About IslamCan Contact Us Advertise Tell a Friend Search Contact Us | Advertise on IslamCan | Copyright Information | Privacy Policy Home Islamic Stories Miracle Pictures Signs of Allah Greeting Cards Muslim Baby Names Islamic Jokes Questions and Answers Signs of Qiyamah 99 Names of Allah Azan MP3 Women in Islam Islamic History Ever Wonder? Masjid Directory Arabic to English Dictionary Free Wallpapers Islamic Wallpapers Free Screensavers Islamic Quizzes Youth Issues and Advice Paradise-Jannah Hell-Jahannam Jinn-Spirits Islamic Months Salat Duas Quran: Clear Truth Bengali Section IslamCan Webdesign Tweet 3 21 Tweet 3 21 Free iPhone 5 Wallpapers Free Islamic Screensavers Free Galaxy S Wallpapers Free Computer Wallpapers Free Screensavers Free nature screensavers for your computer. Miracles of Islam Many miracle pictures of Islam. Jihad and Islam The word Jihad represents a concept which is much misunderstood in the West. The concept is explained nicely by the Christian scholar Ira 6. Zepp, Jr. in his book entitled A Muslim Primer on pages 133-135. We adapt from his answer the following: The essential meaning of Jihad is the spiritual, psychological, and physical effort we exert to be close to God and thus achieve a just and harmonious society. Jihad literally means striving or struggle and is shorthand for Jihad fi Sabeel Allah (struggle for Gods cause). In a sense, every Muslim is a Mujahid, one who strives for God and justice. Al-Ghazali captured the essence of Jihad when he said: The real Jihad is the warfare against (ones own) passions. Dr. Ibrahim Abu-Rabi calls Jihad the execution of effort against evil in the self and every manifestation of evil in society. In a way, Jihad is the Muslims purest sacrifice: a struggle to live a perfect life and completely submit to God. Another form of Jihad is the striving to translate the Word of God into action. If one has experienced God and received guidance from the Quran, one struggles to apply that guidance in daily life. So the larger, more prevalent meaning of Jihad is the spiritual struggle of the soul. In this case, Jihad is always present for the believer whether there is an external enemy or not. We should never reduce Jihad to violence. A third level of Jihad is popularly known as holy war. The classic passage is found in the Quran: Fight in the way of Allah those who fight against you, but transgress not the limits. Truly Allah likes not the transgressors (Quran 2:190). It is crucial to note here that what is condoned is defensive warfare; Islam cannot justify aggressive war. Muhammad and the Tradition are also against killing non-combatants, torturing of prisoners, the destruction of crops, animals and homes. Adapted from Ira 6. Zepp, Jr., A Muslim Primer (1992, Wakefield Editions, US) pp.133-135. Robert Ellwood of the University of Southern California has the following to say about the Muslim concept of Jihad: Out of the community ideal of Islam comes the concept of jihad, or holy war, which is designed to defend Islam and allow its social practice, though not to force individual conversions, which is forbidden. Since Islam in principle is a community as well as a religion, presumably only an absolute pacifist would be able to reject the theory of jihad out of hand, since other communities also fight to defend or expand their ways of life. (Many Peoples, Many Faiths by Robert S. Ellwood, 4th edition, Simon & Schuster, US, 1982, p.346).
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 07:51:36 +0000
© 2015