Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.24.20
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
-
brahmaṇā
—
by the Veda
Instrumental of brahman — here, the Veda, sacred sound. The brāhmaṇa is sustained by Veda, not by Vedic ritual income — a distinction Gauḍīyas keep alive (cf. Sanātana Gosvāmī refusing court wealth to live by śloka).
-
rakṣayā
—
by protection
Instrumental of rakṣā — guarding. The kṣatriya's svadharma is rakṣā of the earth. Gauḍīya reading: Bhagavān as parīkṣit's-protector is the supreme kṣatriya; rakṣā is His mood toward His devotees (yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham).
-
vārtayā
—
by trade and agriculture
Instrumental of vārtā — productive livelihood. The vaiśya's word — sets up verse 21, where Kṛṣṇa drills into vārtā's four sub-types. The chapter is now closing in on Vraja's own slot in the varṇa-grid.
-
dvija - sevayā
—
by service to the twice-born
Compound: dvija (twice-born) + sevā (service). The śūdra's livelihood. Gauḍīya frame: sevā is not a low designation but the highest spiritual category — Vraja-vāsīs themselves are the supreme servants of Kṛṣṇa, beyond all varṇa.
After glorifying karma, or work, Lord Kṛṣṇa now explains what He means by prescribed duties born of one’s nature. He was not referring to any whimsical activity, but rather to the religious duties prescribed in the varṇāśrama, or Vedic social system.
"The means by which we maintain our lives is our devata." To give examples he speaks of others. "For the brahmanas the vedic scriptures are the devata. For the ksatriya the earth is the deavata. For the vaisya agriculture, trade, and other occupations are the devatas. For the sudras the higher castes are the devatas."
In two verses Kṛṣṇa first speaks of their own occupation of herding cows in order to make them worship the means of their livelihood.
In verse 10 Nanda said “By accepting the remnants of sacrifices performed to Indra, people sustain their lives.” That is now rejected. In two verses Kṛṣṇa first speaks of their own occupation of herding cows, which is easy to perform. The śudras should serve the other three varṇas or the brāhmaṇas who are the most prominent of the three.
A village's strength is its division of labor — the smith does not preach the Veda and the brāhmaṇa does not pull the plough — and the same wisdom asks each varṇa to feed itself by its own work. Kṛṣṇa enumerates the four standard professions in a single tight verse, lining them up so that He may, in the next verse, sharpen the question: which of these is yours, Nanda?
My note
Source: vedabase.io