Qur'anic 'jihad'

Qur'anic 'jihad'

Introduction

The word jihad is one been much discussed and which often interpreted with some degree of sensationalised polemic. It has become, to some extent, divorced from its signi?cance as a Qur'anic term. Our approach in this study is, therefore, to deal with the subject on the basis of the Qur'an alone, as a term which forms an, important theme in the Qur'an, on the basis of linguistic analysis of the text of the Qur'an itself. In particular, our analysis will not ignore the linguistic context which is crucial in understanding any text. The picture that emerges from this study and this approach will differ from that held by many, both Muslims and non-Muslims, who have arrived at a perception of the meaning of jihad which differs from that which found in the Qur'anic text. Indeed it is clear that there are those in both East and West who hold the same views on this emotive subject, views which run counter to what found in the Qur'an.

Words based on the root j-h-d, from which jihad derived, occur in the Qur'an a total of 35 times, in ?fteen suras - four Meccan and eleven Medinan. The verb root means 'to exert effort', and the form ?'al is reciprocal, 'exerting effort in the face of an exertion by something or someone else'. Such effort includes jihad by the tongue and even by the heart, in this sense, it occurs in Q. 25:52, instructing the Prophet. In addition to this verbal jihad, there is also jihad bi-amwalihim (using one's wealth to support a cause) as found in Q. 8:72, Q. 9:20, 41 and 86, which normally used in a wider context than to, simply denote military jihad, even in a sura which is alluding to a situation where actual ?ghting is taking place. Jihad also used twice in the Qur'an (Q. 29:8 and Q. 31:15) to indicate the efforts exercised by pagan parents, to convert their children from Islam back to paganism. There is also another jihad that has nothing to do with ?ghting (Q. 9:73; Q. 22:78; Q. 25:52; Q. 29:69; Q. 66:9): in Q. 66:9, Prophet, strive hard against the disbelievers and the hypocrites. Deal, with them sternly. Hell will be their home, an evil destination!the word jihad occurs in the context of a warning for the Prophet's own wives, whose divulgence of a private conversation disapproved of, that they should not be like the unbelievers or hypocrites against whom he must strive. This ayah, however, has, on occasion, been grossly misunderstood and mistranslated. For example, in his translation of the Qur'an, Dawood translates the phrase jahidi'l-kuffar wa'l-muna?qin in both Q. 66:9 and Q. 9:73 as Prophet, make war on the unbelievers and the hypocrites, ignoring the historical context and the Qur'anic teachings as a whole: the Prophet had no authority from the Qur'anic revelation to make actual militant war on the hypocrites.

However, often, when the Qur'an combines allusions to striving with one's wealth and one's person, this does indicate ...