Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 25
जनोच्छेदे ततो जाते अग्निष्टोमादिकाः क्रियाः । न भवंति धरा पृष्ठे ततः स्यादेव संक्षयः
janocchede tato jāte agniṣṭomādikāḥ kriyāḥ | na bhavaṃti dharā pṛṣṭhe tataḥ syādeva saṃkṣayaḥ
Quand le peuple est retranché et périt, les rites tels que l’Agniṣṭoma et les autres ne s’accomplissent plus sur la terre. De là, assurément, naît une ruine accrue.
Narrative voice within the Tīrthamāhātmya dialogue (context: explaining social-ritual consequences of calamity)
Scene: Abandoned yajña-śālā: cold fire-altars, unused ladles, silent priests’ seats; the land outside is desolate, implying that ritual cessation follows human loss.
FAQs
Human welfare and ritual dharma are interlinked; when society collapses, yajña ceases, and cosmic-social decline accelerates.
No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it supports the Mahātmya’s broader argument about preserving order connected with sacred places and dharma.
Agniṣṭoma and allied Vedic rites are referenced, but no specific performance rule is given—only their cessation as a sign of decline.