THE subject of Jihad has remained under discussion among both Muslims and non-Muslims for a very long time. Since it is a specifically Islamic subject and has the status of worship it is vital that its meaning and scope is understood in the light of Quranic teaching and the practice of Rasul Allah (peace be upon him) especially in a country which calls itself Islamic and 90 per cent of whose population are Muslims.
Literally speaking, Jihad means struggle and/or striving in the cause of Allah and includes killing and being killed in His way. It encompasses the whole of the life of a believer and can be divided into three major segments: 1) Against the enemies of Allah and His religion-Islam 2) against Satan 3) against the evil inclinations of one’s inner self (Nafs-e-ammarah).
Jihad can be exercised physically, through the use of wealth, the pen, speech, and even by migration. Thus it will be clear that its scope is very wide. In the present day context, however, the discussion is dominated by only one aspect of it - Qital. It is this aspect which generally attracts criticism by non-believers and restricts it to the mundane consideration (e.g. nationalism) by believers.
The injunctions on Jihad and Qital are so numerous and lucid in the Quran that they leave no doubt or ambiguity in the minds of believers about the spirit behind this very clear command. This is such an important tenet of Islam that the subject of Jihad is mentioned in 28 verses and that of Qital in 34 verses. It is not the intention to copy here all the Quranic verses on the subject, but only a few will be quoted to explain the scope of the injunctions:
— And fight in Allah’s cause against those who wage war against you, but do not commit aggression - for, verily Allah does not love aggressors. 2:190 — And slay them wherever you may come upon them, and drive them away from wherever they drove you away — for oppression is even worse than killing. 2:191 — Hence, fight against them until there is no more oppression and all worship is devoted to Allah alone. 2:193.
Reading the above three verses together one can see very clearly that the underlying spirit of Qital is to curb and eradicate oppression, wherever it arises in the way of Allah. It is not confined to Qital when one is personally subjected to oppression, but it is incumbent upon all believers to help suppress the oppression wherever it is perpetrated. Any believer who has the means and strength to stand up and resist oppression is commanded in very unequivocal terms to fight against it until it is quelled. In other words it is not imperative for Muslims to defend and guard their own rights and freedom only, but they are commanded to crush oppression (fitna) wherever they come across it. There is so much emphasis on this command that one should ponder the strong words used in condemning oppressors.
It is easy to draw at least five distinct messages from the verses referred to above: First, aggression and oppression must be resisted with full force. Short of initiating aggression Muslims are directed to crush oppression with everything under their command. This is because God does not love aggressors.
Second, slay the oppressors wherever they raise their head. Here the important point to note is that waging of Qital is not restricted to oppression against one’s own self but is incumbent upon believers to fight against oppression wherever it is committed.
Third, to drive out the oppressors from where they have driven you out. Again, this is a very clear instruction that believers are commanded to drive out oppressors from their place of abode. Individual and collective freedom can only be preserved in this way.
Fourth, that oppression (fitna) is worse than killing. We should first get clear the meaning of fitna. There is no exact equivalent of this word in the English language. It can be described as the creation of disorder and mischief for which perhaps the word oppression is a suitable substitute, as used in most English translations.
This brief sentence stresses the need of Qital against oppression explaining that the latter is far worse than the former. That is, while it is accepted that killing is evil, yet it is enjoined to crush a bigger evil. Here the important thing for the believers to note is that it is a command of Allah where there is no room to find excuses to avoid Qital to suit one’s wishes and expedience.
Fifth, the believers should keep on fighting against oppression until it is completely eliminated. The sign of its eradication is given as that all worship is devoted to Allah. Hence there is no compromise to cease the battle against this (fitna) half way. Any oppression has to be removed in such a way that the Rule of Allah is seen to apply everywhere.
As for recompense, there are rewards for all worships and good deeds. But the reward for Qital is supreme. Those who sacrifice their lives in the cause of Allah get an exalted eternal life immediately, and are called martyrs (shaheed). To quote from the Quran here are two verses on the subject: — And say not of those who are slain in God’s cause, “they are dead”: nay they are alive, but you perceive it not. (2:154) — But do not think of those who are slain in God’s cause as dead. Nay they are alive! With their Sustainer have they their sustenace. (3:169)
In both these verses it is stressed that those slain in the cause of Allah are not dead but living with their Lord. Not only that, they get their sustenance as well. What a wonderful reward for those who believe!
Now, in the light of Quranic revelations, let us see what is happening around us. Is there any oppression being committed anywhere in the world? Are people being forcibly uprooted from their hearths and homes? Are the homes and land of some been coercively occupied? If the answer to these questions is in affirmative, then who are these people being oppressed? Is there anything common among them? The answer is a big ‘yes’.
The common denominator between them is that they are Muslims. Have not Palestinians been forcibly evicted from their land, which is occupied by Israel with the active assistance and support of America and the United Kingdom? Has Kashmir not been occupied by the Indian military against the wishes of its people, and with complete disregard of promises given to them for self-determination?
What has happened in Bosnia in the name of ethnic cleansing? Kosovo is yet another example where the entire Muslim population was driven out from their land or mercilessly killed, and the battle for forcible occupation of Chechnya is still going on. What would the so called civilized world, the enlightened intelligentsia and the “free” media call these happenings if they were committed against non-Muslims?
And what about the human rights organizations and the United Nations, who claim to look after the interest of the oppressed. When will they wake up? No, it is not that they are not aware of it. They know it all fully well. Their silence on the atrocities on the Muslims is deliberate, for when they wanted to act on the demands of the Christians of East Timor, they granted them independence in a separate land in no time.
Our misfortune is that we have forgotten the advice of Allah, which says: — O You who have attained to faith! Do not take the Jews and Christians for your allies: they are but allies of one another and whoever of you allies himself with them becomes, verily, one of them. (5:51) — You will certainly find that the most hostile people against the believers are the Jews and the one who ascribe partners to Allah (5:82)
Hence, the simple and obvious message for the Muslim Ummah is to unite and strive for their rights and freedom, for no one will come to their rescue and offer them peace and tranquillity. It is to their advantage that it is enjoined upon them by Allah to purse the cause of their freedom, which He calls as His own cause. It is not surprising that in order to discredit the struggle for freedom by Muslims the non-believers have given it the name of terrorism and militancy and are trying hard to degrade the exalted term “Jihadi” to give a derogatory connotation. But for those who believe in the Hereafter no cost is too high to follow the command of Allah to fight against oppression.
The history is witness to that Allah has favoured the Muslims with success as long as they contended against oppression with sincerity of purpose.
