Archaeologists excavating a coastal site near the Gulf of Khambhat have discovered a series of stone tablets inscribed with 8th-century Nagari script. These inscriptions detail a lost Mimamsa treatise focused on the philosophy of 'Dharma-Samaja', or the ethical framework of a reciprocal society. This finding challenges the notion that Mimamsa was purely ritualistic, showing a deep concern for civic duty and social contracts.
The text outlines the philosophical justification for ethical trade and communal responsibility, linking ritual purity to the integrity of one's word in business. Historians suggest this could represent an early precursor to modern notions of social capital and business ethics in the Indian subcontinent.