"Depart in peace, and fear no more the wrath of him who thought to destroy where he could not give life." And Indra, the god of the clouds, descended to earth, and falling at the feet of Him, in abject humility said: "O Lord I Thou art the Holy One! Puffed up and proud was I in my power and saw myself greater even than Thou. "Well know I now that Love is the greatest power; and I, in my smallness of godship, insolent and destructive became. I sought the praise that is ever due to Thee, O Lord of Love; for unto resistless Love alone praise should be given. But my vanity and pride I tried to shield by the power which Thou didst endow me with. "I thought that I it was who brought the life to all trees and by my power kept the hills in green and the forests in wondrous foliage, and gave drinks to the cows and plenty to the rivers. And for it I longed to see men perform the ceremonies and pray to me. "But to Thee, O Lord of Love! is due all the glory; by Thee alone am I invested with power. Do Thou in Thy greatness forgive me, while I in humbleness do bow to Thy Lotus Feet." And Krishna threw a glance at Indra that filled him with a great wild joy, and said: "O Indra! Though I invested thee with sovereignty by My will, be not overfull of pride! For this I have stopped the ceremonies, so that thou mayest learn to know Me, whom thou in thy prosperity hadst quite forgotten. "Go to thy abode, Indra, rule thy dominion; but know ever that pride and vanity are without power, and that Love alone is mighty. "To lighten the burdens of all My world, I have come to earth. "I now lift from thee the load which hath caused thee to forget Me, and, in forgetting Me, to have lost the beauty which was born of Me." And with the halo of joy about him, Indra returned to his abode, endowed with greater power. CHAPTER XXIII. And now autumn,[3] the sweetest and richest season of all the glad year, had come; and the brow of Brindāban was fair to look upon. Peace and love stood on every threshold and walked on every roadway, and all lifted up their voices, and the words of their gladness was Love, Love! In the hearts of all the song rose and showed them pleasant ways and haunts that ended in Bliss. Men knew gratitude and justice, which are the attributes of Love. Love walked on earth and left its blessing in its trail I The flowers whispered their love to one another and the dew clung closer to their petals, because of the warmth of their love. All the land seemed to have ripened into the deepest beauty, for the Beauty of Love here was King. And Krishna was King and reigned in every heart, and all bowed before the majesty of the beauty of His Love. A substitute it was for all things and satisfied the want of each heart, entrancing every object and person by its beauty. O wonder of Love, that expanded each soul and made it a world of joy and bliss!