Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2
यस्तान्पूजयते भक्त्या मानुषो भक्तितस्ततः । स यास्यति परं स्थानं यज्ञैरपि सुदुर्लभम्
yastānpūjayate bhaktyā mānuṣo bhaktitastataḥ | sa yāsyati paraṃ sthānaṃ yajñairapi sudurlabham
Wer als Mensch jene Gottheiten in Bhakti verehrt—durch eben diese Hingabe wird er die höchste Wohnstatt erlangen, die selbst durch Opferhandlungen (Yajñas) überaus schwer zu gewinnen ist.
Sūta (continuing narration)
Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (tri-deity worship)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Dvijottamāḥ
Scene: A devotee offers flowers and lamp to three deities in the kṣetra; above, a luminous ‘parama-sthāna’ is symbolized as a radiant gateway/lotus, indicating the fruit of devotion beyond sacrifice.
FAQs
Devotional worship—especially in a sanctified setting—is portrayed as a direct means to the highest spiritual attainment, beyond mere ritual sacrifice.
The merit is stated in the ongoing kṣetra narrative tied to Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra within the Nāgara Khaṇḍa.
Pūjā (devotional worship) of the installed deities; the emphasis is on bhakti as the efficacious principle.