After emerging from the great mass of rocks, all the gods rose up together, determined to find Śambhu. They searched every realm they could reach: heaven itself, the world of Brahmā, and even the mysterious domain of the nāgas. Yet, despite their efforts, they could not find that place again. Exhausted and deeply distressed, the gods pressed on, seeking the divine presence through mountains and forests, wandering through widespread groves and pleasure gardens. Nowhere did they find any trace of Śambhu; Śiva was not to be seen, and fear began to fill their hearts. The immortals gathered, seeking refuge in me. I realized there was but one path left: to meditate, even as we were adorned with the ornaments of enmity. We had searched all three worlds thoroughly, except for the region of the śleṣmātaka forest on earth. “Come, let us go to that place, O best of gods,” I urged. At that very moment, the gods arrived swiftly in their aerial chariots. They found themselves amidst many delightful and pure places fit for the gods—in forest regions of hermitages and mountain caves. Indra was placed at the forefront, and the gods entered, exploring the hollows of the mountains and thickets of trees. As they entered a certain forest region, the gods themselves seemed radiant, shining on the sandy banks of a mountain river like swans, jasmine, and the moon. The sand there gleamed like powdered pearls. Upon seeing me, all the wise gods urged me onward. I entered meditation for a moment and then perceived her. Ascending the lofty peak, the lords of the gods found, in the midst of a herd of deer, one standing like their protector. He had a lovely face, beautiful eyes and teeth, and white spots on his back. His lips were like bimba fruit, his tongue and mouth coppery, adorned with tusk-like sprouts. When the gods saw him, they fled from the peak. Yet, Indra seized the tip of his horn, and Keśava took hold of the base. The tip was held by Śakra, the middle by me. Thus, grasping the horn, we divided the lord of the deer in three. Suddenly, he vanished, standing in the sky, and addressed us as we watched. He said, “With my body, I have been cursed by you; now I have departed from here. If I had remained with my body, having been taken and established here, indeed, O immortals, my horns would be here in this forest of phlegmatic nature. Even here, there will be great prosperity—of this there is no doubt. As many sacred places as there are on earth, and all the lakes up to the ocean, again, at the auspicious foot of the lord of mountains, Himavat, I, with a head blazing with radiant splendor and a four-faced body, will remain in the dreadful lake of serpents, within the water. When one born in the lineage of Vṛṣṇi, bearing the discus of Kṛṣṇa, strikes down the mountains…” Thus, the gods listened as the mysterious lord revealed his fate and the promise of prosperity, leaving behind a sacred legacy in the forest and beyond.