Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 16
ततः सोऽपि समायातस्तस्य स्वप्ने महीपतेः । तेनैव प्रेतरूपेण दुःखेन महता वृतः
tataḥ so'pi samāyātastasya svapne mahīpateḥ | tenaiva pretarūpeṇa duḥkhena mahatā vṛtaḥ
Então ele também veio ao rei em sonho, aparecendo na mesma forma de um preta, envolto em intenso sofrimento.
Narrator (contextual purāṇic narration within Nāgara Khaṇḍa)
Type: kshetra
Scene: Night scene: the king asleep in a palace chamber; in the dream-space a gaunt preta-form appears, shadowed and trembling, wrapped in an aura of suffering, reaching out as if pleading.
FAQs
Suffering in the preta-state is portrayed as real and urgent, prompting compassionate dharmic action by the living.
The verse sets up a tīrtha-context but does not yet name the site; the location is specified later in the dialogue.
None explicitly in this verse; it introduces the dream-vision that leads to a later prescription.