In the ancient tradition, it is taught that there are seven ways by which one may fulfill duties toward the ancestors: through celibacy, austerity, sacrifice, producing offspring on earth, performing śrāddha rites, acquiring learning, and giving food. Those who are devoted to such actions continue their practice as long as their bodies endure. Alongside the gods and the pitṛs—those ancestors who partake of warmth and Soma—they attain heaven, rejoicing there and worshipping the pitṛs. This is recognized as the well-known path for those who have offspring and perform śrāddha, the ritual offerings made by their family members. The ancestors who receive the monthly śrāddha offerings surpass even the Soma-worldly ancestors; it is these human ancestors who truly partake of the monthly rites. Yet, there are others whose actions and births are mixed, who have fallen from the proper dharma of the āśramas, and who are deprived of the sacred svadhā and svāhā offerings. Having lost their bodies, they come to a difficult state: they become pretas at the abode of Yama, lamenting their deeds, having reached the place of torment. Long and exceedingly emaciated, with disheveled hair and naked, afflicted by hunger and thirst, they wander aimlessly. They roam all rivers, lakes, ponds, and lotus pools, longing for others’ food, driven here and there. Some are cast into places of torment—the dreadful Śālmalī tree, the Vaitaraṇī river, the cauldron of Kumbhīpāka, and burning sands. Others are thrown into the forest of sword-leaves, suffering among the sleepless inhabitants of those realms. For those dwelling in other worlds, if their relatives offer three balls of rice on earth, named and identified by lineage, the offerings reach and satisfy those established in the realm of the departed. Those who have not received offerings, who are lost in places of torment in five ways, and those who later exist among stationary beings, according to their own actions, find sustenance in the various forms and species of animal births—whatever food is available in those wombs. Whenever food is given as a śrāddha offering, at the proper time, to a worthy recipient according to prescribed rules, it brings satisfaction; wherever the departed reside, they receive the food. Just as a calf finds its mother among lost cows, so too, through the śrāddha ritual, the mantra delivers the offering to its intended recipient. Thus, Manu declares that a śrāddha performed without defect and with faith is effective; Sanatkumāra also affirmed this, seeing with divine vision. He who knows the coming and going of the departed, and the attainment of śrāddha, says: the dark fortnight is for the benefit of the ancestors, while the bright fortnight is for dreams and night. In this way, the ancestors are gods, and the gods are ancestors; mutually, they are both, dwelling in heaven. Ancestors are gods, and humans are also ancestors—father, grandfather, and great-grandfather alike. Thus, the domain of the ancestors who drink soma is described, and their greatness is established in the Purāṇa. This is the union of Soma, Sūrya, and Aila—the attainment and satisfaction of the ancestors through faith. The times of festivals and the places of torment have been briefly recounted; this is the eternal creation. All the deformities have been described in part, for they are too numerous to fully enumerate, but one seeking prosperity should have faith. This creation of the god Svāyambhuva has been explained in detail and sequence; what more can be told? Now, the four ages that occur in the previous Svāyambhuva interval are to be heard—their natural enumeration in detail. The earth and sky have been previously explained; now listen to the description of the four ages, their measure, enumeration, and full detail. By worldly measure, a human year is produced; using this calculation, the four ages are declared, with their periods equal to a blink, and units obtained by measurement. Fifteen nimeṣas make one kāṣṭhā; thirty kāṣṭhās are reckoned as one kalā; thirty kalās make one muhūrta; thirty such muhūrtas form a day and night together. The sun divides day and night for humans; night is for sleep, and day for activity and deeds. For the ancestors, a day and night make one month; in this division, the dark fortnight is their day, and the bright fortnight is their night for rest. Thirty human months are said to be one month for the ancestors; three hundred and sixty months make one year for the ancestors, as understood by human reckoning. By human measure, one hundred years are counted; for the ancestors, these are reckoned as three years and twelve months, according to their tradition. Thus, the human year is the divine day and night, as declared in the Vedic tradition. For the gods, a day and night make one year; in this division, the day is when the sun moves north, and the night is when it moves south; thus, the divine day and night are counted. Thirty such years make one divine month; one hundred human years are three divine months; this is the reckoning, known as the divine rule. Three hundred and sixty years, and sixty more, make one divine year as declared by human calculation. Three thousand human years, plus thirty more, are said to be the year of the Seven Sages. Nine thousand human years, and ninety more, are said to be the year of Dhruva. Thirty-six thousand human years, and sixty thousand more, are counted; those who know numbers declare that this is one thousand divine years. Thus have the sages sung, O twice-born, with the divine reckoning; by the divine measure alone is the number of ages established.