An Overview of Jihad Bil-Qitaal and Jihad Bin-Nafs

By Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi, New Age Islam 18 August 2023 Jihad Bin-Nafs Targets Evil Nafs, the Greatest Enemy Main Points 1. Extremist groups used "Jihad" in deceptive ways to kill millions of Muslims in Muslim countries. 2. A number of people dislike the word ‘Jihad’ since every time it is uttered, violent events committed by radical organisations come to mind. 3. Our evil Nafs, which motivates us to engage in most immoral and immoral behaviours, is our worst enemy, so Jihad against this evil Nafs is called Jihad Bin-Nafs. 4. Jihad Bin-Nafs involves practicing mercy and gentleness, avoiding harshness and extremism, and embracing love and devotion towards Allah Almighty. 5. Jihad Bil-Qitaal in traditional Islam aims to defend lives and end oppression, while terrorist organizations target civilians through bombing and suicide attacks, using the term Jihad Bil Qitaal. 6. Jihad Bin-Nafs is a crucial act for Muslims to combat internal evils, which are their greatest enemies, such as lying, cruelty, usury, adultery, theft, and moral disregard. ----- Jihad is still a hot topic of conversation worldwide. There is a contentious debate over Jihad, particularly in English-language periodicals, journals, newspapers, and websites. Everyone seems to be speaking within their respective intellectual comfort zones and areas of expertise. When a Muslim is brutally attacked through lynching, the cry of outrage and justice begins to be heard among the Muslim population of India. The call for justice is unquestionably appreciated and needed in this case, but when it comes to the extremist groups that have killed millions of Muslims in Muslim countries to date, the same thing did not happen as efficiently as it should have. Everyone is aware that extremist organisations use words like "Jihad" in deceptive ways to play deadly games and kill ordinary civilians. Jihad is therefore covered in media outlets like newspapers and social media. Academics and scholars realize the distinction between the "Jihad" practised by the so-called Jihadists and the Jihad referenced in the Quran and Sunnah, the two primary scriptures of Islam. However, some common individuals are still somewhat confused about the term "Jihad," and others of them dislike it since every time it is uttered, violent events committed by radical organisations come to mind. Muslim academics commonly discuss two types of Jihad in Islam: Jihad Bil-Qitaal and Jihad Bin-Nafs. Go wherever in the world right now, and if you can successfully explain what Jihad Bin-Nafs is to someone, even if they are unable to engage in Jihad Bin-Nafs themselves, at least they will not condemn this kind of Jihad. Jihad Bin-Nafs covers everything that is related to excellent morals and good deeds. Jihad Bin-Nafs promotes respect for all people, adherence to human values and customs, as well as patience, tolerance, peace, security, and the avoidance of evil activities. Jihad Bin-Nafs also entails abstaining from harmful deeds like violence, terrorism, false allegations, lying, backbiting, theft, cruelty, rebellion, mischief, robbery, looting, misappropriation, and other bad deeds. Through this Jihad Bin-Nafs, the righteous believer's heart and mind are awakened to the point where his heart overflows with gentleness and compassion, which is followed by human compassion and benevolence. He embraces justice and piety as his guiding principles and finds such inner peace that terrorism is never even a consideration in his head. But because he hates terrorism so much as a whole, he doesn't think it's better to bring it up in discussion. The reason for this is that the one who practices Jihad Bin-Nafs is fully aware that even the mere mention of terrorism will disturb him. His heart learns to accept mercy and gentleness and to keep away from all sorts of harshness and extremism as a result of being intoxicated by the love and unadulterated devotion towards Allah Almighty. In conclusion, those who engage in Jihad Bin-Nafs pose no threat to human life because they are such devoted servants of Allah that they are fully aware that wasting a life given to them by Allah Almighty or taking it illegally can result in their humiliation and disgrace in the presence of Allah Almighty in the Hereafter. He will therefore engage in Jihad Bin-Nafs in order to prevent himself from engaging in any forms of oppression, injustice, dishonesty and promise-breaching. Similarly, if he is successful in avoiding all the evil actions; it will be considered in his or her favour that they have actually performed Jihad Bin-Nafs. The idea that the Evil Self is the greatest enemy of humanity must be taken away from this short essay, as it is the Evil Self that drives people to commit acts of terrorism, riots, and extremism in order to pursue their own interests in politics, the state, wealth, etc. The internal states of some people are such that they present the verses of the Quran and Ahadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) out of context without feeling shame or fear of God Almighty in order to satisfy their own selfish wants. The divine word, which was sent to enlighten and direct humanity, is being used in illegal acts of terrorism. The tyrants use the words of God Almighty for illegitimate issues. When I refer to illegitimate matters, I'm referring to the behaviours of some extremist groups that justify their actions by quoting the Quran and the Sunnah out of context and then bombing monasteries, mosques, sacred sites, gatherings of people, and markets while referring to suicide bombing and terrorism as acts of jihad. When they use the word "jihad" in such deeds, they mean Jihad Bil-Qitaal. They have a different understanding of jihad from what is described in the classical and traditional form of Islam as Jihad Bil-Qitaal. In many aspects, Jihad Bil-Qitaal described in the classical version of Islam is comparable to the modern-day military operations because both are carried out in accordance with the authority of a country's government. Jihad Bil-Qitaal, a war conducted to save human lives and put an end to oppression, can only be resolved by an Islamic state, its ruler, or its sultan. In this form of Jihad, Islam strictly forbids attacking civilians, including women, children, monks, priests, and non-combatant members of other faiths. However, despite these restrictions, terrorist organisations continue to target individuals with bombing and suicide attacks. Extremist groups went beyond the bounds of Islam and deceived the youth by misusing concepts like Jihad, Sharia, and Islamic law that were stated in Islamic texts to achieve their goals. They accomplished this by succumbing to the allure of dominance and power. As a result, the destruction is evident in the Muslim nations where these organisations have established themselves. Muslims, especially women and children, have only witnessed the destruction in any nation where extremist ideologies have begun to spread, whether it be Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, or Kashmir. The victims of the so-called Jihad Bil-Qitaal today have troubled lives. Parents have lost their young sons in old age. Women are forced to live as widows, and children are left orphaned. Many people have lost their native land in addition to their family members. Additionally, they are compelled to stray through borders and lead a life of exile away from their native country. The majority of them have sought asylum in Western nations, while Muslim nations are reluctant to let them in. Who is in charge of these circumstances? Of course, the extremist groups are to blame for these circumstances since they illegitimately used the term "Jihad," which has wrecked and ruined their own nation. If one is knowledgeable about the Qur'an and Sunnah and the current situation, one will realize that modern Muslims require Jihad Bin-Nafs rather than Jihad Bil-Qitaal. The Jihad Bil-Qitaal that the Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) waged during his lifetime had the form of a defensive war. It happened in an unavoidable situation. After nearly fourteen years of suffering and religious persecution in Makkah, the Muslims were compelled to migrate to Madina, where the oppressors and enemies also made an effort to exterminate them. They were then granted permission for Jihad Bil-Qitaal in order to attain freedom of religion and security of life. During the magnificent age of the Prophet of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), it was revealed the importance of Jihad, the greatness of martyrs, and the tidings of Paradise so that the Muslims would not neglect to carry it out and therefore put an end to the persecution. The practical form of Jihad Bil-Qitaal that existed during the lifetime of the Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him) and his companions cannot possibly be condemned by a just student of history. Jihad Bil-Qitaal, which was practiced in order to end the terrorism that was happening at the time, was a noble Jihad. But now, the so-called ‘Jihad’ serves as power for terrorist acts. Unquestionably, there is a deliberate campaign being launched against Islam with the aim of completely eradicating Muslims from social, political, and economic life. Even while extremists may not acknowledge it, everyone can see that their actions have devastating effects. Muslims nowadays must carry out Jihad Bin-Nafs, or Jihad against the evils they hold within. They must utterly abstain from their own evil actions. The true enemies of Muslims are evil deeds, including lying, cruelty, lack of restraint, usury, adultery, theft, breach of promise, widespread disregard for morality and manners, the practise of entangling one another in false cases, unjust usurpation of one another's land and property, violations of the rights of Allah and the rights of His servants as well as numerous other physical, moral, and spiritual evils. These evils are unquestionably actual adversaries that are invading the hearts and minds of Muslims from within. The most important and genuine act of jihad is the struggle against these personal evils. Our evil Nafs, which motivates us to engage in most immoral and immoral behaviours, is our worst enemy. We must therefore engage in Jihad Bin-Nafs in order to vanquish this greatest foe and transform into devout Muslims. The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) described this kind of jihad as the greatest jihad. It is also important to stress that the person calling for Jihad Bil-Qitaal in the current situation is an enemy of the common civilians including Muslims. Since the evil Self is our internal adversary and extremist groups are our external opponents, our primary responsibility is to protect ourselves from the evil of both enemies. ----- Urdu Article: An Overview of Jihad Bil-Qitaal and Jihad Bin-Nafs جہاد بالقتال اور جہاد بالنفس کا جائزہ ------ A regular columnist with NewAgeIslam.com, Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi Dehlvi is a classical Islamic scholar [Aalim, Faazil and Mutakhassis Fi al-Adab al-Arabi wa al-Ulum al-Shariah] with a Sufi background and an English-Arabic-Urdu Translator. URL: https://newageislam.com/islamic-ideology/jihad-bil-qitaal-jihad-bin-nafs/d/130472 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism