Narada says to the god Vishnu, “I have conquered illusion.” Vishnu promises to show Narada the true power of illusion (or Maya). Narada wakes up as a woman, Sushila, with no memory of what came before. Sushila marries a king, becomes pregnant, and eventually has eight sons and many grandsons. One day, an enemy attacks, and all her sons and grandsons are killed. As the queen grieves, Vishnu appears and says, “Why are you so sad? This is just an illusion.” Narada finds himself back in his original body only a moment after the original conversation. He concludes that his whole life is an
...more
