What is jihad mean

In his declaration, Osama Bin Laden accused the US of "occupying the lands of Islam in the holiest of places, the Arabian Peninsula, plundering its riches, dictating to its rulers, humiliating its people, terrorising its neighbours, and turning its bases in the Peninsula into a spearhead through which to fight the neighbouring Muslim peoples". These "crimes and sins" amounted to a "clear declaration of war on Allah, his messenger, and Muslims", it concluded. In , two years after Bin Laden's death, Ayman al-Zawahiri wrote in his General Guidelines for Jihad that "the purpose of targeting America is to exhaust her and bleed her to death, so that it meets the fate of the former Soviet Union and collapses under its own weight as a result of its military, human, and financial losses.

Consequently, its grip on our lands will weaken and its allies will begin to fall one after another. Many jihadist groups seek to establish Islamic states in their respective countries of origin, such as Boko Haram in Nigeria and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan. Other groups want to establish a "caliphate" - governed in accordance with Sharia by God's deputy on Earth khalifa, or caliph - that extends across regions.

Some, like al-Qaeda, want to re-establish the caliphate that once stretched from Spain and North Africa to China and India. Its leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, has vowed to "liberate all occupied Muslim lands and reject each and every international treaty, agreement and resolution which gives the infidels the right to seize Muslim lands", including historic Palestine, Chechnya and Kashmir.

IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi also wants to "demolish" the borders established by the Sykes-Picot Agreement, but his group has already acted on this by declaring the creation of a caliphate that stretches across eastern Syria and western Iraq.

Al-Qaeda and IS also differ in their approaches to establishing Islamic rule. Al-Qaeda's has been more long-term, while IS has immediately sought to implement Sharia in its territories. What's the appeal of a caliphate?

While there are militant Shia Islamist groups that are jihadist in nature, they differ in many regards to Sunni groups. According to Shia tradition, mujtahids - the most senior religious scholars - have the authority to declare a "defensive" jihad. But only the 12th or "hidden" Imam - who Shia believe did not die when he disappeared 1, years ago - can declare an "offensive" jihad.

For centuries, most Shia clerics advocated political quietism while they awaited the Imam's return. But that outlook changed in the s and s, giving rise to the activism that culminated in the revolution in Iran and the establishment of the Islamic Republic. In recent years, the sectarian nature of the conflict in Syria has seen Iranian-backed Shia groups come to the aid of forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad, a member of the heterodox Shia Alawite sect.

But these acts have been strongly condemned by numerous Muslim clerics and scholars on Islamic grounds. And as I show in my own research , violent radicals who attempt to justify terrorism on religious grounds are often misrepresenting the scholarly sources they cite.

In the specific context of Islamic law, however, jihad generally signifies an armed struggle against outsiders. Medieval scholars of Islamic law delineated two basic forms of armed jihad: defensive jihad, an armed struggle against invaders; and aggressive jihad, a preemptive or offensive attack commissioned by a political authority. Jihad has often been a constructive and creative force, the key to building new Islamic societies and states.

Jihad has regulated relations between Muslims and non-Muslims, in peace as well as in war. Written for general readers who want to understand jihad and its controversies, Jihad in Islamic History will also interest specialists because of its original arguments.

His book is a much-needed counter to the poorly researched or downright biased and alarmist cluster of publications that were quickly written and released after September 11, The book is easily accessible to the nonspecialist, and is ideal for use in an upper-level undergraduate topics course in Middle Eastern and Islamic history or Islamic religious thought.

Bonner's work is also a useful primer for specialists which does not sacrifice quality for brevity. The author is to be commended for having provided an accessible, broad historical survey of the mercurial term 'jihad' and its deployment over time. Both the specialist and the nonspecialist will benefit from this study. Muslims use the word Jihad to describe three different kinds of struggle: A believer's internal struggle to live out the Muslim faith as well as possible The struggle to build a good Muslim society Holy war: the struggle to defend Islam , with force if necessary Many modern writers claim that the main meaning of Jihad is the internal spiritual struggle, and this is accepted by many Muslims.

All religious people want to live their lives in the way that will please their God. Other ways in which a Muslim engages in the 'greater Jihad' could include: Learning the Qur'an by heart, or engage in other religious study.

Overcoming things such as anger, greed, hatred, pride, or malice. Giving up smoking. Cleaning the floor of the mosque. Taking part in Muslim community activities. Working for social justice. Forgiving someone who has hurt them. However the quotation has been very influential among some Muslims, particularly Sufis. Holy war Holy war When Muslims, or their faith or territory are under attack, Islam permits some say directs the believer to wage military war to protect them.

However Islamic shariah law sets very strict rules for the conduct of such a war. In recent years the most common meaning of Jihad has been Holy War. And there is a long tradition of Jihad being used to mean a military struggle to benefit Islam. What can justify Jihad? Permissable reasons for military Jihad : Self-defence Strengthening Islam Protecting the freedom of Muslims to practise their faith Protecting Muslims against oppression, which could include overthrowing a tyrannical ruler Punishing an enemy who breaks an oath Putting right a wrong What a Jihad is not A war is not a Jihad if the intention is to: Force people to convert to Islam Conquer other nations to colonise them Take territory for economic gain Settle disputes Demonstrate a leader's power Although the Prophet engaged in military action on a number of occasions, these were battles to survive, rather than conquest, and took place at a time when fighting between tribes was common.

The opponent must always have started the fighting. It must not be fought to gain territory.