Even if a woman possesses every blessing—husband, sons, wealth, and more—what is left for the unfortunate one deprived of these? So lamented Śaila, the lord of the mountains, his heart heavy with sorrow for his daughter. He turned to Nārada and said, “You have spoken of my daughter as a collection of bodily faults; alas, I am bewildered, I wither, I am exhausted, I sink, O Nārada.” He continued, “It is not right to speak of things unfit or unattainable at such a time. Out of your compassion, O sage, please cut off the sorrow that has come to me through my daughter. Even when the mind is clear and undoubting, it becomes a seat of humiliation; desire, rooted in craving for results, seizes and corrupts it. “For women, the highest birth in both noble and ordinary families is said to bring happiness in this world and the next, and is known as attaining a worthy husband. Yet a worthy husband is rare for women; even an unworthy husband is said to be difficult to obtain. Without merit, a husband is never attained by a woman. “Wherever righteousness lacks means, pleasure is without measure, and wealth is only just enough for life, the wife’s foundation is established in her husband alone. Even a husband who is destitute, unfortunate, foolish, and lacking all marks is always declared by the gods to be the supreme for a woman. “But, O divine sage, you have said that for her, no husband is born; this unparalleled misfortune is countless, weighty, and hard to endure. In the creation of all beings, moving and unmoving, you say that even now he is not born; because of this, my mind is troubled. “Among humans and gods, the signs that reveal auspicious or inauspicious outcomes are indeed established by marks on the hands and feet. You have said she is ‘with upturned hands,’ O foremost sage; and the state of upturned hands is always spoken of as belonging to those who beg. “For those of auspicious birth and fortune, who never give, you have said her feet, by their own shadow, are adulterous. Even so, O sage, we find no hope for the best; other bodily marks separately indicate different outcomes. “The signs of good fortune, wealth, sons, lifespan, and the acquisition of a husband—all these, O foremost sage, you have said she is deprived of. You know everything about me and always speak the truth; O tiger among sages, I am bewildered, and my heart seems to be breaking.” Having spoken thus, Śaila ceased his lamentation, his mind overwhelmed by grief. Hearing all this from the lotus face of the mountain king, Nārada, prompted by the gods, spoke with a gentle smile. “Even in a place of great joy, you describe sorrow, O great mountain; with the meaning of your words unclear, you fall into delusion. Hear this speech from me, established in secret, O great mountain, and listen attentively to the matter I have spoken. “O Himācala, what I said—that no husband is born for this goddess—means that the great god, Mahādeva, origin of past, present, and future, refuge of all, eternal, teacher, Śaṃkara, supreme lord, is not born. Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Indra, and the sages, afflicted by birth, death, and old age, are all mere playthings of that supreme lord, O mountain. “Brahmā exists, born from his own wish, lord of the worlds; Viṣṇu is born in every age, of various kinds and great form. You think that Viṣṇu is born by illusion in every age; but there is no destruction of the self, even at the end of immovable things, O mountain. “For one being born and carried in the cycle of existence, only the body perishes here; destruction of the self is not spoken of. This cycle of existence, spoken of as extending from Brahmā down to the immovable, is afflicted by birth, death, and suffering, and helplessly revolves. “Mahādeva is unchanging, steadfast, unborn, the originator, ageless; he will be the Lord, the Master of this universe, free from all affliction. “And as for what I said about your daughter’s marks being absent—listen now to the proper consideration of that statement as well. A divine mark is a sign based on bodily features, revealing the measure of one’s lifespan, wealth, and fortune. But for this fortune, O mountain, which is endless and immeasurable, no mark or sign is established on the body. “Therefore, O wise one, there is no mark on her body, as I have said; yet she always displays the open-handed gesture. This open, boon-bestowing hand of the goddess will always grant boons to the hosts of gods, asuras, and sages. “As has been said, her feet are unwavering in their pure reflection; listen, O best of mountains, to my explanation here as well. Her feet, resembling lotuses, with shining, clear nails, are reflected by the radiant jewels in the crowns of gods and asuras who bow to her. Glowing with wondrous colors, mirrored in their pure reflection, she is the wife of the Teacher of the World, O mountain, the one marked by the bull. “She is the mother of the world’s order, the source of all beings; this Śivā, radiant as fire, has appeared in your domain for the world’s purification. Therefore, let her union with the wielder of the bow happen swiftly; so, O best of mountains, you must perform the proper rites, for this is a supremely great task for the gods, O Himavat.” Having heard all this from Nārada, the lord of mountains felt as if he had been reborn in that moment. Then, bowing to the bull-bannered, wise god, Himācala joyfully spoke to Nārada: “O sage, you have rescued me from dreadful, impassable hell; having lifted me from the netherworld, you have made me lord of the seven realms. O best of sages, now you have made me renowned as Himācala, and have raised me to the highest excellence among the mountains.