Shloka 81
Adhyāya 199: Karma–Jñāna Causality and the Nirguṇa Brahman
Manu’s Instruction
राजोवाच यदि विप्र विसृष्टं ते जप्पस्थ फलमुत्तमम् | आवयोर्यत् फलं किज्चित् सहितं नौ तदस्त्विह,राजाने कहा--विप्रवर! यदि आपने अपने जपका उत्तम फल दे ही दिया है तो ऐसा कीजिये कि हम दोनोंके जो भी पुण्यफल हों, उन्हें एकत्र करके हम दोनों साथ ही भोगें-- हम दोनोंका उनपर समान अधिकार रहे
rājovāca yadi vipra visṛṣṭaṃ te japastha phalam uttamam | āvayor yat phalaṃ kiñcit sahitaṃ nau tad astv iha ||
Raja berkata: “Wahai brahmana, jika engkau sungguh telah menganugerahkan kepadaku buah tertinggi dari japamu, maka biarlah demikian di sini: apa pun pahala kebajikan yang terkumpul bagi salah satu dari kita, hendaklah dihimpun menjadi satu, dan kita berdua menikmatinya bersama—dengan hak yang sama atas hasil yang dibagi itu.”
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights an ethical ideal of reciprocity and shared responsibility: spiritual merit (the fruit of japa) is not treated as a private possession alone, but as something that can be consciously shared, creating equality in enjoyment of results and mutual participation in dharmic outcomes.
In a dialogue between a king and a brāhmaṇa, the king responds to the brāhmaṇa’s act of giving away the ‘supreme fruit’ of his japa. The king proposes that henceforth whatever merit either of them gains should be combined, so both may partake together with equal right.