Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 18
अथर्ववेदः प्रथमं द्रष्टव्यः कार्यसिद्धये । एतस्मात्कारणादाद्यः स चतुर्थोऽपि संस्थितः
atharvavedaḥ prathamaṃ draṣṭavyaḥ kāryasiddhaye | etasmātkāraṇādādyaḥ sa caturtho'pi saṃsthitaḥ
Pour l’accomplissement d’une œuvre désirée, l’Atharvaveda doit être consulté d’abord. C’est pourquoi il est ‘premier’ par priorité pratique, bien qu’il soit établi comme le quatrième dans l’énumération.
Bhartṛyajña
Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (contextual)
Type: kshetra
Listener: dvijottamāḥ (implied continuing audience)
Scene: A teacher explains the four Vedas with Atharvaveda highlighted as practically prior; a symbolic arrangement shows three Vedas in order and Atharva placed forward as ‘first for success’.
FAQs
Scriptural ranking can be contextual: for effective action (kārya-siddhi), the tradition prioritizes the Atharvaveda’s practical methods.
This verse is doctrinal and does not name a tīrtha; it occurs within the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra-māhātmya framework.
A procedural instruction is given: consult Atharvaveda first when seeking success in a specific undertaking.