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.
Just like Bhagavad-gītā is scripture. So firm faith... Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru: (BG 18.65) "You simply always think of Me, Hare Kṛṣṇa." Not difficult. Bhava Kṛṣṇa has given you the tongue. Every one of you can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Where is the... You have no expenditure but great gain. You become highly elevated gradually by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Now, Kṛṣṇa says personally man-manāḥ: "Always think of Me." Not only that, anyone who is thinking of Kṛṣṇa always, twenty-four hours, Kṛṣṇa gives him the certificate—the topmost yogi.
- yoginām api sarveṣāṁ
- mad-gatenāntar-ātmanā
- śraddhāvān bhajate yo māṁ
- sa me yuktatamo mataḥ
- (BG 6.47)
So Kṛṣṇa says... This is called theism, believing in the śāstra. Any śāstra. It doesn't mean that simply... All śāstras, according to time, circumstances, people, there're different śāstras. The Bible is also śāstra. Koran is also śāstra as much as... They are spoken according to the time, according to the circumstances.
Just like in the Bible, the first injunction is "Thou shall not kill." This means the people were, in those days, at least people who were all around Christ, they were very much expert in killing. Otherwise why he says first, "Thou shall not kill"? So this injunction must be followed. Unfortunately they first of all killed Jesus Christ: "You are speaking 'Thou shall not kill'? I shall kill you." Just see. This is the position. "So what is my fault? You want to kill me?" "Because you are speaking of God, therefore we shall kill you." And actually it actually happened. This is demonic.
So there are many other instances. Prahlāda Mahārāja, five years old boy, he was chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. His father did not like. "Why you are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa?" "Because Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord." "Kṛṣṇa is Supreme Lord? I am Supreme Lord. You do not do this." So the boy would not give up. So the father was even prepared to kill a five year old boy. The fault was that he was chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. He was given poison. He was thrown into the fire. He was pulled from the hill. He was very powerful king, and whatever he ordered his servant carried out, but he was saved in all circumstances by Kṛṣṇa.
So this is demonic nature. They will simply try to suppress Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement because these symptoms are there, na śaucaṁ nāpi cācāro na satyaṁ teṣu vidyate. There is no truthfulness. They do not know what is ultimate truth. Satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam the beginning is satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi. Janmādy asya yataḥ: (SB 1.1.1) "The absolute truth... I am meditating upon the supreme truth, Absolute Truth." What is absolute truth? Janmādy asya yataḥ: "From whom everything has come into existence, that is Absolute."
So what is the nature of that Absolute Truth? Is it a dead body or a living body? There are two things, something dead and something living. So what is the nature of the absolute truth? So that is replied, janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ (SB 1.1.1). Abhijñaḥ means cognizant, living. The Absolute Truth is not dead; it is living. We are pushing forward this theory.