By command of the Supreme Lord, the goddess Ganga was instructed to purify all the sons of Sagara. These sons, adorned with divine forms, rode in celestial chariots, having completed the enjoyment of their actions through countless births. Their journey through cycles of birth and death had reached its conclusion. As revealed in the scriptures, it is by the touch and even the wind of the sacred Ganges that their remaining impurities are utterly destroyed. The Lord further declared that on the auspicious day known as Mausalā, simply by bathing in the Ganges, all people—regardless of their sins, even the gravest like the slaying of a Brahmin—are cleansed of every blemish. On this day, bathing in the holy river brings complete purification, as taught in the sacred texts. Some, O goddess, affirm that the results of such acts are exactly as described in scripture. He then instructed the goddess to listen attentively to the merit gained from bathing on ordinary days. On the day when the sun transits into a new sign, the merit of bathing becomes thirty times greater. During the sacred period of Uttarayana, the merit is tenfold. On Akshaya day, the benefit is equal to this, though such is not established in the Vedas. Yet, even on ordinary days, bathing with true meditation yields a hundredfold merit. On the bright seventh day of the month of Magha, and likewise on Bhishma Ashtami, the merit is especially great. Still greater—twice as much—is found on the rare and auspicious day called Nanda. Equal to Nanda is Varuni, and before these, the merit is four times greater. On such occasions, the merit of bathing rises to ten million times that of an ordinary bath. Even if one bathes at the time of partial sunrise, the result is a hundredfold increase. Those who are devoted Vaishnavas, liberated while living, seek no fruit from their actions. When the supreme Vishnu mantra is received into the ear from the mouth of the guru, a hundred ancestors before and a hundred descendants after, as well as one’s sister, brother, nephew, maternal uncle, guru, the giver of knowledge, friends, and companions—all are uplifted by the very act of receiving the mantra. By touching such a person, the holy places of Bharat are themselves purified, and wherever his feet touch, that place becomes a sacred site. Vaishnavas, who always partake only of sanctified offerings, do not eat otherwise. All sacred waters are purified by their touch, and their sins flee from them as serpents flee before Garuda. Vishnu’s Sudarshana disc ever protects them. These best among Vaishnavas speak with trembling voices and tearful eyes, entrusting their homes and all that is theirs to the Lord. The Supreme then proclaimed: From the post of Brahma down to the smallest blade of grass, all that moves and does not move arises from me. Countless millions of universes, with Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, and others, are but manifestations of my radiant nature, supreme and full of grace for devotees. All beings born of nature arise from me and are withdrawn into me. Having spoken thus, the Lord of gods fell silent before the assembly. Then the goddess Ganga addressed the Lord, saying, “By your command, O King, and through my own austerity, I shall remain in Bharata. Whatever sins the sinful may impart to me, I shall bear. But for how long shall my stay be limited in Bharata? Whatever else I desire, you, O all-knowing one, are already aware.