Chandramati extended full cooperation in every way to her husband Harishchandra, who gave away his entire kingdom to Sage Viswamitra in charity and became a pauper without having even a single paisa with him. When Sage Viswamitra asked Harishchandra to give him money offerings (dakshina) after getting his kingdom in charity, Harishchandra prayed to him to give him some time to pay the money offerings.
Leaving his kingdom, Harishchandra went to Kasi along with his wife and son Lohitasva to earn money to pay the offering to the sage. Finding no other way to pay the offering, he sold his wife and son to a Brahmin.
Enquire thoroughly how much sanctity there is in the word sathya (truth). Sath + e + ya = sathya. Sath means life. E means annam (food). Ya means Surya (the sun). Food is derived from the sun. As long as one has life, one needs food. Food is the creation of the sun. Because of the sunrays, there is greenery in the world and people can grow crops. The sun is the main cause of all that we grow. People use the food created by the sun to sustain life.
Manu gave to the world yet another profound declaration:
“Sathyam brooyaath, Priyam brooyaath. Na brooyaath sathyam-apriyam”
(Utter the Truth. Say what is pleasing. Never tell what is truthful but unpleasant).
This means that you should not speak an untruth because it may be pleasing to one. Nor should you speak out the truth when it is likely to hurt a person’s feelings. Every man should speak the truth, but it should be truth that is pleasing.
In the Gita it has been stated:
“Anudvegakaram vaakyam Sathyam Priyahitham cha yath”
(In speech, the words should not cause any excitement, they should be true, pleasing and well-meaning).
When you see a blind man, you know that he is blind. This is true.
Discourse to a gathering of students and older devotees
03 June 1986
FIVE principles have to be observed for realising the divinity in man. They are: Ahimsa (Noninjury), Sathya (Truth), Soucham (Purity), Daya (Compassion) and Asthikyam (Faith in God).
Non-harming (Ahimsa):
It is a supreme virtue. But, in daily life, almost at every step some harm or other is being caused. When we breathe in or breathe out, countless microbes perish. There are occasions when wittingly or otherwise, injury is caused to some being or other. Complete nonviolence is not a practicable ideal. What should be ensured is that there is no deliberate causing of injury or harm to anyone.
Truth (Sathyam):
Truth is Divine. Where there is Truth there is Divinity. When Dushyanta forgot that he had given a ring to Sakuntala when he met her near the sage Kanva's ashram, Sakuntala declared in the open court of the king that Truth was the supreme Dharma and a king should uphold truth at any cost. She pointed out that in the order of merit, starting from digging wells to performing horse-sac...
