Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.17.49
Manvantara· The Manus and right dutyEmergency Occupations Are Temporary
“A vaiśya, or mercantile man, who cannot maintain himself may adopt the occupation of a śūdra, and a śūdra who cannot find a master can engage in simple activities like making baskets and mats of straw. However, all members of society who have adopted inferior occupations in emergency situations must give up those substitute occupations when the difficulties have passed.”
What the purport teaches
- A vaiśya who cannot maintain himself may adopt the occupation of a śūdra.
- A śūdra who cannot find a master may undertake simple work, such as making baskets and straw mats.
- Those who adopt inferior occupations during emergencies must give up those substitute occupations when the difficulties have passed.
Try this today
Review one temporary arrangement in your life and check whether its original difficulty still remains.
Ask yourself
Am I continuing an emergency arrangement after the need for it has passed?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.