Having given countless gifts and ruled his kingdom with righteousness, the noble king performed many sacrifices and acts of charity. When his purpose was fulfilled, he renounced all his possessions and departed for the supreme abode, that highest realm of Viṣṇu. Thus, O best of sages, I have spoken to you of the noble king and the greatness of this sacred field. What else would you wish to hear? Hearing these words of Brahmā, the one of unmanifest birth, the gathered brahmins marveled at the tale and, filled with joy, inquired further. “O lord,” they asked, “at what time should one approach Puruṣottama, O best of gods, and by what rite should the Pañcatīrtha be performed? Tell us, one by one, the fruits of bathing and giving at each sacred spot, and also of beholding the deities, all separately.” Brahmā replied: “He who, fasting, performs austerity at Kurukṣetra, standing on one foot, with senses and anger subdued, for seven thousand years—such a one, having always beheld Puruṣottama on the twelfth day of the bright fortnight of Jyeṣṭha, and having observed a fast, attains a result even greater than that. Therefore, O best of sages, the supreme person should be seen with effort and discipline by Brahmins and others desiring the heavenly world, in the month of Jyeṣṭha. Having performed the rite of the five sacred waters according to rule in Jyeṣṭha, the best of men should behold that supreme person on the twelfth day of the bright fortnight. Those who see the imperishable deity, the supreme person, on the twelfth day attain the world of Viṣṇu and never fall from it at any time. Therefore, O best of twice-born, one should go with effort in Jyeṣṭha, and having performed the five sacred waters there, the supreme person should be seen. Even one who is very far away, who praises the supreme person with devotion day after day, with a pure mind, will also reach the city of Viṣṇu. Whoever undertakes a pilgrimage to Krishna with faith and concentration, freed from all sins, that man will reach the world of Viṣṇu. Having seen the discus of Hari from afar, situated atop the temple, a man who bows to it with devotion is instantly freed from sins.” O best of sages, when the great destruction began in the cycle, the sun and moon vanished, the wind ceased, and all that is stationary and moving was destroyed. When the fierce dissolution sun had risen, thunderclouds roared, and trees and mountains were shattered by masses of lightning strikes. The whole world was absorbed, all things removed by great meteors, and all waters dried up in lakes and rivers. Then, O Brahmins, the fire of dissolution, together with the wind, entered the entire world, adorned by the suns. Afterwards, breaking through the earth and entering the underworld, it caused great fear among gods, demons, and yakshas. Burning up the realm of serpents and whatever else was here on earth below, O tiger among sages, it destroyed everything in an instant. The swift wind and the fire of dissolution burned hundreds of thousands of yojanas. That blazing lord burned everything—the world with gods, demons, gandharvas, yakshas, serpents, and rākṣasas. That blazing, terribly fierce fire is known as the dissolution fire, with great flames, great brilliance, and a mighty roar. Shining like ten million suns, blazing with its radiance, it swiftly burned the three worlds, with gods, demons, and humans. In such a terrible, dreadful, great dissolution, a sage of supreme righteousness became absorbed in meditation and yoga. There stood alone, O Brahmins, the renowned Markandeya, bound by the snares of delusion, his senses disturbed by hunger and thirst. Seeing that great fire, his throat, lips, and palate parched, tormented by thirst, the Brahmin stumbled, overcome with fear. He wandered across the whole earth, disoriented and aimless, unable to find a savior, his mind running here and there. He found no comfort then, nor a place where the Brahmins could rest. “What shall I do? I do not know to whom I should turn for refuge. How can I see that eternal Lord of beings?” Thus reflecting, he concentrated his mind on the eternal God. He attained that divine state, the cause of the great dissolution, the Lord of beings, known as the eternal banyan tree. Driven by urgency, the sage went to the vicinity of the banyan tree, and, having reached it, Markandeya sat at its root. There was no fear of the fire of time, nor any shower of embers, nor the arrival of the dissolution, nor thunderbolts and lightning. Then, clouds resembling herds of elephants, adorned with garlands of lightning, rose up in the sky, wondrous to behold. Some were dark like blue lotuses, some resembled white water lilies, some were like pollen, and some were yellow rain clouds. Some were green like grass, some like crow eggs, some shone like lotus petals, and some were like vermilion. Some took the shape of cities, some resembled great mountains, some were dark as collyrium, and some shone with emerald brilliance. Great clouds, their bodies bound with garlands of lightning, rose up, formidable in form, mighty, and resounding with terrifying voices. Then all the rain clouds covered the sky, and with them, the entire earth, along with its mountains, forests, and lakes.