Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3
ऋषय ऊचुः । त्रिविधाः पुरुषाः सूत जायंतेत्र महीतले । उत्तमा मध्यमाश्चान्ये तथा चान्येऽधमाः स्थिताः
ṛṣaya ūcuḥ | trividhāḥ puruṣāḥ sūta jāyaṃtetra mahītale | uttamā madhyamāścānye tathā cānye'dhamāḥ sthitāḥ
เหล่าฤๅษีกล่าวว่า: “โอ้สูตะ บนพื้นพิภพนี้ มนุษย์เกิดมีสามจำพวก—บางพวกประเสริฐ บางพวกปานกลาง และบางพวกยังคงต่ำทรามอยู่”
Ṛṣayaḥ (the sages)
Listener: Sūta
Scene: A council of sages addresses Sūta with a structured question; three symbolic groups of people appear in the background as allegory: one meditative (uttama), one enjoying celestial imagery (madhyama), one entangled in darker impulses (adhama).
FAQs
Human life is shaped by intention: some seek liberation, some seek heavenly merit, and some remain bound to sense-objects—hence dharma guides one upward.
The verse is introductory and classificatory; the particular tīrtha is part of the Adhyāya’s broader kṣetra-narrative and is not named in this line.
None directly; it sets a doctrinal context for later instructions about worship, pilgrimage, or vows.