At the root of the deer during the month of Bhādrapada, it is said that meat holds the same significance as cow’s flesh. Those who, after engaging in sexual union or shaving, offer satisfaction to the gods and ancestors, must be mindful of what should or should not be done, what is fit to be eaten and what is not. At this point, Nārada, ever eager for knowledge, approached with reverence and asked, “Please describe to me the true nature of Brahman and its definition. O Lord, is Brahman with form or formless? Is it visible or invisible, attached to embodied beings or not? Is Prakṛti distinct from Brahman, or of the same nature? Among them, which holds supremacy in creation, and which is the highest choice?” Hearing these profound questions, the five-faced Mahādeva smiled gently. He spoke, “O Nārada, such questions are extremely rare in the Vedas and Purāṇas. I, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Śeṣa, Dharma, the great Virāṭ—all that is endowed with attributes, visible and perceptible—these are subjects of deep inquiry. Long ago, in Vaikuṇṭha, Dharma himself posed these questions to Brahmā. The answer is the essence of all principles; it is the eye for those blinded by ignorance. It reveals the true form of the Supreme Self, the eternal Brahman. The five vital airs are Viṣṇu himself; the mind is Brahmā, the lord of creatures. All of us depend on the Self; as long as it abides, we abide. The individual soul is its reflection, and the enjoyer of the fruits of actions. Just as a reflection disappears when a pot breaks, so too do the forms of the moon and sun vanish, but only the supreme Brahman remains at the end of the world. This Brahman is of the nature of light, having the form of a radiant circle. It is vast like space, all-pervading, and imperishable. There, the yogis declare, lies the supreme, eternal Brahman. It is without desire, without form—the supreme Self, the Lord. It is the nature and cause of supreme bliss; there too, Prakriti, the source of all seeds, merges. Just as the power to burn resides in fire, and radiance in the sun, just as sound is in the sky and scent is always in the earth, so too, when Brahman inclines toward creation, a portion of it is known as Purusha. There, Prakriti is threefold in qualities and is remembered as the supreme, shadowy form. Just as a potter can fashion a pot from clay, and a goldsmith can make an earring from gold, the pot is made by the potter, but the clay itself is eternal. Similarly, that supreme Brahman is eternal, and Prakriti is also said to be eternal. Yet, to obtain clay or gold, the potter and goldsmith are required. Therefore, O Nārada, Brahman is supreme over Prakriti. Some say that Brahman itself is both Prakriti and Purusha. That Brahman is the supreme abode, the cause of all causes. Brahman and the Self of all are untouched, existing as the witness. The power of Brahman is Prakriti, the very form of all seeds. Yogis always meditate upon that Brahman as having the form of radiant light.