O Brāhmaṇas, I shall not dwell further on the ancestors, for their place is intimately bound with the six seasons—they themselves are identified with the cycle of the seasons. Thus, the Vedas declare that the ancestors are the seasons, and from these seasons, all beings—both stationary and moving—are born. Because of this, the ancestors are called “seasonal,” for they are aligned with the times and turning of the seasons. These great ancestors, possessed of self-mastery and free from impurity, are remembered as of two kinds: the Āgniṣvāttas and the Barhiṣads. Among those who dwell among the departed, there are both sacrificers and non-sacrificers, each with their own place. From these ancestors, the goddess Svadhā bore two daughters, famed throughout the worlds: Menā and Dharanī, who support the entire cosmos. Menā is the daughter of the Āgniṣvāttas, and Dharanī is the daughter of the Barhiṣads. Menā, who became the wife of Himavat, gave birth to Maināka, Krauñca, Gaurī, and Gaṅgā—the latter purified by contact with the very body of Bhava (Śiva). The earth, Dharanī, as the wife of Meru, was endowed with divine herbs and gave birth to Mandara, her son with a beautifully adorned neck. That same illustrious Mandara, son of Meru, through the power of his austerities, became the very abode of the lord Śrīkaṇṭha Śiva. Again, the earth gave birth to thirty renowned daughters, as well as three others: Velā, Niyati, and Āyati. Āyati and Niyati became the wives of the sons of Bhṛgu, and their lineage in the Svāyambhuva epoch has already been described. From the ocean, Velā bore a single flawless daughter, Savarṇā—oceanic in nature—who became the wife of Prācīnabarhis. Savarṇā, also called Sāmudrī, bore ten sons for Prācīnabarhis, all known as the Prāchetasas, renowned for their mastery of archery. Among them, during the Svāyambhuva epoch, Dakṣa was born as a son, the result of a curse by Triambaka, in the reign of Manu Cākṣuṣa. Thus, O sages, I have described in due order the lineages of the great-souled sons of Brahmā, such as Dharma—neither too briefly nor too elaborately. I have recounted the divine lineages, adorned with hosts of gods, active in sacred rites, prolific in offspring, and radiant with great splendor. The arrangement of beings that originates from these progenitors is so vast that it cannot be fully enumerated, even in hundreds of millions of years. The lineage of kings on earth proceeds in two great branches: the Solar and the Lunar dynasties, the most meritorious among men. From these lineages arose Ikṣvāku, Ambarīṣa, Yayāti, Nāhuṣa, and many others famed for their virtue. There are also other royal sages, endowed with various virtues, but what is the use of recounting those ancient ones whose fruits have already passed? Moreover, when the narratives of the Lord are being told, it is not fitting to dwell on others; the virtuous do not approve of it, and so I do not wish to speak at length. Nevertheless, for the sake of illustrating the Lord’s greatness, the stories of creation and their expansions have been recounted here. Now, you ask: How did the goddess, daughter of Dakṣa, after abandoning her Dākṣāyaṇī form, become the daughter of Himavat and Menā in ancient times? And how was Rudra reproached by the great-souled Dakṣa? What was the cause for which Bhava was censured? How was Dakṣa born, O Maruta, as a result of Bhava’s curse, in the interval between Cākṣuṣa Manu and the previous Manu? Listen, and I shall recount the story of Dakṣa, of shallow mind—his conduct, sinful and reckless, which brought disgrace upon the gods and sages. Once, all the gods and demons, along with the Siddhas and supreme sages, went to the peak of the Himalaya to behold Īśāna, the Lord. At that time, the god and goddess, seated upon a divine throne, granted audience to those foremost among gods and twice-born sages. Dakṣa, too, arrived there with the immortals, wishing to see his son-in-law Hara and his own daughter Satī. But the Lord, out of self-regard, did not especially acknowledge Dakṣa or the other gods present, even though Dakṣa had arrived with the goddess. Because Dakṣa failed to recognize her supreme nature and saw her only as his daughter, enmity arose in his deluded heart toward her. Driven by that enmity, and impelled by fate, Dakṣa—though initiated—did not invite Bhava (Śiva) to his sacrifices, harboring hatred even toward Satī. He performed hundreds of splendid sacrifices, each conducted separately. When Satī heard of these gatherings from Nārada, she went to Rudra and informed him of her father’s assembly. Then, a wondrous divine aerial chariot appeared, facing all directions, adorned with auspicious marks, easy to ascend, and exceedingly enchanting. It shone like molten gold, decorated with various precious gems, draped with canopies of pearls, and adorned with garlands and ornaments. Its structure was of refined gold, surrounded by hundreds of jeweled pillars, with steps fashioned like diamonds and gateways of coral pillars. The floor was spread with floral carpets, a grand throne set with many-colored gems, latticed with diamond windows, and a flawless jeweled pavement. At the front was a beautiful jeweled staff, marked by a great bull, and a banner pure as a cloud. The chariot was guarded by attendants clad in gem-studded armor and holding ornate staffs. The great gate was protected by mighty lords of virtue, unassailable in their strength. Thus the story unfolds, revealing the intricate web of ancestry, virtue, and divine interplay, and setting the stage for the profound events to come.