Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 4
जातिमात्रेण विप्रत्वं जायते न हि भो द्विजाः । क्रिया बलवती लोके क्रियाहीने कुतः फलम्
jātimātreṇa vipratvaṃ jāyate na hi bho dvijāḥ | kriyā balavatī loke kriyāhīne kutaḥ phalam
O ihr Zweifachgeborenen, nicht durch bloße Geburt entsteht wahres Brahmanentum. In dieser Welt ist die rechte Handlung und heilige Übung mächtig; wo die Übung fehlt, woher sollte die Frucht kommen?
Rāma (contextual continuation)
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: dvijāḥ addressed
Scene: A teaching assembly: elders and dvijas listening as a speaker points to a ritual manual and then to a practitioner performing daily rites, contrasting mere lineage pride with disciplined practice; the moral is shown through two figures—one adorned but idle, another simple but devoted.
FAQs
Spiritual authority and merit arise from dharmic conduct and disciplined practice, not from birth alone.
No specific tirtha is directly glorified in this verse; it is a general dharma principle.
Emphasis on kriyā (proper practice/observance); without it, expected phala (results) should not be assumed.