From the remnants of sacrificial offerings, the people of the world are nourished, sustaining themselves for the sake of the three aims of life—dharma, artha, and kāma. It is by the grace of the rain-god that their efforts bear fruit. Yet, one who abandons the ancient, time-honored dharma—passed down faithfully through generations—out of desire, greed, fear, or hatred, finds no good fortune. Śuka continued the tale: When Nanda and the other residents of Vraja spoke thus, Keśava, Krishna himself, stirred a sense of indignation toward Indra and addressed his father. Krishna explained, “All beings are born and perish through their own actions. Happiness and sorrow, fear and safety, all arise from karma alone. If there is some lord who grants the fruits of another’s actions, he too is dependent upon the doer, for he cannot act upon one who does nothing. Of what use, then, is Indra for those who follow their own actions? He cannot alter what is ordained by each being’s own nature. Indeed, all creatures—gods, demons, and humans—act according to their innate nature, governed by it, and remain established in it. Whether one attains a high or low birth, it is by action that one acts and relinquishes; friend, foe, or neutral—action alone is the teacher and the lord. Therefore, one should worship through action, remaining true to one’s own nature and performing one’s own duty. That by which one lives directly, that alone is truly one’s deity. He who, having the means to live by one path, seeks sustenance from another, finds no well-being there—just as an unchaste woman finds no fulfillment in her paramour. A brāhmaṇa should live by the pursuit of Brahman, a kṣatriya by protecting the earth, a vaiśya by commerce, and a śūdra by serving the twice-born. Among the livelihoods—farming, trade, cow protection, lending at interest, and music—we are always engaged in tending the cows. Sattva, rajas, and tamas are the causes of maintenance, creation, and destruction. From rajas arises the universe and its diversity, each quality giving rise to the next. Urged by rajas, the clouds pour water everywhere, nourishing all beings—what then can Indra do? We have no cities or towns or houses; we dwell always in the forest, O dear one, living among woods and mountains. Therefore, let us begin a sacrifice for the cows, the brāhmaṇas, and the mountain. Let all the materials intended for Indra’s worship be used for this purpose. Let us prepare all manner of cooked foods—soups, rice puddings, cakes, fried flour cakes, and other milk-based dishes. Let the brāhmaṇas, learned in the Veda, properly offer the sacred fires, and let them be given abundant, excellent food and cows as gifts. To others—horse-keepers, outcastes, and the fallen—let us give gifts as appropriate. After giving barley to the cows, let us make an offering to the mountain. Adorned, having eaten, anointed, and dressed in fine garments, let us circumambulate the cows, brāhmaṇas, fires, and the mountain. This is my opinion, dear father; let it be done if it pleases you. This sacrifice is dear to the cows, brāhmaṇas, the mountain, and to me.” Śuka said: Hearing the words of the Lord, who, as Time itself, sought to humble Indra’s pride, Nanda and the other cowherds accepted Krishna’s counsel as proper. They did everything as Madhusūdana had instructed, having the brāhmaṇas recite blessings and using the offerings for the mountain and the brāhmaṇas. All gifts were properly offered, barley was given to the cows, and, placing the herds at the forefront, they circumambulated the mountain. The women, singing of Krishna’s exploits, rode on well-decorated carts yoked with oxen and received the blessings of the virtuous brāhmaṇas. Krishna, assuming another form to inspire confidence among the cowherds, declared, “I am the mountain,” and, taking a great form, accepted the abundant offerings. Together with the people of Vraja, Krishna bowed in reverence to the mountain, saying, “Behold, this mountain has appeared in form and has granted us his favor. He dwells in the forest, taking on forms at will, and destroys those mortals who disrespect him. Therefore, we bow to him for the protection of ourselves and our cows.” Thus, prompted by Vāsudeva, the cowherds, along with Krishna, performed the prescribed rites for the mountain, the cows, the brāhmaṇas, and the sacrifice, and then returned to Vraja. Thus ends the twenty-fourth chapter of the first half of the tenth book in the Śrīmad Bhāgavata Mahāpurāṇa, the collection for the paramahaṃsas. Krishna further instructed, “By perceiving Me—the Self, the self-luminous one who dwells in the hearts of all beings—within yourself by your own self, you will attain freedom from sorrow and fear. Mother, I will impart to you spiritual knowledge, which brings peace to all actions; by this, you will cross over fear.” Maitreya said: Thus addressed by Kapila, the lord of creatures, the listener was pleased, circumambulated him to the right, and departed for the forest. He undertook a vow of silence, relying solely on the Self, wandering unattached over the earth, without fire and without a fixed dwelling. He absorbed his mind in Brahman, which is beyond both the manifest and unmanifest, appearing as the qualities yet itself without qualities, and realized through single-minded devotion. Free from ego, free from possessiveness, beyond dualities, seeing equally and seeing his own Self, he was inwardly peaceful and steady in mind, like a calm ocean without waves. In Vāsudeva, the all-knowing Lord, the inner Self, through supreme devotion, he realized his own Self and became free from bondage. He saw the Lord present in all beings as his own Self, and also saw all beings in the Lord within himself. Freed from desire and aversion, with an even mind toward all, and endowed with devotion to the Lord, he attained the state of a devotee of the Lord. Radiant with a crown, bracelets, necklace, anklets, and girdle; adorned with conch, discus, mace, lotus, garland, and the finest jewels, full of supreme splendor, bearing the Kaustubha gem on his auspicious neck, with shoulders like a lion’s, shining with unfailing glory—his form illuminated like a flawless touchstone.