sÄ«dan vipro vaṇig-vá¹›ttyÄ
paṇyair evÄpadaá¹ taret
khaá¸gena vÄpadÄkrÄnto
na Å›va-vá¹›ttyÄ kathañcana
sÄ«dan - suffering; vipraḥ - a brÄhmaṇa; vaṇik - of a merchant; vá¹›ttyÄ - by the occupation; paṇyaiḥ - by doing business; eva - indeed; Äpadam - suffering; taret - should overcome; khaá¸gena - with sword; vÄ - or; ÄpadÄ - by suffering; ÄkrÄntaḥ - afflicted; na - not; Å›va - of the dog; vá¹›ttyÄ - by the occupation; kathañcana - by any means.
If a brÄhmaṇa cannot support himself through his regular duties and is thus suffering, he may adopt the occupation of a merchant and overcome his destitute condition by buying and selling material things. If he continues to suffer extreme poverty even as a merchant, then he may adopt the occupation of a ká¹£atriya, taking sword in hand. But he cannot in any circumstances become like a dog, accepting an ordinary master.
Åšva-vá¹›ttyÄ, or “a dog’s profession,†refers to the śūdras, who cannot live without accepting a master. A destitute brÄhmaṇa who is suffering intolerably may become a merchant and then a ká¹£atriya but may never take the position of a śūdra by working in a company or accepting a master. Although a ká¹£atriya is ordinarily considered more elevated than a vaiÅ›ya, the Lord here recommends that distressed brÄhmaṇas first accept the vaiÅ›ya occupation, since it is not violent.
