Shloka 70
Sabhā Parva, Adhyāya 68 — Pāṇḍavānāṃ Vanavāsa-prasthānaḥ; Duḥśāsana-nindā; Pāṇḍava-pratijñāḥ
यदि वै वक्ष्यसि मृषा प्रह्लादाथ न वक्ष्यसि । शतधा ते शिरो वज्री वज्नेण प्रहरिष्पति,'प्रह्नाद! यदि तुम इस प्रश्नके उत्तरमें झूठ बोलोगे अथवा मौन रह जाओगे तो वज्रधारी इन्द्र अपने वज्द्वारा तुम्हारे सिरके सैकड़ों टुकड़े कर देगा”
yadi vai vakṣyasi mṛṣā prahlādātha na vakṣyasi | śatadhā te śiro vajrī vajreṇa prahariṣyati ||
“Prahlāda! If you answer this question with a lie—or if you refuse to answer and remain silent—Indra, the wielder of the vajra, will strike you with his thunderbolt and shatter your head into a hundred pieces.”
विदुर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Truthful, responsible speech is a dharmic obligation: lying is condemned, and even withholding an answer (silence used as evasion) is treated as culpable when one is duty-bound to speak. The verse uses the threat of Indra’s vajra to underscore the seriousness of violating satya.
Vidura addresses Prahlāda in a questioning context and issues a stern warning: if Prahlāda lies in his reply or refuses to reply, Indra (Vajrī) will punish him by striking with the vajra, metaphorically emphasizing the peril of falsehood or evasive silence.