Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 27
सुतलं नितलं चैव तथैव वितलं च यत् । तस्याधस्ताच्चतुर्थे च वसतिर्वो धरातले
sutalaṃ nitalaṃ caiva tathaiva vitalaṃ ca yat | tasyādhastāccaturthe ca vasatirvo dharātale
Di bawah Sutala, Nitala, dan juga Vitala, pada wilayah keempat yang lebih bawah daripada semuanya itu, tempat kediamanmu akan ditegakkan di bawah bumi.
Brahmā (implied by immediate context continuing into 31–33 as 'Brahmovāca')
Tirtha: Pātāla-loka (Sutala–Nitala–Vitala strata)
Type: kshetra
Listener: Nāgas (internal) and sages (frame)
Scene: A layered cross-section of the cosmos: Sutala, Nitala, Vitala shown as descending jeweled caverns; beneath them a fourth, deeper realm prepared as a dwelling for nāgas, with luminous gems and subterranean rivers.
FAQs
Divine order assigns proper abodes to beings; even powerful Nāgas are placed within a dharmic cosmic arrangement.
The verse is part of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narrative leading toward the Nāgas’ designated sacred settlement (named later as Cāmatkārapura).
No explicit rite is stated in this verse; it sets cosmological and locational context for later worship instructions.