The sage continued his account, saying, “Then he spoke to me: ‘Now you have seen enough, O noble one.’ Caught in the bewildering play of illusion, I found myself on the banks of the sacred Ganga. Following the prescribed rites, I entered the pure waters to bathe, but in that moment, I was utterly confused—I could not grasp what was happening or why. For reasons beyond my understanding, I waded into Jahnavi’s flow. ‘Nishada, behold,’ he said, ‘your water pot, mat, and cloth are as before. The staff and cloth—those not yet worn out—have been swept away by the Ganga.’ Having said this, the Nishada vanished from my sight. O Devi, the Brahmin then devoted himself to austerities. As he engaged in his practices, the afternoon descended. With faith, he gathered flowers for his rites. Surrounded by other eminent Brahmins, he performed ablutions in the Ganga. In the morning, he had placed his mat, water pot, and staff on the bank. Now, the Brahmins asked, ‘What have you forgotten? Why have you not come quickly to this place?’ Hearing their words, the sage sat in silence. Meanwhile, O goddess, that eminent Brahmin wondered, ‘How has so much time passed? What did the Brahmins say to me? How has this moment come? What is happening?’ As I approached him, I noticed his bewilderment and asked, ‘What is this? Why do you appear so confused? What have you seen?’ Thus addressed, he bowed his head to the ground and replied, ‘O god, O twice-born, these Brahmins speak to me, O teacher of the world: “You have arrived in the afternoon; what have you forgotten?” Listen—I became a hunter, and my wife was born in a hunter’s lineage. From her, three sons and three daughters were born to me. Once, as I dwelled by the riverbank, I went to bathe in the Ganga; emerging, I regained my form as praised by sages. What wrongful act have I committed while serving Madhava? What improper thing have I consumed while serving Achyuta? Tell me truly—by what fault have I fallen into hell? I have already told you before, deceived by illusion.’ Hearing his words, filled with grief and compassion, I said, ‘Do not grieve, O foremost of Brahmins, for the suffering that has arisen from your own actions, causing you sorrow and birth in the animal womb. I have already spoken to you before—listen again, O eminent Brahmin. I grant you divine enjoyments, or earthly ones, as you desire. The Vaiṣṇava illusion you wished to see, O Brahmin, has been experienced by you; and for fifty years, not even in the hunter’s house. Moreover, I will tell you something else—listen well. You have performed neither auspicious nor inauspicious acts. Whatever wrongful deeds or transgressions you committed, and whatever actions from a past existence that led you to this present state, all have their consequences. The pure twice-born who are my devotees—whom you did not greet—are truly my own embodiments. I am known here through them, O best of Brahmins—there is no doubt of this. Those twice-born who seek to see me are also my devotees. Especially in this Kali age, I am present in the form of a Brahmin. Whoever wishes to attain me, for him there is nothing unutterable. Go, O Brahmin—you are perfected. When you relinquish your life-breath, you shall surely attain me.