Those masters of yoga, learned in many scriptures, were overcome with sorrow, lamenting, “Alas, we have fallen from our duties, bound by karma arising from desire!” In their amazement, they praised again and again the greatness of the śrāddha rite, extolling its power. The king, in gratitude, bestowed wealth and many villages upon them. Turning away from the elderly brāhmaṇa who had grown proud of his riches, the king instead appointed his own son, who possessed the marks of true royalty. He anointed his son, Viṣvaksena, as ruler over the kingdoms. Then, all those foremost yogins, including Brahmadatta and his companions, devoted to their ancestors and free from envy, gathered at the waters of the Mānasa lake. In their humility, they grew bold, as has been shown. The king, rejoicing before them, declared, “All the fruits of royal yoga that are sought after—so it is, just as you have said. All this fruit has been attained by me through your grace alone.” With hearts full of gratitude, those forest-dwelling yogins took up yoga and, through the power of their austerity, attained the supreme state by way of the Brahmarandhra. Thus, when the grandfathers are pleased, they grant to men long life, wealth, knowledge, the joys of heaven and liberation, as well as sons and kingdoms. O king, the greatness of Brahmadatta’s ancestors is such that if a learned man recites or hears this tale read to the twice-born, he is honored in the world of Brahmā for a full hundred crores of kalpas. Bhīṣma then asked, “At what time of day should one perform the śrāddha rite? And at which holy places does performing śrāddha yield the greatest fruit, O twice-born?” Pulastya replied, “The holy place called Puṣkara is regarded as most excellent; it is cherished by all foremost brāhmaṇas. Whatever is given, offered in sacrifice, or recited there becomes infinite and certain; it is always dear to the ancestors and held as supreme by the sages. Likewise, the holy places Nandā and Lalitā, and the auspicious city of Māyāpurī; also Mitrapada, and then the most excellent Kedāra. Gaṅgāsāgara is the auspicious holy place made of all tīrthas; also the holy lake of Brahmā, and the auspicious waters of the Śatadru. There is also the holy place called Naimiṣa, which grants the fruit of all holy places; and where the eternal Gaṅgā emerges in the Gomati. There too is Yajñavarāha, and the god of gods who bears the trident; there, the eighteen-armed Hara receives the gift of gold. In ancient times, the rim of the wheel of dharma was worn away by Nemi; that is the Naimiṣāraṇya, frequented by all holy places. There, too, is the vision of the god of gods and of Varāha; whoever goes there, purified in soul, reaches the city of Nārāyaṇa. Kokāmukha is regarded as a supreme holy place, as is Indramārga; and also Pitṛtīrtha, belonging to Brahmā of unmanifest birth. There, in the Puṣkara forest, the god Pitāmaha abides; the supreme vision of Viṣṇu is found there, bestowing the fruit of liberation. It is called Kṛta, supremely meritorious and destroyer of all sins, where the primeval Nārasiṃha, Janārdana himself, appeared. There is a sacred ford named Ikṣumatī, auspicious for the ancestors; the forefathers are always satisfied at the confluence of the Gaṅgā and Yamunā. Kurukṣetra is supremely holy, where the path is also marked; even now, the ancestral ford there grants the fruit of all desires. The ancestral ford known as Nīlakaṇṭha, O king, as well as the holy Bhadrasara and the lake called Mānasā, are renowned. Mandākinī, Acchodā, Vipāśā, and Sarasvatī likewise; the place called Sarvamitrapada, and Vaidyanātha, which yields great results. The sacred river Kṣiprā, and also the auspicious Kālañjara; the emergence of tīrthas, the emergence of Hara, Garbha-bheda, and the great shrine. Bhadreśvara, Viṣṇupada, and the gateway of the Narmadā; the sages declare that offering piṇḍa at Gayā is equivalent to these. These are the ancestral fords, which remove all sins; what then for those who perform śrāddha there, if even remembering them benefits the worlds? Oṃkāra is an ancestral ford, as is the water of Kāverī and Kapilā; the confluence at Caṇḍavegā, and likewise Amarakaṇṭaka. Bathing and other rites there yield twice the merit of Kurukṣetra; the tīrtha called Śukla is renowned, as is the supreme Someśvara tīrtha. It destroys all diseases, is meritorious, and its reward is a crore-fold greater; so too at śrāddha offerings, sacrifices, and in the presence of recitation. There is a place called Kāyāvārohaṇa, the descent of the god of gods, Śūlin; a radiant manifestation in the auspicious abode of the Brāhmaṇas. That, too, is supremely meritorious, as is the river Carmaṇvatī; Śūlatāpī and Payoṣṇī, and also the confluence of Payoṣṇī. Mahauṣadhī, Āraṇā, and Nāgatīrtha-pravartinī; the holy river Mahāveṇā, and the great Śāla forest. Gomatī, Varuṇā, and the supreme Hautāśana tīrtha; Bhairava, Bhṛgutuṅga, and the unrivaled Gaurī tīrtha. The tīrtha called Vaināyaka, the unrivaled Vastreśvara; likewise the tīrtha called Pāpahara, and the holy river Vetravatī. Mahārudra, the great liṅga, and the great river Daśārṇā; Śatarudrā, Śatāhvā, and the city called Pitṛpada. Likewise, Aṅgāravāhikā, and two rivers called Nadau, both resounding with red waters; Kālikā, a sacred river, and Pitara, an auspicious river. These are the ancestral holy places, praised for bathing and giving; whatever offering is made here for ancestors is regarded as yielding infinite fruit.