Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 3
Strī-satkāra (On honoring women) — Mahābhārata 13.46
विपुल उवाच ब्रह्मर्षे मिथुनं कि तत् के च ते पुरुषा विभो । ये मां जानन्ति तत्त्वेन यन्मां त्वं परिपृच्छसि
vipula uvāca brahmarṣe mithunaṁ ki tat ke ca te puruṣā vibho | ye māṁ jānanti tattvena yan māṁ tvaṁ paripṛcchasi ||
Sinabi ni Vipula: “O brahmarṣi, sino ang magkaparis na lalaki at babae na nakita ko? At sino ang anim na lalaking iyon, O makapangyarihan—yaong tunay na nakakakilala sa akin, na tungkol sa kanila’y ikaw man ay nagtatanong sa akin?”
विपुल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds truthful inquiry (tattvena jñāna): ethical understanding begins with precise questioning about what one has seen and about the identities and roles of those involved.
Vipula responds to a sage’s questioning by asking for clarification: he wants to know who the couple he saw were and who the six men were—figures said to know him truly—since the sage is also inquiring about them.