159 lines
6.6 KiB
Plaintext
159 lines
6.6 KiB
Plaintext
Lying and Deceit
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World Scripture
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LYING AND DECEIT
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It is said that the pen is mightier than the sword. Similarly, a lie may do
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more damage than a gun fired in anger. Lying is the doorway to any number of
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evils. But we may distinguish between lying in the sense of teaching a
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falsehood about Reality--e.g., propagating atheism or a false doctrine--and
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lying in the sense of deliberately misleading and deceiving another about a
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matter of which he has certain knowledge. The first type of lie may in fact be
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based on honest conviction; the second type of lie is deliberate deception. In
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this section, we have gathered passages on lying and falsehood only the latter
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sense of deliberate deception; untruth in the former sense may be classed as
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Ignorance, pp. 280-285. Even so, often there is only a short distance between
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ignorance about truth and lying to one's neighbor, as several passages in this
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section affirm.
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Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.
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1. Judaism and Christianity. Proverbs 12.22
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Do not assert with your mouth what your heart denies.
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2. Taoism. Tract of the Quiet Way
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No man should talk one way with his lips and think another way in his heart.
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3. Judaism. Talmud, Baba Metzia 49
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Dishonesty in business or the uttering of lies causes inner sorrow.
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4. Sikhism. Adi Granth, Maru Solahe, M.3, p. 1062
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O you who believe, wherefore do you say what you do not?
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Very hateful is it to God, that you say what you do not.
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5. Islam. Qur'an 61.2-3
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Qur'an 61.2-3: Cf. Matthew 23.2-3, p. 810; Analects 2.13, p. 810; Dhammapada
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51-52, p. 811; James 1.22-24, p. 811.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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No man who practices deceit shall dwell in my house; no man who utters lies
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shall continue in my presence.
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6. Judaism and Christianity. Psalm 101.7
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A speaker of falsehood reaches purgatory; and again so does one who, having
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done a misdeed, says, "I did not." Both of them, men of base deeds, become
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equal in the other world.
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7. Buddhism. Dhammapada 306
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Lying does not mean that one could not be rich;
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Treachery does not mean you may not live to old age;
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But it is the day of death [judgment] about which one should be baffled.
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8. African Traditional Religions. Yoruba Proverb (Nigeria)
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Falsehood implies the making of a wrong statement by one who is overwhelmed by
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intense passions.
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9. Jainism. Upasakadasanga Sutra
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You brood of vipers! how can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the
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abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man out of his good treasure
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brings forth good, and the evil man out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.
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I tell you, on the day of judgment men will render account for every careless
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word they utter; for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you
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will be condemned.
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10. Christianity. Matthew 12.34-37
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There is no evil that cannot be done by the liar, who has transgressed the one
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law of truthfulness and who is indifferent to the world beyond.
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11. Buddhism. Dhammapada 176
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All things are determined by speech; speech is their root, and from speech they
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proceed. Therefore he who is dishonest with respect to speech is dishonest in
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everything.
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12. Hinduism. Laws of Manu 4.256
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There are three characteristics of a hypocrite: when he speaks, he lies; when
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he makes a promise, he acts treacherously; and when he is trusted, he betrays.
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13. Islam. Hadith of Muslim
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Psalm 101.7: Cf. Psalm 24.3-6, p. 229; Shabbat 31a, p. 1020. Yoruba Proverb:
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Don't think that just because you have used lying to advantage in this world,
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that lying will similarly avail you in the hereafter. Cf. Yoruba Proverbs, p.
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1019. Matthew 12.34-37: Cf. Matthew 15.11-20, p. 860. Dhammapada 176: Cf.
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Tosefta Shebuot 3.6, p. 397. Laws of Manu 4.256: Cf. Markandeya Purana, p.
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494; Matthew 15.11-20, p. 860; James 3.6-9, p. 496.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Confucius said, "I do not see what use a man can be put to, whose word cannot
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be trusted. How can a wagon be made to go if it has no yoke-bar, or a carriage
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if it has no collar-bar?"
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14. Confucianism. Analects 2.22
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The Venerable Rahula saw the Lord coming in the distance; seeing him he made
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ready a seat and water for washing the feet. The Lord sat down on the seat
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made ready; as he was sitting down he bathed his feet. And Rahula, having
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greeted the Lord, sat down at a respectful distance.
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Then the Lord put a little quantity of water that was left over into the water
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vessel and addressed Rahula, saying, "Do you, Rahula, see this little quantity
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of water that is left over and that is put into the water vessel?"
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"Yes, revered sir."
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"Even so, Rahula, little is the recluseship of those who have no shame at
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intentional lying."
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Then the Lord, having thrown away that little quantity of water, addressed
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Rahula, saying, "Do you, Rahula, see this little quantity of water that has
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been thrown away?"
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"Yes, revered sir."
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"Even so, Rahula, thrown away is the recluseship of those who have no shame at
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intentional lying."
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15. Buddhism. Majjhima Nikaya i.414, Ambalatthika-Rahulovada Sutta
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A liar lies to himself as well as to the gods. Lying is the origin of all
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evils; it leads to rebirth in the miserable planes of existence, to breach of
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the pure precepts, and to corruption of the body.
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16. Buddhism. Maharatnakuta Sutra 27, Bodhisattva Surata's Discourse
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Woe to those who call evil good and good evil,
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who put darkness for light and light for darkness,
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who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter!
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17. Judaism and Christianity. Isaiah 5.20
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Beings who are ashamed of what is not shameful, and are not ashamed of what is
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shameful, embrace wrong views and go to a woeful state.
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Beings who see fear in what is not to be feared, and see no fear in the
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fearsome, embrace false views and go to a woeful state.
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Beings who imagine faults in the faultless and perceive no wrong in what is
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wrong, embrace false views and go to a woeful state.
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18. Buddhism. Dhammapada 316-18
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Analects 2.22: Cf. Analects 15.5, p. 1020. Maharatnakuta Sutra 27: The
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Maharatnakuta Sutra is a collection of Mahayana sutras in the Chinese Tripitaka.
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