TRUE JIHAD

The Quran says: Do not yield to those who do not believe, but fight them strenuously with it (with the Quran). THE QURAN, 25: 52 This is referred to as the ‘Great Jihad’. This does not refer to military action or physical combat with those who do not believe. What it actually means is that we must continuously engage ourselves in conveying the peaceful message of the Quran. The present world is a testing ground; the entire fabric of this world has been designed to fulfil the purpose of the divine trial of man. This being so, the human being is necessarily faced with all kinds of temptations, which are barriers to our measuring up to God’s standards. For instance, when a matter of truth comes before us and we refuse to acknowledge it for fear of losing our status; when we have someone’s wealth or property in our possession and hesitate in restoring it to the true owner; when we resent having to place curbs on ourselves in order to lead a life of modesty as desired by God; when we feel that suppressing our anger and vengefulness in order to be patient amounts to our inability to stand up for ourselves; when we fail to speak the truth and stand up for justice for fear of losing our interests; when we are loath to renounce comforts and convenience in order to be of a principled character. Migration or hijrath of the Prophet Muhammad is a clear example of abandoning violent solutions in favour of peaceful solutions. In all such situations, it becomes essential for us to sacrifice our feelings and desires. We may have to kill our egos completely. In spite of having to surmount all such hurdles, we should be determined to stick to the truth in the real and primary sense of jihad. Those who engage in this jihad will be held deserving of paradise in the Hereafter. The truth is that in life we have to choose between two courses—the confrontational and the non-confrontational, the peaceful and the violent. A study of the Prophet’s life tells us that in all matters the Prophet abandoned the violent course of action in favour of the peaceful one. The entire life of the Prophet provides a successful, practical example