principle is “if it’s good for Islam, it’s right.”
Islam allows for lying, as well as stealing and killing, in certain circumstances.
This leads to large-scale deception campaigns today.
Lying: It’s wrong—except when it isn’t
Muhammad minced no words about the necessity of telling the truth: “It is obligatory for you to tell the truth, for truth leads to virtue and virtue leads to Paradise, and the man who continues to speak the truth and endeavours to tell the truth is eventually recorded as truthful with Allah, and beware of telling of a lie for telling of a lie leads to obscenity and obscenity leads to Hell-Fire, and the person who keeps telling lies and endeavours to tell a lie is recorded as a liar with Allah.” 1
However, as with so many other Islamic principles, this is largely a matter between believers. When it comes to unbelievers—particularly those who are at war with Muslims—Muhammad enunciated a quite different principle: “War is deceit.”
Specifically, he taught that lying was permissible in battle. 2 Thus were born two enduring Islamic principles: the permissibility of political assassination for the honor of the Prophet and his religion and an allowance for the practice of deception in wartime. The doctrines of religious deception ( taqiyya and kitman ) are most often identified with Shi’ite Islam and are ostensibly rejected by Sunnis (over 85 percent of Muslims worldwide) because they were sanctioned by the Prophet. However, they can still be found in traditions that Sunni Muslims consider most reliable.
Also, religious deception (practiced on hapless unbelievers) is taught by the Qur’an itself, telling Muslims: “Let not the believers take for friends or helpers unbelievers rather than believers. If any do that, in nothing will there be help from Allah; except by way of precaution, that ye may guard yourselves from them” (Qur’an 3:28). In other words, don’t make friends with unbelievers except to “guard yourselves from them”: Pretend to be their friends so that you can strengthen yourself against them. The distinguished Qur’anic commentator Ibn Kathir explains that, in this verse, “Allah prohibited His believing servants from becoming supporters of the disbelievers, or to take them as comrades with whom they develop friendships, rather than the believers.” However, exempted from this rule were “those believers who in some areas or times fear for their safety from the disbelievers. In this case, such believers are allowed to show friendship to the disbelievers outwardly, but never inwardly.” 3
When Shi’ite Muslims were persecuted by Sunnis, they developed the doctrine of taqiyya , or concealment: They could lie about what they believed, denying aspects of their faith that were offensive to Sunnis. This practice is sanctioned by the Qur’an warning Muslims that those who forsake Islam will be consigned to Hell—except those forced to do so, but who remain true Muslims inwardly: “Any one who, after accepting faith in Allah, utters unbelief—except under compulsion, his heart remaining firm in faith—but such as open their breast to unbelief, on them is wrath from Allah, and theirs will be a dreadful penalty” (Qur’an 16:106). Closely related to this is the doctrine of kitman , or mental reservation, which is telling the truth, but not the whole truth, with an intention to mislead. Although these doctrines are commonly associated with Shi’ites, Sunnis have also practiced them throughout Islamic history, because of their Qur’anic foundation. 4 Ibn Kathir, who was no Shi’ite, explains that “the scholars agreed that if a person is forced into disbelief, it is permissible for him to either go along with them in the interests of self-preservation, or to refuse.” 5
Jihadists today have spoken of the usefulness of deceptive practices. Remember that the next time you see a Muslim spokesman on television professing his friendship
Islam allows for lying, as well as stealing and killing, in certain circumstances.
This leads to large-scale deception campaigns today.
Lying: It’s wrong—except when it isn’t
Muhammad minced no words about the necessity of telling the truth: “It is obligatory for you to tell the truth, for truth leads to virtue and virtue leads to Paradise, and the man who continues to speak the truth and endeavours to tell the truth is eventually recorded as truthful with Allah, and beware of telling of a lie for telling of a lie leads to obscenity and obscenity leads to Hell-Fire, and the person who keeps telling lies and endeavours to tell a lie is recorded as a liar with Allah.” 1
However, as with so many other Islamic principles, this is largely a matter between believers. When it comes to unbelievers—particularly those who are at war with Muslims—Muhammad enunciated a quite different principle: “War is deceit.”
Specifically, he taught that lying was permissible in battle. 2 Thus were born two enduring Islamic principles: the permissibility of political assassination for the honor of the Prophet and his religion and an allowance for the practice of deception in wartime. The doctrines of religious deception ( taqiyya and kitman ) are most often identified with Shi’ite Islam and are ostensibly rejected by Sunnis (over 85 percent of Muslims worldwide) because they were sanctioned by the Prophet. However, they can still be found in traditions that Sunni Muslims consider most reliable.
Also, religious deception (practiced on hapless unbelievers) is taught by the Qur’an itself, telling Muslims: “Let not the believers take for friends or helpers unbelievers rather than believers. If any do that, in nothing will there be help from Allah; except by way of precaution, that ye may guard yourselves from them” (Qur’an 3:28). In other words, don’t make friends with unbelievers except to “guard yourselves from them”: Pretend to be their friends so that you can strengthen yourself against them. The distinguished Qur’anic commentator Ibn Kathir explains that, in this verse, “Allah prohibited His believing servants from becoming supporters of the disbelievers, or to take them as comrades with whom they develop friendships, rather than the believers.” However, exempted from this rule were “those believers who in some areas or times fear for their safety from the disbelievers. In this case, such believers are allowed to show friendship to the disbelievers outwardly, but never inwardly.” 3
When Shi’ite Muslims were persecuted by Sunnis, they developed the doctrine of taqiyya , or concealment: They could lie about what they believed, denying aspects of their faith that were offensive to Sunnis. This practice is sanctioned by the Qur’an warning Muslims that those who forsake Islam will be consigned to Hell—except those forced to do so, but who remain true Muslims inwardly: “Any one who, after accepting faith in Allah, utters unbelief—except under compulsion, his heart remaining firm in faith—but such as open their breast to unbelief, on them is wrath from Allah, and theirs will be a dreadful penalty” (Qur’an 16:106). Closely related to this is the doctrine of kitman , or mental reservation, which is telling the truth, but not the whole truth, with an intention to mislead. Although these doctrines are commonly associated with Shi’ites, Sunnis have also practiced them throughout Islamic history, because of their Qur’anic foundation. 4 Ibn Kathir, who was no Shi’ite, explains that “the scholars agreed that if a person is forced into disbelief, it is permissible for him to either go along with them in the interests of self-preservation, or to refuse.” 5
Jihadists today have spoken of the usefulness of deceptive practices. Remember that the next time you see a Muslim spokesman on television professing his friendship
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