Jivas are carried on in their course of life evolution by the force of past tendencies, and nature unaided produces the personal man. But when the past tendencies are exhausted, there is nothing to keep on the Jivas in their course of evolution. Kûrma comes to the help of humanity at this stage. He gives a new power to men, the power of discrimination. With this power men become free agents, and they become responsible for their actions. They then generate new Karma for themselves, which takes them through infinite births and becomes a most potent factor in their future evolution. The three Purushas have three Oceans as their correspondences. The first ocean (Kârana) gives the materials of the Jiva body. The Second ocean (Garbhoda), gives the germs of all Jivas. The third (Kshira) is the ocean of Jiva evolution. This ocean is churned for the spiritual evolution of Jivas, and it yields all that is necessary for that evolution. Vishnu himself appears as Kûrma and becomes the sustaining force of that evolution. It is a Kâlpic revolution. Vasûki sustains the earth and its inhabitants for one Kâlpic period. The thousand hoods represent the thousand Maha yugas of every Kalpa. The Asuras held the mouth end of the serpent king and the Devas held the tail end. And the Devas acted wisely. For as the Kalpa waned, they got the supremacy. The tortoise thrusts out its limbs and draws them in. Man is drawn outside by his senses during material descent and he is drawn in by his spiritual ascent. It is by the power of discrimination when fully developed that a man returns to his higher nature. Srî or Lakshmî is the divine energy of Vishnu. She is the Energy of preservation, of evolution and progress She works out all that is good, all that is beautiful, and all that is powerful in this Universe. The possibilities of purely material development or of Nature’s own evolution, are limited, and they are worked out in time. Then there is a void. There was this void in our universe and Trilokî become deprived of Sri. This was the curse of Durvasas, an Avatâra of Śiva. The Churning took place as a remedy for this evil. Fresh forces had to be brought into requisition, fresh elements that could secure the spiritual evolution of the universe. Lakshmî herself reappeared in a most enchanting form, as the energy of a new evolution, the very best that man was capable of. The necessaries of this evolution also appeared and became powers in the hands of those that had to take part in the spiritual evolution of the universe. All evolution is preceded by dissolution. Unless we give up the evil element in us, we can not acquire the good. The evil has to be destroyed and the Lord of destruction, in his infinite compassion, accepted this poison for himself, to do away with the evils of the Universe.