Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 1
ऋषय ऊचुः । नारद उवाच । अष्टादश प्रकृतयः का वदस्व पितामह । वृत्तिस्तासां च को धर्मः सर्वं विस्तरतो मम
ṛṣaya ūcuḥ | nārada uvāca | aṣṭādaśa prakṛtayaḥ kā vadasva pitāmaha | vṛttistāsāṃ ca ko dharmaḥ sarvaṃ vistarato mama
Các hiền triết thưa. Nārada thưa rằng: “Bạch Đấng Tổ Phụ (Phạm Thiên Brahmā), xin nói cho con biết mười tám ‘tính loại’ ấy là gì, và sinh kế cùng pháp (dharma) thuộc về chúng ra sao—xin giảng giải tường tận mọi điều cho con.”
Nārada (with introductory cue ‘Ṛṣayaḥ ūcuḥ’ preserved)
Listener: Śaunaka and other sages (implied outer audience); within, Nārada addresses Brahmā
Scene: Brahmā seated on a lotus instructs Nārada, who holds a vīṇā and gestures inquisitively; around them are symbolic emblems of various livelihoods/classes (plough, scriptures, trade scales, tools).
FAQs
True dharma includes understanding one’s duties and rightful livelihood within the cosmic and social order.
This verse opens a doctrinal inquiry; the broader frame remains within Nāgara-khaṇḍa’s Tīrtha-māhātmya stream rather than naming a new tīrtha here.
None; it is a request for teaching about dharma and occupations.
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