872
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 3, Ch. 22]
not refuse to accept it. Kardama Muni was not meant for sense gratification, yet he aspired to marry and prayed to the Lord for a suitable wife. This was known to Svāyambhuva Manu. He indirectly convinced Kardama Muni: “You desire a suitable wife like my daughter, and she is now present before you. You should not reject the fulfillment of your prayer; you should accept my daughter.”
TEXT 13
य उद्यतमनादत्य कीनाशमभियाचते । 
    क्षीयते तद्यशः स्फीतं मानश्चावज्ञया हतः ॥१३॥
ya udyatam anādṛtya 
    kīnāśam abhiyācate 
    kṣīyate tad-yaśaḥ sphītam 
    mānaś cāvajñayā hataḥ
yaḥ—who; udyatam—an offering; anādṛtya—rejecting; kīnāśam—from a miser; abhiyācate—begs; kṣīyate—is lost; tat—his; yaśaḥ—reputation; sphītam—widespread; mānaḥ—honor; ca—and; avajñayā—by neglectful behavior; hataḥ—destroyed.
TRANSLATION
One who rejects an offering that comes of its own accord but later begs a boon from a miser thus loses his widespread reputation, and his pride is humbled by the neglectful behavior of others.
PURPORT
The general procedure of Vedic marriage is that a father offers his daughter to a suitable boy. That is a very respectable marriage. A boy should not go to the girl's father and ask for the hand of his daughter in marriage. That is considered to be humbling one's respectable position. Svāyambhuva Manu wanted to convince Kardama Muni, since he knew that the sage wanted to marry a suitable girl: “I am offering just such a suitable wife. Do not reject the offer, or else, because you are in need of a wife, you will have to ask for such a wife from someone else, who may not behave with you so well. In that case your position will be humbled.”
Another feature of this incident is that Svāyambhuva Manu was the Emperor, but he went to offer his qualified daughter to a poor  brāhmaṇa .