Transcript 3-1 Truthfulness

Being Truthful
& Keeping Your Word
Module 3 – Circle 1
What is lying and why do people lie?
People may lie as part of self-presentation, in order
to present a more favourable image to others.
People may also lie in order to minimize conflict,
because lying may make disagreements less
obvious.
Module 3 – Circle 1
What does the research say about
lying?
Research shows both men and women lie in
approximately a fifth of their social exchanges
lasting 10 or more minutes; over the course of a
week they deceive about 30 percent of those with
whom they interact one-on-one.
Module 3 – Circle 1
What is honesty?
Honesty incorporates the concepts
of truthfulness and reliability and it
resides in all human thought,
words, actions and relationships. It
is more than just accuracy; it is
more than just truthfulness, it
denotes integrity or moral
soundness.
Module 3 – Circle 1
What are the lies that people tell?
Sometimes without thinking we will tell lies
and not even remember them as lies. For
example When we tell the caller on the
telephone we are not home, this is
deceit. When we refuse invitations and
pretend we are busy, this is lying. When a
shop assistant gives us too much change
back, do we tell them and give the money
back or do we put the money which is haram
for us in our pockets.
Module 3 – Circle 1
Even before Islam which
characteristics was the prophet
Muhammed (PBUH) known for?
Al Amin, the Prophet Muhammad once gathered all the
people of Mecca and asked them, “O people of Mecca! If
I say that an army is advancing on you from behind the
mountains, will you believe me?” All said in one voice,
“Yes, because we have never heard you telling a
lie.” All the people, without exception, swore to his
truthfulness and honesty because he had lived an
unblemished and extremely pious life among them for forty
years.
Module 3 – Circle 1
What did the prophets enemies think of him?
Abu Sufyan described his honesty. When
Prophet Muhammad sent a letter to the
Emperor of Byzantium inviting him to Islam,
the Emperor, Heraclius sent for the Meccan
trader, Abu Sufyan. Even though he was,
at that time, a dire enemy of Islam, he
spoke the truth about Prophet Mohammad
when he said, “He neither tells lies nor
betrays others, he bids people to worship
God Alone and orders us to observe
prayer, honesty and abstinence” (Bukhari)
Module 3 – Circle 1
What is the sign of the day of judgement
which relates to honesty?
Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle said,
"When honesty is lost, then wait for the
Hour." It was asked, "How will honesty be
lost, O Allahs Apostle?" He said, "When
authority is given to those who do not
deserve it, then wait for the Hour." (Bukhari).
Module 3 – Circle 1
What are the signs of a hypocrite?
Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle said, "The signs
of a hypocrite are three: Whenever he speaks, he tells
a lie; and whenever he promises, he breaks his
promise; and whenever he is entrusted, he betrays
(proves to be dishonest)"(Bukhari)
Module 3 – Circle 1
The honesty of keeping your word
when meeting people?
“I order you to be truthful, for indeed truthfulness
leads to righteousness, and indeed righteousness
leads to Paradise. A man continues to be truthful and
strives for truthfulness until he is written as a truthful
person with God. And beware of falsehood, for
indeed falsehood leads to sinning, and indeed
sinning leads to the Fire. A man continues to tell lies
and strives upon falsehood until he is written as a liar
with God.” (Saheeh Muslim)
Module 3 – Circle 1
What does truthfulness lead to?
“I order you to be truthful, for indeed truthfulness leads to
righteousness, and indeed righteousness leads to
Paradise. A man continues to be truthful and strives for
truthfulness until he is written as a truthful person with
God. And beware of falsehood, for indeed falsehood leads
to sinning, and indeed sinning leads to the Fire. A man
continues to tell lies and strives upon falsehood until he is
written as a liar with God.” (Saheeh Muslim)
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What is the effect of being truthful?
Ali b. Abi Talib “Whoever does three things
with regards to people, they will necessitate
three things from him: whenever he speaks
to them he is truthful; whenever they entrust
him with something he does not betray them;
and whenever he promises them something
he fulfils it. If he does this, their hearts will
love him; their tongues will praise him; and
they will come to his aid.”
Module 3 – Circle 1
How can we guarantee paradise for
ourselves?
Narrated by Ubaadah, “Guarantee for me six
things and I will guarantee Paradise for you: tell
the truth when you speak, fulfill your promises,
be faithful when you are trusted, safeguard your
private parts, lower your gaze, and withhold
your hands (from harming others).” (Bukhari
and Muslim)
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Can we lie as a joke?
Narrated byAbu Umamah “I guarantee a house in
the middle of Paradise for the one who leaves off
lying even if it be in jest.” (At-Tirmidhi)
Reported by Mu‘awiyah b. Jaydah al-Qushayri
“Woe to the person who lies to make people
laugh! Woe to him, woe to him!” (Abu Dawud)
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What helps us to stop lying?
Narrated by Hudhaifa “Honesty descended from
the Heavens and settled in the roots of the hearts
of men (faithful believers), and then the Quran was
revealed and the people read the Quran, (and
learnt it from it) and also learnt from the sayings
and traditions. Both the Quran and the traditions
strengthened their honesty. (Saheeh Al-Bukhari)
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Why should we not take the idea of
trust lightly?
In Islam, every believer is a brother or sister to the
other; we are one body, one nation. The right hand
must be able to trust the left hand. The commands
and rules from God are designed for our benefit
and Islam holds people’s rights in high esteem.
Module 3 – Circle 1
Which 3 people will Allah be an
opponent of on the day of judgment?
Prophet Muhammad explained the seriousness of
upholding the rights due to others when he said,
“God says, ‘There are three people whom I shall be
their opponent on the Day of Judgment: A man
who was given something in My Name and then
betrays; A man who sells-off a free man (as a
slave) and consumes the price; and A man who
hires a labourer, makes use of his service then
does not give him his wages.’” (Saheeh AlBukhari).
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An example of trustworthiness
When Abu Ubayda was the commander of the Muslim
armies in Syria, the Emperor of Byzantium set out with a
large army to recapture Hims. Abu ‘Ubaida decided to
evacuate the city because he had only a handful of
soldiers. He gathered the people of Hims in the middle of
the city and announced, “We collected the protection tax
from you because we planned to defend you. Now we are
too weak. In this case, we return the tax we collected.” All
the taxes collected were returned to the non-Muslim people
of Hims. Such was the depth of feeling and understanding
displayed by the early Muslims. They were constantly
aware of their obligations towards God, their brothers and
sisters and those who were under the protection of the
Muslim armies.
Module 3 – Circle 1