Jihad

The word Jihad means striving. In its primary sense it is an innerthing, within self, to rid it from debased actions or inclinations

This word has been in frequent use in the Western press over the past several years, explained directly or subtlely, to mean holy war. As a matter of fact the term "holy war" was coined in Europe during the Crusades, meaning the war against Muslims. It does not have a counterpart in Islamic glossary, and Jihad is certainly not its translation.

The word Jihad means striving. In its primary sense it is an innerthing, within self, to rid it from debased actions or inclinations, andexercise constancy and perseverance in achieving a higher moral standard.Since Islam is not confined to the boundaries of the individual butextends to the welfare of society and humanity in general, an individualcannot keep improving himself/herself in isolation from what happens intheir community or in the world at large, hence the Quranic injunction tothe Islamic nation to take as a duty "to enjoin good and forbid evil."(3:104) It is a duty which is not exclusive to Muslims but applies to thehuman race who are, according to the Quran, God's vicegerent on earth. Muslims, however, cannot shirk it even if others do. The means to fulfilit are varied, and in our modern world encompass all legal, diplomatic,arbitrati­ve, economic, and political instruments. But Islam does notexclude the use of force to curb evil, if there is no other workablealternative.­ A forerunner of the collective security principle andcollective intervention to stop aggression, at least in theory, asmanifested in the United Nations Charter, is the Quranic reference "..makepeace between them (the two fighting groups), but if one of the twopersists in aggression against the other, fight the aggressors until theyrevert to God's commandment." (49:9)Military action is therefore a subgroup of the Jihad and not itstotality. That was what prophet Mohammad emphasized to his companions whenreturning from a military campaign, he told them: "This day we havereturned from the minor jihad (war) to the major jihad (self-control andbetterment)." Jihad is not a declaration of war against other religions andcertainly not against Christians and Jews as some media and politicalcircles want it to be perceived. Islam does not fight other religions.Christians­ and Jews are considered as fellow inheritors of The Abrahamictraditions by Muslims, worshipping the same God and following thetradition of Abraham. The rigorous criteria for a "just war" in Islam have already beenalluded to, as well as the moral and ethical constraints that should beabided by. Modern warfare does not lend itself to those moral standards;and therefore, war should be replaced by some other alternative forconflict resolution. An enlightened and resolute world public opinion canovercome and subdue war oriented mentalities. The key is a change of heart. Just as there is a constructive rolefor forgiveness in interpersonal relations, so might this be possible ininternational relations provided justice, and not force, is the finalarbiter. We have to acknowledge again, for the sake of honesty, thathistorically all traditions, Muslim, Christian, Jew as well as others, hadtheir lapses in honestly following the valued ideals of their religions orphilosophies. We all made mistakes, and we still do.