Once, a king, overwhelmed by a powerful force of darkness, surrendered himself entirely to her, seeking refuge in her alone. As he entered into this darkness, he vanished from sight, and all the great austerity he had accumulated was destroyed. At that moment, I—Brihaspati—arrived there to grant boons. I found the king bewildered, his austerity lost, as if he were dead. Seeing his distress, I comforted him with various explanations, and named his enemy 'Darkness.' It was through this influence that he had fallen from his path of austerity. I reassured him, saying, “Your purpose is accomplished, O King. Do not grieve. Women bring both joy and suffering to men. All women do so, especially the one who is made of illusion.” With his confusion dispelled, the king folded his hands and spoke to me, “O Brahman, what shall I do? How may I reach the end of austerity?” I replied, “Praise Janardana, the god of gods, with all your effort. Then you will surely attain success. He is the creator of all worlds, ancient, known through the Vedas, and the giver of all attainments to men. There is no other in the three worlds.” Taking my advice to heart, the king went to the greatest of mountains, Himavat. With palms joined, he began to praise Vishnu with deep devotion, proclaiming: “Victory to you, O Vishnu! Victory, O inconceivable one! Victory, O conqueror! Victory, O unchanging one! Victory, O cowherd, lord of Lakshmi! Victory, O Krishna, who is the universe! Victory to you, lord of beings! Victory to you, who recline on the serpent! Victory to you, all-pervading Govinda! Victory to you, creator of the universe! Salutations! Victory to you, O god who supports the universe! Victory to you, sustainer of the universe! Salutations to you, lord of victory, who are both existence and nonexistence! Victory to you, righteous Mādhava! Victory to you, fulfiller of desires, who are desire itself! Victory to you, Rama, ocean of virtues! Victory to you, giver of nourishment, lord of prosperity! Victory to you, bestower of auspiciousness! Victory to you, lord of beings, lord of all creatures! Victory to you, creator of men! Victory to you, giver of action, who are action itself! Victory to you, clad in yellow garments! Victory to you, lord of all, who are everything! Victory to you, embodiment of auspiciousness! Victory to you, lord of sattva! Salutations to you, knower of the Vedas! Victory to you, source of birth, abiding in birth, supreme self! Salutations to you! Victory to you, giver of liberation, who are liberation itself! Victory to you, giver of enjoyment, O Keśava! Victory to you, Lord of the worlds, Lord of beings! Victory to you, destroyer of sin! Victory to you, who are affectionate to devotees! Victory to you, bearer of the discus—salutations! Victory to you, bestower of honor, who are the mind itself! Victory to you, worshipped by the worlds! Victory to you, giver of righteousness, who are righteousness itself! Victory to you, who lead beyond worldly existence! Victory to you, giver of food, who are food itself! Victory to you, Lord of speech—salutations! Victory to you, giver of power, who are power itself! Victory to you, granter of supreme victory and boons! Victory to you, giver of sacrifice, who are sacrifice itself! Victory to you, lotus-eyed one! Victory to you, giver of gifts, who are the gift itself! Victory to you, slayer of Kaitabha! Victory to you, giver of fame, who are fame itself! Victory to you, giver of form, who bear all forms! Victory to you, giver of happiness, who are the very essence of happiness! Victory to you, purifier of the pure! Victory to you, giver of peace, who are peace itself! Victory to you, born of Shankara! Victory to you, giver of drink, who are the drink itself! Victory to you, whose form is light! Victory to you, Vamana, Lord of wealth! Victory to you, bearer of the smoky banner! Victory to you, who are the giver to all the world—obeisance to your form as the giver! You alone are the soul that moves through the three worlds, skilled in destroying the afflictions of beings, O lotus-eyed Lord, ocean of compassion! Place your hand upon my head, O Vishnu!” As the king praised him thus, the Blessed Lord Vishnu, bearing the conch, discus, and mace, appeared before him and offered a boon, granting fulfillment of all desires. Dhanvantari, his mind pleased by this boon from the wielder of the discus, stood before Govinda, Lord of the gods, to receive the boon. The king bowed low and said, “I desire the sovereignty of the gods.” Vishnu granted him this wish, and the king attained his purpose. Having been praised and worshipped, Vishnu then disappeared. In due course, the king attained lordship over the gods. Due to the fruition of many past actions, Indra, the thousand-eyed, lost his position three times from his own place: once from Nahusha, once from the slaying of Vritra, once from the killing of Sindhusena, and also from his union with Ahalya, among other reasons. Remembering these events again and again, Indra’s mind was troubled with anxiety and sorrow. He spoke to Brihaspati, Lord of speech, saying, “For what reason, O Lord of speech, do I lose my kingdom? Time and again, I suffer disgrace by losing my position, which is the worst misfortune for men.” Brihaspati replied, “Who truly knows the deep course of actions and the path of living beings? No one else is able to know the secret of all beings.” Then Brihaspati said to Hari, “Go, ask Brahma. He knows what has been, what will be, and what is happening now. He will speak, O wise one, by whom this has come to be.” Indra and Brihaspati, two great sages, arrived before me, Brahma, bowed with joined palms, and spoke, “O Lord, by what fault does Indra, the noble-minded husband of Śacī, fall from his kingdom? Master, you should dispel our doubt.” After long meditation, I replied to Brihaspati, “By the fault known as incomplete duty, Indra has fallen from the royal position. Through faults of place, time, and other circumstances, by error in faith or mantra, by improper giving of gifts, or by offering impure substances—especially by the sin of disrespecting gods, ancestors, and deities—this incompleteness of one’s own duty arises among embodied beings. Because of this, excessive pride, suffering, and loss of position are hard to abandon. Even if duty is performed, it leads to misfortune for one whose mind is disturbed.” Thus, the story reveals the subtle causes behind Indra’s repeated loss of his kingdom, and the importance of complete and reverent performance of one’s duties.