Harishchandra - The King Who Sold Himself for Truth (Dharma)

Dadi: "Guddu, what would you give up for truth?"

Guddu: "Hmm... my dessert?"

Dadi: "What about your home? Your family? Your own self?"

Guddu: "That's too much!"

Dadi: "There was once a king who gave up everything - and I mean EVERYTHING - just to keep his word. His name was Harishchandra, and even the gods couldn't believe what he did."

Guddu: "What happened to him?"

Dadi: "Harishchandra was known as the most truthful king ever. He never told a single lie. The sage Vishwamitra decided to test if this was really true."

Guddu: "How?"

Dadi: "One night, Harishchandra had a dream where he promised to give Vishwamitra everything he owned. When he woke up, Vishwamitra appeared and said, "Pay up!""

Guddu: "But it was just a dream!"

Dadi: "Harishchandra said, "A promise is a promise, even in dreams." He gave away his entire kingdom - every palace, every treasure, every last coin."

Guddu: "Then what did he have left?"

Dadi: "Only his wife Shaivya, his young son Rohitashva, and the clothes on their backs. But Vishwamitra said, "You still owe me more as my fee. Where's my payment?""

Guddu: "He had nothing left!"

Dadi: "Harishchandra had one month to pay. He walked from city to city with his family, begging, trying to gather money. No one would help - the former king was now poorer than the poorest beggar."

Guddu: "That's so unfair!"

Dadi: "When the month ended, Vishwamitra appeared again. Harishchandra had no money. So he did something unthinkable."

Guddu: "What?"

Dadi: "*(voice dropping)* He sold his wife and son as servants to a brahmin."

Guddu: "*(gasping)* He SOLD his family?!"

Dadi: "His heart was breaking, beta. Tears streamed down his face. But he had given his word. His wife, crying but understanding, said, "Your truth is more important than my comfort. Go.""

Guddu: "Then he paid Vishwamitra?"

Dadi: "Still not enough. So Harishchandra did one final thing - he sold HIMSELF as a slave to the keeper of a cremation ground."

Guddu: "A cremation ground? Where they burn dead bodies?"

Dadi: "Yes, beta. The proud king who once ruled thousands now worked among ashes and death, collecting fees from grieving families. Day after day, in heat and cold, he did this lowly work."

Guddu: "Did things get better?"

Dadi: "They got worse. One day, a woman came with a dead child. She was so poor she had no money for the cremation fee. Harishchandra looked at her face - and his heart stopped."

Guddu: "Who was she?"

Dadi: "His own wife. The child was their son Rohitashva, who had died from a snake bite while gathering flowers for his master."

Guddu: "*(near tears)* No! His own son?!"

Dadi: "Harishchandra wanted to scream, to cry, to take her in his arms. But his master was watching. His job was to collect the fee. His wife didn't even have cloth to wrap the child - she was tearing off part of her sari."

Guddu: "Did he let them go without paying?"

Dadi: "That would be stealing from his master - a lie in action. Even with his dead son before him, even with his weeping wife, Harishchandra raised his hand to do his duty."

Guddu: "What happened?!"

Dadi: "*(voice brightening)* The heavens opened! The gods appeared! Vishwamitra himself descended with a smile. "ENOUGH! The test is complete!""

Guddu: "It was all a test?!"

Dadi: "Everything - the dream, the demands, the slavery - all to test if Harishchandra would break. He never did. The gods restored everything: his kingdom, his son's life, his wife's freedom. They bowed before a mere human who had out-truthed even the divine."

Guddu: "*(exhaling)* That was intense, Dadi."

Dadi: "Harishchandra proved that satya - truth - is not just about not lying. It's about keeping your word no matter what, even when the whole universe is against you."

Guddu: "But giving up so much... was it worth it?"

Dadi: "*(holding his face)* In the end, he got everything back plus immortal glory. But beta, the lesson isn't about rewards. It's that truth is the foundation of who we are. Harishchandra knew: if he broke his word once, he would stop being himself."

Guddu: "I don't know if I could be that strong."

Dadi: "None of us may face such extreme tests. But we face small ones daily - did you eat the chocolate you said you wouldn't? Did you tell your mother you finished homework when you didn't?"

Guddu: "*(looking down)* Sometimes..."

Dadi: "Each small truth makes you stronger for the big ones. Harishchandra didn't become the truth king overnight. He practiced with small truths until truth became his nature."

Guddu: "I'll try to be more truthful, Dadi. In the small things."

Dadi: "That's all anyone can ask, beta. Start small, stay strong, and one day truth will be as natural to you as breathing."