ONE of the words often used to scare people when it comes to Islam is jihad.
It is a word often given a negative connotation by various quarters. It may even be that there is no term or word more misunderstood and misused than jihad, which is unfortunate.
Since the Sept 11, 2001 tragedy in the United States, jihad has cropped up even more frequently. Calls for jihad by some quarters to protect the lives of Muslims in places such as Palestine, Afghanistan and Iraq have led others to use the word jihad, when directly translated as “holy war”, to portray Muslims as violent and barbaric.
Islam is a misunderstood religion, and jihad is perhaps the best example of an Islamic concept misunderstood. It has been used irresponsibly to paint Islam as having a dark and evil side.
The word “Islam” comes from the root word “salam”, which literally means “safe” or “peaceful”. How, then, can a religion that declares itself to be peaceful be so violent and bloodthirsty? It is apparent that in recent history, the term jihad has been used wantonly to imply that Islam is violent and bloodthirsty. The biggest single misconception about jihad is that it means “holy war”. In truth, “holy war” is not a translation of the term jihad, either directly or subtly. This mistranslation can be traced back to the times of the Crusades when “holy war” was used to describe the wars against the Muslims.
But there is no equivalent in the Arabic vocabulary for “holy war”. Centuries have past since the Crusades ended, yet jihad is still translated to mean “holy war”. This can perhaps be attributed to the fact that the media today, even local ones, equate jihad with “holy war”.
With the events unfolding in Iraq, we find the term jihad cropping up again; and again it has been translated to mean “holy war”.
Even today’s Muslims have become confused by this translation that they themselves have begun to describe jihad, in particular jihad fi sabilillah, as a holy war.
But jihad fi sabilillah means “to strive on the path of God”.
And the proper translation of “holy war” into Arabic is al-harbu al-muqaddasah. The fact of the matter is that neither of the primary sources of Islamic teaching, namely the Quran and the Hadith, equates jihad to “holy war”.
In fact, there is no mention of “holy war” in either the Quran or the Hadith.
There are, however, references to war in both these sources, and the terms used to describe war or fighting are either qital or harb. At this point, it is perhaps vital that we understand the concept of jihad.
First, look at its literal translation. The term jihad comes from the Arabic word aljahd, which means “tireless” or al-juhd, which comes to mean “energetic”. The word jihad thus translates into “to strive tirelessly” or to “channel all energies into an endeavour”.
Next, we have to understand that there are many levels and categories of jihad.
Many Islamic scholars state that the highest form of jihad ‘jihad al-akbar’ is the struggle within one’s self to become a better Muslim by resisting the temptations and lures of lust and sin. This is highlighted in one Hadith of the Prophet, who explained: “The mujahid (one who carries out jihad) is he who strives against himself for the sake of God, and the muhajir (one who migrates) is he who abandons evil deeds and sin.” In short, the highest form of jihad for a Muslim is to observe the virtues of Islam in one’s daily life. A man once asked the Prophet of Islam: “Should I take part in jihad?” The Prophet asked: “Do you have parents?” The man said: “Yes.” The Prophet replied: “Then strive by serving them.” Doubtless, Islam regards serving one’s parents as a virtuous character. This form of jihad, therefore, is considered to be the most noble and admirable. The question that arises now is why is it that many people equate the term jihad with war or harb? It is common to see the phrase jihad fi sabilillah being equated with war and fighting or, as evident today, this sacred phrase is even used to insinuate acts of terror. This may be a result of the history of Islam that saw this phrase being used during wartime.
If we look at history, Muslims had to strive against attacks from the Musyrikin of Makkah. Battles such as the ones at Badar and Uhud were the results of acts of transgression against the Muslims. The Muslims, having only established the city of Madinah, had to defend themselves, and thus called for jihad as an act of selfdefence.
This was stated in verse 39 of Surah alTaubah in the Quran, to the effect that: “To those against whom war is made, permission is given (to fight), because they are wronged, and verily God is Most Powerful in their aid.” The word used to describe “to fight” is yuqataluna, which originates from the Arabic word qital.
Even here, the word jihad is not used. The Quran thus allows fighting to defend the religion of Islam and the Muslims. This is permitted under several conditions, one of which is self-defence and the protection of family and property.
In the early days of Islam, the Muslims had to defend themselves and their faith from the attacks of the pagans of Quraisy in Makkah. On this matter, the Quran outlines clearly the dos and don’ts of war.
For instance, verse 190 of Surah al-Baqarah, is translated thus: “Fight in the cause of God those who fight you, but do not transgress limits, for God loves not transgressors.” Further in the same chapter of the Quran in verse 193, it is stated to the effect that: “And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevails justice and faith in God, but if they cease, let there be no hostility except to those who practised oppression.” Yet again, in these verses the word used to describe fighting is qatala, which originates from qital and not jihad. Thus, it is imperative that this misconception and misunderstanding of jihad be corrected. On this matter, it is pertinent that the media should play a key role. When translating the word jihad, the media should not use “holy war” as its equivalent. The bottom line is that there is nothing holy about wars. Contrary to what some quarters say, war should only be regarded as a last resort after all attempts have been exhausted to solve whatever problems are faced.
Diplomatic negotiations, mediations and dialogues could perhaps be the best means to overcome problems. These efforts may look to be slow and tedious, but they can definitely save many innocent lives. In fact, we have seen too many wars in our history. We have also seen too many people die as a result of wars. The aggression on Iraq, for example, has seen nearly 2,000 innocent civilians killed as a result of continued bombardments by the invading forces.
Many in the world have voiced their opposition to the war on Iraq. Yet, most of us can do nothing more than watch in vain as more bombardments are carried out in order to “destroy Saddam Hussein”. For the people of Iraq, they must struggle to protect their homeland. It is their obligation to do so. It is even an act of self-defence. Perhaps for them, their actions could indeed be categorised as jihad.