Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 50
तत्संप्राप्य तथा कुर्यान्न गच्छेन्नरकं यथा । सर्वस्य मूलं मानुष्यं तथा सर्वार्थसाधकम्
tatsaṃprāpya tathā kuryānna gacchennarakaṃ yathā | sarvasya mūlaṃ mānuṣyaṃ tathā sarvārthasādhakam
Habiendo obtenido ese nacimiento humano, obre de tal modo que no caiga en el infierno. La vida humana es la raíz de todo y, asimismo, el medio para cumplir toda meta verdadera.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa frame)
Scene: A human figure holds a lamp labeled ‘mānuṣya’; its light reveals four paths (dharma/artha/kāma/mokṣa) while a dark chasm labeled ‘naraka’ lies beside the wrong path; the figure steps carefully on a dharma-marked bridge.
FAQs
Human birth is the key opportunity: act dharmically to avoid downfall and to fulfill life’s highest purposes.
No specific tīrtha is indicated; the teaching is broadly applicable.
No particular rite; it prescribes dharmic conduct so that one does not incur hellish results.