Redefining 'Jihad'

Challenging the Rhetoric of Extremism

al-Aqsa, Jerusalem, Asim Bharwani

Following the events of 9/11, the word ‘jihad’ was thrust into Western discourse with polemicists flagrantly misusing and abusing it, defining it as ‘holy war.’ But is this jihad? In the West’s haste to assimilate this word into its dialogue, attempting to reassure its people of their renewed safety and their leaders’ knowledge of this new enemy, it did not take the time to establish a full understanding or question the source of its exposure. Translating jihad as ‘holy war’ does not reflect an acquaintance with Islam but instead the rhetoric of terrorists who have hijacked this ancillary of faith. Muslim extremists cloak their uninhibited acts of violence and terrorism with the cloth of jihad, having distorted and debased it to justify their blatant disregard for the sanctity of human life and the spirit of Islam. The Quran defines acceptable conduct and motivation for Muslims to wage war but this supposed “jihad” rarely abides by few if any of these rules. It’s not the jihad or the righteous warfare defending Islam of Muhammad and the Rashidun’s time. It’s nothing more than wanton murder and bedlam, a crime already known to Islamic jurisprudence as hirabah.

This corruption of jihad coupled with the silence and tacit consent of the Muslim majority, and the West’s blind adherence to the terrorists’ language -intrinsically condoning their crimes against humanity as a noble struggle in the name of Allah - insults and vilifies Islam and its nation. Furthermore it drives the stake between the West and dar al-Islam deeper, hindering any potential cooperation and escalating the injustices and conflicts of the past, ultimately allowing once marginalized extremism to flourish in this system of needless mutual antagonism. This needs to change, and that begins with enlightenment, honesty, and mutual understanding. This essay pursues that goal through two means. First, it seeks to establish a more complete understanding of jihad, its sanctity, and an array of its interpretations, dispelling both the belligerent operationalization of jihad by Muslim extremists, permitting the slaughter of innocent women and children and misrepresenting the spirit of Islam, and the pacification and oversimplification of jihad endorsed by both Muslim and Western apologists. Secondly it proposes a solution for the West’s flawed use of “jihad,” which inherently alienates the peaceful Muslim majority, advocating for its replacement with “hirabah,” which properly defines and maligns the extremists’ conduct as the crime against humanity and the sin before Allah it is. Ideally this reeducation and redefining will not only break down the extremists’ support base but barrier they’ve built between Islam and the West as well.

In Modern Standard Arabic the word jihad (جهاد‎) can function grammatically as a noun or as the verb, jahada (جهد‎), and translates to a “struggle” or the act of “exerting oneself for a purpose,” religious or secular. Secularly, it’s used to describe movements for women’s rights, such as that of Egyptian feminist Huda Sha’arawi, as well as Mahatma Gandhi’s struggle for Indian independence, [1] both of which exemplify nonviolence. To truly comprehend the nature of religious Jihad however, one must first acknowledge the 14 centuries of Islamic scholarship, which has birthed a vast multiplicity of thought and interpretations, colored by historical conditions and sectarian and legal adherences. In short, the spirit of jihad has evolved over time and adapted to the diversity of the Muslims and Islamic thought.[2] Ultimately however the noble Quran and the hadiths, namely the revelations of the Prophet Muhammad, are the only true religious authority to be recognized in Islam and subsequently, our discussion begins there.

Within the Quran, jihad is often being found in the expression, al-jihad fii sabilillah (الجهاد في سبيل الله) which means, “striving or struggling in the way of Allah.” But what does it mean to struggle in god’s way? The spiritual nature of jihad is defined by the Quran’s enunciations of the Muslims’ religious duties, as within the surat al-Hajj, or the Chapter of Pilgrimage.   

“And strive for Allah with the striving due to Him. He has chosen you and has not placed upon you in the religion any hardship. [It is] the religion of your father, Abraham. Allah named you "Muslims" before [in former scriptures] and in this [revelation] that the Messenger may be a witness over you and you may be witnesses over the people. So establish prayer and give zakah and hold fast to Allah. He is your protector; and excellent is the protector, and excellent is the helper.” (22:78) 

In this passage jihad is translated as striving for Allah expressly by being a good Muslim and adhering to Islam’s five pillars of faith; this verse specifically references bearing witness or shahada, prayer "salat", fasting "sawm", and tithing "zakat", with the sura as a whole discussing the fifth pillar, hajj or pilgrimage. One can then understand jihad to be the continued affirmation of faith, the constant inner, spiritual struggle for righteousness, always endeavoring to fulfill one’s duties to Allah and one's community. Islamic scholar Mahmoud Ayoub describes "The goal of true jihad is to attain a harmony between Islam (submission), Iman (faith), and Ihsan (righteous living).” For a Muslim, jihad is the act of endeavoring to fulfill God's will, recognizing both man's imperfection and his divine ability to strive in the way of Allah despite himself.

 

Salat, Old Dubai, David Lisbona

Jihad does not intrinsically imply violence and certainly not “holy war.” However in application, “striving in the way of Allah” as revealed within the Quran and the hadith, can constitute warfare in the defense and extension of Islam. To clarify, the Quran never uses “jihad” to specifically describe combat or violence, instead employing “qital” (قتال) and “harb” (حرب) as fighting and war respectively. However based upon the understanding of jihad established in this discussion, the Quran’s revelations relating to warfare may be included within the duty of jihad. Consequently despite the best intentions on the part of Western scholars seeking to promote interfaith dialogue and Muslim apologists attempting to depict jihad in a flat, pacified light, no discussion of jihad is complete without an acknowledgement of fiats and principles of Islamic warfare.[3] By no means is this grounds for the immediate arraignment of this ancillary of faith, which symbolizes much more than simply armed struggle, or arraignment of Islam, as Islamic Scholar, Robert D. Crane notes, “The resort to physical force is justified in every religion to defend the human rights of oneself and others.” [4] Islam reserves the same right as the other Abrahamic traditions to defend itself, and this right is asserted within its holy text.

Among the most frequently cited Quranic revelations, defining Islamic rationale for warfare are verses 190-193 of surat al-Baqarah, the Chapter of the Cow, 

“Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you but do not aggress and initiate the fight. Indeed. Allah does not like aggressors.” (2:190) 

“And kill them (those who would fight you) wherever you overtake them and expel them from wherever they have expelled you, and fitnah is worse than killing. And do not fight them at al-Masjid al-Haram (the Kaaba, literally the Sacred Mosque) until they fight you there. But if they fight you, then kill them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers.” (2:191) 

“And if they cease, then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.” (2:192) 

“Fight them until there is no fitnah and worship is for Allah. But if they cease, then there is to be no aggression except against the oppressors.” (2:193) 

Foremost, these passages support only defensive warfare, making a point against initiating conflict in 2:190, noting Allah’s disdain for aggressors (معتدين). In these passages fitnah (فتنة) is understood as persecution and oppression of the Muslims. And as 2:191 posits that the aggressors’ fitnah is only a worse offense than the Muslims’ retaliatory killing; murder is still an offense and is certainly not sanctified or open endedly justified, solely in the instance of defending Islam is it forgiven, after which the same principle of forgiveness is iterated for the aggressors, should their belligerency, persecution, and ignorance of monotheism cease. Historically such a defense became necessary for the Umma (the Muslim community) with the passing of Muhammad’s uncle, Abu-Talib, after which the first Muslims no longer enjoyed the Hashemite clan’s protection in Mecca. The Meccan Quraysh, were fearful of the threat Islam posed to the Mecca’s economy which was built on pilgrimage to the still pagan Kaaba. In turn, Qurayshi persecution forced the Muslims to emigrate to Medina (the hijra), where the Quraysh continued to dog them.[5] Jihad only acquired a military dimension in response the oppressive practices and continued assaults of the Meccan Quraysh against Muslims, attempting to stem their faith.[6]

This verse found in the surat at-Tawbah or the chapter of repentance is likewise considered a defining revelation for Islamic warfare, 

“Fight those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day and who do not consider unlawful what Allah and His Messenger have made unlawful and who do not adopt the religion of truth from those who were given the scripture until they give the jizyah willingly while they are humbled.” (9:29) 

This passage vindicates war against pagans on the basis of their polytheism, rather than requiring the Umma’s defense as a casus belli. Depending upon one’s interpretation it may be an early appearance of Islam’s tolerance for the other faiths of the Abrahamic tradition or it may however sanction Muslim conflict with the other monotheistic faiths as well. [5] The word translated as “scripture” in this instance is literally “books” and it may very well refer to the scriptures of Judaism and Christianity, suggesting that all monotheisms fall under the same God and are different paths to same end. This tolerance for the other monotheistic faiths is exemplified by the dhimmi system established under the Islamic Caliphate, in which Jews, Christians, and Sabians lived peacefully under Islamic rule with relative equality, humbly accepting to pay the jizyah or tax. The Dhimmi status would come to include Buddhists, Hindus, and numerous smaller faiths such as the Baha'i faith and the Druze. For some extremists however, justification for Christians and Jews being redefined as infidels is articulated within this sura however, as it acknowledges an enemy to be found among those who permit that which Islam forbids. Christianity’s triumph of Jesus’ divinity and Judaism’s of Ezra’s and both their hierarchical structures are strictly considered idol worship in Islam as evidenced in these sura, 

“The Jews say, "Ezra is the son of Allah "; and the Christians say, "The Messiah is the son of Allah ." That is their statement from their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved [before them]. May Allah destroy them; how are they deluded?” (9:30)

 “They have taken their scholars and monks as lords besides Allah, and [also] the Messiah, the son of Mary. And they were not commanded except to worship one God; there is no deity except Him. Exalted is He above whatever they associate with Him.” (9:31)

It is crucial to note however that the reiteration of Allah’s command to fight later in the sura, 

 “… And fight against the disbelievers one and one as they fight against you…”  (9:36) refers to the other adherents to the other Abrahamic traditions, mistaken in their idolatry,  as disbelievers, (المشركين) rather than polytheists or infidels (الذين كفروا), marking a significant distinction between the two. The clause, “as they fight against you” is in effect for the disbelievers, evoking only defensive warfare against other monotheists, ultimately leaving their judgment to Allah should they be peaceful. Only amongst pagans, for whom dhimmi status was not extended, is warfare unrestricted. The question of Islam’s need for defense would be raised in 20th century however with colonialism, globalization, the rise of Israel, and the subsequent bloodshed.

Returning to the nature of jihad, the aforementioned Quranic verses and others, suggest that striving in the way of Allah, consists not only of continued affirmation of one’s faith but coming to its defense as well. But is there a ranking to this? In a well-known, albeit oft contested hadith, in which the companion of Muhammad, Jabir ibn Abd-Allah, reports that "The Prophet returned from one of his battles, and thereupon told us, 'You have arrived with an excellent arrival, you have come from the Lesser Jihad to the Greater Jihad—the striving of a servant against his desires." Muhammad refers to the physical struggle for Islam’s defense as the lesser jihad in this hadith with the internal struggle, namely the lust of these warriors returning from battle, being deemed a greater trial. The 11th century, Islamic Scholar, al-Khatib al-Baghdadi’s reference to this hadith in his work, The History of Bagdad established the scholarly precedent for the ranking of jihad in this manner. If one is to give this hadith any credence, the spirit of jihad as a whole is certainly not the solely violent, armed struggle extremists have reduced it to. As Middle Eastern historians Goldschmidt and Davidson note, “To protect the Umma, Muslims must first cleanse their souls of error, pride, and forgetfulness. Islam is a religion of community every Muslim is a brother or a sister to every other Muslim. If some err, or forget their duties to God or to other Muslims, the others… must correct them.”[5] Islam’s defense or jihad begins with the spiritual not the physical. This interpretation also evokes jihad on the communal level, which is supported by in the surat Ali Imran as well, 

 “And let there be [arising] from you a nation inviting to it [all that is] good, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, and they will be successful,” (3:104) suggesting that a Muslim is not only responsible for his or her personal affirmation of faith, but their community’s as well.[7] It is not enough for a Muslim to strive in the way of Allah; they must enjoin others to as well, whether within their community or by extending the invitation to the dar al da’wah, or the house of those still to learn of Allah.[4] The da’wah¸ or the extension of Islam’s invitation and the corresponding education is another facet of jihad, which comprised thirteen years of the Prophet's 23-year mission to spread Islam.[7]

Islamic jurisprudence and scholarship on the nature of jihad is incredibly vast and consequently this discussion will only briefly overview a few select scholars and is by no means a complete study. It does however convey that this notion of jihad as a spiritual struggle and continued affirmation of faith as well as Islam’s physical defense is not limited to this interpretation. In his Muqaddimaat, the Sunni Andalusian philosopher Ibn Rushd, divides Jihad into four types: jihad of the heart or one’s self, jihad by the tongue, jihad by the hand, and jihad by the sword. Jihad of the heart and by the sword can be understood as the greater and lesser jihads respectively.  He clarifies "Jihad by the tongue" as "to commend good conduct and forbid the wrong, drawing on the surat at-Tawbah, 

 “Oh Prophet! Strive hard against the unbelievers and the hypocrites.” (9:73) As such his jihad of the tongue echoes the aforementioned principles of the communal level of jihad and the da’wah. Finally the jihad by the hand, emphasizes the choice to strive in the way of Allah and taking action against injustice.[7] Sunni, Hanbali scholar Ibn Qayyim offers a similar separation, citing three jihads: the jihad of one’s self, the jihad against Satan, and the jihad against the hypocrites and disbelievers. The first two both fall under the banner of inner struggle or greater jihad, whereas hypocrites are reprimanded by the jihad by tongue, and disbelievers are called to Islam.[8] Shi’i interpretation of jihad is substantively akin to that of Sunni scholars, albeit with a greater emphasis upon the social justice, as triumphed in the Shi’a tenet of Ashoura.[9]

Black Standard of 'Jihad,' bearing the shahada, used by the Taliban 1997-2001, still in use by some mujahideen groups

Undeniably, there is a considerable amount of Islamic scholarship disagreeing with the nature of the greater jihad, vehemently championing the physical defense of Islam above all else.[3] One can however notice a correlation between the prevalence of this opinion and the historical conditions facing the Caliphate. Ibn Rushd and Ibn Qayyim were writing during the heights of Fatimid and Abbasid dynasties respectively, times when the Islamic World was flourishing. The Crusades had a slight effect on Muslim sentiment and interpretation but it was minimal when compared to the effect of the modern era. The true escalation of jihad was in response to the subjugation of the Islamic Caliphate’s Ottoman successor to the imperatives of Imperial Europe, the Allies’ betrayal of Arab aspirations after the First World War and colonization of the region, the rise of Israel, and the continued interference of the Cold War hegemons, breeding conflict after conflict in the region.  Founded in 1928, the Islamic fundamentalist, Muslim Brotherhood exemplified this escalation, concisely summarized in their motto, “Allah is our purpose, the Prophet our leader, the Quran our constitution, jihad our way and dying for God our supreme objective.” Extremists extended the label of infidel to Jews and Christians and this idea prevailed in the region after the Arabs devastating in loss in the 1967 War. Modern history confirms the increased prevalence of violent jihad in response to apparent assaults on Islam. But Islam was challenged in the times of Muhammad and the Rashidun as well - the true spirit of greater jihad was not sacrificed for the sake of militancy, and the Umma not only survived but flourished in the light of spiritual jihad.

What is crucial to understand from this microcosm of scholarship and jurisprudence is the depth and diversity of thought in Islamic scholarship and the reason inherent in Islam, almost all of which Muslim extremists have diluted and denied. Instead they promote only the idea of militant jihad [2] relying upon both Muslim and Western ignorance, their recruitment dependent upon the lacking knowledge of Muslim youth, and aided by the latter’s unenlightened mirroring of their rhetoric, vindicating them. Education is the enemy of extremism and their crime, hirabah, is already known to Islamic jurisprudence and the Sharia’ they, the extremists, claim to represent.

Hirabah (حِرابة)is an Arabic word connoting illegal [4] or sinful warfare that has fallen out of daily usage but the crime is forever enshrined in the fiqh of Sharia’ and the surat al-Ma’ida, 

 “The punishments of those who wage war against Allah and His Prophet and strive to spread disorder in the land are to execute them in an exemplary way or to crucify them or to amputate their hands and feet from opposite sides or to banish them from the land. Such is their disgrace in this world, and in the Hereafter theirs will be an awful doom save those who repent before you overpower them; you should know that Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Ever Merciful.” (5:33-34) 

Modern jurists Javed Ahmad Ghamidi and Shehzad Saleem interpret the crime of hirabah from this passage as defying justice, taking the law into one’s own hands, and spreading disorder in society, “by becoming a source of terror and intimidation for people, by committing mass murder, plunder, decoity [banditry or marauding] or robbery, by indulging in hijacking and terrorism and by committing other similar crimes,” the punishments for which are most severe. [10] Extremists’ deliberate mass murder of innocent women, children, and more often than not other Muslims, epitomizes hirabah, disregarding the right to life promised in Islam, 

“Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption in the land - it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely. And our messengers had certainly come to them with clear proofs. Then indeed many of them, [even] after that, throughout the land, were transgressors.” (5:32) Ultimately hirabah flies in the face of all that jihad stands for.

Washing fountain in al-Aqsa, Jerusalem, October 2013, DeRue

There is a sect of contemporary historians and scholars of Islam[2][4][10][11] leading a jihad of the tongue, to correctly redefine acts of terrorism as hirabah and those committing them as hirabis or hirabists. To characterize jihad, the internal struggle every Muslim confronts to strive in the way of Allah, as “holy war,” is to indict the entirety of Islam with a wrongful accusation of savage belligerency. Likewise in referring to terrorists as jihadis and jihadists, “we are calling them meritorious Muslims — then we are implying that we are fighting Islam." Abu al-Fadl, well known for his ardent discourse accosting Muslim extremists, believes this change of language would be well received in the dar al-Islam, with Muslims finding the West for once respecting their faith and legal tradition.[2] And one can only imagine the difficulty extremists would face recruiting young Muslims for suicidal terrorism, when their crime of hirabah is recognized.[11] Thus far Muslim extremists have succeeded in created a symbol with their corruption of “jihad,” convincing the West of Islam's relentless hatred for it, and garnering tacit support or at least silence from a majority of the Muslim population. [4] But this is not jihad. And it’s the responsibility of both the West to educate itself and respect Islam and of Muslims to defend their faith from the subjugation of hirabah. 

The importance of this issue enough cannot be stressed enough. Hirabah and jihad are more than words, they’re perspectives. And if peace is our ambition then we need to recognize our true enemies and turn the fight upon them. I will not deny the injustices of history done upon so many. We must live with the sins of our fathers, but we need not repeat them. A war was declared upon peace and the virtue of Islam. The time to lead our own jihad of the tongue, hand, and heart, and perhaps sword as well has come.

al-jihad fii sabilillah, Vincent Kessler - Reuters

[1] Brustad, Kristen, Mahmoud. Baṭal, and Abbas Tūnisī. Al-kitāb Fī Taʻallum Al-ʻarabīya: = a Textbook for Arabic Part Two. 2nd ed. Washington, DC: Georgetown Univ. Press, 2007. Print.

[2] Abu El Fadl, Khalid, Reza Aslan, and Douglas Streusand. "The War on the Word 'Jihad' : NPR." NPR.org. NPR, 30 Oct. 2006. Web. <http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6392989>.

[3] Cook, David. Understanding Jihad. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2005. Print.

[4] Crane, Robert D. "Hirabah versus Jihad." IRFI - Islamic Research Foundation International, Inc. Irfi.org, 2012. Web. <http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_301_350/hirabah_versus_jihad.htm>.

[5] Goldschmidt, Arthur, and Lawrence Davidson. A Concise History of the Middle East. 10th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 2013. Print.

[6] Aboul-Enein, Youssef H., and Sherifa Zuhur. "Islamic Rulings on Warfare." Strategic Studies Institute (2004): n. pag. U.S. Army War College . Web. <http://books.google.jo/books/about/Islamic_Rulings_on_Warfare.html?id=HlZRRPXvEsAC&redir_esc=>

[7] Hendricks, Seraj, Ahmad Hendricks, and Hisham Kabbani. "Jihad: A Judicial Ruling." As-Sunnah Foundation of America — Unity, Knowledge and Understanding for the Muslim Community. The Muslim Magazine. Web. <http://www.sunnah.org/fiqh/jihad_judicial_ruling.htm>.

[8] Al-Munaajiid, Muhammad Saleh. "Jihad: Not Only Fighting." Living Shari'ah. 12 May 2003. Print.

[9] Moghadam, Assaf. "The Shi'i Perception of Jihad." al Naklah (2003): Web.

[10] Ghamidi, Javed Ahmad, and Shezad Saleem. "The Penal Law of Islam." Monthly Renaissance - Home. 51-K Model Town Lahore Pakistan, Nov. 2013. <http://www.renaissance.com.pk/septfeart2y2.html>.

[11] Guirard, Jim, and Robert D. Crane. "Hirabah versus Jihad: Rescuing Jihad from The al Qaeda Blasphemy." The American Muslim (TAM). The American Muslim (TAM), 6 July 2003. Web. <http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/terrorism_hirabah_versus_jihad_rescuing_jihad_from_the_al_qaeda_blasphemy>.