Skip to main content

What is Jihad?


Never has there been a word more misrepresented in the media than Jihad.

Humans have been fighting and killing each other for millennia, developing ever more effective ways and enhancing technology to facilitate this killing. People fight to defend themselves, or to attack others. Wars are fought for land, tribe, nation, legacy, fortune, religion , independence, or resources like water and oil.

Today's many wars are mostly fought over resources, like the US and UK fighting for securing 'their' oil in Iraq or Afghanistan, or for land and its minerals as in parts of Africa, or civil wars in South America.

Islam addresses fighting and warfare, laying down rules for when and how it should occur. Islam does not allow wars for material gain, taking other people's resources and lands, or to convert people from their religion . Islam does not sanction the invading and pillaging of the past, nor the colonialism of the present, which all lead to enslaving and impoverishing the conquered people.

Muslims are required to follow the Islamic rules of warfare, if they were to go to war. Examples include: no killing of innocent people, no killing of women and children , no burning of crops or trees, only fight those that fight you, no wanton destruction.

Jihad, then, is the striving of Muslims when they go to war and are governed by these laws. Primarily there are two types of Jihad. The first is when Muslims rally to fight and expel invading armies from their land. Examples are when the Crusaders invaded Palestine during the eleventh and twelfth centuries, or when the Mongols invaded Central Asia, Persia, Iraq and Syria in the thirteenth century. This defensive Jihad aims to protect the citizens and their land by pushing the occupiers out.

The other type of Jihad is only undertaken by an Islamic State. Its aim is to eradicate 'fitna' (injustice and oppression) where it is exists in other places, and replace unjust and oppressive ruling with a just rule under the auspices of the Islamic State. There are three parts to it: first, to invite the people to accept Islam by explaining the Islamic belief and what Islam has to offer people. This is done by dialogue and discussion and maybe over some time. Secondly, the people are invited to unify with the Islamic State, whether or not they become Muslims, enjoying peace, justice, security and protection, thereby ending the injustice and oppression. Historically some non-Muslim peoples opted for this option, which is in exchange for a small yearly tax (taken as a token in exchange for their protection, since they are alleviated from contributing in other financial ways to the society, as the Muslims are obliged to do). The third and final course of action after the first two have failed is war. Such a war is called Jihad and it has its rules, like no wanton destruction or targeting of civilians. When an Islamic State goes to war, it can never be for money, land, or riches -unlike the current and past colonial occupations of the last two centuries.

Jihad is often seen by Western people as barbaric, as a result of the propaganda constantly pushed by thegovernment and media to portray Muslims as bloodthirsty, massacring killers, bent on forcing the world to change their religion . They have even coined the phrase 'holy war' for Jihad to encourage this false opinion. However, an Islamic State would commit to the Islamic foreign policy, showing the world what Islam really is and how Islam can truly make their lives and society better, even if they do not become Muslim. Jihad is a last resort in this process. The Islamic belief is never to be forced upon people once land is taken, with 1400 years of history bearing testimony to this.

When Western nations invade Muslim countries they destroy the infrastructure of the country causing more deaths than those caused by their bullets and bombs. It is estimated that a million or so civilians have died in the Iraq war, which was launched ostensibly to convert the Middle East to following liberal democracy, yet was driven by Western greed for securing resources - their 'vital security interests'. What further exposes the immorality of such warfare is that contracts are awarded to US and UK companies to rebuild the infrastructure, making the invaded country pay for it as well (Iraq as an example).

Whilst neo-colonial Western powers wage war and invade for resources, places of strategic importance and further increasing their luxurious way of living, Islam expressly forbids that war be waged for such selfish reasons. Even when war does occur, Islam does not allow the kind of killing and destruction that the Western powers have perpetrated over recent years.

This article was reproduced from the website Islam-Explained.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

An advice to Muslims working in the financial sector

Assalam wa alaikum wa rahmatullah wabarakatahu, Dear Brothers & Sisters, We are saddened to see Muslims today even those who practise many of the rules of Islam are working in jobs which involve haram in the financial sector. They are working in positions which involve usurious (Riba) transactions, insurance, the stock market and the like. Even though many of the clear evidences regarding the severity of the sin of Riba are known, some have justified their job to themselves thinking that they are safe as long as they are not engaged in the actual action of taking or giving Riba. Brothers & Sisters, You should know that the majority of jobs in the financial sector, even the IT jobs in this area are haram (prohibited) as they involve the processing of prohibited contracts. If you work in this sector, do not justify your job to yourself because of the fear of losing your position or having to change your career, fear Allah as he should be feared and consider His law regard

Q&A: Age of separating children in the beds?

Question: Please explain the hukm regarding separation of children in their beds. At what age is separation an obligation upon the parents? Also can a parent sleep in the same bed as their child? Answer: 1- With regards to separating children in their beds, it is clear that the separation which is obligatory is when they reach the age of 7 and not since their birth. This is due to the hadith reported by Daarqutni and al-Hakim from the Messenger (saw) who said: When your children reach the age of 7 then separate their beds and when they reach 10 beat them if they do not pray their salah.’ This is also due to what has been narrated by al-Bazzar on the authority of Abi Rafi’ with the following wording: ‘We found in a sheet near the Messenger of Allah (saw) when he died on which the following was written: Separate the beds of the slave boys and girls and brothers and sisters of 7 years of age.’ The two hadiths are texts on the separation of children when they reach the age of 7. As for the

Q&A: Shari' rule on songs, music, singing & instruments?

The following is a draft translation from the book مسائل فقهية مختارة (Selected fiqhi [jurprudential] issues) by the Mujtahid, Sheikh Abu Iyas Mahmoud Abdul Latif al-Uweida (May Allah protect him) . Please refer to the original Arabic for exact meanings. Question: What is the Shari’ ruling in singing or listening to songs?  What is the hukm of using musical instruments and is its trade allowed? I request you to answer in detail with the evidences? Answer: The Imams ( Mujtahids ) and the jurists have differed on the issue of singing and they have varying opinions such as haraam (prohibited), Makruh (disliked) and Mubah (permissible), the ones who have prohibited it are from the ones who hold the opinion of prohibition of singing as a trade or profession, and a similar opinion has been transmitted from Imam Shafi’i, and from the ones who disliked it is Ahmad Ibn Hanbal who disliked the issue and categorised its performance under disliked acts, a similar opinion has been tran