Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 90
उद्धृतेष्यथ पिंडेषु यावान्नकणिका भुवि । ताभिराप्यायनं तेषां ये च पातालमागताः
uddhṛteṣyatha piṃḍeṣu yāvānnakaṇikā bhuvi | tābhirāpyāyanaṃ teṣāṃ ye ca pātālamāgatāḥ
And when the piṇḍas, the rice-balls of offering, are lifted up, whatever tiny particle of food remains upon the earth—by those, there is nourishment for those ancestors who have gone to Pātāla, the nether regions.
Unspecified (continuation of śrāddha-offering phala exposition)
Tirtha: Dharmakūpa (contextual)
Type: kund
Scene: Piṇḍas are lifted from the offering spot; tiny grains remain on the earth, shown as luminous specks traveling downward to Pātāla where shadowed ancestors receive nourishment.
FAQs
Purāṇic ritual logic portrays śrāddha as universally reaching—benefiting ancestors across all cosmic levels.
The immediate passage centers on Dharmakūpa/Dharmakṣetra within Dharmāraṇya, where śrāddha is especially potent.
During piṇḍa offerings, even residual food particles on the ground are said to nourish ancestors who have reached Pātāla.