Though the subject is small ‘Lying’, and ‘Deceiving’ however the damage done by it to an individual, family, group or a country is very serious. The liar starts with lies which leads it to back biting, and defaming the image of others among common masses. The reasons are numerous such as Jealousy, Envy, power grab etc. Lying is a disease and the liar does not even know that he has been affected by it which leads to other diseases of the heart as are discussed below. The impact of lying is so severe that Allah subhana ta’ala has cursed the liar in His holy book Qur’an which deprives the cursed person from Allah’s mercy and make him deserving of the hell fire. Today the world is affected heavily by it and it is no more confined to an individual. Media, groups, communities and families are all affected by it, and hence it is the responsibility of mankind and especially Muslims to research, the matter before passing any judgement. As one of the pious predecessors said that a Muslim reserves it’s judgement before acquiring the truth/certainty.
Definition: What is Lying?
Lying is the complete opposite of truth. So, anything that is untrue and deliberately intended to mislead another person is a lie. A lie, therefore, can be anything spoken or written that is totally or partially baseless, unreal, cooked-up, made-up, distorted or exaggerated; for example, if someone were to deliberately state that a five foot pole was a ten foot pole, then this would be a lie. Similarly praising someone out of proportion is a form of a lie. Also, throwing jokes to make others laugh based upon false stories is also a lie (beware O’ comedians ! ).
Lying: A Disease of the Heart
Lying and falsehood are widespread problems and are roots of other problems that occur on an individual and public level. Lies are spoken and written in the media and in politics, in business and in personal dealings, by Muslims and non-Muslims alike, although the degree, magnitude and frequency may vary.
Lying is against human nature and physiology, and like any other disease, it has its own unique signs and symptoms. The act of lying produces inner conflicts between various control centers of the brain. The moment one begins to lie, his body sends out contradictory signals to cause facial muscle twitching, expansion and contraction of pupils, perspiration, flushing of cheeks, increased blinking of the eye, tremors of the hand, and an increased heart rate. These constitute the basis of lie detector instruments. In addition, certain unconsciously made movements are noticeable in those who lie, like the constant covering of the mouth, touching of the nose, rubbing of the eye, scratching the side of the neck, rubbing the ear, etc. One of the clearest signs is that the liar keeps his palms closed and his eyes in another direction to the person he is lying to, in an attempt to avoid eye to eye contact. A liar is aware of his body’s signals and finds lying easier when nobody can see him, such as when he is on the phone or writing.
What are the Motives of a Liar?
A liar tells a lie for the purpose of:
Forms of Lying:
The worst form of lying is to do so upon Allaah and His Messenger sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention) which is to falsely attribute things to them. Allaah Almighty Says in the Quran (what means):
[Quran 69:44-46]
[Quran 2:283]
Hypocrites are liars too, because they lie to themselves. Allaah Says about them (what means):
Allaah also addressed His Messenger Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) Saying (what means):
The Quran on Liars
Allaah Says (what means):
Almighty Allaah also Says (what means):
The Messenger sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) on Lying and Liars:
Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) said:
Yusuf Ibn ‘Abdullaah may Allaah be pleased with him said that he asked Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam:
Bahz Ibn Hakeem related that the Messenger sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam said:
Sufyaan Ibn Usayd may Allaah be pleased with him reported that the Messenger sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam said:
Lying used as a propaganda tool against someone one dislikes or hates:
A person is not a born liar as by Fitrah (Natural Instinct) Allah creates him upon truth. Slowly and gradually as the diseases of hearts such as envy, jealously starts to overcome his heart, the person starts to utter lies and cooks up stories against the other party, and attempts to defame the image of others. Nevertheless, It is Allah subhana tala who gives honour and dishonor, however out of testing a truthful person against a Fitnah, most of the time the liar is let loose his strings to go rampant in his propaganda causing serious damage to the other party defaming and dishonoring him in front of common masses. Until the common masses know the truth or attempt to know it, by the time the damage has been done to the person or a group.
Lying leads to Oppression:
When a person lies against someone, and accuses/defames its image among people for an evil not found in him, this is slandering. If it is found in it, its backbiting, both slandering and backbiting are not permitted in Islam. Even some not many non Muslim communities consider it against moral values of society. Question: What does slandering and backbiting lead towards? Answer is ‘Oppression’. A slanderer or back biter oppresses his Muslim brother or sister. As the definition of Dhulm (oppression) defined by scholars of Islam is to put something somewhere where it does not belong to. By slandering or back biting, you’re taking away the accused person’s honor from his rightful place to yourself, lifting your status among others by illegitimate ways, an act which is severely reprimanded by the creator Allah almighty in Islam. The oppressor is punished in this world before he dies and in the hereafter. May Allah safeguard us from oppressing others.
Beware of what you speak or write on social media:
The Prophet (Sallallahu alehe wassalam) said:
Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported:
The Prophet (Sallallahu alehe wassalam) said:
Unfortunately, besides laymen, today scholars of Islam are also affected by it. Narrating unconfirmed and doubtful stories have become a norm today. Many narrates false dreams of their piety and righteousness to fool Muslims for material gains. Some lie to damage the names of other Muslims in an attempt to leverage their falsehood status encapsulated with the false label of truth that may have been harping for years. Other most commonly used word today among Scholars, students of knowledge, and common masses is to label the other party whom you don’t agree is “Khawarij” or “Khaarjis” without solid concrete evidences. As narrated by the hadeeth of prophet if someone has nothing good to say, its better for him to stay silent.
Many times laymen speak on social media with no knowledge about the subject. This is also counted as lying especially when speaking against your Muslims brothers and sisters. Beware our beloved brothers and sisters in Islam, the word that you throw on social media will become a proof against you on the day of judgement. With this same word, you’re indirectly performing the Takfir of other person/group, casting him out of the fold of Islam. Know that accusing someone falsely for Kufr can lead you to become a Kaafir in front of Allah subhana wa ta ‘ala while the world thinks of you a Muslim in this world. Know that a single character you write on the social media, is stored by several computer servers across the world, and it will be there present till the day of judgement and whoever gets misled or misguided by your writing, is because of you. Your grave after you die can turn into a pit of hellfire just because of this act or you would see huge mountains of sins piled upon on day of judgement just because you wrote a lie on social media. This is such a serious sin which many Muslims are not aware of today, and they write and say it without measuring their words just because no one watches them. But remember Allah is watching over you !
Lie & Deception: Same tool used by Dajjal (Anti-Christ) to cover his Lie:
Prophet Muhammad (Sallallahu alehe wassalam) said to the meaning:
The forth coming of the Dajjal (in future) is the biggest fitnah ever witnessed by the mankind. This is due to it’s covering of truth by the layer of falsehood, claiming him to be the God, a blatant lie !
Many times, what is shown as Truth is falsehood, and what is shown as falsehood is Truth. As in another hadeeth about same Dajjal, our prophet mentioned about a believer in Madinah who will not be affected by this Fitnah and instead oppression by the Dajjal to kill him increases him more in his Eeman. Moral is that only righteousness, piety and holding on to the Deen of Allah and His messenger can save oneself from becoming a victim of lying, and deception.
Lying breaks Family ties and relationships:
Previous or present lies can hinder in rebuilding of relationships until damage controlled.
One of the serious consequences of lying can be understood by this scenario. A person slanders someone by speaking lie against it among his friends or relatives, out of anger, envy, jealousy, or some other reason. Later the same person resumes his/her good ties with the accused as a matter of reconciliation just because he might have repented, however he does not clarify this in front of others in front of whom he accused the other. Later on, when the disinformation has spread out and damage has been done already, the accused gets to hear stories about himself describing him in an evil manner or accused of a sin that he has not committed, THEN it becomes much difficult to control this damage neither by the accuser nor by the accused, therefore breaking the relationship among each other in the longer run. Previous lies can hinder in rebuilding of relationships until damage controlled. Beware what you speak out from your tongue is counted as every word that you speak out can ruin or build a relationship. This is most commonly found in families unfortunately.
Is Lying Ever Justified?
There are very few justifications for lying in Islam. The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam directed us to tell the truth, even under the harshest circumstances of oppression. However, one may choose not to tell the truth when:
Statements with Forsightedness (Firasah)
This is a special situation which seems apparently a lie however in reality it is not. It is a general statement used in certain situations where one does not want to lie yet at the same time, he avoids speaking the truth very clearly with wisdom. One such example is found in the Seerah books when Prophet Muhammad while migrating with Abu Bakr As Siddique from Makkah to Madinah were faced with a beduin in a desert who asked their identity, upon which the prophet said “We’re from the water”. And today even the established scientific facts reveal that more than 90% of the human body consists of water. Such was the wisdom given to Prophet by Allah subhana wa tala.
Virtues of Telling the Truth
Truthfulness is commanded by Allaah as a part of faith and is an indispensable quality of the believers. It is mentioned in over one hundred places in the Quran. Some examples are when Allaah Almighty Says (what means):
It is not necessary to relate any prophetic traditions about the truthfulness of Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam as his whole life was nothing but the epitome of truth. Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) was confirmed as a truthful person even before he became a Prophet. During his prophethood, even his enemies confirmed that he was truthful and trustworthy. Some of the disbelievers would deposit their belongings with him as an indication of their trust in him.
Glad tidings to the Truth seekers/believers: Truth prevails by the end of the Day:
Though prophet Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam was prominently known as a Saadiq (Truthful) by the pagans of Makkah, and muslims alike, yet he was accused of other titles such as Saahir (Magician), Kaahin (Soothsayer), Majnoon (Insane), etc Naazo billah, free from all these evils the noble and trutful messenger was !! All this was lying, and the impact of lying was so severe that it led them to go rampant in doing false propaganda against Prophet to mislead the common masses out of their fear of losing supremacy of their thrones. And no era is safe from it. However by the end of the day, it is the truth that prevails as Allah says in His holy Quran:
May Allaah subhana wa ta ‘ala cure all of us and mankind from this sickening disease.