With the silent blessing of his father, the son of Śatrujita faithfully carried out the request made by the noble-hearted king of the serpents. Gathering his sons and the princes around him, the truthful lord of the great serpents, filled with joy and self-restraint, enjoyed a feast of food and honey, delighting in the pleasures suited to the occasion. Later, Alarka approached with earnest questions: “What is the duty of those who follow the householder’s path? What bondage arises if one neglects action, and what elevation comes from performing it? What brings benefit to people, and what should a householder avoid? Please tell me clearly how these things are to be done.” Madālasā replied warmly, “My child, by embracing the life of a householder, a man upholds the entire world. Through this path, he gains mastery over the realms and achieves his heart’s desires. Ancestors, sages, gods, all living beings—humans, worms, insects, birds, animals, and even demons—depend upon the householder for their sustenance. They look to him, wondering, ‘Will he give to us or not?’ Thus, the householder is like the sacred cow of threefold form, the very foundation of all existence. In her, the universe is established, and she is regarded as the cause of everything. Her back is the Ṛgveda, her middle the Yajurveda, and her mouth and head the Sāmaveda. Her horns are sacrifice and charity, her body is made of the hymns of the virtuous. Her dung and urine are peace and nourishment, her limbs are the castes and orders of society. As long as this cow is sustained, the worlds endure and do not diminish. O child, her four breasts are the sacred utterances: ‘svāhā’, ‘svadhā’, ‘vaṣaṭ’, and ‘hanta’. The gods draw nourishment from ‘svāhā’, the ancestors from ‘svadhā’, and sages, gods, spirits, and demons from ‘vaṣaṭ’. Humans continually drink from ‘hanta’. In this way, this cow, composed of the three Vedas, nourishes all beings. Whoever destroys these—who commits the gravest evil—sinks into the deepest darkness. But the man who, with his own family, the gods, and others, allows this sacred cow to be nourished at the proper time, attains heaven. Therefore, my son, a human must daily nourish the gods, sages, ancestors, humans, and all beings, just as he nourishes his own body. Purified and protected, one should attentively perform offerings to the gods, sages, ancestors, Prajapati, and others, at the proper time. After worshipping the gods with fragrant flowers, a man should offer to the fire, and distribute the prescribed portions. Within the house, he should offer to Brahma and the Visvedevas; for Dhanvantari, he should place offerings in the northeast. In the east, he should offer to Indra; in the south, to Yama; in the west, to Varuna; and in the north, to Soma. At the door, he should give to Dhātṛ and Vidhātṛ; outside, to Aryaman; and all around, to the household deities. He should place offerings in the open for night-wandering beings and spirits, and for the ancestors, he should offer while facing south. With a focused mind, the householder should then take water for purification. The wise man should place the offerings at the designated spots, invoking each respective deity; thus, after making the household offering, he remains pure. For the nourishment of all beings, he should respectfully release a portion, scattering food on the ground for dogs, outcasts, and birds. This is called the Vaiśvadeva rite, performed both morning and evening; after purification, the wise man should inspect the door. He should observe the eighth part of the hour, and if a guest arrives, he must honor the guest with food and water. According to his ability, he should welcome the guest with fragrance, flowers, and more—never treating a friend or a resident of the same village as a guest. A true guest is one whose family and name are unknown, who arrives hungry, weary, begging, and possessing nothing. Such a person is called a Brahmin guest and should be honored by the wise to the best of their ability. A learned person should not ask his lineage, school, or learning. Whether his appearance is pleasant or not, he should be regarded as Prajapati himself, for he is called ‘guest’ precisely because his stay is impermanent. When the guest is satisfied, the householder is freed from debts owed to humanity; but if one eats without giving, he partakes of sin. He alone eats sin—and in another birth, filth—if a guest leaves his house with hope unfulfilled. Even if he gives only water or vegetables, whatever merit is gained, that goes to the guest, while the sin remains with the householder. Therefore, a man should honor a guest with whatever means he has, and daily perform the śrāddha with food and water. He should feed Brahmins, or at least one Brahmin, in honor of the ancestors, offering first the best portion of the food. He should give alms to those who beg—wandering ascetics and students—the measure being four mouthfuls, with the first portion given. The best of the twice-born say that the first portion is four times as effective as the rest; whether it is the meal or alms, the first portion is most potent. One should not eat without first giving, according to one’s means, after honoring guests, household deities, relatives, and those who seek charity. He should feed the disabled, children, the elderly, the clever, and anyone else who, afflicted by hunger, desires food and has nothing. Thus, the path of the householder is revealed: by honoring all beings through daily acts of giving, worship, and compassion, he sustains the world and fulfills his highest duty.