Verse 1

¹Why did Hari beg three paces of ground from Bali, and why, being the lord of all beings, did he ask like a poor man? And having got what he asked, why did he bind him? ²This we want to understand, for our wonder at it is great: the binding of one who is lord of sacrifice, who lacks nothing, and who had done no wrong. ³His fortune beaten out of him and his life taken by Indra, king, he was brought back to life by the Bhrgus. So Bali, great-souled, served those Bhrgus with his whole being, a pupil who laid before them all he had.