“And who will those individuals find to support them in civic interests of American and other nations? Grassroots organizations that focus primarily on the people.”

Oh how I wish that were true!! The skeptic in me seriously doubts that the people will ever get their heads out of their you-know-what and care about anything as long as their basic needs are being met (by basic I’m referring to entertainment, sports, and beer).

Change doesn’t come about by content people. Its the oppressed who are the engine behind change. But I digress…looking forward to your post on this topic.

WA-
Naeem

WA-
Naeem

Thank you for engaging me in a discussion on this important issue. You wrote,

“How can we take back the fight against the injustices across the world, without ceding anything to this misguided lot of hirabis?”

I think this is happening of it own accord. As traditional political parties of the West depend more and more on big business, famous and wealthy supporters and lobbyists, they move further away from their civic duties. This will ultimately force individuals to look else where for support in what was traditionally the role of civil servants.

And who will those individuals find to support them in civic interests of American and other nations? Grassroots organizations that focus primarily on the people. Organizations and/or entities that have their finger on the pulse of those suffering or looking to improve the quality of life while the traditional political parties destabilize. I am very sure that this is the case in America and I will be writing more about this.

In closing I would like to mention a version from the Qur’an where Allah ta ‘ala says,

“kuntum khair ummatin ukhrijat lilannas”

astaghfirullah if I have mis-written Allah ta ‘ala’s words. I am going from memory. This will be the subject of my next article, insha’allah.

I can see where your approach is rooted in confronting the misunderstandings of the word jihad. But once we succeed in establishing the ‘etymological and liturgical context’ of this most beautiful concept of jihad, are we going to do the same for qital? If those bent on smearing Islam ever come to terms with the full meaning of jihad, will they not inevitably move on to other insincere tactics such as quoting the verses of qital? So what then?

Will we overanalyze ‘qital’ in hopes of finding an interpretation more acceptable to the west? (not saying that is your intent, but we must acknowledge that is the approach of too many apologists)

I believe our approach must remain principled and balanced.

We must also be aware of how this discourse on jihad is being framed. With the global war on terror, have we not become hyper-sensitive in discussing the wholisitc approach of jihad, sidestepping the military aspect while concentrating on the inner jihad. I really like this Dr. Sherman Jackson’s peice on Newsweek a few months back where he

On your clarification, ‘Now I see!’ said the blind man.

I wholly agree that too many political issues have been repackaged as Islamic issues and sold to the masses. But let us not outrightly reject the premise behind these sensitive struggles due to their being mishandled. How can we take back the fight against the injustices across the world, without ceding anything to this misguided lot of hirabis?

WA-
Naeem

Thank you for you comment, you said:

“I must note that your post does come off a tad tilted against the military aspect of jihad”

Indeed, I did suppress the military aspect of jihad because that is what is automatically assumed in minds of many. I wanted to get away from these assumptions for a moment and concentrate of its etymological and liturgical context.

My reasonings for this are simple. The word jihad was used in the Qur’an as a reference to ones “struggle” in the way of God during the Meccan period. Which is before the advent of a sanctioned armed “struggle” in the way of God. Therefore, I think it is important to have a sound understanding of the Qur’anic and etymological use of this word prior to indulging is historical and modern contexts. Does this make sense to you?

You also asked what I meant by,

“Consequently, there have clearly been attempts by Muslims to utilize the historical text and psychological bonds that exist to inspire resistance, avoiding a discussion on intent, and rationalize that resistance to present day Muslims of the post-colonial Middle-East.”

This is simple. Without naming names, though an amusing proposition, we can safely say that some have hurled Qur’an and Sunnah of the Prophet (s.a.w.s.) to fuel their political views while simultaneously tugging at heartstrings that are deep rooted in Muslims particularly in Muslims who are suffering. The end result is like that of a politician making promises on the wings of flying elephants, they simply don’t exist. Which is why the strategies and outcomes of many military operations by some Islamic groups fall outside of an Islamic construct. I believe this is because they were never Islamic to begin with. What do you think of this?

Very nice post. We can never get enough of these types of reminders.

However, I must note that your post does come off a tad tilted against the military aspect of jihad, providing only one mention, in a quick quote by Imam Hamza “it also means using state-sanctioned martial forces to move from a condition of disequilibrium to one of harmony and balance.”

I think that any presentation of our traditional legacy of jihad ought not to undermine the military side, as that is a clear necessity when confronted with injustice.

Obviously, as you duly noted, we must at the same time distinguish our concept of jihad from the hirabah currently practiced by too many.

But, we must be careful not to hamstring our understanding of jihad and its military form rendering it useless in the face of tyranny.

Finally, what did you mean when you said: “Consequently, there have clearly been attempts by Muslims to utilize the historical text and psychological bonds that exist to inspire resistance, avoiding a discussion on intent, and rationalize that resistance to present day Muslims of the post-colonial Middle-East.”?

WA-
Naeem