The sacred rites began with the careful consecration of holy items, each placed in vessels and wrapped in cloth, then sprinkled with water drawn from the bilva and other auspicious sources, all accompanied by the prescribed mantras. The teacher, mindful and reverent, arranged these vessels beside the ceremonial pot, announcing divine protection over the proceedings. With a tooth-stick and the amalaki fruit, he drew ritual lines to the east, marking the space with purity. To the south, invoking Pradyumna, he spread ashes and sesame seeds; to the west, he used cow dung and clay; to the north, he invoked Aniruddha; and to the northeast, Nārāyaṇa himself was honored. At the heart of the space, water sanctified with darbha grass was placed, while saffron and red powder were offered into the sacred fire. Incense was set at the head in the northeast, and the topknot was honored in the southwest. Divine root-flowers and protective armor were offered to the northwest wind, while sandal-water, rice, curd, and dūrvā grass were gathered into a small basket. The house was then encircled three times with a sacred thread, after which siddhārtha seeds were scattered, and, in the order of worship, each deity received their own fragrant purifier. Mantras were chanted to the guardians of the doorways and feet, and the Viṣṇu pot was infused with the radiant, sin-destroying energy of Viṣṇu himself. The teacher declared, “I bear upon your body the deity who grants all desires,” and, after worshipping with incense and lamps, moved to the doorway. There, the purifier—adorned with fragrance, flowers, and rice—was placed upon a stone, shining with Vaiṣṇava power and able to destroy even the greatest sins. “For the accomplishment of dharma, desire, and wealth, I bear it upon my own body,” the devotee intoned, and at the seat, at the beginning of the assembly, the purifier was offered to the teacher. With further offerings of fragrance, flowers, and rice, worship was rendered to Hari, beginning with the root mantra: “Born of Viṣṇu’s energy.” The purifier, now sanctified, was given to the deity established in the fire, and prayers were offered to that Lord, who rests upon the great serpent-bed in the ocean of milk. “In the morning I will worship you, O Keśava, be present,” the devotee prayed. Gifts were then offered to Indra and the other gods, and offerings were presented to Viṣṇu’s attendants. Before the deities, a pot filled with a pair of garments, fragrant substances like rocanā, camphor, and saffron, and water was set down. Adorned with fragrance and flowers, worship was conducted with the root mantra outside the pavilion, at the three anointed circles. There, the five sacred products of the cow, curd, and sacred firewood were arranged. The assembly listened to the Purāṇas, recited hymns, and kept vigil through the night. For messengers, children, women, and those who delight in pleasures, an immediate consecration was performed, omitting the fragrant purifying thread. Then Agni spoke, “Hear in brief the rite of Pavitra-adorning for all the gods. The Pavitra must be pure, bearing all auspicious marks, even fashioned of gold or fire. Approach the source of the universe with your retinue.” He continued, “I invite you in the morning; let the Pavitra be given to you. O creator of the world, I bow to you; accept this Pavitra. For sanctification and the fruits of annual worship, O Shiva, I bow to you; accept this Pavitra. With garlands of pearls and coral, with Mandara flowers and the like, may this annual worship be yours, O knower of the Veda. Having completed this annual worship as instructed, now go, released, to the heavenly world, O Pavitra.” Agni then addressed the Sun god, Shiva, the Lord of Speech, and the Lord of Power, beseeching each to accept the Pavitra for sanctification and the fruits of annual worship. He described the sacred threads: “This thread made of Nārāyaṇa, the excellent one of Aniruddha, bestows wealth, grain, long life, and health—I give it to you. The thread of Kamadeva, the excellent one of Sankarṣaṇa, bestowing knowledge, progeny, and good fortune—I give to you. The thread of Vasudeva, granting righteousness, desire, wealth, and liberation, and helping one cross the ocean of worldly existence—I give to you. The thread of the Universal Form, bestower of all, destroyer of sin, uplifting past and future lineages—I give to you.” Agni then spoke of the supreme merit of constructing a temple for Vāsudeva and the gods. “Hear now the results of building a divine abode: for one who desires to create a temple for Kṛṣṇa, it destroys the sins of a hundred births. All rejoice when a house is made for Kṛṣṇa. Freed from sins, such a one attains the world of Acyuta, and leads tens of thousands of past and future family members there as well.” After building a house for Hari, the builder quickly leads his ancestors, now adorned, to dwell in Viṣṇu’s realm, freed from the torments of hell. The builder of Kṛṣṇa’s temple, this abode of the gods, destroys even the gravest sins, such as brahminicide. The fruits gained by sacrifices are obtained by building a temple, and one attains the merit of bathing in all sacred waters. Even if a temple is built deceitfully or with mere sand, the results are equal to those gained by warriors slain in battle for the gods. One who builds a single temple attains heaven; with three, the world of Brahmā; with five, the world of Śiva; with eight, he abides with Hari. One who builds sixteen temples attains both enjoyment and liberation. By building a house for Hari, whether lesser, middling, or excellent, supreme merit is gained. Thus, the rituals and the glories of temple construction were revealed, sanctifying both the devotee and his lineage, and opening the path to the highest worlds.