Having gathered all the necessary offerings—white garments, fruits, various edibles, fragrant incense, fresh garlands, and ointments—the devotee begins the worship, reciting the prescribed mantras and concluding each with reverent salutations. With a pure heart, he lays these offerings upon the altar, adding jaggery and salt, and, while reciting the sacred Vyāhṛti mantra, releases the foremost of the twice-born, the brāhmaṇa, from any obligations. According to his means, the devotee next offers oblations with devotion—using ingredients such as jaggery, milk, and ghee—and presents to the brāhmaṇa gifts of sesame, gold, and other suitable items. Having observed the rite with discipline, he spends the night in rest. At dawn, after bathing and reciting the sacred texts, he joins the brāhmaṇas in preparing a rice pudding rich with ghee. After partaking of this meal, the devotee offers to a learned Vedic scholar—one who is not bound by the Vaiḍāla vow—a vessel of ghee accompanied by gold and a water pot. With this, he prays that the blessed Supreme Self, the Sun, may be pleased. Month after month, this procedure is to be faithfully observed. In the thirteenth month, the devotee gives thirteen cows, adorned with garments and ornaments, their horns sheathed in gold and their udders full of milk. Even one cow should be given by those of modest means, without envy or deceit, for acting out of delusion leads to downfall. Whoever performs this auspicious Saptamī rite as prescribed is freed from all sins and honored in the radiant world of the Sun. Here, endless life, robust health, and prosperity arise; this rite removes all sins and is revered by all the gods. The Saptamī always pacifies all evils, and whoever observes it receives inexhaustible blessings. Even one who merely hears or recites this account is freed from sin. Now, O best of kings, listen as the Viśoka Saptamī is described—a vow by which a person never experiences sorrow in this world. In the month of Māgha, on the fifth day of the bright fortnight, after bathing with black sesame, the devotee eats rice gruel, brushes his teeth, and, observing a fast, spends the night in celibacy. Rising at dawn, pure after bathing and recitation, he crafts a golden lotus and worships the Sun with it, offering a red oleander and a pair of red garments, praying: "Just as you, O Sun, forever free the world from sorrow, so may I be freed from sorrow and possess devotion to you in every birth." On the sixth day, he worships the twice-born with devotion. After ritually sipping cow urine and performing daily rites, he carefully honors the Brahmins, presenting a vessel of jaggery. He offers them a pair of fine garments and a lotus, and, having eaten food without oil or salt, he observes silence on the seventh day. Thereafter, seeking prosperity, he listens to the Purāṇas. This procedure is repeated in both fortnights, continuing until the seventh day of the bright half of Māgha returns. At the conclusion of the vow, he gives a pot adorned with a golden lotus, a bed with its furnishings, and a tawny, milk-giving cow. Whoever performs this rite without miserliness attains the highest state. For as many as a hundred crore thousand lifetimes, he is free from sorrow, disease, and misfortune, and whatever desire he wishes for is granted in abundance. But one who performs the rite without desire attains the Supreme Brahman. Even those who simply hear or recite the Viśoka Saptamī are freed from suffering and, reaching the world of Indra, are never born into sorrow. Now, another sacred observance is declared: the Phala Saptamī. By observing this, a person is freed from sin and attains heaven. In the auspicious month of Mārgaśīrṣa, on the fifth day, with a firm vow, the devotee fasts on the sixth, and has a golden lotus made. This is given, together with sugar, to a Brahmin with family. He also makes a golden image of a fruit, which he gives at both times of day, saying, "May the Sun be pleased with me." After worshipping the Brahmins according to his means, on the seventh day he takes a meal of milk, and continues offering the fruit until the Kṛṣṇa Saptamī arrives. Fasting again as prescribed, he gives a golden fruit adorned with a golden lotus, accompanied by a vessel of sugar and a garlanded cloth. For a year, he observes both Saptamīs in this manner. Each time, after fasting, he gives the gifts in order and recites the Sūrya mantra: "Bhānu, Arka, Ravi, Brahmā, Sūrya, Śukra, Hari, Śiva, Śrīmān, Vibhāvasu, Tvaṣṭā, Varuṇa—may they be pleased." On each Saptamī of every month, he recites each name in turn. At the conclusion of the vow, he offers the gifts to the opposing side and honors a pair of Brahmins with garments and ornaments. He gives a pot filled with sugar and golden lotuses as fruit, so that the desires of devotees may never go unfulfilled, praying, "May I obtain endless fruit, birth after birth." Whoever performs this seventh fruit-giving, which bestows endless rewards, delivers twenty-one persons, past and future. Even those who simply hear or recite this attain auspiciousness. With all sins cleansed, the devotee is honored in the world of the Sun. Whatever sins—such as drinking liquor—may have been committed, all are destroyed for one who performs the seventh fruit-giving. And now, the scripture promises, the Sugar Seventh, which likewise destroys sin, will be explained.