O best of the twice-born, I have thus spoken of the eight hundred beautiful names of the Sun, the one of boundless brilliance. These names are to be recited as an act of devotion, for they bring auspiciousness and are a source of great merit. I bow to Bhaskara, the radiant Sun, who is sought for the welfare of all beings. He is served by hosts of gods, ancestors, and yakshas, and is worshipped by asuras, night-wanderers, and siddhas alike. His radiance is like shining gold and blazing fire. Whoever, with focused mind, recites these sacred names at sunrise will be blessed with sons, a devoted wife, wealth, and treasures. Such a devotee gains remembrance of past births, and their memory and intelligence become supreme. Whoever, with a pure and concentrated mind, recites this hymn to the best of gods is freed from the ocean of sorrow and attains all desires of the heart. Now, hear of the all-pervading God, the enemy of Tripura, the three-eyed one—beloved of Uma, known as Rudra, crowned with the crescent moon. It was he who, having driven away all the gods, siddhas, vidyadharas, rishis, gandharvas, yakshas, nagas, and others who had assembled, struck down the sacrifice of Daksha. This sacrifice was a prosperous and magnificent rite, rich in jewels and furnished with every requisite. By the radiance of Rudra, the dwellers of heaven—Indra and the others—were terrified, and the Brahmins found no peace. Seeking refuge, they fled to Kailasa. There, upon Mount Kailasa, abides the boon-giver, bearing the trident, bull-bannered, the wielder of Pinaka—the blessed one, destroyer of Daksha’s sacrifice. Mahadeva, clad in skins and marked by the bull-banner, dwells in that timeless place beneath a single mango tree. There, O best of sages, Hara grants all desires. Now, you may wonder: for what reason did Bhava, the god devoted to the welfare of all beings, destroy Daksha’s sacrifice, which was adorned by the presence of all the gods? Surely, the cause was not trivial. We, too, wished to know, and so the story is told. Daksha had eight daughters. United with their husbands, these daughters were brought from their homes, and Daksha honored them in his house. After being honored, the Brahmins, Daksha’s sons-in-law, stayed in his house. Among these daughters, the eldest was Sati, the wife of Tryambaka, the three-eyed Shiva. Yet, Daksha, who harbored hostility toward Rudra, did not invite his own daughter Sati to his grand sacrifice. Though Maheshvara, Shiva, made obeisance to Daksha, he received no honor in return. Shiva, steadfast in his own nature and radiance, remained unmoved. Sati, knowing this, arrived at her father’s house along with the others, though she was uninvited. When Sati came to her father’s house, she found that her father performed worship for all except her. Displeased by this slight, the goddess, overwhelmed with anger, addressed her father: “I am the eldest and most distinguished—why do you not honor me, O Lord? You have placed me in a contemptible state, which is blameworthy. I am superior to the younger ones; you ought to honor me.” Daksha, his eyes reddened with anger, replied, “My daughters who are superior and distinguished, and their husbands, are worthy of honor, O Sati. They are greatly esteemed by me. They are Brahminical, observant of vows, great yogis, supremely righteous, and praiseworthy by their virtues—all of them, except for Tryambaka, O Sati. Vasishtha, Atri, Pulastya, Angiras, Pulaha, Kratu, Bhrigu, and Marichi—these are my most distinguished sons-in-law. Sharva, your husband, competes with them and all of them oppose him. Therefore, I do not wish for you—Bhava is adverse to me.” Having spoken thus, Daksha, confused and agitated, uttered words that would curse himself, as the great sages had foretold. Angered, the goddess spoke again: “Because you reproach me and your own son-in-law, though I am without fault in word, thought, or deed, therefore, father, I now renounce this body.” Deeply pained and unable to bear the insult, Sati respectfully addressed the Self-born: “By whose power I have left this body, may I, with a new radiant form, again be born unconfused and righteous, and become once more the lawful wife of the wise Tryambaka.” There, seated and composed in her anger, the goddess performed a fiery concentration, sustaining the fire within herself. Then, raising her own self, stirred by the wind, she departed from all her limbs, and the fire reduced her to ashes. When Shiva, the trident-bearer, heard of Sati’s death and their conversation, he understood the truth and was filled with rage for the destruction of Daksha. Because Sati, though praised, came uninvited and was slighted by Daksha, all the other daughters and their husbands were blessed. Therefore, when the age of Vaivasvata arrives, these great sages will be born again in Daksha’s second sacrifice, not from a womb. When the sacrifice of Brahma was performed in the interval of Cākṣuṣa Manu, Daksha, having summoned the seven sages, cursed Rudra again. There will be a human king in that interval, the grandson of Prācīnabarhis and the son of Pracetas. Daksha will be born by the name Daksha from Māriṣā, the daughter of the trees. Yet even then, O misguided one, obstacles will arise for you in actions connected with righteousness, desire, and wealth, again and again. Having spoken thus, Daksha cursed Rudra once more: “Because you, out of cruelty for my sake, have spoken harshly to the sages, therefore, along with the gods, the twice-born will not offer you oblations in sacrifice. After making an offering to you, O cruel one, they will touch water in the rites; you will remain in this world until the end of the age, having abandoned heaven, and even then, though with the gods, you will not receive worship. The fourfold order of the gods partakes together, but I will not eat with them; I will partake separately.” Thus unfolded the tale of Sati’s self-sacrifice, Daksha’s pride, and the wrath of Rudra, which shook the very heavens and set forth the cycles of birth, curse, and redemption among the gods and sages.