Truth and honesty

Stay far away from a false accusation. Do not kill the innocent or the just, for I will not acquit the guilty.

Do not deny justice or show partiality. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.

“You shall not spread a false report. Do not join the wicked by being a malicious witness.

He who speaks the truth declares what is right, but a false witness speaks deceit.

Put away deception from your mouth; keep your lips from perverse speech.

For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them. Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.

Instead, we have renounced secret and shameful ways. We do not practice deceit, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by open proclamation of the truth, we commend ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God.

Be doers of the word, and not hearers only. Otherwise, you are deceiving yourselves.

Sanctify them by the truth; Your word is truth.

Why would I lie in so ineffectual a manner, and deem her credible? Had she wanted to lie, she could have claimed that she hid, which is a more effective claim. Or perhaps we do not say that principle.

And Rabbi Zeira said: A person should not say to a child: I will give you something, and then not give it to him, because he thereby comes to teach him about lying, as it is stated: “They have taught their tongues to speak lies” (Jeremiah 9:4). One must not accustom a child to fail to honor commitments.

Ulla said to him: But by confronting the witnesses in this manner, we silence them. The witnesses will think that the court suspects them of lying, and they will not testify. Rav Yehuda said to him: And let them be silenced. Isn’t it taught in a baraita (Tosefta 9:1): Rabbi Shimon ben Eliezer says: In cases of capital law, the court brings the witnesses from one place to another place in order to confuse them so that they will retract their testimony if they are lying.

Confound not truth with falsehood, nor knowingly conceal the truth

O People of the Scripture! Why confound ye truth with falsehood and knowingly conceal the truth

Say: The Truth hath come, and falsehood showeth not its face and will not return

Narrated ʿAbdullah: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Truthfulness leads to righteousness, and righteousness leads to Paradise. And a man keeps on telling the truth until he becomes a truthful person. Falsehood leads to Al-Fajur (i.e. wickedness, evil-doing), and Al-Fajur (wickedness) leads to the (Hell) Fire, and a man may keep on telling lies till he is written before Allah, a liar

Narrated Abu Huraira: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Beware of suspicion, for suspicion is the worst of false tales; and do not look for the others' faults and do not spy, and do not be jealous of one another, and do not desert (cut your relation with) one another, and do not hate one another; and O Allah's worshipers! Be brothers (as Allah has ordered you) Narrated Anas bin Malik: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Do not hate one another, and do not be jealous of one another, and do not desert each other, and O, Allah's worshipers! Be brothers. Lo! It is not permissible for any Muslim to desert (not talk to) his brother (Muslim) for more than three days Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) said, "Beware of suspicion, for suspicion is the worst of false tales. and do not look for the others' faults, and do not do spying on one another, and do not practice Najsh, and do not be jealous of one another and do not hate one another, and do not desert (stop talking to) one another. And O, Allah's worshipers! Be brothers

Narrated ʿAbdullah bin ʿAmr: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, "Convey (my teachings) to the people even if it were a single sentence, and tell others the stories of Bani Israel (which have been taught to you), for it is not sinful to do so. And whoever tells a lie on me intentionally, will surely take his place in the (Hell) Fire

That which is not shall never be; that which is shall never cease to be. These truths are self-evident to the wise.

The level which is attained through wisdom is also reached through right action. He who perceives that the two are one, knows the truth.

Those who do not understand the qualities are interested in the act; however, the wise man who knows the truth should not disturb the mind of those who do not.

The face of Truth is hidden by a golden disk. O Pushan (Effulgent Being)! Uncover (Thy face) that I, the worshipper of Truth, may behold Thee.

When taught by a man of inferior understanding, this Atman cannot be truly known, even though frequently thought upon. There is no way (to know It) unless it is taught by another (an illumined teacher), for it is subtler than the subtle and beyond argument. O Dearest, this Atman cannot be attained by argument; It is truly known only when taught by another (a wise teacher). O Nachiketas, thou hast attained It. Thou art fixed in Truth. May we ever, find a questioner like thee.

If thou thinkest "I know It well," then it is certain that thou knowest but little of the Brahman (Absolute Truth), or in what form He (resideth) in the Devas (minor aspects of Deity). Therefore I think that what thou thinkest to be known is still to be sought after. The disciple said: I do not think I know It well, nor do I think that I do not know It. He among us who knows It truly, knows (what is meant by) "I know" and also what is meant by "I know It not." He who thinks he knows It not, knows It. He who thinks he knows It, knows It not. The true knowers think they can never know It (because of Its infinitude), while the ignorant think they know It. It (Brahman) is known, when It is known in every state of consciousness. (Through such knowledge) one attains immortality. By attaining this Self, man gains strength; and by Self-knowledge immortality is attained. If one knows It here, that is Truth; if one knows It not here, then great is his loss. The wise seeing the same Self in all beings, being liberated from this world, become immortal.

A liar goes to hell, as does one who denies what they did. Both are equal in the hereafter, those men of base deeds.

Don’t speak harshly, they may speak harshly back. For aggressive speech is painful, and the rod may spring back on you.

Speak the truth, do not be angry, and give when asked, if only a little. By these three means, you may enter the presence of the gods.

They give up lying. They’re summoned to a council, an assembly, a family meeting, a guild, or to the royal court, and asked to bear witness: ‘Please, my man, say what you know.’ Not knowing, they say ‘I don’t know.’ Knowing, they say ‘I know.’ Not seeing, they say ‘I don’t see.’ And seeing, they say ‘I see.’ So they don’t deliberately lie for the sake of themselves or another, or for some trivial worldly reason.

“What some say is true and correct, others say is hollow and false. So arguing, they dispute; why don’t ascetics say the same thing?” “The truth is one, there is no second, understanding which folk would not dispute. But those ascetics each boast of different truths; that’s why they don’t say the same thing.” “But why do they speak of different truths, these proponents who profess to be experts? Are there really so many different truths, or do they just follow their own lines of reasoning?” “No, there are not many different truths that, apart from perception, <j>are lasting in the world. Having formed their reasoning <j>regarding different views, they say there are two things: true and false. The seen, heard, or thought, <j>or precepts or vows— based on these they show disdain. Standing in judgment, they scoff, saying, ‘The other is a fool, an amateur!’

“Speak only those words that do not hurt yourself nor harm others; such speech is truly well spoken. Speak only pleasing words, words gladly welcomed. Pleasing words are those that bring nothing bad to others. Truth itself is undying speech: this is an ancient teaching. Good people say the teaching and meaning are grounded in truth. The words spoken by the Buddha for finding the sanctuary, extinguishment, for making an end of suffering, this really is the best kind of speech.”

They see the Truth, and they speak the Truth; their bodies and minds are True. True are their teachings, and True are their instructions; True are the reputations of the true ones. Those who have forgotten the True One are miserable-they depart weeping and wailing. ||4||

In the Golden Age of Truth, everyone spoke the Truth. Truth was pervasive - the Lord was Truth. With Truth in their minds and mouths, mortals were rid of doubt and fear. Truth was the friend of the Gurmukhs. ||5|| In the Silver Age of Traytaa Yoga, one power of Dharma was lost. Three feet remained; through duality, one was cut off. Those who were Gurmukh spoke the Truth, while the self-willed manmukhs wasted away in vain. ||6||

If the Jeweller casts His Glance of Grace, they are not placed in the fire again. Throughout the other seven watches of the day, it is good to speak the Truth, and sit with the spiritually wise. There, vice and virtue are distinguished, and the capital of falsehood is decreased. There, the counterfeit are cast aside, and the genuine are cheered. Speech is vain and useless. O Nanak, pain and pleasure are in the power of our Lord and Master. ||1||

He who knows (the Tao) does not (care to) speak (about it); he who is (ever ready to) speak about it does not know it. He (who knows it) will keep his mouth shut and close the portals (of his nostrils). He will blunt his sharp points and unravel the complications of things; he will attemper his brightness, and bring himself into agreement with the obscurity (of others). This is called “the Mysterious Agreement.” (Such an one) cannot be treated familiarly or distantly; he is beyond all consideration of profit or injury; of nobility or meanness:—he is the noblest man under heaven.

My words are very easy to know, and very easy to practise; but there is no one in the world who is able to know and able to practise them. There is an originating and all-comprehending (principle) in my words, and an authoritative law for the things (which I enforce). It is because they do not know these, that men do not know me. They who know me are few, and I am on that account (the more) to be prized. It is thus that the sage wears (a poor garb of) hair cloth, while he carries his (signet of) jade in his bosom.

When one is about to take an inspiration, he is sure to make a (previous) expiration; when he is going to weaken another, he will first strengthen him; when he is going to overthrow another, he will first have raised him up; when he is going to despoil another, he will first have made gifts to him:—this is called “Hiding the light (of his procedure).” The soft overcomes the hard; and the weak the strong. Fishes should not be taken from the deep; instruments for the profit of a state should not be shown to the people.