Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 75
तिष्ठंति राजसा मध्ये ह्यधो गच्छंति तामसाः । सत्त्वाहारैः सत्त्ववृत्त्या स्वर्गगामी भवेत्ततः
tiṣṭhaṃti rājasā madhye hyadho gacchaṃti tāmasāḥ | sattvāhāraiḥ sattvavṛttyā svargagāmī bhavettataḥ
رجس کے زیرِ اثر لوگ درمیان ہی میں ٹھہر جاتے ہیں، اور تمس کے غلبے والے نیچے کی طرف گرتے ہیں۔ مگر ساتتوک آہار اور ساتتوک طرزِ زیست سے انسان تب سوَرگ گامی، یعنی اعلیٰ جہانوں کا مسافر بن جاتا ہے۔
Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), addressing the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa convention)
Scene: Tripartite allegory: three paths—one smoky/dark descending (tamas), one busy marketplace-like level path (rajas), one bright lotus-lined ascending stairway (sattva) with pilgrims carrying waterpots and prayer beads.
FAQs
Cultivating sattva—especially through food and conduct—uplifts one’s destiny, while tamas leads downward.
No specific tīrtha is praised; it is a general ethical-spiritual teaching.
A practical observance is implied: adopting sāttvika āhāra (diet) and sāttvika vṛtti (conduct).