When the hunter received Durvāsas’s request, he was plunged into worry, pondering deeply, “How will I ever accomplish this?” Absorbed in anxious thought, he wondered how he could possibly fulfill the sage’s needs. As he sat thus, suddenly a pure, golden vessel, radiant and blessed with success, descended from the sky. He gratefully took it in his hands. Trembling with humility, the hunter addressed the sage Durvāsas, “O Brahmin, please remain here while I go to seek alms. Grant me this favor, O knower of Brahman.” With these words, he set out, not far from the hermitage, to a city bustling with wealth and women. As he entered, the most beautiful women emerged from the trees, each holding golden vessels. They swiftly filled his vessel with various delicious foods. His task accomplished, the hunter returned to the hermitage and found Durvāsas, the best among those who recite prayers. Placing the alms in a pure spot, his mind now serene, he bowed respectfully and spoke, “O Lord, let your feet be washed, O foremost of sages. If I am worthy of your grace, please allow me to do this.” Durvāsas, wishing to test the hunter’s devotion and the power of his austerity, replied, “I cannot go to the river, nor do I have a vessel for water.” The hunter, hearing this, was again absorbed in thought: “How can I quickly wash his feet? What shall I do, and how will he eat?” Remembering his teacher, the wise hunter took refuge in the river Devikā. He prayed, “O holy river, I am a hunter, a sinner, a slayer of brahmins. Yet, remembering you, O goddess, protect me who has come for refuge. I do not know the deity, nor the mantra, nor the proper worship. I simply meditate on the feet of my teacher, O auspicious one, and see them always. O best of rivers, have compassion on me; quickly bring water here for the sage to wash.” Moved by his sincere plea, the sin-destroying Devikā appeared at the place where Durvāsas was staying. The river goddess herself washed the sage’s feet, flowing as a swift current toward the hunter’s hermitage. Witnessing this marvel, Durvāsas was astonished. After washing his hands and feet, he ate with supreme delight, his devotion deep, having sipped water as wise men do. Turning to the hunter, now emaciated and weakened by hunger, Durvāsas spoke: “Let the study of the Vedas—all the Vedas with their collections—the knowledge of Brahman, and the Purāṇas become directly manifest to you.” He granted him this boon and added, “You will become the sage named Satyatapas, foremost among ascetics.” The hunter, now Satyatapas, humbly asked, “How, being a hunter, can I teach the Vedas, O Brāhmaṇa?” Durvāsas explained, “Today, O noble one, your former body, sustained without food, has departed. Your body is now made of austerity, distinct—there is no doubt. Your previous knowledge has been destroyed; now you are pure and imperishable. Know that you are of pure body, and your other body is separate. Therefore, the Vedas and the scriptures will appear clearly to you, O sage.” Satyatapas then asked, “O Lord, you have spoken of two bodies; tell me their distinction, O best of knowers of Brahman.” Durvāsas replied, “Not two, but three bodies must be spoken of; it is otherwise. For living beings, there are three bodies as the basis of experience. The first is called the state of unrighteousness, devoid of discernment; the second, endowed with vows, is supremely righteous. The third, which is beyond the senses, is for the experience of both righteousness and unrighteousness. This threefold division is declared by the wise: suffering, enjoyment of righteousness, and ordinary enjoyment—these are the three kinds. “The state that existed before, when the being was a killer, that body is called sinful. Now, by performing auspicious acts, austerity, and sincerity, another body, of the nature of righteousness, has been established for you. By that, you are certainly able to know the Vedas and Purāṇas. “When the eightfold group is transformed in a person, then he is said to have three states. Having gone beyond the eightfold group, established in the three, always auspicious, he becomes steady in the self, endowed with firm resolve. When the five, again and again, abandon the five, and even the five, then, following the single path, a man attains the eternal Brahman.” Satyatapas asked, “O Lord, if knowledge does not arise in the body, then by what means can the Supreme Brahman be realized?” Durvāsas replied, “Ritual acts are rooted in knowledge, and knowledge likewise arises from ritual acts; there is no difference between the two, O sage, just as between two stones. The ritual acts are described as fourfold among Brahmins and others; among them, three perform the Vedic rites regularly, while the fourth serves the three—this is the action prescribed by the Veda. By steadfastly following these duties, devotion to Brahman becomes pleasing; surely, liberation comes to one devoted to the teachings of the Veda.” Satyatapas inquired further, “O great sage, this Supreme Brahman you have described—even great yogis do not know its form. It is without name, without lineage, formless, and beyond form—how can Brahman, which is beyond all designations, be known? Tell me its designation as established in the Vedic path.” Durvāsas answered, “That Supreme Brahman, spoken of in the Vedas and the Purāṇas, is the god with lotus eyes, Nārāyaṇa himself, the Supreme. He, the Supreme Lord Nārāyaṇa, Hari, is attained through various sacrifices, offerings, and gifts, O best of men.” Satyatapas then asked, “O Lord, sometimes sacrifices are performed with great wealth by priests learned in the Vedas and by the virtuous; yet even then, Hari is attained only with difficulty. Without wealth, it is not possible to give gifts, O Brahmin; and even when wealth is present, those attached to their families do not have the inclination. How, then, can such a person attain liberation? Hari is indeed difficult to attain in every way.