Chapter Ten

Islamic Jihad The Meaning of Jihad The root of the word jihad is juhd, which connotes effort of considerable intensity. The words jihad and mujahid, one who engages in jihad, are expressed in a related way in the Quran. Sometimes, depending on the prevailing conditions, this action of jihad or struggle can go to the extent of contending with one’s enemy. At such times, the aspect of war is also included in the understanding of the word ‘jihad’—in the sense in which the word is used in that particular context, and not in the literal or dictionary sense. In this regard, Imam Raghib alIsfahani mentions three senses in which the word jihad is used: jihad against external foes, jihad against Satan, and jihad against one’s base self, or nafs. Jihad in the Quran The word ‘jihad’ and related terms are used in the same sense in the Quran as in Arabic dictionaries—that is, to indicate much effort for a certain cause or purpose. The word ‘jihad’ appears four times in the Quran, and on each of these occasions it is used in this very sense of effort and struggle, and not directly in the sense of war or qital. In this regard, the first Quranic verse reads as follows: Say, ‘If your fathers and your sons and your brothers and your spouses and your tribe, and the worldly goods which you have acquired, and the commerce which you fear will decline, and the homes you love are dearer to you than God and His Messenger and the struggle for His cause, then wait until God fulfills His decree. God does not guide the disobedient people.’ (9:24) In this verse, the followers of Islam have been commanded to go to the extent of making sacrifices in joining the Prophet in Islam’s dawah mission, even if this might appear to harm