Affection and Aversion

Lying is from the characteristics of the people of the Hell-fire, and the losers in this life and the Hereafter. Lying is degrading and humiliating for the one who practices it and it will carry him to destruction. Lying is the cause of every evil, it is the key to corruption and it brings the anger of the people upon its practitioner. We will learn in this book about that which decreases our Faith. Thus, we will learn about the recompense of the liar and the corruptness of lying. This is so that we do not fall into it, that we may be cautious of it, and stay away from its people, and not accompany those who are liars. After reading this book, we come to hate lying and those who practice lying. Also, every one of us will increase in Faith by adhering to truthfulness in all the affairs of this life, with our parents, our brothers, our neighbors, our friends, and with all of mankind. Thus, we must know about the danger of lying and the punishment of the liars so that we may be of the people of truth, and with those who practice truthfulness.

Each person is born into an environment that is not of his or her own choice; a child is raised in the religious or ideology of his or her family, society or culture. Even as a newborn, he or she is assigned religion in every recorded on his or her birth certificate. By the time individuals reach their teens they usually have accepted the beliefs of their parents or that of their particular society, feeling that they have little choice in the matter. However, individuals often encounter or are exposed to various beliefs and ideologies throughout the courses of their lives leading many to questions long- held beliefs. Seekers of truth often reach a point of confusion upon realizing that believers of every religion, sect, ideology and philosophy all claim to have the one and only truth. So, which religion is the right one and how can the seeker of truth know it? This is the main subject of this work.