Pre-Buddhist India: A Political, Administrative, Economic, Social and Geographical Survey of Ancient India Based Mainly on the Jataka Stories c5.t4.155

c5.t4.155

As already said, the exchange between producers and consumers or between either and a middleman was a “free” bargain. There were no fixed prices.⁴ Owing to slow transport, individualistic and small production and primitive machinery, supply was hampered. But nothing prevented the producer or the dealer from prevailing by competition⁵ and also by adulteration, and knavery (kuṭakārī),⁶ and thus bringing about an equation with a demand “which was largely compact of customary usage and relatively unaffected by the swifter fluctuations termed fashion.”⁷ Merchants were well-known for bragging (vikatthanī).⁸