Having received the divine boons and the honored status of Kumara from Shiva and Parvati, Upamanyu was filled with joy. His heart overflowing with gratitude, he bowed deeply before the great Lord of gods, palms joined in reverence, and requested one final boon. “Be gracious, Lord of gods, be gracious, Supreme Lord,” he implored. “Grant me supreme, divine, unwavering devotion. Bestow upon me faith, O Mahadeva, always in those who are connected to you. Let me have supreme service, affection, and constant nearness to you.” Having spoken these heartfelt words, Upamanyu—the best among the twice-born—praised the great god, his voice choked with emotion, his heart radiant with joy. “O God of gods, great Lord, lover of those who seek refuge, be gracious, O ocean of compassion, O Śaṃkara with Ambā, always.” Thus addressed, the great god, bestower of boons to all, replied with a pleased heart to Upamanyu, the foremost sage. “Child Upamanyu, I am pleased. Everything has truly been given to you by me. You are steadfast in devotion, O best of seers, and you have been tested by me. Become ageless and immortal, free from suffering. May you be renowned, endowed with brilliance, and possessed of divine knowledge. Your relatives, lineage, and family shall always be imperishable, O best of twice-born, and your devotion to me shall be eternal. I shall always grant my presence in your hermitage, O best of Brāhmaṇas; you will dwell near me, rejoicing.” Having spoken thus, the blessed Lord, radiant as a crore of suns, granted these boons and vanished there itself. Upamanyu, his heart at peace, having received those supreme boons, returned to his mother’s abode and attained even greater happiness. Salutations to the cause of the ceaseless turning of the wheel of worldly existence, whose chest is marked with the saffron from the twin slopes of Gaurī’s breasts. After these events, and by the grace of the Blessed Lord, Upamanyu, having completed his observance, rose when the sun was at its zenith. Meanwhile, the seers dwelling in Naimiṣāraṇya, having resolved to inquire about these matters, made up their minds. Having performed their daily duties as before, they saw the Blessed One approaching and respectfully sat down. At the end of his observance, the Blessed One, born of the wind, took the prepared excellent seat in the midst of the assembly of sages. Seated comfortably, Vāyu—honored by the worlds—fixed the glorious power of the Lord in his heart and spoke these words: “I take refuge in that great god, all-knowing and unconquered, whose entire power is this moving and unmoving universe.” Hearing this auspicious speech, the sages, their faults exhausted, spoke these supreme words, wishing to hear the full extent of his power: “The Blessed One has told of the deeds of the great-souled Upamanyu, and of the milk obtained through austerity from the Supreme Lord. He was seen by Vāsudeva—by Kṛṣṇa, whose actions are untainted—and then, following Dhaumya the foremost, he undertook the Pāśupata vow. We have already heard that he attained the supreme knowledge; how did Kṛṣṇa obtain the highest Pāśupata knowledge?” Vāsudeva, the eternal one, descended by his own will, as if scorning human existence, and performed purification of the body. He went to the great sage’s hermitage to perform austerity for the sake of a son; seen by the sages, he saw the sage there. Upamanyu’s whole body was smeared with ash, his head marked with three lines, adorned with a garland of rudrākṣa beads, and crowned with matted locks. Surrounded by his disciple-sages, as the Veda is surrounded by scriptures, Upamanyu, radiant and tranquil, was absorbed in meditation on Śiva. Seeing him, Kṛṣṇa, with all his hairs standing in delight, bowed, circumambulated him three times with great respect, and offered praise with joy, his shoulders bent, hands joined. By merely seeing that sage, all impurity and karmic illusion in wise Kṛṣṇa was destroyed. Upamanyu, according to the rite, removed Kṛṣṇa’s impurity by austerity, dusted him with ash, and recited mantras such as ‘Agni’ in sequence. Then, having made him undertake the twelve-month Pāśupata vow directly, the sage bestowed upon him the highest knowledge. From that time onward, all the divine Pāśupatas—the sages devoted to vows—gathered around Kṛṣṇa and attended upon him. Then, by the command of his guru, Kṛṣṇa, possessing supreme power, performed austerity for the sake of a son, aiming at Śaṃbhu. At the end of his austerity, the supreme lord appeared, endowed with supreme splendor, and Śiva was there with Sāṃba and his attendants. For the sake of the boon, Kṛṣṇa, hands joined in reverence, offered praise to Hari, who had manifested in a beautiful form. Absorbed with his attendants, he obtained Sāṃba as his son; with a mind pleased by austerity, Śiva granted him to Viṣṇu. Because Mahādeva gave Sāṃba as his own son, he named him Sāṃba, the son of Jāṃbavatī. Thus, everything has been told concerning Kṛṣṇa of boundless deeds: the sage’s attainment of knowledge and the gaining of a son from Śaṃkara. Whoever recites, hears, or causes this to be heard daily, attains Viṣṇu’s knowledge and rejoices together with him.