Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 20
तस्य तन्निष्फलं भावि भुक्तं प्रेतैश्च राक्षसैः । इत्युक्त्वा भगवान्रुद्रस्तत्रैवां तरधीयत
tasya tanniṣphalaṃ bhāvi bhuktaṃ pretaiśca rākṣasaiḥ | ityuktvā bhagavānrudrastatraivāṃ taradhīyata
“त्याचे ते कार्य निष्फळ होईल, आणि त्याचे नैवेद्य प्रेत व राक्षस भक्षण करतील.” असे सांगून भगवान रुद्र तेथेच अंतर्धान पावले.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating; Rudra is quoted within the narration
Tirtha: Kṣetrapāla protocol (general)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Rudra warns that acts done without worship become fruitless and offerings are consumed by pretas and rākṣasas; after speaking, he vanishes on the spot, leaving a charged silence.
FAQs
If sacred rites are performed wrongly or without due propriety, their merit can be lost and the offering becomes vulnerable to impure forces.
This verse functions as a general Mahātmya-style admonition within the Kṣetrapāla section; a specific named tīrtha is not explicit in the snippet.
An implied prescription: ensure correct, protected worship so offerings are not rendered “niṣphala” (fruitless) or seized by pretas/rākṣasas.