Islam, Peace and Tolerance

by Dr. Zahid Aziz

Chapter 5: What is Jihad?

The Arabic word jihad means striving or exerting yourself to the utmost against something disapproved. It does not as such mean war or fighting by means of arms. No doubt an armed conflict could also be described as a jihad, but that usage would be similar to applying the word ‘struggle’ in English to a war. To determine what is considered as jihad in the teachings of Islam, we need to examine the usage of this word in the Quran.

In such a broad sense is the word jihad used in the Quran that it is applied to the striving carried out by those opposed to Islam to make Muslims worship other beings and things than the One God:

وَ وَصَّیۡنَا الۡاِنۡسَانَ بِوَالِدَیۡہِ حُسۡنًا ؕ وَ اِنۡ جَاہَدٰکَ لِتُشۡرِکَ بِیۡ مَا لَیۡسَ لَکَ بِہٖ عِلۡمٌ فَلَا تُطِعۡہُمَا ؕ

“And We have enjoined on man goodness to his parents. But if they strive with you to ascribe partners to Me, of which you have no knowledge, do not obey them.” — The Holy Quran, 29:8 and see also 31:15

The Arabic word translated as ‘strive’ here indicates the act of jihad. This use shows that, firstly, jihad does not mean war, as no war is being waged here, and secondly that even the opponents of the Muslims are spoken of as undertaking a jihad against the Muslims!

In the Quran we find that the jihad, or striving, that it requires Muslims to conduct is of the following kinds:

  1. Striving to attain nearness to God by improving yourself morally and spiritually and overcoming your bad desires;
  2. Sticking to Islam under difficult circumstances, such as when facing persecution, by showing perseverance and patience in conditions of suffering;
  3. Striving to take the message of Islam to others, by devoting your time, energy and money for this work;
  4. Fighting, or helping to fight, in battle in the defence of the Muslims community, under the conditions in which Islam allows Muslims to fight a war by military means.

Jihad to attain Nearness to God:

This is mentioned in the following verse:

وَ الَّذِیۡنَ جَاہَدُوۡا فِیۡنَا لَنَہۡدِیَنَّہُمۡ سُبُلَنَا ؕ وَ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ لَمَعَ الۡمُحۡسِنِیۡنَ ﴿٪۶۹﴾

“And those who strive hard for Us, We shall certainly guide them in Our ways. And Allah is surely with the doers of good.” — The Holy Quran, 29:69

The word translated as “strive hard” indicates the act of doing jihad in the original Arabic. The meaning is clearly striving hard to bring about your moral and spiritual improvement. It may be noted that a synonym of jihad is the word mujahida, which is applied to religious exertions such as fasting.

The two verses given below indicate the same jihad, where again the word “strive” is used to translate the act of jihad:

وَ جَاہِدُوۡا فِی اللّٰہِ حَقَّ جِہَادِہٖ ؕ ہُوَ اجۡتَبٰىکُمۡ وَ مَا جَعَلَ عَلَیۡکُمۡ فِی الدِّیۡنِ مِنۡ حَرَجٍ ؕ مِلَّۃَ اَبِیۡکُمۡ اِبۡرٰہِیۡمَ ؕ ہُوَ سَمّٰىکُمُ الۡمُسۡلِمِیۡنَ ۬ۙ مِنۡ قَبۡلُ وَ فِیۡ ہٰذَا لِیَکُوۡنَ الرَّسُوۡلُ شَہِیۡدًا عَلَیۡکُمۡ وَ تَکُوۡنُوۡا شُہَدَآءَ عَلَی النَّاسِ ۚۖ فَاَقِیۡمُوا الصَّلٰوۃَ وَ اٰتُوا الزَّکٰوۃَ وَ اعۡتَصِمُوۡا بِاللّٰہِ ؕ

“And strive hard for Allah with due striving. He has chosen you and has not laid upon you any hardship in religion … so keep up prayer and pay the due charity and hold fast to Allah.” — The Holy Quran, 22:78

وَ مَنۡ جَاہَدَ فَاِنَّمَا یُجَاہِدُ لِنَفۡسِہٖ ؕ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ لَغَنِیٌّ عَنِ الۡعٰلَمِیۡنَ ﴿۶﴾

“And whoever strives hard, strives for himself. Surely Allah is Self-sufficient, above need of His creatures.” — The Holy Quran, 29:6

These verses were revealed to the Holy Prophet Muhammad while he was living under persecution at Makkah, and therefore the command here to do jihad cannot refer to fighting. In case of the first verse, the form of striving is indicated as by prayer, giving in charity and holding fast to God.

Jihad of Patience and Endurance:

This is indicated in the following verse:

ثُمَّ اِنَّ رَبَّکَ لِلَّذِیۡنَ ہَاجَرُوۡا مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِ مَا فُتِنُوۡا ثُمَّ جٰہَدُوۡا وَ صَبَرُوۡۤا ۙ اِنَّ رَبَّکَ مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِہَا لَغَفُوۡرٌ رَّحِیۡمٌ ﴿۱۱۰﴾٪

“Then surely your Lord, to those who flee after they are persecuted, then strive hard and are patient, surely your Lord after that is Protecting, Merciful.” — The Holy Quran, 16:110

This verse was revealed while the Holy Prophet was still resident at Makkah, before Muslims had been commanded to fight in battle, while they had started to emigrate to Madinah. Their striving hard or jihad was to bear all this hardship with patience, and did not mean fighting.

A jihad of this kind is also indicated in a well-known Hadith report, according to which the Holy Prophet Muhammad said:

“The most excellent jihad is to say a word of truth before an unjust ruler.”1

Here, speaking the truth for a noble purpose, when it requires great courage to do so, is called jihad, indeed the most excellent jihad, by the Holy Prophet of Islam.

Jihad of propagating the Message of Islam:

The jihad of the verse 16:110, quoted above, includes propagating the message of Islam, because it was for this also that the Muslims were being persecuted. This verse requires them to persevere in the jihad of preaching and be patient as to the results.

The Holy Prophet Muhammad is commanded:

وَ لَوۡ شِئۡنَا لَبَعَثۡنَا فِیۡ کُلِّ قَرۡیَۃٍ نَّذِیۡرًا ﴿۫ۖ۵۱﴾ فَلَا تُطِعِ الۡکٰفِرِیۡنَ وَ جَاہِدۡہُمۡ بِہٖ جِہَادًا کَبِیۡرًا ﴿۵۲﴾

“And if We pleased, We could raise a warner in every town. So do not obey the disbelievers, and strive against them a mighty striving with it.” — The Holy Quran, 25:51–52

The mighty or great striving, the great jihad (jihad kabir in Arabic) mentioned here, is the mission of the Holy Prophet Muhammad to spread the truth with the Quran, which is what the words “with it” refer to. This is also the duty of every Muslim as the great jihad. This verse, again, was revealed during the Makkan phase of the Holy Prophet’s life and therefore the command in it to

“strive a mighty striving”,

which mentions jihad twice, cannot possibly refer to undertaking any armed conflict.

There are also verses revealed much later at Madinah in which jihad cannot mean fighting by arms. For example:

یٰۤاَیُّہَا النَّبِیُّ جَاہِدِ الۡکُفَّارَ وَ الۡمُنٰفِقِیۡنَ وَ اغۡلُظۡ عَلَیۡہِمۡ ؕ

“O Prophet, strive hard against the disbelievers and the hypocrites and be firm against them.” — The Holy Quran, 9:73; 66:9

The hypocrites were a group who were outwardly a part of the Muslim community but at critical junctures they deserted the cause of Islam and showed insincerity of faith. No war was ever undertaken against them. The striving hard or jihad against them were the efforts to convince them of the truth of Islam. The same form of ‘striving’ also applies in case of the disbelievers mentioned here. More than ten English translations of the Quran render the meaning of doing jihad in these two verses as “strive hard”, and not as “fight” or “wage war”.

For another example of verses revealed at Madinah where jihad cannot mean fighting, we refer to chapter 61, verse 11:

تُؤۡمِنُوۡنَ بِاللّٰہِ وَ رَسُوۡلِہٖ وَ تُجَاہِدُوۡنَ فِیۡ سَبِیۡلِ اللّٰہِ بِاَمۡوَالِکُمۡ وَ اَنۡفُسِکُمۡ ؕ ذٰلِکُمۡ خَیۡرٌ لَّکُمۡ اِنۡ کُنۡتُمۡ تَعۡلَمُوۡنَ ﴿ۙ۱۱﴾

“You should believe in Allah and His Messenger, and strive hard in Allah’s way with your wealth and your lives. That is better for you, if you but knew!”

Three verses later it is stated:

یٰۤاَیُّہَا الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا کُوۡنُوۡۤا اَنۡصَارَ اللّٰہِ کَمَا قَالَ عِیۡسَی ابۡنُ مَرۡیَمَ لِلۡحَوَارِیّٖنَ مَنۡ اَنۡصَارِیۡۤ اِلَی اللّٰہِ ؕ

“O you who believe, be helpers (in the cause) of Allah, as Jesus, son of Mary, said to the disciples: Who are my helpers in the cause of Allah? The disciples said: We are helpers (in the cause) of Allah.” — The Holy Quran, 61:14

The striving hard, or jihad, of verse 11 is explained in this verse 14 as making yourselves helpers in the cause of Allah in the manner in which the disciples of Jesus responded to his call to be helpers in the Divine cause. The disciples of Jesus, whether according to Islamic or Christian sources, were not asked to fight in any battle with weapons. They helped the cause of truth by propagating his message in the face of persecution and the utmost difficulties.

Jihad of War:

The Quran also speaks of jihad by fighting, as for example:

اِنۡفِرُوۡا خِفَافًا وَّ ثِقَالًا وَّ جَاہِدُوۡا بِاَمۡوَالِکُمۡ وَ اَنۡفُسِکُمۡ فِیۡ سَبِیۡلِ اللّٰہِ ؕ

“Go forth, light and heavy, and strive hard in Allah’s way with your wealth and your lives.” — The Holy Quran, 9:41

وَ اِذَاۤ اُنۡزِلَتۡ سُوۡرَۃٌ اَنۡ اٰمِنُوۡا بِاللّٰہِ وَ جَاہِدُوۡا مَعَ رَسُوۡلِہِ اسۡتَاۡذَنَکَ اُولُوا الطَّوۡلِ مِنۡہُمۡ وَ قَالُوۡا ذَرۡنَا نَکُنۡ مَّعَ الۡقٰعِدِیۡنَ ﴿۸۶﴾

لٰکِنِ الرَّسُوۡلُ وَ الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا مَعَہٗ جٰہَدُوۡا بِاَمۡوَالِہِمۡ وَ اَنۡفُسِہِمۡ ؕ

“And when a chapter is revealed, saying, Believe in Allah and strive hard along with His Messenger, the wealthy among them ask permission of you (O Prophet) and say: Leave us behind, that we may be with those who sit at home. … But the Messenger and those who believe with him strive hard with their property and their persons.” — The Holy Quran, 9:86, 88

There are instances reported in Hadith where, when certain Muslims expressed the desire to join a jihad of fighting, the Holy Prophet told them that their jihad was to perform some other duty entirely unrelated to fighting. For example:

“Aishah (wife of the Holy Prophet) asked: Messenger of Allah, we consider jihad to be the most excellent of all deeds. Should we not then engage in jihad? He said: The most excellent jihad is the properly-performed Hajj (Pilgrimage to Makkah).”2

“A man came to the Prophet and asked his permission for jihad. He asked: Are your parents alive? The man said, Yes. He said: Then do jihad in their way.”3

The words “do jihad in their way” can only mean, and are understood by everyone as meaning, “exert yourself in the service of your parents”. The Holy Prophet here has not presented the Pilgrimage or service of parents as a metaphorical or lesser alternative for people unable to take part in a “real” jihad. He has described these works as the actual jihad on their part.

A very illuminating incident is recorded in Hadith, of a time some sixty years after the death of the Holy Prophet, when there was a rebellion of some Muslims led by Ibn Zubair against the Muslim government of the time. Abdullah ibn Umar, one of the greatest authorities on the Quran and son of the second Caliph Umar, was urged by some to join this rebellion as they considered it as jihad. It is reported:

“A man came to Ibn Umar and said: Why is it that one year you go for the Hajj and one year you go for the Umra (a lesser form of the Pilgrimage), and yet you have discarded jihad in the way of God? You know how much God has encouraged jihad? Ibn Umar said: My nephew, Islam is based on five things: Belief in God and His Messenger, five prayers, fasting in Ramadan, giving zakat, and the Pilgrimage to the House of God.

“The man said: Do you not hear what God has said in His Book, … ‘so fight them till there is an end to the mischief’. Ibn Umar said: ‘We acted on this in the time of the Holy Prophet. At that time, Muslims were few, and a man (who accepted Islam) used to face persecution for his religion — they would kill him or punish him. But then the followers of Islam multiplied in number, and there was no mischief left’.”4

Thus Ibn Umar refused to recognize that this armed conflict, regarded as jihad by many Muslims, was at all a jihad that a Muslim must join, even though it is generally regarded as a just cause against a caliph who was a usurper of that position. As his reference to the five pillars of Islam shows, Ibn Umar did not consider it a duty in Islam to join that so-called jihad.

Conditions for a Jihad by Arms:

For a war to be a jihad in Islamic terms, it must fulfil the conditions specified in the Quran. We have already seen in Section 4, ‘When is war allowed?’, the circumstances in which wars are permissible in Islam. It must be a war of self-defence and self-preservation by an entire Muslim community which is being persecuted for its religion. Only the government of a state or the leadership of a community can call upon Muslims to engage in such jihad. There must be negotiations to avoid war and establish peace, if possible. In battle, the clear instructions of Holy Prophet Muhammad must be followed, who strictly forbade the killing of the non-combatants and the defenceless among the enemy such as women, children, old people, and even those only doing labouring work for the enemy soldiers, not being fighters themselves.5 Again, the Holy Prophet’s example must be followed in the proper and humane treatment of any captured prisoners of war, who must eventually be freed to rejoin their people. As the Quran says:

حَتّٰۤی اِذَاۤ اَثۡخَنۡتُمُوۡہُمۡ فَشُدُّوا الۡوَثَاقَ ٭ۙ فَاِمَّا مَنًّۢا بَعۡدُ وَ اِمَّا فِدَآءً حَتّٰی تَضَعَ الۡحَرۡبُ اَوۡزَارَہَا ۬ۚ۟ۛ

“…then, when you have overcome them, make (them) prisoners, and afterwards (set them free) as a favour or for ransom till the war lay down its burdens.” — The Holy Quran, 47:4

There is no legitimacy at all in Islam for fringe, secretive, self-styled ‘Islamic’ groups to declare a jihad of war in the first place. Then to conduct their so-called jihad by acts such as indiscriminate violent attacks on the general, unsuspecting public, and kidnapping people and holding them as hostage, is simply abhorrent to the teachings of the Holy Quran and the Holy Prophet Muhammad.

Footnotes:

  1. Abu Dawud, book: ‘Battles’ (Malahim), h. 4344. Ibn Majah, book: ‘Tribulations’, h. 4011. Nasai, book: Bai‛ah, h. 4209 (MDR: h. 4214). ↩︎
  2. Bukhari, book: ‘Pilgrimage’, h. 1520 (MK: b. 26, n. 595). ↩︎
  3. Bukhari, book: Jihad, h. 3004 (MK: b. 52, n. 248). ↩︎
  4. Bukhari, book: ‘Commentary on the Quran’, h. 4513 (MK: b. 60, n. 40). ↩︎
  5. Bukhari, book: Jihad, h. 3014, h. 3015 (MK: b. 52, n. 257, 258).
    Muslim, book: Jihad, h. 1744a, 1744b (AHS: b. 19, n. 4319, 4320).
    Abu Dawud, book: Jihad, h. 2668, h. 2669, h. 2672.
    Tirmidhi, chapters: ‘Military Expeditions of the Messenger of Allah’, h. 1569. ↩︎

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