Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 90
उद्धृतेष्यथ पिंडेषु यावान्नकणिका भुवि । ताभिराप्यायनं तेषां ये च पातालमागताः
uddhṛteṣyatha piṃḍeṣu yāvānnakaṇikā bhuvi | tābhirāpyāyanaṃ teṣāṃ ye ca pātālamāgatāḥ
Y cuando se levantan los piṇḍas (bolas de arroz), cualquier diminuta partícula de alimento que quede sobre la tierra—por ella hay sustento para aquellos (antepasados) que han ido a Pātāla, las regiones subterráneas.
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.