Is there any way to tell if a narrator is trustworthy or not. Do scriptures ever deal with the issue of which narrators are trustworthy and which are not? This is especially true for stories within stories, where there is technically no reason for the narrator to be right e.g. Arjuna or Duryodhana.
Most Hindu stories are told by someone in another story. How do you know you can trust the narrator?
asked May 20, 2021 at 21:07
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The simple fact that their descendants your gurus etc follow dharma to an extent that they are ready to give up their life for it is the living proof of the authenticity of guruparampara and thus authenticity of their steadfastness in dharma which tells us not to lie. That’s how we conclude Rishi’s and acharyas who narrated stories are not lying. For verification of truth you can depend on shrutis and other contemporary shastras in agreement with shrutis.– YogiMay 22, 2021 at 8:27
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Science (Truth) and Experience (of Saints) must be in tandem - otherwise it cannot be held as Truth. There's a saying that Sadhu-Shastra-Guru-Vakya.... meaning what the Sadhu says, the scripture (Shastra) must also say and only such a thing is treated as Guru's words. (I can't find any reference other than ISKCON's but it is observable and hence true - as can be seen in lectures by Chaganti Koteshwara Rao and Ramana Maharshi's few words and spontaneous corroboration with the Shastra by the devotees). In fact if one is deep into spiritual practices, one can see this happening right before them.– SivMay 22, 2021 at 16:34
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@Yogi That would explain the main story, but not the stories within stories like the ones told by Arjuna or Duryodhana.– Aupakarana AbhibhaaMay 22, 2021 at 16:50
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@AupakaranaAbhibhaa if you are referring to Mahabharata then it is directly vision of Maharishi Veda Vyasa so it testifies all the stories of Arjun and Duryodhan– YogiMay 22, 2021 at 16:53
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@Yogi You see just because the main story is true and the stories within stories were definitely told doesn't mean the stories within stories are true. The narrator could be mistaken.– Aupakarana AbhibhaaMay 22, 2021 at 16:55
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