TOWARDS GLOBAL PEACE

conclude that according to the laws of war stated in the Quran, all wars, except for a defensive war which has become unavoidable, are unlawful. For instance, guerrilla war, proxy war, undeclared war and aggressive war, are all undoubtedly unlawful in Islam. War, in fact, is a bestial act. There is nothing human about it. Indeed, according to known and specific principles of Islam, peace is the rule, while war is only a rare exception. Peace is something that can be opted for in all circumstances, whereas the decision to wage war should be taken only in times of emergencies for the purpose of defence, when it becomes inevitable, and that too at a time when all peaceful strategies for avoiding confrontation have failed. Peaceful Persuasion, not Coercion On the subject of jihad, the Quran addresses the believers thus: Do great jihad with the help of the Quran. (25: 52) As we know, the Quran is a book, an ideological book. It is not a gun or a sword. Therefore, jihad by means of the Quran can only mean conveying the ideas of the Quran to the people. This implies that we should struggle peacefully to make the ideas of the Quran understandable by presenting them in the form of logical arguments. The above-mentioned verse makes it clear that what is called jihad in Islam entails only the kind of peaceful struggle which has nothing to do with violence. The Arabic word jihad is derived from the root juhd which means to strive, to struggle, that is, to exert oneself to the utmost to achieve one’s goal. This is the original meaning of jihad in Arabic. This verse shows that peaceful effort is vastly superior to violent effort. Whenever one opts for the violent method, the sphere of one’s efforts becomes very limited. In resorting to violence, only the sword and the gun are of avail, whereas by peaceful methods, all kinds of things may be utilized to achieve our objective. Even a pen of the scholar can serve a great purpose. Jihad in Islam entails only the kind of peaceful struggle which has nothing to do with violence. The Arabic word jihad is derived from the root juhd which means to strive, to struggle, that is, to exert oneself to the utmost to achieve one’s goal.