Having thus spoken, the devoted king worshipped Mahadeva with hundreds and thousands of pure white lotuses. His heart full of earnest longing, he recited the sacred mantra once more. The king’s devotion grew so intense that the Lord of the Universe himself, pleased and compassionate, appeared in person before him, accompanied by Uma. As the king beheld Hara—Lord Shiva—suddenly before him, he saw the great god smeared with ashes, his eyes unique in shape, his radiance like that of autumn jasmine and the full moon. Shiva was clad in a tiger skin, his matted hair adorned with the crescent moon. Overcome, the king immediately fell to the earth, bowing deeply, and then addressed the Lord. “O Lord, if my devotion and your compassion have pleased you, and if this brahmin boy has fallen under the sway of inexorable Time, then let him live again—that is my vow. Though the boy died suddenly, by your own power, O Maheshvara, grant him life as ordained, and make him safe.” Hearing these words of Shveta, Shiva was greatly pleased. He commanded Kala, the personification of Time and death, who is feared by all beings and obeys Yama’s command. Shiva restrained Kala, who is difficult to withstand, and brought the boy back from the very jaws of death. Having secured the welfare of the entire world by this act, the great god, together with the goddess Uma and his own divine energy, vanished before the sage’s son. In this way, the noble king Shveta revived the sage’s son. Now, O Lord of gods, Master of the universe, imperishable origin of the three worlds, tell us the supreme truth about the one called Śveta. Hear me, O best among sages, you who are sinless and seek the welfare of all beings. I shall speak truly, just as you have asked. The greatness of Mādhava destroys all sins; hearing of it, a person surely attains every cherished wish. O twice-born, I have heard from the ancient sages the divine story of Mādhava. Listen to this tale, which destroys fear, sorrow, and distress. King Shveta ruled his kingdom with unwavering dedication for thousands of years, carefully balancing worldly and Vedic duties, and observing all the proper rites. Firm in his vow to worship Keśava, he journeyed to the sacred southern shore of the ocean, a place supremely holy. There, on that beautiful and auspicious coast near Kṛṣṇa, Śveta had a splendid palace constructed. To the south of the Lord of gods, Śveta built a magnificent hall of a hundred columns, all made of gleaming white stone. In that blessed place, Śveta established Mādhava, radiant as the moon, in accordance with the prescribed rites, exactly as he had been instructed. He gave generous gifts to Brahmins, to the poor, the helpless, and to ascetics. Then, in the presence of Mādhava, the king suddenly fell to the earth, reciting the twelve-syllabled Oṃkāra, maintaining complete silence, and for a full month remained absorbed in deep meditation. Without taking food, the blessed king stood steadfast at the feet of Viṣṇu. At the end of his recitation, he began to praise the Lord of gods: “Oṃ, obeisance to Vāsudeva, obeisance to Saṃkarṣaṇa, to Pradyumna, to Aniruddha, and to Nārāyaṇa. Obeisance to the one of many forms, the universal form, the creator; to the one without qualities, the inconceivable, the pure, the performer of pure deeds. Oṃ, obeisance to Padmanābha, to the one born from the lotus-womb; obeisance to you of lotus hue, to you who hold the lotus. Oṃ, obeisance to Puṣkarākṣa, to the thousand-eyed, the gracious one; obeisance to the thousand-footed, the thousand-armed mighty one. Om, obeisance to Varaha, the bestower of boons, of excellent wisdom, the most eminent, the most worthy, the refuge, the imperishable. Om, obeisance to the one with the form of a child, radiant as a young lotus, whose eyes are like the rising sun and moon, with matted hair of muñja grass, and full of intelligence. Obeisance always to Keshava, obeisance to Narayana, to Madhava, the most eminent, to Govinda, repeated salutations. Om, constant obeisance to Vishnu, the god, the one with radiant seed, obeisance to Madhusudana, to the pure one, to the bearer of rays. Obeisance to the infinite, to the subtle one, to the bearer of the Śrīvatsa mark, to Trivikrama, and to the one clad in divine yellow garments. Obeisance to you, creator of the universe, repeated obeisance to the protector and sustainer; obeisance to the one who is both with qualities and without qualities. Obeisance to the one with the form of Vamana, to the deeds of Vamana, to the eyes of Vamana, to the bearer of Vamana. Obeisance to the beautiful, the venerable, to the one of unmanifest form, to the inconceivable, the pure, and to the remover of fear. To the boat across the ocean of worldly existence, to the tranquil, to the true self, to Shiva, to the gentle form, to Rudra, to the deliverer—obeisance. To the destroyer of worldly existence, the giver of worldly enjoyments, the form of the multitude of beings, the creator of existence—obeisance. Om, obeisance to the one of divine form, whose breath is the moon and fire, whose hair is the rays of the moon and sun, who is the benefactor of cows and Brahmins. Om, obeisance to the embodiment of the Ṛk, to the form of the sequence of words, to the one praised by the Ṛk, to the one who is the means of the Ṛk. Om, obeisance to the supporter of the Yajus, to the one who assumes the form of the Yajus, to the one delighted by the Yajus and oblations, obeisance to the lord of the Yajus. Om, obeisance to the lord of Śrī, to the bearer of Śrī, to the boar, to the beloved of Śrī, to the restrained, to the one contemplated by yogis, to the yogin—obeisance.” Thus did King Śveta, with unwavering devotion, worship the Supreme Lord, whose greatness destroys all sin and grants all wishes to those who hear his divine story.