In the ancient cycles of time, the worship of the Supreme takes many forms. In the Krita age, Narayana is adored in his pure and subtle essence; in the Treta age, his worship is expressed through sacrifice; and in the Dvapara, he is approached through the Pancharatra rites. But in the Kali age, the path established by Rudra becomes prominent, where Janardana, the supreme soul, is worshipped in many forms and by tamasic means, often with minds turned away from true devotion. There is no deity beyond him, nor will there ever be. Vishnu is Brahma, and Brahma is Rudra—the three are one, inseparable. Even the Vedas, and the sacrifices they prescribe, are rooted in this unity. Whoever seeks to divide these three, creating distinctions among them, is misguided, corrupt in mind, and destined for misery. Rudra addresses Agastya, saying, “Hear of the past, O sage. In Kali, men do not cultivate devotion to Hari as before. In earlier times, all the inhabitants of earth worshipped Janardana and attained Bhuvarloka. Those who dwell there, having worshipped Kesava, reach heaven and gradually attain liberation. When liberation pervaded the worlds, those eligible for it—the gods themselves—devotedly worshipped Hari. The eternal, all-pervading Lord appeared and asked, ‘Tell me, O foremost of yogis and gods, what is to be done?’ The gods, bowing to the Lord, replied, ‘O God of gods, all beings are established on the path of liberation. How will creation proceed? Who will dwell in the hells?’ Janardana answered, ‘For three ages and many more, men will approach me. But in the final age, those devoted to me will become rare. I will swiftly create delusion, bewildering the people.’ He then instructed Rudra, ‘O mighty-armed Rudra, compose scriptures of delusion, showing little effort but promising great results. Display magic, illusions, and contrary practices; with these, quickly delude all people, O great Lord.’ Having spoken thus, the Supreme concealed and then revealed Rudra’s true self. From that moment, people became devoted to the scriptures composed by Rudra. Those who follow the Vedic path and see Narayana as one attain liberation. But those who worship Rudra or Brahma as separate from Vishnu, those of sinful deeds, go to hell. For those who have abandoned the Vedic path, Rudra has shown scriptures with doctrines and conclusions, solely to delude them. This bondage is the state of the beast; when it falls away, then the Pashupata scripture arises, known as Vedic. Rudra declares, “I am the embodiment of the Veda, O sage. My true form is not known through other scriptures or their expositions, except through the beginningless Veda. I am to be known through the Veda, especially by the Brahmanas, O best of sages. I am the three ages, as are Brahma and Vishnu; the three arise from the qualities of nature, the three Vedas, the three fires. The three worlds, the three twilights, the three castes as well; the sacrifices are thus threefold—this world is bound in three ways. Whoever knows thus, O best of sages, the supreme Narayana, the secondary one as Brahma born from the lotus, and me as the other, knows that I alone am foremost by quality, and the rest is delusion.” Agastya continues, “Thus addressed, the gods and sages, and I, O king, bowed to that Lord Pinakin. As we paid our respects, we beheld within the body of Rudra the Lotus-seated Brahma. And in his heart, Narayana appeared—subtle as a speck of dust, shining with the radiance of blazing gold, emerging from the body of Bhava. Seeing this, all the officiating sages with me were astonished. They raised cries of victory and chanted the Sāma, Ṛc, and Yajus hymns. Then they asked the Lord, ‘O Supreme Lord, what is this? In your single form, three forms are perceived.’ Rudra replied, ‘In this sacrifice, whatever oblation is offered by the great sages with me as its aim, we three each receive a share. There is no diversity of disposition among us; those with clear vision perceive correctly, while others see differently.’ When Rudra had spoken thus, all the sages questioned Shankara about the purpose of the doctrine of delusion. They asked, ‘For the purpose of deluding the worlds, you have separately composed a doctrine. By what reason did you do this, O god? Please tell us.’ Rudra answered, “In Bhāratavarṣa there is a forest called Daṇḍaka. There, a brahmin named Gautama performed severe and terrible austerities. Brahma, the lord, was pleased with him and said, ‘Ask for a boon, O one rich in austerity.’ Gautama replied, ‘Grant me, O lotus-born, a row of grains.’ Brahma granted him this boon. The sage established a great hermitage at Śataśṛṅga, cultivated rice at its edge, harvested and cooked it at midday, and generously offered hospitality to the brahmins. After a long time, a great drought lasting twelve years befell the land, causing great distress. The sages dwelling in the forest, afflicted by hunger, went to Gautama. Seeing them arrive, Gautama bowed his head and said, ‘Remain in my house, O sons of eminent sages.’” Thus, the story unfolds, revealing the unity of the divine, the cycles of worship, and the interplay of delusion and liberation across the ages.