Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 7
सर्वेषामपि पुण्यानां सर्वेषां श्रेयसामपि । सर्वेषामपि यज्ञानां जपयज्ञः परः स्मृतः
sarveṣāmapi puṇyānāṃ sarveṣāṃ śreyasāmapi | sarveṣāmapi yajñānāṃ japayajñaḥ paraḥ smṛtaḥ
“Sa lahat ng mga gawaing may kabutihang-dulot, sa lahat ng mga daan tungo sa kapakanan, at sa lahat ng mga paghahandog, ang japa-yajña—ang sakripisyo ng pag-uulit ng mantra—ang kinikilalang pinakamataas.”
Sūta
Listener: Ṛṣis (implied)
Scene: A didactic tableau contrasting outer yajña implements with a sage holding a japa-mālā, indicating japa as the highest sacrifice.
FAQs
Inner sacrifice—steady mantra repetition—is elevated above external ritual as the most effective dharmic offering.
No tīrtha is mentioned; the verse glorifies a portable ‘tīrtha-like’ practice: japa.
Japa is explicitly praised as the foremost yajña, encouraging regular mantra repetition as a primary sādhana.