Ramayana — Bala Kanda, Sarga 51, Shloka 6
शतानन्दोपदेशः
Śatānanda’s Welcome to Rāma and the Prelude to Viśvāmitra’s History
अपि रामाय कथितं यथावृत्तं पुरातनम्।मम मातुर्महातेजो दैवेन दुरनुष्ठितम्।।।।
api rāmāya kathitaṁ yathāvṛttaṁ purātanam |
mama mātur mahātejo daivena duranuṣṭhitam ||
O Großherziger, wurde Rāma die uralte Begebenheit so berichtet, wie sie sich wirklich zutrug—wie durch das Vergehen eines Gottes meine Mutter schweres Unrecht erlitt?
O highly powerful sage, was Rama told the old story about the misdeed of god (Indra) to my mother?
FAQs
Satya (truth) is central: the story should be told ‘as it happened’ (yathāvṛtta). Dharma requires truthful narration and moral clarity about wrongdoing, even when the wrongdoer is ‘divine’ in status.
Śatānanda asks whether Viśvāmitra has already explained to Rāma the old account of Ahalyā’s suffering caused by a divine transgression (commonly understood as Indra’s).
Commitment to truth and moral discernment: acknowledging wrongdoing plainly and transmitting the account accurately.