Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 55
सत्यानृतं च वाणिज्यं तेन चैवोपजीव्यते । सेवा श्ववृत्तिराख्याता तस्मात्तां परिवर्जयेत
satyānṛtaṃ ca vāṇijyaṃ tena caivopajīvyate | sevā śvavṛttirākhyātā tasmāttāṃ parivarjayeta
تجارت کو ستیہ اَنرت کہا گیا ہے—سچ اور جھوٹ کا آمیزہ—اور اس سے روزی چلائی جا سکتی ہے۔ مگر نوکری نما غلامانہ خدمت شَوَوِرتّی کہلاتی ہے؛ اس لیے اسے ترک کرنا چاہیے۔
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.