Shloka 6
Bhīma–Draupadī Saṃvāda on Restraint, Protection, and the Kīcaka Threat
Virāṭa-parva, Adhyāya 20
दत्त्वा याचन्ति पुरुषा हत्वा वध्यन्ति चापरे | पातयित्वा च पात्यन्ते परैरिति च मे श्रुतम्,मैंने सुना है, जो मनुष्य दान करते हैं, वे ही कभी याचनाके लिये विवश हो जाते हैं। दूसरे बहुत-से मनुष्य ऐसे हैं, जो दूसरोंको मारकर स्वयं भी दूसरोंके द्वारा मारे जाते हैं तथा जो दूसरोंको नीचे गिराते हैं, वे स्वयं भी दूसरे प्रतिपक्षियोंद्वारा नीचे गिराये जाते हैं
dattvā yācanti puruṣā hatvā vadhyanti cāpare | pātayitvā ca pātyante parair iti ca me śrutam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “I have heard that the world moves in reversals: those who give in charity may later be driven to beg; some who kill others are themselves slain in turn; and those who cast others down are likewise brought low by their opponents. Thus deeds return upon the doer.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights moral reciprocity: actions—whether generosity, violence, or humiliation—can return upon the agent, showing the instability of worldly fortune and the ethical warning that harming others invites downfall.
Vaiśampāyana offers a reflective, proverbial observation within the Virāṭa-parvan narration, emphasizing how people’s circumstances and outcomes can reverse—givers may become beggars, killers may be killed, and those who topple others may themselves be toppled.