Hindu Religious Studies 107
Keeping the Truth and Religion
Keeping the truth is also an act of religion. Say right to the right; say
good to the good. Keeping the truth means never to take shelter of
falsehood.
There is no act of religion greater than truth. Truth is Ishwara-like.
Speaking the truth makes everybody happy. It makes Ishwara
happy, too.
Speaking the truth is a virtue and telling a lie is a vice. No one likes
the persons who do not keep promises and truth. Those who keep
the truth are respected by all. They become immortal even after their
death. Here is a story of keeping the truth from the Mahabharata.Keeping the Truth by Prahlad
In the ancient times, there was a king called Prahlad. He belonged to
the dynasty of demons. Demons are always malicious to Vishnu.
But Prahlad was a devotee of Vishnu since his boyhood in spite of
his birth in a demon family. For this reason his father Hirinykashipu
tried to kill him on several occasions. But he was saved by the
mercy of Vishnu. Contrary to it, his father was killed by Vishnu,
who came in the guise of Nrisingha. Prahlad never went away from
truth even at a time when his life was at stake. Keeping the truth was
the vow of his life.After his father's death Prahlad became the king and ruled over his
kingdom. Prahlad always complied with truth while ruling his country.
King Prahlad had a son. His name was Biracan. Biracan became
famous as a courageous hero. But the young Biracan was very ill-
tempered. He was proud of being a prince and a learned man.