Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 19
अपि प्रेतत्वमापन्नं नरके वा समाश्रितम् । उद्धरिष्यति स प्रेतमपि पापसमन्वितम्
api pretatvamāpannaṃ narake vā samāśritam | uddhariṣyati sa pretamapi pāpasamanvitam
Selbst wenn der Verstorbene in den Zustand eines Preta gefallen ist oder in der Hölle Zuflucht genommen hat, wird Er jenen Geist emporheben – selbst wenn er von Sünde beladen ist.
Pitṛs (ancestors) (continuation of the śrāddha-fruit statement)
Tirtha: Rāmahrada
Type: kund
Listener: Rāma (and future ritualists)
Scene: A devotee’s śrāddha offerings at the hrada send a stream of light to a suffering preta and to a shadowed naraka realm; the spirit is lifted upward, shedding dark stains of pāpa.
FAQs
Śrāddha performed with faith is framed as an act of rescue and compassion, capable of alleviating severe post-mortem suffering.
The promised deliverance is linked to the Rāmahrada tīrtha context established in the chapter.
The efficacy (phala) of śrāddha is emphasized: it can uplift even a preta or a being in naraka, despite sin.