With deep reverence, the sage bowed his head before the goddess, joining his palms in devotion. Once again, he addressed her: “O goddess, surely it is possible to know; please, O supreme Lady, tell me.” The goddess replied gently to the sage, “Nārāyaṇa himself will grant you knowledge.” As she spoke those words, she remembered Viṣṇu—the Supreme, beyond all that is supreme—and in that very moment, she vanished from his sight. The sage then turned his heart and mind to worship Hṛṣīkeśa, the Lord who dispels the suffering of all who surrender to him. In response, the great yogi appeared before him, resplendent in yellow garments, his presence pervading the entire universe. Overcome with awe, the sage knelt with his knees to the ground and praised the Lord whose banner is Garuḍa. He offered his salutations, saying, “O Kṛṣṇa, O Viṣṇu, O Hṛṣīkeśa, obeisance to you, the soul of the universe. To you, the cause of creation, preservation, and destruction, O possessor of infinite power. Obeisance to you, the Puruṣa; to you, whose very form is the universe. Obeisance to you, who are without beginning, middle, or end, attainable only through knowledge. Obeisance to you, who transcend both difference and non-difference, whose form is pure bliss. Salutations again and again to you, whose form is infinite, yet formless. Homage to you, O Supreme Lord, to Brahman, to the Supreme Self. Salutations to Śiva, the pure one; homage to the Supreme Creator. You are the father of all beings; you are the mother, O Supreme Person. You are the support of all, the unmanifest, the infinite, beyond the reach of darkness. I seek refuge in your form, the highest abode of Viṣṇu.” Then, as if smiling, the Lord reached out and touched the sage with both hands. By the grace of the Lord, the sage understood the supreme reality as it truly is. He addressed the lotus-eyed, yellow-robed, undecaying Lord, who rested in deep yogic sleep. “Knowledge whose sole object is Brahman,” he reflected, “bestows the attainment of supreme bliss. What should I do, O Lord of Yoga? Tell me, O embodiment of the universe.” The Lord smiled and spoke words meant for the welfare of the entire world: “He is to be worshipped through knowledge and the yoga of devotion, and not otherwise. Knowing also my activity, one who seeks liberation should worship the Lord. Contemplate the Self as non-dual, and you will behold the Supreme Lord. There is another contemplation, Brahmic, which should be known as transcending the qualities. If one is unable to pursue this, one should return to the original practice; this is the teaching of the Veda. Worship the Lord of the universe fully, and then you will attain liberation.” The sage then inquired further: “What is the effect, what is the cause, who are you, and what is your activity?” The Lord replied, “The eternal bliss, self-luminous, imperishable, and beyond darkness—that is the truth. The effect is the world and the unmanifest; the cause is the pure, imperishable. My activity is said to be creation, maintenance, and dissolution. Therefore, you should properly worship the eternal through the discipline of action.” The sage pressed on: “And what is that divine knowledge, established in the threefold contemplation? What are their valid means, their purifying vows? Tell me everything as it truly is, O lotus-eyed one, right now.” The Lord responded, “O foremost of sages, I have spoken everything to you completely and properly.” Having thus blessed the brahmin, the Lord became invisible right there, leaving the sage filled with knowledge and grace.