Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 55
सत्यानृतं च वाणिज्यं तेन चैवोपजीव्यते । सेवा श्ववृत्तिराख्याता तस्मात्तां परिवर्जयेत
satyānṛtaṃ ca vāṇijyaṃ tena caivopajīvyate | sevā śvavṛttirākhyātā tasmāttāṃ parivarjayeta
বাণিজ্যক সত্য-অনৃত বুলি কোৱা হয়—সত্য আৰু অসত্যৰ মিশ্ৰণ—আৰু তাৰে জীৱিকা চলিব পাৰে। কিন্তু পৰাধীন সেবা শ্ববৃত্তি নামে খ্যাত; সেয়ে তাক পৰিহাৰ কৰিব লাগে।
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)
Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
Type: kshetra
Scene: A bustling coastal market near a temple town: merchants weighing goods; a dharma-teacher points to honest scales while a figure in servile posture is contrasted with an upright trader; the word ‘śvavṛtti’ is symbolized by a dog near a chained servant.
FAQs
Dharma values independence and purity of conduct; servile dependence is condemned as degrading.
Prabhāsa-kṣetra is the contextual sacred landscape where such dharma-instructions are emphasized.
A social-dharma prescription: avoid sevā/śvavṛtti; trade may be used for livelihood when appropriate.