shall give account thereof in the day of judgement.' And in Eph. iv. 29, it is written: 'Let no corrupt speech proceed out of your mouth, but such as is good for edifying as the need may be, that it may give grace to them that hear.' And David says: 'Thou¹ shalt destroy them that speak lies: the LORD abhorreth the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.' And it is clear how great is the guilt and how fearful the punishment of liars, for it is there written: 'But,² for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part shall be in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.' It is evident therefore that what some people say and what the 'Ulama of the Shi'ah party admit to be in accordance with their traditions, that is, that 'pious fraud' (تقية) or 'concealment of one's religion' (كتمان الدين) in circumstances of danger and difficulty is permissible and lawful, is not true, for to act thus is to speak falsehood, and that is contrary to the word of God. It should be known that concealment of one's faith under any such circumstances is the result of mere want of trust in God and of unbelief. For, if any one have attained to such a degree of faith and trust that he knows that God is such a guardian to him that nothing can befall him without God's permission,

it is evident that he will not have recourse to 'pious fraud' and lying, in order by this means to save himself or another from difficulty or loss or trouble. For he will feel certain that, if God wishes to preserve him, He will find some remedy, and that God has no need of a man's lying: and, if God does not remedy the matter, it is certain that that difficulty, trouble or loss is in accordance with the will of God and is for the man's good. Hence the man of faith is content and patient.

In short, whoever wishes to become acquainted with the commands and prohibitions of holy Scripture must either read them—as every God-fearing man should do—or, if he cannot do this, he should turn once more to the Balance of Truth, for there he will find them explained (see Balance of Truth, revised edition, part ii, chapter i). It would take too long for us to state all these matters here also in detail.

Sin is committed not only by openly doing some evil deed but, still more, in the heart by means of evil thoughts and desires. Just as a man has both body and spirit, an outward and an inward part, so his conduct too is composed of an outward and an inward part, in such a way that the outward deeds have as their root the inward act from which they proceed. It is clear, therefore, that the inward act is not less than the outward, but on the contrary is equal to or even more important than it, for the outward is but its offshoot and its fruit, and the