Between two vast realms stands Meru, the golden mountain, circular in shape, four-sided and four-colored, and rising to extraordinary heights. In the beginning, all elements—water and the rest—emerged from the unmanifest. From this unmanifest arose the lotus of the earth, and Meru itself forms the pericarp, the central heart of this cosmic lotus. A great lotus appeared, manifest and possessing four petals and five qualities. From this lotus, all the streams of creation spread forth, giving rise to the diversity of the world. Countless beings, living through endless cycles and performing virtuous deeds with self-control and greatness of soul, ultimately attain the Supreme Person. This Supreme Person is Janārdana, the great yogi and god, who is to be meditated upon by all the world. He pervades all realms, infinite and imperishable, embodying pure existence. His form is not made of flesh, fat, or bone; rather, through his yoga and lordship, he assumes a form of pure being. For his purpose, the eternal lotus arose in the world, marking the beginning of the remainder of the kalpa, the cosmic cycle. Upon this lotus was born the god of gods, the four-faced Lord, Īśāna, master of the world and progenitors. The origin of the seed of this lotus is described exactly as it occurred, along with the creation of all beings. The waters themselves became the body of Viṣṇu, adorned with jewels, and from them arose the earth, shaped like a lotus and covered with forests. Now, O twice-born, listen as the extent of this world-lotus is revealed, as spoken by the perfected ones. Four great regions are established upon this lotus, and in their midst stands the mighty mountain Meru. Each side of Meru displays a different color: white to the east, yellow to the south, the color of a bee to the west, and red to the north. Meru, radiant and white, is established amongst royal lineages. It shines like the rising sun and like smokeless fire, soaring to a height of eighty-four thousand yojanas. It extends sixteen yojanas below the surface and is sixteen yojanas wide; at the summit, shaped like a dish, it spreads thirty-two yojanas across. Its breadth is three times its circumference on all sides, and its total circumference is ninety thousand yojanas. Measured as a square, it is ninety-six thousand yojanas all around. This great and divine mountain is endowed with celestial herbs and is surrounded by beautiful golden plateaus. Here, the hosts of gods, Gandharvas, Nāgas, Rākṣasas, and the groups of Apsarases delight upon the king of mountains. Meru is encircled by nurturing abodes, and four regions are established on its sides: Bhadrāśva and Bhārata to the east, Ketumāla to the west, and the Kurus to the north, sanctuaries for those who have performed meritorious deeds. The pericarp of the lotus is perfectly circular, measuring thousands of yojanas in extent. It is said to have nine and six filaments, each eighty-four yojanas high, visible between the spaces. These filaments extend thirty thousand yojanas and are scattered all around. The lotus itself is one hundred thousand yojanas in length and eighty yojanas in breadth, with four petals, each fourteen yojanas wide. Now listen to the description of the Karnika—the central heart of the lotus. It is adorned with hundreds of jeweled petals, resplendent in various colors and radiant lights. It possesses countless clusters of petals, golden and reddish, beautiful, with a thousand segments, a thousand inner hollows, and a thousand hundred petals—forming one supreme, rounded mountain. Its ravines are set with precious gems, its platforms decorated with jewels, its features adorned with gold and gems, and its gateways embellished with jeweled arches. There stands the delightful assembly hall of Brahma, crowded with Brahmarshis and sages, known as Manovrati, renowned throughout all the worlds. Here, the glory of Lord Īśāna shines with the radiance of a thousand suns, residing in a great celestial palace. All the hosts of gods approach the four-faced Lord, worshipping him with offerings, reverence, and salutations as is fitting. In those days, measured by divine reckoning, celibacy was practiced by the great-souled, whose minds were pure and who walked the path of righteousness. Having performed proper worship and enjoyed offerings, devoted to honoring ancestors and gods, these householders are intent on their duties, humble, and fond of guests. These householders, engaged in pure deeds, detached, purposeful, and with their sins burned away by self-control, discipline, and charity, dwell in the pure, faultless world of Brahma—the highest destination above all realms, fourteen thousand yojanas in extent. Above this realm, on a beautiful, dark, and radiant mountain shining like the young sun, there is another splendid mountain adorned with veins of precious gems. In dwellings filled with many kinds of jewels and jeweled gateways, encircling Meru completely, stands the supreme mountain called Chakrapata, thirty thousand yojanas in circumference, and also Jarudhi, lord of mountains—these are known as the northern ones. Now, in due order, listen to the plateaus, inner valleys, and lakes among these chief northern mountains, as the sacred narrative continues.