Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 29
यतोऽस्माभिः श्रुता वार्ता कीर्त्यमाना पुरातनी । विष्णुना तस्य राजर्षेः प्रेतश्राद्धसमुद्भवा
yato'smābhiḥ śrutā vārtā kīrtyamānā purātanī | viṣṇunā tasya rājarṣeḥ pretaśrāddhasamudbhavā
Car nous avons entendu un récit ancien, encore célébré et transmis : comment, par l’ordonnance de Viṣṇu, naquit l’affaire du śrāddha du roi-sage pour celui qui était devenu preta.
Local devotees/hosts (introducing a precedent/story)
Tirtha: Nāga-tīrtha (contextual; exact name not stated in verse)
Type: kshetra
Listener: dvijāḥ / dvijasattamāḥ (addressed audience of brāhmaṇas)
Scene: Sages recount an ancient, oft-repeated tale: a royal sage’s predicament involving preta-śrāddha arising under Viṣṇu’s ordinance; a narrative ‘opening’ tableau with listeners gathered in a sacred setting.
FAQs
Purāṇic dharma validates ritual practice through sacred precedent—ancient stories teach how divine order supports śrāddha and ancestral welfare.
A Nāgarakhaṇḍa tīrtha where śrāddha is discussed as particularly consequential for relieving preta-condition.
Preta-śrāddha (śrāddha for one in preta-state), framed through an authoritative ancient narrative.