Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 16
यम उवाच । यदि तुष्टोऽसि देवेश वांछितं कुरुषे यदि । धर्मारण्ये महापुण्ये ऋषीणामाश्रमान्कुरु
yama uvāca | yadi tuṣṭo'si deveśa vāṃchitaṃ kuruṣe yadi | dharmāraṇye mahāpuṇye ṛṣīṇāmāśramānkuru
यम उवाच—यदि तुष्टोऽसि देवेश, वाञ्छितं कुरुषे यदि। धर्मारण्ये महापुण्ये ऋषीणामाश्रमान् कुरु॥
Yama
Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya
Type: kshetra
Scene: Yama requests Viṣṇu: if pleased, establish hermitages for sages in the supremely meritorious Dharmāraṇya—an appeal for dharmic infrastructure.
FAQs
A tīrtha’s glory is sustained by the presence of sages, whose āśramas preserve dharma and sanctify the land.
Dharmāraṇya, described as “mahāpuṇya” and worthy of being adorned with ṛṣi-āśramas.
The prescription is institutional: establish sages’ hermitages (āśramas), enabling Vedic life, yajña, and dharma-practice.