There was a man deeply knowledgeable in dharma, devoted to Rudra, and accomplished in every branch of learning. His days were spent engaged in Vedic study, living by alms, and his senses were firmly under control. When his time came and he departed this world, having enjoyed all pleasures in abundance, he was welcomed among Rudra’s retinue known as the Guhyakas, held in the highest esteem. There, he attained equality with those divine beings, endowed with similar sovereignty; among gods, demons, and mortals, he became most revered. For thousands of millions of years, and hundreds of millions more, he ruled with splendor. When his time in that realm ended, he departed, dwelling in the hermitage of celibacy in the sacred Mahākāla forest. Upon his passing there, he ascended in a divine chariot, radiant like the sun. He reached Rudra’s realm and delighted with the Guhyakas. For thousands of ages, he enjoyed honor in Rudra’s world, always joyful, dwelling in a flawless realm. In his next birth, he became a man whose form was desired by women and who possessed great wealth. Following the practices of a forest-dweller, he abstained from forest herbs, ate simple morsels, crushed stones, or used a toothless mortar. With matted hair, bathing three times daily, letting his hair loose, and carrying a good staff, his life was austere. He slept upon the earth, even where insects, thorns, and stones abounded. He ate forest herbs and granted fearlessness to all creatures. Ever devoted to Rudra, he dwelled in sacred fields, a sage in the great forest of Time. Vyasa, listen: whoever dwells here, hear their destiny. The devotee of Rudra travels in a celestial chariot that moves at will, surrounded by groups of apsaras, accompanied by singing and musical instruments. Even if he falls from Rudra’s world, he is honored in Vishnu’s realm. If he falls from there, he is born among the islands. There, he enjoys prosperity; among mortals and immortals, he is born handsome, fortunate, charming, renowned, and imbued with Rudra’s grace. Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, or Shudras—those who dwell in sacred fields—all are devoted to Rudra in every way, acting for the welfare of all beings. When they die, they journey to Rudra’s abode in splendid chariots. Or, if one offers his body into the fire of knowledge, for him Rudra’s world is imperishable and eternal, together with the secret beings. Those who surrender their lives at Mahākāla, fasting unto death, and the followers of Sāṃkhya who praise Rudra, being free from all suffering, and even Śūdras who die by fasting in the Mahākāla forest, all ascend in chariots yoked with lions, shining like the sun. These chariots are adorned with various colors, rich in gold, fragrant with delightful scents, possessing incomparable and charming qualities, accompanied by the songs and music of apsarases, decorated with banners and flags, and resounding with the ringing of many bells. In Rudra’s world, all steadfast men who died by fasting are born again among mortals as wealthy, noble, and prosperous men in the families of Brāhmaṇas. But the man who prepares cow dung in the Mahākāla forest dwells in Rudra’s world until the end of the kalpa. Having enjoyed great pleasures there, he is born here as a king. Those devoted to their own duty, who have conquered anger and mastered their senses, are blessed with such destinies, each path leading closer to Rudra’s grace and the fulfillment of their lives.