: “Now I shall tell you of the descent of wisdom, which brings great fruit to those who recite and listen. Once, in the ancient battle between the gods and the demons, the gods were defeated. Crying out, ‘Protect us! Protect us!’ they sought refuge with the Supreme Lord. The Lord, taking on the form of illusion and delusion, was born as the son of Śuddhodana. In this guise, he bewildered the demons, causing them to abandon the Vedic religion; they became Buddhists, and others among them forsook the Vedas. Afterwards, the Lord took the form of Arhata and made others into Arhatas as well. Thus, heretical paths arose, bereft of the original Vedic faith. These heretics performed actions leading to hell, and they would even accept the lowest among men. At the end of Kali Yuga, all will become mixed together—thieves without virtue will abound, and the Vājaśaneya Veda will remain, but only in fifteen branches. Clad in the outward appearance of dharma but delighting in adharma, these foreigners—rulers in the form of kings—will eat meat and drink intoxicants. Then Kalki, son of Viṣṇuyaśas, with Yājñavalkya as his priest, will arise. Taking up arms, he will destroy the foreigners and reestablish the proper boundaries for the four classes and all the orders, setting the people again on the path of true dharma. Having fulfilled this mission, Hari will abandon the form of Kalki and ascend to heaven. Then, as before, the age called Kṛta will arise, and the classes and orders will remain established in their own dharmas in all cycles and Manvantaras. The incarnations of the Lord are countless—past, present, and future. Whoever recites or hears of the ten incarnations of Viṣṇu, pure and fulfilled in desire, with his family, attains heaven. Thus does Hari establish the distinction between dharma and adharma. Again Agni spoke: “Now I will describe Viṣṇu’s divine play of creation and more. Listen well. He, the creator of heaven and all, is the very origin of creation, of existence, of qualities, and of their absence. In the beginning, only Brahmā and the unmanifest existed; there was no sky, no night or day, nothing else. Then Viṣṇu entered Prakṛti and Puruṣa, stirring them into activity. At the dawn of creation, the great principle (mahat) arose, and from that emerged the sense of ‘I’. From this sense of individuality, the threefold qualities appeared: sattva, rajas, and tamas. From the sense of ‘I’ came the subtle element of sound, from which space was born; from the subtle element of touch, air; from the subtle element of form, fire; from the subtle element of taste, water; and from the subtle element of smell, earth. From the tamasic aspect of ‘I’ arose the senses; from the rajasic, the sense organs; and from the sattvic, the ten deities and the mind, making eleven faculties. Then, the self-born Lord, desiring to create various beings, first created the waters and infused them with his energy. These waters are called ‘nārā’, and are said to be the sons of Nara. Because the waters were his first abode, he is remembered as Nārāyaṇa. Upon those waters appeared a golden-hued cosmic egg. Within that egg, Brahmā was self-born—Hiraṇyagarbha, the blessed one. After dwelling within for a year, he split the egg in two, forming heaven and earth. In the space between, the Lord created the sky. He established the earth floating upon the waters and set the ten directions. There he placed time, mind, speech, desire, wrath, and pleasure. Desiring to create beings, the Lord fashioned creation in that form. He made lightning, thunder, clouds, the rainbow, and Indra’s bow. At first, he created the birds, and then, from his mouth, the rain-god. For the accomplishment of sacrifice, he produced the Ṛg, Yajur, and Sāma Vedas, with which the Sādhyas worshipped the gods and all beings. He created Sanatkumāra and Rudra, born from wrath, and also the seven mind-born sages—Marīci, Atri, Aṅgiras, Pulastya, Pulaha, Kratu, and Vasiṣṭha—who are known as the sons of Brahmā. These seven sages, together with Rudra, generated offspring. Brahmā, dividing his own body in two, made one part male. Agni continued: “Now, O sage, I will tell you of the creation that arose from Kaśyapa among the Ādityas. In the Cākṣuṣa era, the Tuṣita gods were born again from Aditi through Kaśyapa. Among these were Viṣṇu, Śakra, Tvaṣṭṛ, Dhātṛ, Aryaman, Pūṣan, Vivasvān, Savitṛ, Mitra, Varuṇa, and Bhaga.” Thus, the wondrous play of Hari unfolds, in creation and dissolution, in the rise and fall of ages, and in the ceaseless flow of dharma and adharma.