Truthful means

Expressions researched:
"Truthful means"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Truthful means that you should be so much truthful that even his enemy asks him, "Where is your money," he'll say, "Here is my money."

Lecture on BG 16.7 -- Hawaii, February 3, 1975:

One should be truthful. Truthful means that you should be so much truthful that even his enemy asks him, "Where is your money," he'll say, "Here is my money." He'll not, I mean to say, hide anything. That is truthfulness. Of course, in this age it is very difficult, but these are the items, to become truthful, controlling the mind, controlling the senses, śamo damas titikṣā, tolerance, ārjavam, simplicity, then āstikyam, firm faith in the śāstra, scripture.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Truthful means that he does not hide anything even to his enemy. That is brahminical qualification.

Lecture on SB 6.1.7 -- San Francisco, March 1, 1967:

So Kṛṣṇa consciousness means it is above the modes of goodness. The goodness characteristic is manifested in a true brāhmaṇa. What is that characteristic? He is truthful. First thing is satya. Satya means truthful. A brāhmaṇa is supposed to speak truth even to his enemy. Everyone hides his secret before the enemy, but truthful means that he does not hide anything even to his enemy. That is brahminical qualification. Satya śama, controlling the senses, controlling the mind. Dama, controlling the senses, satya-sama-dama-śaucam, always clean, taking bath three times daily. Antar-bahiḥ. Outwardly, to wash with soap and other materials to clean, keep oneself clean, and inwardly, always thinking of Kṛṣṇa—that is cleanliness. So satya-sama-śaucam ārjavam, simplicity. Not to encourage artificial necessities of life. Simple life: plain living, high thinking—simplicity. And titikṣa, tolerance. Because this world is miserable. If we become disturbed with the miseries of this world, oh, you cannot live for a moment, because this life is, material life is full of miseries. So you have to become tolerant.

Truthful means in one sense ordinary truthful. But real truthful means to know the Absolute Truth.

Lecture on SB 6.1.21 -- Chicago, July 5, 1975:

So these are the different stages, how to become a brāhmaṇa. Śamaḥ damaḥ, then satyam, truthful. Truthful means in one sense ordinary truthful. But real truthful means to know the Absolute Truth. Absolute Truth. So that Absolute Truth, who is Absolute Truth? Kṛṣṇa. We are searching after truth, what is the truth, what is the relative truth. But when you come to Kṛṣṇa, that is Absolute Truth. Sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1). This is truth. Then what is the cause of this truth? This is the... This is the... Neti, neti. So when you come to Kṛṣṇa, so above Him there is no more truth. Kṛṣṇa has no cause, but He is the cause of everything, sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ, anādiḥ (Bs. 5.1). He has no... People ask generally that "Everything has cause. What is the cause of Kṛṣṇa?" The answer is anādi: "He has no cause." That is God. Anādir ādiḥ: "He is the cause of everyone." Anādir ādir govindaḥ sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1).

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Truthful means one should be truthful even to his enemies.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 6.149-50 -- Gorakhpur, February 13, 1971:

To understand God or Kṛṣṇa, it is not material process. Therefore Kṛṣṇa said, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ (BG 18.55). Only through devotional service He can be known. Nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yogamāyā-samāvṛtaḥ (BG 7.25). Kṛṣṇa is covered by the curtain drawn by yogamāyā; therefore Kṛṣṇa cannot be understood by everyone, neither His teaching, Bhagavad-gītā, can be understood without becoming a devotee of Kṛṣṇa. This is not possible. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna that bhakto 'si priyo 'si me: (BG 4.3) "Because you are My very dear friend, therefore I shall speak to you." Rahasyaṁ hy etad uttamam: "Without you, nobody can understand." Kṛṣṇa was a military man. He was not a brāhmaṇa, neither a Vedantist. You cannot expect a military man, a kṣatriya, to be highly learned in Vedic scriptures. That is not possible. They hear from the brāhmaṇas. The brāhmaṇas, they are expected to be highly learned scholars in Vedas because that is their department. Jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.42). Brahma jānātīti brāhmaṇaḥ. Brāhmaṇa... Therefore we call brāhmaṇa, "paṇḍita, paṇḍitajī." Paṇḍitajī has never seen the pages of Vedas, but still, he is going on under the name of paṇḍitajī. So that kind of paṇḍitajī not wanted. Actually a brāhmaṇa means he is truthful. And one of the greatest commentator of Bhagavad-gītā, Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, he says truthful means one should be truthful even to his enemies. Sometimes we have to hide something from the enemies. That is diplomacy. But Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa says, "A brāhmaṇa should be so truthful that he will disclose everything to his enemy also." Satyam. Titikṣa ārjavam śuci śama dama—these are the qualifications. Jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.42).