Shloka 21
Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala
सप्ताश्वमेधानाहृत्य राजसूयं च पार्थिवः ।
कृतिर्नाम च्युतः स्वर्गादसत्यवचनात् सकृत् ॥
saptāśvamedhān āhṛtya rājasūyaṃ ca pārthivaḥ |
kṛtir nāma cyutaḥ svargād asatyavacanāt sakṛt ||
ស្តេចមួយអង្គ បានប្រតិបត្តិយញ្ញា អશ્વមេធា ចំនួនប្រាំពីរ និងបានធ្វើយញ្ញា រាជសូយៈផង—បុរសម្នាក់ឈ្មោះ ក្រឹតិ បានធ្លាក់ចេញពីស្ថានសួគ៌ ព្រោះបាននិយាយកុហកតែម្តង។
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FAQs
Ritual magnitude does not override ethical truth: even immense sacrificial merit (seven Aśvamedhas and a Rājasūya) can be nullified in its heavenly fruition by a single deliberate breach of satya. The verse sharpens the Purāṇic priority of dharma (especially truthfulness) over mere ritual accomplishment.
Primarily within Vaṃśānucarita (accounts of dynasties/royal exempla) used to teach Dharma; it is not directly Sarga/Pratisarga. The king’s story functions as an ethical illustration embedded in genealogical-historical narration.
Svarga here symbolizes the higher states gained by merit; ‘falling’ indicates instability of attainments built on external acts when inner alignment with truth is compromised. ‘Once’ (sakṛt) emphasizes the razor-edge nature of satya: a small distortion in speech can disrupt the subtle order that supports higher attainments.