अत्रेदं परमाश्चर्यमाख्यानमनुवर्ण्यते । अश्रद्धा सर्वमर्त्यानां येन सद्यो निवर्तते
atredaṃ paramāścaryamākhyānamanuvarṇyate | aśraddhā sarvamartyānāṃ yena sadyo nivartate
Here an exceedingly wondrous account is narrated—how the lack of faith in mortals can cause sacred benefit and spiritual progress to turn back at once.
Narrator (contextual purāṇic voice; specific speaker not explicit in this snippet)
Scene: A narrator announces a ‘paramāścarya’ tale; a symbolic scene shows a pilgrim’s merit turning back like a retreating river due to a dark cloud of aśraddhā.
Faith (śraddhā) is essential; without it, sacred practices and their fruits can fail to manifest.
No site is specified in this verse; it functions as a narrative preface common in māhātmya-style sections.
None directly; it sets the doctrinal basis that rituals require śraddhā to bear fruit.