Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 88
व्रतं वा नियमं वाथ तस्मिन्यः कुरुते नरः । प्रसुप्ते देवदेवेशे तत्सर्वं निष्फलं भवेत्
vrataṃ vā niyamaṃ vātha tasminyaḥ kurute naraḥ | prasupte devadeveśe tatsarvaṃ niṣphalaṃ bhavet
Qu’il s’agisse d’un vœu (vrata) ou d’une observance (niyama), tout ce qu’un homme entreprend alors—lorsque le Seigneur des seigneurs demeure en sommeil sacré—devient sans fruit.
Narrative voice (contextual instruction within Tīrthamāhātmya; speaker not explicit in this verse)
Tirtha: Jagannātha-kṣetra (implied)
Type: kshetra
Listener: general audience (naraḥ)
Scene: A devotee prepares to take a vow, but elders point to the temple calendar marking Hari’s śayana; the devotee instead offers lamps and listens to kathā.
FAQs
Merit depends not only on the act but also on sacred timing; vows done in an inauspicious ritual window are said to lose their fruit.
The broader passage belongs to the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya and later connects to Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra where Janārdana is said to lie (śayana).
A caution: performing vrata/niyama when the Lord is in ‘prasupta’ (ritual sleep) is discouraged as unfruitful.