Philosophy of Jihad

By
Saad Ahmad
saad.ahmad@gmail.com

In this paper, I am going to briefly describe the basic philosophy of Jihad according to the fundamental Islamic principles. Before we explore this issue, we need to understand the following points:

What is the purpose for which Allah created Human beings?
How should we achieve the purpose of our creation?
We need to explore the concept of Jihad in the light of these basic principles.

Purpose of Creation:
In order to understand the philosophy of any concept in Islam, it is essential to understand the purpose of our creation. Allah says in the Holy Quran:

And I have not created the Jinn and the men but that they may worship Me. (51:57)

This implies that Allah has created the human race for the sole purpose of His worship. This implies that the apex of human achievement is to understand Allah and to love Him.

This goal is not a trivial task since true worship of Allah requires that everything else should become secondary. Islam does not expect that this goal will be achieved overnight. Islam wants us to travel on the path of Allah and pray to Allah for His assistance in achieving this goal.

The basic philosophy of all of Islamic teachings is to assist the human beings in achieving this highest objective. Every edict of Islam should be understood in this context and similarly any interpretation of an Islamic teaching that does not help us in this struggle is contrary to the basis of the Holy Quran.

A human soul has to go through a process of evolution that culminates in a state where it attains the status that enables it to worship Allah as He should be worshiped. Holy Quran describes these states as follows:

Nafs-e-Ammara – Soul that incites to evil
Mind of man is ever ready to incite to evil (12:54)

This state incites a man towards evil as opposed to the attainment of the objective of his creation. This is his state so long that he is not guided by reason. In this state he follows his natural bent in his every day activities. [1]

Nafs-e-Lawama – The reproving self
The source of the moral state of man is designated by the Holy Quran as the Nafs-e-Lawama:

I call to witness the reproving self (75:3)

The first state, nafs-e-ammara, moves towards the next state that is called nafs-e-lawama with the help of reason and understanding. This verse indicates that at this state the soul reproves itself for every vice and intemperance. Since it reproves every vicious movement, it is referred to as the reproving self. At this state, even though the soul reproves itself in respect of vices, yet it is not fully effective in practicing virtue. It is often dominated by natural emotions and thus it often stumbles and falls. At this state the soul is like a weak child that does not wish to stumble but often does so out of weakness.[2]

Nafs-e-Mutmainna – The soul at rest
The beginning of the spiritual state of man is called nafs-e-mutmainna in the Holy Quran. Allah says:

O soul at rest that has found comfort in God return to thy Lord, thou well pleased with Him and He well pl2eased with thee. Now join My chosen servants and enter into My garden (89:28-31)

This is the stage when the soul of a person enables him to establish a relationship with the Almighty.

As water flowing down from a height, on account of its volume and the absence of any obstruction, rushes with great force, in the same way the soul at rest flows towards God.[3]

This soul is bestowed a paradise while still in this world. This is the state, which is the objective of the creation. By implication, a secondary objective is that we strive to achieve this state. This is the state that enables a soul to truly worship Allah.


Achieving the goal of our creation
The earlier discussion tells us the following points:
* The goal of our creation is the worship of Allah
* This goal involves a long and arduous transformation of the soul

Life is a journey in which we need to focus on our destination. In Quran Allah not only tells us about the destination but also provides the necessary guidance about the way to the destination. Muslims recite the following verse more than 32 times during their five daily prayers:

Guide us in the right path (1:6)

Quran does provides the necessary guidance, but along with that Muslims are instructed to pray for Allah’s help since He alone can enable us to reach the objective that he has laid out for us.

Every edict, advice, suggestion, instruction, law, story, and example in the Holy Quran is for helping us in achieving this objective. Shariah (Islamic Laws) were established in order to provide a framework that assists in the growth of human soul. The various articles of the faith of Islam that include:

* Declare faith in Islam
* Praying five times a day
* Observing Fast during the month of Ramadan
* Helping the poor financially through the institution of Zakat
* Pilgrimage of the House of Allah in Makkah

These are the tools that we need in order to tread this path. These rituals are essential in order to cleanse our soul and enable it to reach its objective and worship Allah. In fact being able to worship Allah in its true spirit is the heaven that one can reach in this world.

When Quran tells us about the historical accounts of the Jews and Christians, the purpose of those stories is that we should learn from history and not repeat their mistakes. As Quran tells us to pray:

Guide us in the right path-The path of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy blessings, those who have not incurred Thy displeasure, and those, who have not gone astray(1:6-7)

This is the background in which the Quranic injunctions about Jihad should be understood and analyzed. Quran is a coherent book and does not contain any inconsistencies as it claims:

This is a perfect Book; there is no doubt in it; it is a guidance for the righteous (2:3)

It has been the practice of the human beings to interpret scripture of any sort to fit their own agenda. Quran is not an exception to this – but fortunately in the case of Quran the original text is preserved and we can revert back to it to find out the real truth. Any interpretation of the Quranic text that makes it inconsistent with other parts of Quran need to be resolved using this principle.

Jihad
Lexical Interpretation:
Arabic Word Jihad is derived from word Juhud that means, “to strive”[4]. So the literal meaning of the word Jihad is “to strive” or “struggle”.

Some Quranic Verses about Jihad

And strive in the cause of Allah as it behooves you to strive for it. ... Therefore observe Prayer and pay the Zakat, and hold fast to Allah. He is your Master. An excellent Master and an excellent Helper! (22:79)

So obey not the disbelievers and strive by the means of it (i.e. the Quran) a great striving (25:53)
In this verse, Jihad with the help of the Quran is called Jihadan Kabeera that means the greatest Jihad.

Those of the believers who sit still, excepting the disabled ones, and those who strive in the cause of Allah with their wealth and their persons, are not equal. Allah has exalted in rank those who strive with their wealth and their persons above those who sit still. And to each Allah has promised good. And Allah has exalted those who strive above those who sit still, by a great reward (4:96)

O ye who believe! fear Allah and seek the way of approach unto Him and strive in His way that you may prosper (5:36)


These verses have been stated as examples. There are several other references to Jihad in the Holy Quran, all of which invite the believers to strive in the way of Allah.

Jihad in the Context of the evolution of the Soul
As I stated earlier, all Quranic injunctions are there to assist us in our journey towards our ultimate objective, i.e. the worship of Allah. This journey is full of hardships. Satanic impulses are waiting for us at every corner. The path of Allah is arduous and full of obstacles that require a conscious and consistent struggle.

Imagine a typical day in the life of a person striving in the way of Allah and the types of obstacles and impulses that he or she may encounter:

· Impulse to lie when faced with trouble
· Impulse to cheat in order to get out of a situation
· Impulse to drink – one drink is not going to hurt
· Impulse to take drugs
· Laziness in fulfilling the rituals that train us to worship Allah, such as praying five times a day
· Sexual promiscuity and permissiveness
· Impulse to bribe or to take a bribe
· Etc.

Such distractions are real and hinder in the course of our journey towards Allah – the struggle to overcome such obstacles is termed Jihad in the Holy Quran.

When returning from one of the armed conflicts, Holy Prophet (peace be on him) observed with a sigh of relief:

We have returned from a lesser Jihad (warfare) to a greater Jihad[5]

This struggle that we go through in order to overcome our shortcomings and strive in the way of Allah so that our soul can achieve the highest status has been called the Greater Jihad by the Holy Prophet (peace be on him).

Jihad-an-Kabeera – Greatest Jihad with the help of Quran
In Quran 25:23 that was stated earlier, Allah says:

So obey not the disbelievers and strive by the means of it (i.e. the Quran) a great striving (25:53)

Here Allah ordains the Muslims to strive against the disbelievers using the Quran. This has been called the greatest Jihad. Is this the Jihad that the Muslims are called towards today? Certainly not! Allah wants us to propagate His message to the corners of the world using the guidance that is provided by the Quran.

This is the Jihad that is the need of the day for the Muslims. We need to understand Quran ourselves and then explain it to others. Quran is the tool of Islamic Jihad not man-made destructive weapons.

Jihad of pen is another form of this Jihad. Muslims should fight off the attacks on our faith by the use of reason that is guided by the true revelation. Objections against Islam should be answered rather than issuing a fatwa for murder.

If Muslims want to regain their forgotten glory, they need to revert to this greatest Jihad rather than waiting for someone who is going to murder every infidel and kill every swine in order to spread the word of Allah. If Muslims look toward Quran for guidance, they will quickly discover how the likes of Osama bin Laden, Saddam Hussain, and the various other so-called Muslim leaders are maligning the good name of Islam in order reach their twisted goals.

Lesser Jihad – Necessary Armed Conflict
Islam claims to be the true religion that satisfies the root of human psyche. In Quran, Allah has told us about the purpose of our creation and the path that we can tread to achieve that. Islam also recognizes that the path to this end is critical and it is necessary to strive in this path in order to reach the desired objective. Islam competes with other religions on merit and does not require any coercion. Allah says in the Holy Quran:

There shall be no compulsion in religion. Surely, right has become distinct from wrong. (2:257)

Islam wants to create a world where human beings are free to practice their faith. A world where people from different faiths interact in order to find the path that leads straight to Allah.

Islam has allowed Muslims to take up arms only when the practice of religion becomes impossible and only when it becomes impossible for the Muslims to strive in the way of Allah because of the repressive actions of the enemy. Quran clearly states that an armed conflict is only allowed when the religious freedom is threatened:

Permission to fight is given to those against whom war is made, because they have been wronged-and Allah indeed has power to help them. Those who have been driven out from their homes unjustly only because they said, `Our Lord is Allah'-And if Allah did not repel some men by means of others, there would surely have been pulled down cloisters and churches and synagogues and mosques, wherein the name of Allah is oft commemorated. And Allah will surely help one who helps Him. Allah is indeed Powerful, Mighty (22:40-41)

It is important to note here that the Arabic word for armed conflict that is used here is Yuqatilona, which does not have the same roots as the Arabic word Jihad, so to translate Jihad as “Holy War” as is commonly done is completely wrong. it is wrong morally, ethically, academically, and lexically.

This verse permits defense when one cannot say “Our Lord is Allah”. This is a very concise and specific condition. Permission to fight is not given so that you can expand your territory, neither is permission to fight given to convert the infidels to Islam – it is given only when the religious oppression gets to such an extreme that saying “Our Lord is Allah” becomes impossible.


In another verse, Allah says:
And fight in the cause of Allah against those who fight against you, but do not transgress. Surely, Allah loves not the transgressors (2:191)
The Arabic word for fight that is used here is Qatilu.

This permission to fight is also very narrow and allows a strictly defensive fight. It lays down three basic conditions:

1. You cannot fight others in order to spread your religion.
2. Only fight those who have taken up arms against you.
3. You can only fight those who are legal combatants, i.e. who are actively taking part in the fighting.


So, it is important to note here that Islam is different from Christianity in that it has allowed an armed defense against an armed enemy when the armed enemy has waged an aggressive war that threatens the religious liberties – but this permission is very narrow and applies only in certain specific situations. Any attempt to exploit these verses in order to achieve political and nationalistic ends is shameful and against the basic teachings of Islam.

At this time, I must mention that we enjoy more freedom of religion in USA, than in any Muslim country. So it should be abhorrent for any Muslim when someone tries to label killing Americans as Jihad. I could not have made this speech in Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, or Iran. So USA is more Islamic than any Muslim country on the face of the planet today.

Conclusion
In conclusion I want to re-emphasize that Quranic teachings are inter-related and all of them lead us to a single goal – to reach the apex of human existence and be able to worship Allah as He should be worshiped. This path is defined in the Holy Quran along with the necessary tools. While traversing on this path, we face challenges – and overcoming those challenges is termed Jihad. So whenever someone overcomes a satanic impulse and corrects his course, he is doing Jihad – and such Jihad is called the greater Jihad.

Islam also wants us to propagate these teachings to others such that the whole mankind can benefit. Islam tells us to use Quran in this struggle (25:53 stated earlier) and be a beacon for the mankind.

All Muslims should take part in Jihad wherever they are. In this society or in any other society, we must take part in such Jihad and while overcoming the satanic impulses we should invite others to Islam using the powerful teachings of the Quran.

But we must strongly deny and resist the view that makes it right to shed blood, to spread disorder and disloyalty, and to disrupt civil peace in the name of Islam. To do so is to soil the fair name of Islam.

I will end this paper with the following passage from a book of the promised Messiah and Mehdi – Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (may his soul rest in peace)

The Holy Quran clearly forbids the use of force for the spread of the faith and directs its propagation through its inherent qualities and the good example of the Muslims. Do not be misled by the notion that in the beginning the Muslims were commanded to take up the sword. That sword was not taken up for the spread of the faith, but in self-defense against the enemies of Islam and for the purpose of establishing peace and security. It was no part of the purpose of taking it up, to have a recourse to coercion in the matter of faith.[6]

[1] Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, The Philosophy of the teachings of Islam. Islam International Publications, p 1
[2] Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, The Philosophy of the teachings of Islam. Islam International Publications, p 2
[3] Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, The Philosophy of the teachings of Islam. Islam International Public3ations, p 3
[4] Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, British Government and Jihad. p 1
[5] Jihad and World Peace. Islam International Publications, p 6
[6] Hadrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, Sitarah Qaisariyyah. p 16