Shloka 96
Adhyāya 199: Karma–Jñāna Causality and the Nirguṇa Brahman
Manu’s Instruction
इहाद्यैव गृहीत्वा तु प्रयच्छे द्विगुणं फलम् । एवं स्यात् पुरुषव्यात्र कः शुद्ध: को5त्र दोषवान्
ihādyaiva gṛhītvā tu prayacche dviguṇaṃ phalam | evaṃ syāt puruṣavyāghra kaḥ śuddhaḥ ko 'tra doṣavān puruṣasiṃha |
“Here and now, having taken it, I will return a reward twice as great. In such a situation, O tiger among men, decide for yourself: which of us is pure, and who here is at fault, O lion among men?”
विरूप उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical test around reciprocity and intention: if one accepts a benefit and repays it twofold immediately, the listener is asked to judge purity and fault not by accusation but by conduct and fairness in exchange.
Virūpa speaks to a respected interlocutor, stating that he has taken a benefit (described as the fruit of a cow-gift) and is returning double at once, then challenges the other to decide who among them is blameless and who is culpable in the matter.