In that sacred place, a lake arose, revered by all the gods. It was here that, in ancient times, a crore of sins was destroyed by the touch of a great toe, and the sage Agastya established a crore of holy bathing sites. Witnessing this marvel, all the gods, seeking their own welfare, bathed in those waters. Meanwhile, a blind Asura, upon hearing that his son had been slain in battle, gathered his army and journeyed to the very spot where the gods stood. As the demons prepared for a fierce confrontation, Mahākāla, the three-eyed one, addressed the gods: “Do not be afraid.” In his wrath, the deformed eye of Mahākāla filled the sky with blazing flames. He unleashed its power, which surged toward the gods but perished like a moth in fire. He shattered it into hundreds of pieces and struck it with arrows. The arrows of Śambhu blocked the onslaught, just as bees surround a lotus, and the foremost warriors among the demons were slain by divine beings who had sought refuge near Sthāṇu. Maheśa pierced the Asura with countless arrows, and though the Asura was skilled in a hundred illusions, he conjured a veil of darkness to bewilder his foes. Śambhu, burdened by fear, wandered the earth with a broken heart, repeating, “Where has that wicked one gone? He is nowhere to be seen.” At that place, a sacred ford appeared, renowned as Vāgandhaka. On the ninth day of the bright fortnight of Mārgaśīrṣa, whatever is offered with devotion to Śiva and dedicated to the ancestors brings great merit. Yet, the gods found themselves plunged into darkness and were greatly disturbed. At that moment, Vyāsa, the sun among men, dispelled the darkness with his radiance. As the gloom vanished, the demons were revealed in the light, and the gods praised the sun in human form with many hymns. Thus, O sage, the lords named that light ‘Naradīpa.’ Whoever beholds the Naradīpa is freed from all sins—even those as grave as slaying a Brahmin. At the junction of the day, during solstices, eclipses, or equinoxes, if one witnesses the Naradīpa accompanied by hymns and auspicious songs, with singing, instrumental music, and bows in eightfold prostration, he is liberated from all sins accumulated over seven births. He swiftly attains the world of the Sun, a realm difficult even for the gods to reach. It is by the favor of a man alone that the Naradīpa has arisen. I shall come there, O Pārtha, together with the gods, with full intent. In that place, my arrival in the world is to be known by the descent of the god. When the god is thus seen mounted, and the Naradīpa shines brilliantly, whoever beholds it situated on the chariot with devotion receives great blessings. Now, O sage, I shall describe the chariot procession of the Naradīpa. On the bright second day of Jyeṣṭha, the Sun is indeed on the chariot. Whoever sees the lord of the day proceeding northward, and, turning back from Keśava and Arka, beholds the chariot, is blessed. Such is the sacred tale of the lake, the battle, the darkness dispelled, and the Naradīpa—the sun’s lamp—whose vision grants liberation and whose procession is celebrated with devotion and song.