Skandapurana 2.9.20

Nārada said:

O Blessed One, declare to me the single-minded righteousness that is approved by you,

by which that Vāsudeva, the Self of all, is ever pleased.

The glorious Nārāyaṇa said:

Well asked by you, O brahmin; your intellect is indeed spotless.

To you, an affectionate devotee devoted to me, I shall speak even the secret.

This dharma was spoken by me to Vivasvat at the beginning of the kalpa.

That very eternal [dharma] I declare to you, O sage.

Devotion to the Lord—like that of Lakṣmī—along with one's own duty, knowledge, and dispassion,

which is directed toward him without anyone else, is indeed single-minded righteousness.

By that alone the Lord of Goloka himself becomes exceedingly pleased,

and that devotee too finds all his desires completely fulfilled.

Nārada said:

I desire to understand the characteristics of one's own duty and the rest, individually,

from you, the source of the scriptures. You ought to declare them.

Of all the scriptures of the Vedas and Āgamas, O Lord of the virtuous,

you alone are the sole root, in which eternal righteousness is established.

You yourself are the Blessed Lord Vāsudeva visibly present, beyond the imperishable;

for the welfare of all beings you abide here, an ocean of compassion.

Others besides you, such as Brahmā and the rest, are subordinate to the qualities of their own natures;

they cannot know righteousness and the rest as they truly are. Therefore, do you speak.

Skanda said:

Thus questioned by the divine seer, the blessed son of Dharma,

the omniscient one, began to declare one's own duty and the rest in proper order.

The glorious Nārāyaṇa said:

The proper conduct of the classes and stages of life, taken separately,

both general and specific, is termed one's own duty.

First hear the common righteousness of all human beings:

Non-harm is the highest righteousness; it is declared to be the foremost among them.

Even with respect to one's principal duties and livelihood, the absence of malice, even in thought,

toward any living being whatsoever when another course of action exists—that is regarded as [non-harm].

Truthful speech is that by which no harm comes to any being.

And austerity is defined as the restraint of enjoyments ordained by scripture.

And the practice of purity is twofold, external and internal;

refraining from taking others' wealth secretly or through deceit;

celibacy according to propriety, victory over lust, greed, and anger;

joyfully offering wealth to a worthy recipient, contentment with what is obtained by providence;

even at a sacred ford, sacred field, sacrifice, or to attain the four aims of life,

completely avoiding the killing of oneself or another;

and completely avoiding actions that cause loss of caste;

and restraint of the hands, feet, stomach, genitals, and speech;

and giving up all addictions, liquor, and meat;

abstention from adultery, and observing the good duties of one's family;

fasting on all Ekādaśīs along with the restraints,

and duly observing religious vows on the birthdays of Hari;

uprightness, service to the virtuous, eating food and the like after sharing it,

and devotion to the Lord—these are the universal duties for men.

Brahmin, kṣatriya, vaiśya, and śūdra are declared to be the four castes;

I will explain to you, O sage, their distinct, specific duties.

Tranquillity, self-control, forbearance, purity, faith, devotion to the Lord,

austerity, sacred knowledge, and experiential knowledge are the innate duty of a brahmin.

Heroism, courage, generosity, strength, brilliance, affording refuge,

protection of cows, brahmins, and the virtuous, and sacrifice are proclaimed the duties of the warrior caste.

These are indeed the duties of a king, as well as protecting the subjects according to statecraft,

establishing righteousness on earth, and punishing those deserving punishment.

Faith, dedication to giving, service to the virtuous and brahmins,

discontent with the accumulation of wealth, and enterprise are the duties of a vaiśya.

Undissimulated service to the twice-born, the gods, and cattle

is declared the specific duty of a śūdra, O best of sages.

Teaching, performing sacrifices for others, and accepting gifts from the pure

are stated to be the livelihood of a brahmin; among these, the last is considered permissible only in adversity.

The best among the twice-born who perceives fault in performing sacrifices or teaching for others,

for him another fourfold mode of subsistence is also prescribed:

Gleaning ears of corn, daily begging, living modestly on what comes unsought, and appropriate agriculture;

among these, each preceding one is to be understood as superior by the best of the twice-born.

A brahmin may live by the livelihood of a vaiśya in times of distress, O Nārada,

or even by the livelihood of a kṣatriya, but never by dog-like service.

The warrior should live by the weapon, protecting righteousness on all sides;

in distress, he may conduct himself by the livelihood of a vaiśya, or disguised as a brahmin.

The livelihood of a king is stated to be through collecting taxes and the like from non-brahmins,

pleasing all his subjects in accordance with place and time.

Even in times of distress, for a warrior as for a brahmin in every way,

servitude to base persons, which destroys one's own luster, is condemned.

Agriculture, trade, cattle-rearing, and fourthly, living on interest—

these are declared the livelihood of a vaiśya, and the livelihood of a śūdra in distress.

A śūdra should live on the wealth obtained through service to the twice-born;

in times of distress, however, he may take up the livelihood of an artisan and the like.

When freed from distress, everyone, having performed an appropriate expiation,

should again subsist by his own primary livelihood.

The four castes should associate with the good, but never with the wicked;

association with the good bestows liberation, while bad company leads to hell.

Those who have conquered lust, anger, the relish of tastes, pride, and envy,

and are free from deceit, devoted to Viṣṇu—they are considered the good, the virtuous.

Those attached to women, effeminate, attached to the relish of tastes, greedy for wealth,

harmful, puffed up with ostentation, and merely semblance of devotees—they indeed are the unvirtuous.

Demonic endowment resides naturally in the unvirtuous, while divine endowment resides in the virtuous;

resolving thus, those desiring happiness should attend upon the good.

Whatever kind of company a person keeps, whether of scriptures or of people,

such becomes his intellect; therefore, one should never associate with the wicked.

Those men who take delight in serving the virtuous according to their own capacity,

there is indeed no exalted sovereign power unattainable for them.

Even if abiding in their own duty, those men who bear malice toward the virtuous,

never attain a good state anywhere through any action.

Even if they are devotees of Viṣṇu dedicated to great worship, if toward the virtuous

they should commit malice, he is never pleased with them. (45)

Those who bear malice toward the virtuous, into whatever womb they enter at the end of the body,

in each and every one they are afflicted with hunger and diseases until the end of their lives. (46)

Only from transgressing against the virtuous does the immediate destruction

of all even great merits, of lifespan, and of riches occur. (47)

Therefore, service to the virtuous must be performed by all who desire happiness;

holy sacred fords should be resorted to, and brahmins and cows should be revered. (48)

Those of evil intellect who revile sacred fords and images of deities,

the extinction of the lineage of those who are born of adultery will surely come about. (49)

When a single brahmin is satisfied with good food, priestly gifts, and the like,

the whole world is satisfied, and Hari himself is pleased. (50)

When malice is done to a single brahmin, malice is done to the whole world.

Therefore, according to one's ability, brahmins, who are forms of Viṣṇu, are to be worshipped. (51)

All the hosts of gods reside in the limbs of cows;

likewise, all sacred fords reside in them constantly. (52)

When a single cow is worshipped, all the gods are thoroughly worshipped,

and all sacred fords also are visited, O Nārada. (53)

If harm is done even to a single cow anywhere through negligence,

all the deities are wronged, and so are all sacred fords in their entirety. (54)

Therefore, established in the rules as spoken, the people of the four classes

must act with effort, and they must turn away from prohibitions. (55)

As for those other than the four classes, their livelihood suited to their lineage,

devoid of unrighteousness such as theft and violence, is alone conducive to welfare. (56)

Thus the duties of the classes have been stated briefly by me, O sage.

Now I declare to you the duties of the four life-stages. (57)

Thus ends the twentieth chapter, entitled 'Determination of the Duties of the Four Classes', in the Vāsudevamāhātmya of the second, Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa, in the glorious Skanda Mahāpurāṇa, a collection of eighty-one thousand [verses]. (20)