Shloka 3
आपद्धर्मे वैश्यवृत्तिः, विक्रय-निषेधाः, तथा ब्रह्म-क्षत्र-सम्बन्धः
Emergency Livelihood, Prohibited Trade, and Brahman–Kshatra Regulation
भीष्मजीने कहा--राजन! यदि ब्राह्मण अपनी जीविका नष्ट होनेपर आपत्तिकालमें क्षत्रियधर्मसे भी जीवननिर्वाह न कर सके तो वैश्यधर्मके अनुसार खेती और गोरक्षाका आश्रय लेकर वह अपनी जीविका चलावे ।।
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | kāni paṇyāni vikrīya svargalokān na hīyate | brāhmaṇo vaiśyadharmeṇa vartayan bharatarṣabha ||
Dijo Yudhiṣṭhira: «Oh toro entre los Bhāratas, si un brāhmaṇa se sostiene adoptando el sustento propio de un vaiśya, ¿qué bienes puede comprar y vender sin que por ello decaiga su derecho a alcanzar el cielo?»
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical inquiry: when a brāhmaṇa adopts vaiśya-style livelihood for survival, he must still avoid trades that compromise purity and merit; Yudhiṣṭhira asks which commodities are permissible so that worldly necessity does not destroy spiritual eligibility (svarga).
In the Śānti Parva dialogue on dharma, Yudhiṣṭhira questions the elder authority about rules for conduct in altered social roles—specifically, permissible commerce for a brāhmaṇa living by vaiśya-dharma—seeking clarity on what kinds of buying and selling do not cause loss of religious merit.