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Majlis of Pursuit
AR
A man in a dark suit stands with his hand on a front door's handle, seen against frosted glass, while a hand of someone hiding rests on the back of a sofa in the foreground
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InvestigationPhilosophy11 min

Is it wrong to lie to save someone's life?

One hard case, five ways of judging it. Follow the argument through consequences, duty, character and justice — then see how Muslim thinkers argued about the very same question.

Exhibit 01
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Exhibit 01

The knock at the door

A frightened friend hides in your house. Minutes later, someone knocks — armed, angry, asking where your friend is.

You can tell the truth, refuse to answer, or lie.

This is one of the most famous test cases in moral philosophy. People's answers reveal what they believe makes an action good.

Question

Before any theory: what do you say at the door?

Sources in this experience

  • Utilitarianism — John Stuart Mill, 1863 View source
  • On a Supposed Right to Lie from Philanthropy — Immanuel Kant, 1797
  • Nicomachean Ethics — Aristotle, 4th century BCE View source
  • A Theory of Justice — John Rawls, 1971, Harvard University Press View source
  • Reason and Tradition in Islamic Ethics — George F. Hourani, 1985, Cambridge University Press View source
  • Ethical Theories in Islam — Majid Fakhry, 1991, Brill View source
  • The Refinement of Character (Tahdhīb al-akhlāq) — Miskawayh, trans. C. K. Zurayk, 1968, American University of Beirut View source
  • Maqasid al-Shariah as Philosophy of Islamic Law — Jasser Auda, 2008, International Institute of Islamic Thought View source
  • Hadith permitting untruth to reconcile people

    Reported in Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim (narrated by Umm Kulthūm bint ʿUqba). Online locator: Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 2692; edition and interpretation still require review.

    View source
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