Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2
भर्तृयज्ञ उवाच । शृणु राजन्प्रवक्ष्यामि श्राद्धस्य विधिमुत्तमम् । पितॄणां तुष्टिदं नित्यं सर्वकामप्रदं नृणाम्
bhartṛyajña uvāca | śṛṇu rājanpravakṣyāmi śrāddhasya vidhimuttamam | pitṝṇāṃ tuṣṭidaṃ nityaṃ sarvakāmapradaṃ nṛṇām
ภรรตฤยัชญะกล่าวว่า: “ฟังเถิด โอ้พระราชา เราจักประกาศวิธีศราทธะอันประเสริฐยิ่ง ซึ่งยังความพอใจแก่ปิตฤทั้งหลายเป็นนิตย์ และประทานความปรารถนาอันชอบธรรมทั้งปวงแก่มนุษย์”
Bhartṛyajña
Listener: Ānarta (king)
Scene: The muni Bhartṛyajña begins formal instruction: raised hand in teaching gesture, the king listening attentively; the atmosphere is didactic and solemn.
FAQs
Śrāddha is upheld as a dharmic act that nourishes the ancestral line (Pitṛs) and harmonizes human life with righteous prosperity.
This verse functions as a doctrinal introduction within Tīrthamāhātmya; no single tīrtha is named explicitly in this line.
It announces that an ‘uttama-vidhi’ (supreme method) of Śrāddha will be taught, framing Śrāddha as a regular means to please the Pitṛs.