The elders spoke with hope: “By the grace of our son, all those who torment us will be destroyed, and we shall be freed from the unbearable sufferings of hell. Through his merit, we shall attain the highest state. Yet, if a person, having set out on the sacred journey, turns back home out of delusion, all his ancestors become despondent—just as those departed spirits do if, after beginning the journey, he instead offers them rituals, indulges in sensual pleasures, or rides on swings, horses, or elephants.” They continued to explain the proper conduct for such a pilgrimage: “When traveling to the Ganga, one should not wear shoes or carry an umbrella. The fatigue and hardship of the road should not be considered difficult, nor should one long for the comforts of home or the ease of bathing in the Ganga by one’s own house. Falsehood and association with heretics are to be shunned. During the journey, one must avoid eating more than once a day, quarreling, slandering others, and succumbing to greed, pride, anger, or envy. Excessive laughter and sorrow should also be avoided. Instead, the pilgrim should imagine himself as one lying simply on a cot or on the ground.” As the devotee travels, he should recite the auspicious names of the Ganga and praise the greatness of goddess Jahnavi, the destroyer of all sins. On the path, he should speak of her as the giver of happiness and liberation, praying: “O Ganga, goddess, mother of the world, grant me your vision.” With such gentle words, he should dispel his fatigue, reflecting: “Alas, how have I left my home, or how have I come here?” However, those who complain of hardship—lamenting, “Where is my bed, my wife, my dear home? I sleep on the ground in the wilderness; what will become of my wealth and possessions? When will I return home again?”—such people, troubled by these thoughts, do not attain the full merit of bathing in the Ganga. The journey itself is prescribed for the purpose of reaching her sacred bank. The pilgrim should pray, “By your grace, O best of rivers, may I attain success without obstacles.” At the outset of the journey, one should recite this mantra. Jaimini, the wise should set forth joyfully from home, accompanied by Vaishnavas, neither too quickly nor too slowly. During the pilgrimage, one should perform no other acts; even at Prayaga, on the bank of the Ganga, if one engages in business or similar activities, half of the merit is lost. Yet, whatever sins have been accumulated over many births, whether small or great, all are destroyed by the grace of goddess Ganga. Thus, the wise, supremely pleased, should proceed to the Ganga’s bank. Upon beholding mother Ganga, the pilgrim should recite: “Today my birth is fruitful, and my life has been well lived. I behold you directly as the embodiment of Brahman, O Goddess. By your vision alone, my great sins have been destroyed.” The sins of millions of births are thus annihilated. Speaking thus, he should bow low, casting himself upon the earth in devotion before goddess Jahnavi. Near the stream, with joined hands and a heart full of reverence, he should recite again: “O Ganga, goddess, mother of the world, with the water from your feet I touch you. Kindly forgive my offenses. Your pure water is the stairway to heaven. Therefore, I touch your feet, O Ganga, obeisance to you again and again.” With devotion, he then places Ganga’s water upon his head. For bathing, the wise one enters the stream, chanting “Ganga,” and smears himself with her smooth mud, which destroys all sins. Praying, “O Mother, remove my sin,” he bathes, repeating her name. Smeared with Ganga’s mud and chanting “Ganga, Ganga,” he bathes in her waters, which remove all impurities. As previously instructed, he again takes clay, reciting the proper mantra, and bathes with devotion: “O Ganga, embodiment of Brahman, I perform this bath; in your pure water, grant the fruit as declared.” Remembering Ganga-Narayana, the wise one should bathe by his own will in the sacred river, mother of the world. After bathing, he dries himself with a cloth, taking care not to leave garments or bathing water in the river. He should not brush his teeth within Ganga’s waters; if done out of ignorance, the merit of bathing in the Ganga is lost. In the morning, he should perform such acts elsewhere, and after leaving his night’s dwelling, bathe in the Ganga. One who bathes in the Ganga without first stepping onto external ground does not attain the full merit of Ganga-bathing. Having bathed, the wise one should apply Ganga clay to various parts of the body and, with a steady mind, perform tarpan and other rites as prescribed. He who offers tarpan to his ancestors with Ganga water satisfies them for hundreds of millions of years. Whoever performs ancestral rites for their forefathers on the Ganga ensures their ancestors remain content in the abode of the gods. Having completed the bathing rituals in the Ganga, observed a fast, given charity, worshipped the gods, and performed acts of victory and other rites there, the merit gained never perishes.