TYPES OF LYING There are various types of lying; be it lying in deeds, sayings or intentions. ♤The first is lying in sayings. It means deliberately telling something that is not true or real. This type has different forms that vary in the degree of guilt. The gravest and worst type is telling lies about Allaah the Exalted and/or His Messenger, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam. Allaah The Almighty Says: وَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ افْتَرَىٰ عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِبًا أَوْ كَذَّبَ بِآيَاتِهِ إِنَّهُ لَا يُفْلِحُ الظَّالِمُونَ (what means): {And who is more unjust than one who invents about Allaah a lie} [Quran 6:21] ♤This also includes deciding what is lawful and what is unlawful according to personal whims and not according to the Sharee‘ah. That is why Allaah The Almighty rebukes the disbelievers when they claim that what they say is the legislation of Allaah. Allaah The Almighty Says: وَلَا تَقُولُوا لِمَا تَصِفُ أَلْسِنَتُكُمُ الْكَذِبَ هَٰذَا حَلَالٌ وَهَٰذَا حَرَامٌ لِّتَفْتَرُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ الْكَذِبَ (what means): {And do not say about what your tongues assert of untruth, “This is lawful and this is unlawful,” to invent falsehood about Allaah}. [an-Nahal:116]. أَمْ لَهُمْ شُرَكَاءُ شَرَعُوا لَهُم مِّنَ الدِّينِ مَا لَمْ يَأْذَن بِهِ اللَّهُ وَلَوْلَا كَلِمَةُ الْفَصْلِ لَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ وَإِنَّ الظَّالِمِينَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ {Or have they other deities who have ordained for them a religion to which Allaah has not consented? But if not for the decisive word, it would have been concluded between them. And indeed, the wrongdoers will have a painful punishment.}. [Ashurah:21]. Moreover, the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, warned us against telling lies about him when he said: “Whoever tells a lie about me intentionally, let him settle in his seat in Hell.” [Saheeh Al-Jaami‘ As-Sagheer: 6519]. ♤This type also includes inventing lies about the believers such as those who testify to falsehood do. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, considered testifying to falsehood one of the grave major sins. ♤Nowadays, we find that many people sell their religion and conscience and testify to falsehood, thereby squandering or failing to give people’s rights or making false accusations against them out of greed for a worldly reward or to gratify their thirst for revenge. ♤Another example is lying when joking in order to make others laugh. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “Woe to him who lies to make people laugh. Woe to him! Woe to him!” [Ahmad and Abu Daawood, At-Tirmithi - Hasan]. ♤A believer cannot be a liar for faith and lying cannot be combined in one person. Hence, when the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, was asked if a believer could be a liar, he replied in the negative, in spite of the fact that he stated that a believer could be a miser or a coward. This is because lying is one of the signs of hypocrisy. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said: “There are three characteristics of a hypocrite: when he speaks he lies, when he makes a promise he breaks it and when he is trusted he betrays.” ♤Lying is not one of the characteristics of the noble rather a characteristic of the mean who despise themselves and find lying easy. If they had real self-esteem, they would have avoided lying. ♤‘Umar ibn Al-Khattaab, may Allaah be pleased with him, said, “It is better for me to tell the truth even if it would demean me - and it rarely does - than to tell a lie that may elevate me - and it rarely does.” ♤The second type is lying in deeds. One may do something in order to deceive others into believing that something actually happened, while it did not, or to express the existence of something that does not really exist. Lying in deeds could be more dangerous or more effective than lying in sayings. An example of this is what was narrated in the Quran about the brothers of Yoosuf (Joseph), may Allaah exalt his mention, when they came to their father at night weeping and with his shirt stained with false blood . So they lied both in their deeds and in their sayings. [Al-Akhlaaq Al-Islaamiyyah:1/529] ♤The third type is lying in intentions, and this is when one intends to do something for the sake of anyone or anything other than Allaah. This is supported by the Hadeeth of the three types of people who would be the first to be thrown in Hell: the martyr, the scholar and the one who used to give charity. ♤Each one of these three would claim that he did what he did for the sake of Allaah but they would be told that they are liars. *The first would be told, “You fought so that people would say that you are courageous.’ *The second would be told, “You gave in charity so that people would say that you are generous,” *And the third would be told, “You learned so that people would say that you are a scholar. Therefore, lying is indeed the source of all sins and it brings utter disgrace upon the liar.
Posted on: Tue, 28 Jan 2014 18:06:45 +0000
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