Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 58
नित्यं शृणोति शास्त्राणि नित्यं सेवति पंडितान् । वृद्धांस्तु पृच्छते नित्यं न स प्रेतो विजायते
nityaṃ śṛṇoti śāstrāṇi nityaṃ sevati paṃḍitān | vṛddhāṃstu pṛcchate nityaṃ na sa preto vijāyate
Wer täglich die Śāstras hört, täglich den Gelehrten dient und regelmäßig die Ältesten um Rat fragt, der wird niemals als Preta geboren.
Narrative voice (Īśvara speaking in the Adhyāya frame)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Gautama (implied)
Scene: Pretas enumerate disciplines: listening to scriptures, serving scholars, and asking elders; the imagery suggests a humble student posture and a teaching assembly near a sacred place.
FAQs
Regular śāstra-hearing, service to the wise, and humility before elders protect one from degraded post-death states like preta-hood.
The teaching appears within the Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, framing dharma in the sacred geography of Prabhāsa.
No specific ritual is prescribed here; it emphasizes daily disciplines—śāstra-śravaṇa, service, and seeking elders’ guidance.