Skandapurana 2.7.16

Śrutadeva said:

His heart flooded with joy at that darśana, he quickly rose and bowed with his head,

having long gazed with agitated eyes upon this god who is the Self of all, the Lord of the worlds. 1.

Having washed his feet, he took that water, the river born from whose feet purifies the world up to Brahmā;

he worshiped [him] with great opulences—with precious garments, ornaments, and unguents, 2.

with garlands, incense, lamps, nectarous food, and the like, through the surrender of skin, body, wealth, and self.

He praised Viṣṇu, the primordial Person, Nārāyaṇa, devoid of qualities, without a second: 3.

'I bow to the untainted supreme Lord of the creators of the universe, praised by the lotus-born [Brahmā] and others,

by whose māyā even men supreme among the knowers of truth are deluded regarding the sovereign Lord of the universe's creators. 4.

Fools are bewildered by the acts of māyā, by the qualities—wondrous is the activity of the Blessed Lord!

Desireless, as the one Self, he creates, protects, and consumes this [universe] in many ways, yet is not attached. 5.

Although your desires are fulfilled, [you act] for the acquisition of pleasure and pain by all gods and asuras;

even then, at proper time, for the protection of your own people and the restraint of the wicked, you assume sattva. 6.

You assume the quality of tamas to bind the rākṣasas, and the quality of rajas, O quality-less one, whose form is the universe!

By good fortune, your foot, destroying the sins of those bowed down and the abode of sacred fords, is held in the heart by those of fully matured yoga. 7.

Those whose sense of individual soul and desires are surrendered through overflowing devotion attained the supreme goal merely by the remembrance of your feet.

Bound by the noose-like serpent of Time called worldly existence, by the sufferings of repeated birth, old age, and the rest, 8.

I wander among wombs like mouse food, with increased craving, because of forgetting your feet.

Surely, I gave no gift, nor heard your story, nor were virtuous people ever served by me. 9.

Therefore, my supreme fortune destroyed by enemies, I entered the forest, remembering my own heavy sin;

and when remembered, those two kinsmen of the afflicted approached me and awakened me from sorrow, 10.

by means of the auspicious duties of Vaiśākha ordained by the Vedas, which are the causes of the human aims such as heaven and liberation.

From their instruction, I performed all those auspicious duties of the month of Mādhava; 11.

therefore, your supreme grace was granted to me, and through it, all these abundant fortunes [were attained].

Neither fire, nor the sun, nor the moon and stars, nor earth, water, space, wind, or speech and mind, 12.

even when worshiped, remove sin except after a long time; [yet] the wise destroy it through service for a single moment—

those whom you regard as worldly beings, but who have renounced desires, their minds fixed upon your feet. 13.

Homage to the independent one of wondrous deeds! Homage to the supreme one of true compassion!

Deluded by your māyā among the qualities in the forms of wife and wealth, I wander, perceiving what is worthless.' 14.

Even while your lotus foot exists, which destroys the root [of ignorance] and takes away all sin, extremely pure,

bound by a sense of mineness to children, self, and wife—the very sources of calamity—out of desire for pleasure,

one finds no sleep anywhere, nor peace; with thirst grown ever greater, toward that very thing again,

having attained this human and royal birth, so difficult to obtain, which with effort is the cause of all human goals,

I do not worship your lotus foot, O God, my mind completely deluded, greedy for sense-objects.

I perform actions firmly established [in desire], my thirst grown strong, giving [gifts only] with expectation of reward,

with my mind agitated by hundreds of anxieties: 'Let me be [prosperous] again! Let me be [rich] today!'

Only then does the living being receive your grace, O omnipresent Lord of endless power, whose form is the universe,

when there is the association of great men, by which the ocean of worldly existence becomes like a puddle in a cow's footprint.

O God, only whenever there is the company of the virtuous, then, O Lord, does the mind turn toward you, the Lord of gods.

Truly I consider the loss of my entire kingdom to be your grace directly manifested upon me,

just as [it was shown], O noble one, to flocks of ascetics, who have turned away their thirst, along with Brahmā, the gods, the asuras, and the rest.

Henceforth I remember with reverence only Acyuta, the lotus foot that removes worldly existence, O Lord;

sought by the possessionless, conferring immense good fortune, I desire nothing other than your lotus foot.

Therefore [I desire] neither kingship, nor the treasury of sons and the rest; with this body born of rajas, constantly falling,

I constantly worship that which is to be served, the lotus foot to be contemplated by sages.

Be gracious, O Lord of gods, dwelling place of the universe, so that my remembrance may rest upon your lotus foot!

May my attachment always depart from wife, treasury, sons, body, status, and retinue, O Lord!

May my mind abide in the two lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, and my words in describing your divine narrative;

may these two eyes of mine be [fixed] on seeing your form, my two ears on your narrative, and my tongue on what is offered to you;

and my sense of smell on the fragrance of your lotus feet and, constantly, on the anointing perfumes of your devotees;

and may my two hands always be engaged in sweeping and other services in your temple, O Lord;

my two feet, O Lord, in wandering to your sacred fields and listening to your stories; and my head continuously in bowing to you;

and may my desire be for your holy narrative, and my intellect continuously in meditating upon you;

may my days be spent listening to the rising of your holy narratives sung by sages who have come to my home;

and may my discourse never be devoid of you for even a moment or half the blink of an eye, O Viṣṇu!

I do not desire the station of Brahmā, nor universal sovereignty, nor even liberation, O Viṣṇu;

I only ever desire service to your feet, which is prayed for by Lakṣmī, and by gods such as Brahmā and Śiva.

Praised thus by the king, the lotus-eyed Viṣṇu was pleased,

and spoke to that lord of the earth with a voice deep as thunder:

The Blessed Lord said:

I know you to be the best of my servants, free from desire and without blemish.

Even so, I will grant you a boon difficult for deities to obtain:

A lifespan of ten thousand celestial [years], and riches, O ruler of men;

may your devotion to me be firm, and in the end, complete union [with me].

And those on earth who praise me with the hymn composed by you,

to them, being pleased, I will bestow enjoyment and liberation, without doubt.

This third lunar day will be renowned on earth by the name Akṣayā,

upon which, pleased with you, I bestow the fruit of enjoyment and liberation.

Those men, even if foolish, who perform rites such as ritual ablution and gift-giving,

even under a pretext or by natural inclination, go to my imperishable abode.

And those humans who, on Akṣayatṛtīyā, for the sake of the ancestors,

perform a śrāddha, for them indeed it becomes inexhaustible.

There is no lunar day in the world equal to or superior to this on earth;

even a very small [act] performed on this day yields an imperishable fruit.

Whoever gives a cow, O best of kings, to a householder brahmin,

enjoyment and liberation, called the downpour of all prosperity, are held in his hand.

Whoever gives a bull that destroys all sins,

being freed from untimely death, attains a long life.

Whoever performs the religious duties pleasing to me in the month of Vaiśākha,

their sin and their fear of death, old age, and birth, I take away.

Just as I am pleased by all the duties of Vaiśākha,

I am not pleased by the duties of any [other] month; the month of Mādhava is dear to me.

Even if abandoned by all duties, or devoid of celibacy,

those devoted to the month of Vaiśākha go to my imperishable abode.

That which is hard to obtain through austerities, Sāṃkhya, Yoga, or even sacrifices,

to that supreme abode go the men devoted to Vaiśākha.

Even a thousand sins this month removes, O sinless one,

even without expiation, just like the remembrance of my feet.

Instructed by your guru in the forest, you have become devoted to Vaiśākha.

Having worshiped the Lord of the Universe, everything was obtained by you through that, O king!

Pleased by this practice, I have become visible to you.

Having enjoyed desires at will, difficult to attain even for the gods,

Having thus granted a boon to him, Janārdana, the god of gods,

vanished right there, even while everyone was watching.

Then that best of kings was filled with great astonishment.

His body cheerful and thriving, O king, like one who has regained lost wealth,

then he ruled the earth, his mind fixed on him, wholly devoted to him,

constantly instructed by the great ones and perpetually by his teachers.

The king considered none dearer than Vāsudeva;

wife, ministers, sons, and others were dear only through connection with him.

He repeatedly performed all the religious duties enjoined for Vaiśākha;

by the power of that merit, surrounded by sons, grandsons, and others,

having enjoyed all desires, difficult to attain even for the gods,

he attained in the end union with God Viṣṇu, wielder of the discus.

Those who hear and cause this supreme narrative to be heard,

they all, freed from sin, go to the supreme abode of Viṣṇu.

Thus ends the sixteenth chapter, entitled “Attainment of Union by the Ruler of Pañcāla,” in the dialogue between Nārada and Ambarīṣa, in the glorification of the month of Vaiśākha, in the Vaiṣṇava section, in the eighty-one-thousand-verse compendium of the glorious Skandapurāṇa.