Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 42
न वेदैश्च न दानैश्च न यज्ञैस्तपसा क्वचित् । न शक्नुवंति मां प्राप्तुं मूढाः कर्म्मवशानराः
na vedaiśca na dānaiśca na yajñaistapasā kvacit | na śaknuvaṃti māṃ prāptuṃ mūḍhāḥ karmmavaśānarāḥ
Weder durch die Veden, noch durch Gaben, noch durch Opfer, noch durch Askese—zu keiner Zeit—können Mich die Verblendeten erreichen, die der bloßen Tat verfallen sind.
Śiva (Hara/Rudra)
Tirtha: Kedāra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Ritual-bound ‘mūḍhāḥ’ (contextually Dakṣa and ritualist assembly)
Scene: Śiva’s voice (or a sage channeling Śiva) declares that Vedas, gifts, sacrifices, and austerities cannot reach Him for those deluded and bound to action. The scene contrasts bustling ritual activity with a still center of divine presence.
FAQs
Scripture, charity, sacrifice, and austerity become spiritually fruitful only when guided by wisdom; mechanical ritualism cannot yield the highest attainment.
In Kedārakhaṇḍa’s Kedāra setting, the message redirects pilgrims from mere external merit to the inner knowledge that makes the kṣetra’s blessing complete.
Veda-study, dāna, yajña, and tapas are referenced, but the verse warns they are insufficient when pursued as ends in themselves.