Among thousands of women, a man becomes the husband of many, and as a king, he enjoys the wealth of ten thousand villages. Awakened from sleep by the melodious sound of golden anklets, and having reveled in great pleasures, he is drawn once more to that sacred tīrtha. Always clad in pure white garments, disciplined and self-controlled, the king partakes of food only once a day and rules for a month. He gains a hundred women adorned with gold, and on earth, as far as the ocean stretches, he becomes a mighty king. Endowed with wealth and grain, he is a constant giver; after enjoying his prosperity, he returns again to that tīrtha. Then, at the beautiful sandhyā bank, a celibate who has mastered his senses, who fasts and is pure, attains Brahmaloka at twilight. Whoever gives up his life at Koṭitīrtha is honored in heaven for a thousand crores of years. Yet, when his merit is spent, he falls from heaven and is born into a wealthy family adorned with gold, jewels, and pearls, possessing beauty. Afterward, he journeys to Bhogavatī, north of Vāsuki, where another tīrtha, Daśāśvamedhaka, awaits. A man who performs abhiṣeka there receives the fruit of an Aśvamedha sacrifice; he becomes wealthy, handsome, skilled, generous, and righteous. The merit gained from the four Vedas, from truthfulness, and from nonviolence is matched merely by visiting this place. Wherever the Gaṅgā is entered, she is equal to Kurukṣetra; but where she joins with the Vindhya, she is ten times greater than Kurukṣetra. Where the blessed Gaṅgā, rich in many sacred fords, flows, that place is a field of perfection; no further deliberation is needed. On earth, she delivers mortals; below, she delivers serpents; in heaven, she delivers gods—thus she is called the threefold path. For as many years as the bones of a person remain in the Gaṅgā, for that many thousands of years they are honored in heaven. Then, having fallen from heaven, one becomes a lord of Jambūdvīpa. Among all sacred fords, this is the supreme, and among rivers, Gaṅgā is the greatest, granting liberation to all beings—even to the great sinners. The Gaṅgā is easily accessible everywhere, but difficult to reach in three places: at Gaṅgādvāra, at Prayāga, and at her confluence with the ocean. There, those who bathe and die ascend to heaven and are not born again. For all beings whose minds are afflicted by sin and who seek a path, there is no path equal to that of the Gaṅgā. She is the purifier of the pure, the most auspicious, fallen from the head of the great Lord, remover of all sins, and supremely auspicious. In the Kṛta age, Naimiṣa was the sacred field; in the Tretā, Puṣkara was supreme; in the Dvāpara, Kurukṣetra; but in the Kali age, the Gaṅgā excels. One should worship the Gaṅgā, especially at Prayāga, for in this dreadful Kali age, O king, there is no other remedy. Hear again, O king, the greatness of Prayāga; by hearing it, one is freed from all sins, without doubt. There is a sacred ford called Mānasa on the northern bank of the Gaṅgā; by fasting there for three nights, one attains all desires. Whatever merit a man obtains by giving cows, land, or gold, he gains that same merit by simply remembering that ford again. Whether without desire or with desire, whoever approaches the Gaṅgā—if he dies, he attains heaven and does not see hell. Awakened by the songs of apsarases, he departs in a celestial chariot yoked with swans and cranes, and enjoys heaven, O king of kings, for many thousands of years. Yet, when his merit is exhausted and he falls from heaven, he is born in a great family adorned with gold, jewels, and pearls. Sixty thousand sacred fords and sixty crores of rivers converge at the confluence of Gaṅgā and Yamunā in the month of Māgha. The merit gained by giving a hundred thousand cows properly is obtained by bathing for three days at Prayāga in Māgha. Whoever kindles the sacred fire between the Gaṅgā and Yamunā becomes free from disease and deformity, and endowed with all five senses. For as many hair follicles as are on the body of that embodied being, for that many thousands of years he is honored in the world of heaven. Then, having fallen from heaven, he becomes a lord of Jambudvīpa; after enjoying great pleasures, he remembers that sacred place again. Whoever enters the water at the renowned confluence, when the moon is eclipsed by Rāhu, is freed from all sins. He attains the world of Soma and delights there with Soma for sixty thousand years, being honored in heaven. And in this heaven, the realm of Indra, served by men and Gandharvas, O king, if he falls from there, he is born in a prosperous family. Whoever, with head downward and feet upward, drinks the blazing water, is honored in heaven for one hundred thousand years. But if he falls from there, O king, that man becomes a performer of Agnihotra; after enjoying great pleasures, he again seeks out that sacred place. Whoever, having cut his own flesh, gives it to the birds—hear also the fruit of him whose body is consumed by birds. He is honored in the world of Soma for a hundred thousand years; falling even from there, he becomes a righteous king. He is virtuous, endowed with beauty, learned, and speaks kindly; after enjoying great pleasures, he again seeks out that sacred place. Thus, the greatness of these tīrthas, especially the Gaṅgā and Prayāga, is celebrated. Their sanctity grants vast merit, heavenly enjoyment, noble births, and, ultimately, liberation—even to the greatest sinners.