Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 38
अप्रक्षालितपादस्तु यो भुंक्ते दक्षिणामुखः । यो वेष्टितशिरा भुंक्ते प्रेता भुंजन्ति नित्यशः
aprakṣālitapādastu yo bhuṃkte dakṣiṇāmukhaḥ | yo veṣṭitaśirā bhuṃkte pretā bhuṃjanti nityaśaḥ
Celui qui mange sans s’être lavé les pieds, ou mange tourné vers le sud, ou mange la tête couverte, les pretas prennent sans cesse part à cette nourriture (et se l’approprient).
Narrator (context: Pretas speaking in Gautama dialogue)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: General audience/householder; framed as instruction to a brāhmaṇa interlocutor in the chapter
Scene: Three cautionary vignettes: a man eating with dusty unwashed feet; another eating facing south; another eating with head wrapped—while pretas gather to consume the subtle essence of the food.
FAQs
Food and offerings should be taken with purity and proper conduct; careless habits invite inauspicious subtle influences (preta-association).
Prabhāsa Kṣetra (Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya), where dharma regarding offerings and purity is taught.
Wash the feet before eating, avoid eating facing south, and avoid eating with the head covered—especially relevant around śrāddha and sacred meals.