In that wondrous region, men and women dwell free from disease and sorrow, their minds ever joyful, their bodies shining with a golden hue. The women there are remembered as apsarases, celestial nymphs of surpassing beauty and grace. Beyond this land, past Kimpurusha, lies the famed Harivarsha, where people are born with the brilliance of pure silver. All who live in Harivarsha have descended from the world of the gods, and they possess many forms. In every way, they delight in drinking the auspicious juice of sugarcane. Old age does not touch them in Harivarsha, and so their lives stretch on for eleven thousand years. Now, let me describe the central region, known as Ilavrita. Here, the sun does not shine, nor do the people know of its light. In Ilavrita, neither sun nor moon nor stars cast their glow; instead, the people themselves radiate the beauty of lotuses. Their complexions are like lotus petals, and their eyes are shaped as delicately as those same petals. All who are born in Ilavrita carry the fragrance of lotuses and subsist on the sweet juice of jambū fruits. They remain motionless, exuding a pleasing scent. Like the people of Harivarsha, they too have fallen from the world of the gods and are clothed in shining silver. These excellent people live for thirteen thousand years. Whether on the southern side of Meru or north of Nishadha, all who dwell in Ilavrita share this same span of life. Within Ilavrita stands a great and eternal jambū tree called Sudarshana, always adorned with blossoms and fruit, and attended by siddhas and charanas. The island itself is named Jambū after this tree, a vast expanse a thousand yojanas wide, and even a hundred times greater in extent. The king of trees rises so high it seems to cover the sky, and the juice of its jambū fruit becomes a river that flows forth from its roots. This river circles Mount Meru and returns to the jambū tree's base, where the people of Ilavrita drink its waters with joy. By drinking the juice of the jambū fruit, they are spared from old age, hunger, fatigue, and all such suffering. In this land, a special gold called jāmbūnada is produced, gleaming like the indragopa insect, and it is used to craft ornaments for the gods. The fruit juice of all the region’s trees is auspicious, and the gold that flows from them is pure, becoming the adornment of the divine. Even their urine and feces, in all eight directions, are absorbed by the earth through the Lord’s grace, and the earth also consumes their dead. The Himalayas are home to rakshasas, pisachas, and yakshas, while Hemakuta is known for gandharvas and groups of apsarases. All the great serpents—Śeṣa, Vāsuki, Takṣaka—dwell in these regions, and on mighty Meru, thirty-three auspicious and sacrificial beings play. The mountain, adorned with sapphire and cat’s-eye gems, is the abode of perfected beings and Brahmarṣis. Among the Daityas and Dānavas, the white mountain is renowned. Śṛṅgavān, foremost among mountains, is the path of return for the ancestors. Thus are described the nine regions of Bhārata. These lands are inhabited even by spirits, beings of both movement and stillness. Their growth appears in countless forms to gods and humans alike, impossible to enumerate and wondrous to contemplate, inspiring faith in those who seek. Turning now to the deeds of Budha’s son, Janārdana, I have heard of the sacred rite of Śrāddha, which destroys all sins. I have also learned of the merits gained from giving a cow at the time of calving, the gift of a black antelope skin, and the release of a bull. Having heard of the form and deeds of Budha’s son, the king Purūravas, my curiosity is stirred, O Keśava—tell me how he attained such a form and supreme good fortune. Urvaśī herself, the most esteemed among the gods and the best of the three worlds, along with the enchanting Gandharvas, abandoned all for that king, giving herself to him completely. Hear now, by what actions and their results King Purūravas attained his form and fortune. In a former birth, Purūravas—famed by that same name—was the lord of Madra land. He belonged to the lineage of Cākṣuṣa, during the time of Cākṣuṣa Manu. Though he was endowed with royal virtues, he lacked beauty. What deed, then, enabled Purūravas, the lord of Madra, to become a king, and what deed granted him handsomeness? In a village of twice-borns, there was a foremost Brāhmaṇa named Purūravas, who in a previous birth had been a great king on the riverbank. That king of Madra, called Purūravas, was born as a Brāhmaṇa on the twelfth day. Desiring sovereignty, he fasted and worshipped Janārdana, performing the prescribed vow with bathing and anointing. Because of the merit gained from fasting, he attained the kingdom of Madra without obstacles. Yet, because he bathed with anointing while fasting, he was born without beauty. Therefore, O king, one who fasts should carefully avoid bathing with anointing, for it destroys beauty. Thus all that transpired in a former birth—the deeds of the lord of Madra—have been recounted to you. Listen now to the story of that king. Though he possessed every royal virtue, he did not win the affection of the people, for he lacked beauty. Desiring beauty, the lord of Madra resolved to undertake austerity. Entrusting his kingdom to his ministers, he departed for the snowy mountains. With steadfast determination and renowned greatness, he traveled on foot to the sacred abode at the edge of his realm, beside his own river.