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“Fighting is ordained for you (Muslims) though you dislike it, and it may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you like a thing which is bad for you. And Allah knows, while you know not.” (TMQ Surah Al Baqarah: 216)
Often misquoted and very often publicized for the wrong reasons by those who control the mass media, the ibaadah act of jihad has come to be associated with extreme negativity. Whenever there is confusion about any issue, we turn to the Qur’an and authentic Sunnah to clarify the issue. Then we believe and we accept.
There is a misunderstanding of the word jihad amongst many of the Muslims today, who think it to mean any sort of struggle in the path of Allah, most commonly translated as striving. This is based upon the linguistic meaning being commonly quoted. Whilst the linguistic meaning can apply to a variety of acts, in Islam there are Shar’i (legal) meanings to many terms.
Zakah, Sawm, Hajj and the rest of these terms have their own linguistic meanings as well as legal meanings and it is impermissible for anyone to act upon the linguistic meaning while ignoring the Shar’i meaning. Thus a person cannot discharge zakah (purification) by taking a shower each morning! According to the Shari'ah, zakah is discharged by giving 2.5% of one’s wealth to the needy.
Jihad is the actualization of the belief that nothing is more beloved to the believer than Allah Azzawajal, His Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and striving for His sake. The mujahid’s willingness to give up everything of this world including his/her life, is a sign that he/she truly worships and serves none but Allah Azzawajal. That is his goal and no other purpose can come before it - no other gods, not anything material, neither his ego nor his wealth and certainly not his loved ones.
Jihad is a Shar’i term which implies qitaal (physical fighting) and when accompanied by “fee sabilillah” there is consensus among the scholars including the four schools of fiqh that this most certainly refers to physical fighting. There is a commonly quoted misconception that is very misleading: that the jihad in the battlefield is the minor jihad and the jihad of the nafs (desires) is the greater jihad and a hadeeth is often quoted in this regard. In fact this hadeeth is weak and has, depending on which version is stated, an untrustworthy person among the narrators, a liar within the chain of narrators or a broken chain of transmission altogether, none of which are acceptable in the science of hadeeth collection.
“Not equal are those of the believers who sit (at home), except those who are disabled, and those who strive hard and fight in the Cause of Allah with their wealth and their lives. Allah has preferred in grades those who strive hard and fight with their wealth and their lives to those who sit (at home)” (TMQ Surah An Nisa: 95)
Allah Azzawajal and his Rasul sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam have clarified the obligation of jihad with verses and ahadeeth replete with the virtues of this act of ibaadah, unlike any other:
A man came to Rasulullah sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and said, “Instruct me as to such a deed as equals jihad (in reward).” Rasulullah sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam replied, “I do not find such a deed.” Then he sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam added, “Can you, while the mujahid has gone for jihad, enter your mosque to perform prayers without end and fast and never break your fast?” The man said, “But who can do that?” (Sahih Bukhari)
"Standing for an hour in the ranks of battle in the Path of Allah is better than standing for sixty years (in prayer)." (Suyuti)
“A single attempt (fighting) in Allah’s Cause in the forenoon or in the afternoon is better than the world and whatever is in it” (Sahih Bukhari)
What must be clarified here is that jihad is not the savage, bloodthirsty monster that the crusading media makes it out to be. Jihad is a means and not an end. It is a means to remove oppression and tyranny on the earth thereby freeing man from the servitude of man to the servitude of Allah Azzawajal alone. Jihad is a means of upholding the justice that Islam brings. Islam was not spread by the sword ie. people were not forced to accept Islam, but the sword was certainly used to remove any obstacles that were preventing people from receiving the message of Islam.
Additionally, before, during and after a battle, the mujahideen are bound by the Shari’ah. One is hard pressed to find examples of indiscriminate murder of civilians, rape, looting, pillaging, and destruction of infrasctructure in the rich history of those who have sincerely fought in the cause of Allah Azzawajal and continue to do so. On the contrary, the world has never witnessed the justice that has been on display time and time again by the mujahideen. Compare this to the “justice” of the enemies of Allah Azzawajal and Rasulullah r (United States, Britain, Israel, India, Russia) who are directly responsible for the murder, rape and imprisonment of hundreds of thousands of innocent Muslims! Savagery is more fitting a term used to describe the actions of these human devils and servants of Iblees. Allah Azzawajal’s curse upon them all!
Unfortunately we have allowed disbelieving ideologies to creep into our minds to the extent that we feel too scared or embarrassed to even talk about jihad. If Allah Azzawajal’s Messenger sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam personally led 27 (other narrations mention 19) campaigns and sent out more than 60 expeditions to fight the enemies of Islam, how then are we embarrassed/scared about this noble deed? Everything is judged according to the Qur’an and Sunnah. It is not the Qur’an and Sunnah that is judged according to the dictates of man-made ideologies.
Jihad remains obligatory until the Day of Resurrection. "One who died but did not fight in the way of Allah, nor did he express any desire (or determination) for jihad, died the death of a hypocrite" (Sahih Muslim)
There is no denying this obligation and there is no need to be apologetic for this either. Jihad is part of Islam and always will be. Denying that is akin to denying the words of Rasulullah sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam! May Allah Azzawajal forgive us and save us from our own tongues!
"O you who believe! Whoever from among you turns back from his religion, Allah Azzawajal will bring a people whom He will love and they will love Him; humble towards the believers, stern against the disbelievers, fighting in the Way of Allah Azzawajal, and never fear the blame of the blamers. That is the grace of Allah, which He bestows on whom He wills. And Allah is All-Sufficient for His creatures needs, All-Knower." (TMQ Surah Al Ma’idah: 54)
This most noble deed is not driven by love of ones country or tribe. Nor is it driven by fame or wealth. Rather it begins with a sincere niyyah and a love that is solely for one’s Creator, Allah Azzawajal. It is undertaken with the following injunction in mind:
“He it is Who has sent His Messenger (Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam) with guidance and the religion of truth (Islam) to make it dominate over all other systems of life, even though the mushrikeen (disbelievers) hate it.” (TMQ Surah As Saff: 9)
What follows thereafter is the drive to achieve the promise of Allah Azzawajal – that of Jannatul Firdaus – the final home and indeed the best of homes!
‘The martyr possesses seven distinctions with respect to Allah Azzawajal: he is forgiven, amongst the first to be forgiven; he is shown his place in Paradise; he is not punished in the Grave; he is secure from the supreme terror of the day of judgement; the crown of dignity is placed on his head, a single ruby of which is more precious than the entire world and all it contains; he is wedded to seventy-two of the women of heaven; and he may intercede for seventy of his relatives.’ (Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah). The version of Imam Ahmad has the addition: "He is dressed in the clothes of Iman"
‘Let those (believers) who sell the life of this world for the Hereafter fight in the cause of Allah, and whosoever fights in the Cause of Allah, and is killed or is victorious, We shall bestow on him a great reward.’ (TMQ Surah An Nisa: 74)
"Think not of those who are killed in the Way of Allah as dead. Nay, they are alive, with their Lord, and they have provision. They rejoice in what Allah has bestowed upon them of His Bounty, rejoicing for the sake of those who have not yet joined them, but are left behind (not yet martyred) that on them no fear shall come, nor shall they grieve" (TMQ Surah Aal Imran: 169-170)
So, in this day when the enemies of Allah Azzawajal and His Rasul sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam have invaded and brutally occupied our lands, violated the honour of our mothers and sisters and made orphans out of our children and has boldly begun to strike at Islam in every possible manner, are we still debating about the manner of getting them to understand? Even after Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam has told us that “the blood of a muslim is worth more than the Ka’aba.” (Ibn Majah)?
Even after Muslim armies were launched to avenge the honour of a single Muslim woman by Rasulullah sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and later by the Khalifah Al Mu’tasim?
"And make ready against them all you can of power, including steeds of war (tanks, planes, missiles, weaponry) to strike terror into the enemies of Allah and your enemies..." (TMQ Surah Al Anfaal: 60)
"He who provides for a mujahid in the Way of Allah the Almighty, it is as if he himself has made jihad; and he who has supported the family of a mujahid with an act of goodness, it is as if he himself has made jihad. (obtains the reward for it)" (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi)
The enemies of Allah Azzawajal and His Rasul sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam are working very hard to stop all forms of assistance that Rasulullah sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam has directed believers to in this hadeeth under the pretext of the lie that is the so-called “war on terror”. We often ponder about the reasons behind the current state of affairs that the Ummah is facing. Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam gave us the reasons for this. He sallallaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, also pointed out the solution. If we claim to follow his example, we should take heed:
“When you deal in hidden Riba (interest), and are fully occupied in your own life (business) and give up jihad; Then Allah shall cover you with such disgrace, as would not be removed, until you would return to your religion again (return to jihad).” (Musnad Ahmad and Sunan Abu Dawud) |
