Lillie
Teheuti said:Of course there can be lies. All novels are lies, as is most art and a lot of nature (creatures that mimic others for survival, etc.). In the magical universe, "reality" exists on many levels. Presenting a lie as a truth is one part of the magical world. That doesn't mean you have to "like" it. And sometimes you have to do something to stop the lies—to uncover them. With magic, you enter the world of the trickster - buyer beware. It's a slippery place and finding your way ethically is not always easy, but it is essential.
I so disagree.
It is never Ok to to lie to people.
It is never Ok to give false information.
This is tantamount to theft.
This is stealing from someone the ability to understand and to comprehend the world they live in and the situation they may or may not be in.
And yeah, the world is full of liars, and the world is full of people who make excuses and justifications for liars, but it don't make it right and it certainly don't make it spiritual.
Lying to someone is harming them. It is denying them choice and knowledge.
I do not believe that there is any way that harming someone can be helping them on their spiritual path.
Or any path.
And yes, it's a damn sad fact that we are all surrounded by liars all the time.
Just about every day we have to decide what is and what isn't the truth.
And we learn to do so, and we learn to live with it.
But that does not make it right.
We also learn to live with the danger of thieves and murderers and rapists.
But the fact that they exist does not make them right either.
And novels are different. Novels aren't lies. They are invented stories that say they are invented.
Lies are defined as being deliberate deception.
A lie that says it's a lie is not a lie.