Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 50
तत्संप्राप्य तथा कुर्यान्न गच्छेन्नरकं यथा । सर्वस्य मूलं मानुष्यं तथा सर्वार्थसाधकम्
tatsaṃprāpya tathā kuryānna gacchennarakaṃ yathā | sarvasya mūlaṃ mānuṣyaṃ tathā sarvārthasādhakam
उस मानव-जन्म को पाकर ऐसा आचरण करना चाहिए कि नरक में न जाना पड़े। मानव-जीवन ही सबका मूल है और वही समस्त पुरुषार्थों की सिद्धि का साधन भी है।
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa frame)
Scene: A human figure holds a lamp labeled ‘mānuṣya’; its light reveals four paths (dharma/artha/kāma/mokṣa) while a dark chasm labeled ‘naraka’ lies beside the wrong path; the figure steps carefully on a dharma-marked bridge.
FAQs
Human birth is the key opportunity: act dharmically to avoid downfall and to fulfill life’s highest purposes.
No specific tīrtha is indicated; the teaching is broadly applicable.
No particular rite; it prescribes dharmic conduct so that one does not incur hellish results.