Page 52 - What the Qur'an Says about Liars and Their Methods

HOW LIARS DECEIVE

THEMSELVES

E E verybody knows that lying is immoral. For this
reason, when people lie they try to ease their con-
science and find excuses. In fact, what they
should do is confess their lies and tell the truth.
In addition, people need to know and recognize the camou-
flage used by liars so that in the event that they lie, they will be
unable to deceive themselves.

Those who claim to lie with good intentions
The best known method people use to deceive themselves is
the claim that they have good intentions. For example, everyone
criticizes and condemns those who gossip. But those who gossip
claim that they do so only with the best of intentions, and so such
talk is harmless. A large proportion of liars make the same claim:
They have no evil purpose in mind, but are merely lying to de-
fend themselves or to comfort another person. For example, a
child who skips school claims that he lies to his mother so that
she will not get angry.
Some people say that they lie because they are afraid of los-
ing the love and trust of those close to them. For instance, people
who are unsuccessful at work lie to hide their failure in a self-pro-
claimed attempt to avoid losing other people's respect. Such peo-
ple try to persuade themselves and those around them that such
lies are harmless, since they have good intentions. In fact, in the
50 Qur'an Allah points to those who display a low morality while