Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 68
विषादो जायते भूयो गुणैरेतैर्नराधिप । अशक्ताः प्रेतयोगाद्वै सर्वस्य शुभकर्मणः
viṣādo jāyate bhūyo guṇairetairnarādhipa | aśaktāḥ pretayogādvai sarvasya śubhakarmaṇaḥ
Bien plutôt, ô souverain des hommes, la tristesse s’accroît à cause même de ces « avantages » ; car, liés à la condition de préta, nous sommes vraiment incapables de tout acte auspicious.
Preta(s) (departed spirits) addressing the king
Type: kshetra
Listener: narādhipa / king
Scene: The pretas confess that sorrow increases due to these ‘advantages’ because, bound to preta-yoga, they cannot perform any auspicious deeds.
FAQs
Without embodied agency and dharmic capacity, the preta condition blocks auspicious action; compassion through rites and merit becomes essential.
No site is named in this single verse; the broader chapter frames the discussion within tīrtha-glorification and remedial dharma.
None explicitly; it implies the value of proxy-rituals performed by the living (śrāddha, dāna) for the benefit of the departed.