Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 37
मंडलेषु च ये शुद्धा वणिग्वृत्तिरताः पराः । सपादलक्षास्ते दत्ता रामशासनपालकाः
maṃḍaleṣu ca ye śuddhā vaṇigvṛttiratāḥ parāḥ | sapādalakṣāste dattā rāmaśāsanapālakāḥ
Et ceux qui, dans leurs provinces, étaient purs—êtres d’élite voués à la vocation des marchands—au nombre d’un lakh et un quart, furent établis comme gardiens de l’ordonnance de Rāma.
Narrator (administrative-dharmic description under Rāma’s rule; speaker not explicit)
Scene: Provincial circles (mandalas) with orderly marketplaces; a roster of appointed merchant-stewards (one and a quarter lakhs) receiving insignia/charters to uphold Rāma’s ordinance.
FAQs
Social order becomes dharmic when upright communities fulfill their vocations and uphold righteous governance.
No specific tīrtha is cited; the verse continues the Dharmāraṇya Māhātmya narrative about dharmic order.
No ritual is prescribed; it describes appointment/authorization of upright merchant-groups to uphold Rāma’s edicts.