Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 58
नित्यं शृणोति शास्त्राणि नित्यं सेवति पंडितान् । वृद्धांस्तु पृच्छते नित्यं न स प्रेतो विजायते
nityaṃ śṛṇoti śāstrāṇi nityaṃ sevati paṃḍitān | vṛddhāṃstu pṛcchate nityaṃ na sa preto vijāyate
ผู้ใดฟังศาสตราเป็นนิตย์ รับใช้บัณฑิตเป็นนิตย์ และถามไถ่ขอคำแนะนำจากผู้เฒ่าอยู่เสมอ—ผู้นั้นย่อมไม่เกิดเป็นเปรตเลย
Narrative voice (Īśvara speaking in the Adhyāya frame)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Listener: Gautama (implied)
Scene: Pretas enumerate disciplines: listening to scriptures, serving scholars, and asking elders; the imagery suggests a humble student posture and a teaching assembly near a sacred place.
FAQs
Regular śāstra-hearing, service to the wise, and humility before elders protect one from degraded post-death states like preta-hood.
The teaching appears within the Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, framing dharma in the sacred geography of Prabhāsa.
No specific ritual is prescribed here; it emphasizes daily disciplines—śāstra-śravaṇa, service, and seeking elders’ guidance.