The Truth About Jihad
Sunday July 10, 2005
In the plight of the recent London Bombings and previous events such as September 11, I figured it’s about high time I simply do my part as a Muslim to state what is right and not, what is true and what is false. No more, no less.
As we all know, terrorist are those few who tarnishes the whole community, in this case Islam and I don’t blame anyone who’re skeptical about the religion. However, though people have the right to be skeptical, they shouldn’t be overly paranoid, prejudice, afraid and stereotypical, cause that’s ultimately the goal of the terrorist – to terrorise / instill terror. Once we succumb to that, they are victorious – downfall of our society.
Onto my actual nature of this post. Please forgive me if my definition is very vague but this is the true understanding of Jihad: It simply means, a struggle. In what form and shape, that is when it starts to diverse. Apart from its meaning warfare against the enemies which have been quite simply the term being portrayed and popularised by terrorist and media alike, the greater meaning also mean a battle or struggle with one inner-self / soul.
The other – sadly lost greater meaning – concept of Jihad is a moral struggle which touches the daily lives of many Muslims. To restrain from sins such as; controlling our anger, desires, abstaining from worldly pleasures, being kind and polite etc. As you can see, it’s the everyday issues we go through. Too much of anything is bad and unhealthy, there has to be balance. Simply, Jihad within one-self is a battle to be a morally better person.
Onto warfare against enemies, there is one line many times, has been taken out of context and from it’s entire sentence and context completely. What it actually meant which most of the people don’t know is, the full sentence mostly goes something like;
God does not forbid you, regarding those (non-Muslims) who did not fight you because of your religion, and who did not drive you out of your land, that you be good to them and treat them justly. Allah only forbids you regarding those who fought you because of your religion and drove you out of your homes, and came to the help of those who drove you out, that you should befriend them. Any of you who befriend them (and be their allies) are transgressors. [60:8-9]
That said as well, it means warring / guerrilla fighting in a real battlefront. Terrorising and bombing public places and harming innocents is not Jihad and not the true teachings of Islam, what more the killing and massacring of innocent lives. Also take note, that verse was recorded ages ago during that period in time where wars and fighting took places often between tribes and other religions etc.
So now, as you can see, these terrorist are clearly not applying the true teachings, understanding and concept of Jihad.
Here are some links to further and better understand the meaning of Jihad.
http://www.islamanswers.net/moreAbout/jihad.htm
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2003/10/1023_031023_jihad.html
And for those of you who’re lazy to read those links, i quote these lines for you.
God does not approve wrongdoing and disorder. Rather, it is His Will that we live in peace and justice. Therefore, those who believe in God and worship Him faithfully are obliged to work for justice in this world. Islam calls this responsibility jihad.
What is meant by “Greater Jihad” and “Lesser Jihad?”
There are two aspects of jihad. One is fighting to overcome carnal desires and evil inclinations; this is called the greater jihad; the other is encouraging others to achieve the same objective and is called the lesser jihad.
The Muslim army was returning to Madina after they had defeated the enemy in a battle, when the Messenger of God said to them; We are returning from the lesser jihad to the greater one. When the Companions asked what the “greater jihad” was, he explained that it was fighting with the carnal self.
The concept of jihad as a struggle for self-improvement is little known among non-believers. Yet Noha Aboulmagd-Forster, who teaches Arabic at the University of Chicago’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies, stresses that it may be the most common interpretation of the term.
“Something widely quoted by the Muslim ‘man on the street’ is that the most difficult jihad is the one of the soul,” she said. “The biggest trouble is not with your enemy but with yourself.”
While inner struggle is one meaning of jihad, many others evidently use it to describe engagement with external enemies. It is there that the concept encounters the notions of other faiths.
On a side note, these terrorists are usually people who lacked the proper guidance and teachings of Islam and / or who have been scarred one way or another but mostly (in this instance) by the intervention of western countries in the likes of war; losing their families and love ones, houses bombed and completely destroyed etc. These are the people who have lost everything in their lives and the will to live. They are sadly the ones who’re easily recruited and brainwashed by political leaders with their own twisted agenda to fight the cause wrongly known as Jihad. This is but the sad truth, unfortunately.
I hope I’ve managed to clear some misunderstandings some of you might have.
// Filed under: Religion