Tawdih Awjuh Ikhtilaf Al-Aqwal Fi Masa’il Min Mu`amalat Al-Amwal (Clarifying Aspects of Different Opinions on Some Issues Related to Financial Transactions)

In this article we are going to point out one of the Islamic rulings concerning the concept of jihad and its practical applications.

Jihad could be a military action. There are military actions that are not jihad. Ibn Khaldun divided wars into four kinds according to their motives. He said that the origin of all wars is the desire of revenge. But two kinds of wars are transgression and turmoil: competitive war (expansive war) and transgressive war waged by brutal nations.

The other two kinds are just wars: one waged out of anger for the sake of Almighty Allah and His religion, which is the meaning of jihad, and the other waged against those who rebel against authorities, which is a war to safeguard the kingship as he called it.

In fact, the concept of jihad in Islam is not always synonymous with fighting. Jihad has a wider concept. It is a sort of defending the truth and a call to it. This is the first meaning. Almighty Allah said in the chapter of al-Furqan “Persevere in impelling them with this [Quran], with a mighty impelling”; that is, establish the compelling arguments and present to them the proofs one after the other. Obviously, reciting the Quran does not involve military actions. Hence, not every jihad is fighting and not every fighting is jihad. Jihad is also a call for freedom.

A group of people claimed that Islam is an unsheathed sword and a ready spear. But whoever revises the occasions of revelation and the history of the dispute between Islam and its enemies can understand that there is no contradiction between the verses that encourage fighting, such as the verse “Fight the idolaters, all together, just as all of them fight you. And know that Allah is with the God-fearing” which came down in the context of existing war, and the verses that define the purpose of fighting as defensive. Verses cannot be taken out of their universal contexts as Orientalists and their students attempt to do.

Using this logic Christianity can also be considered as a religion of war if we are to judge on the basis of verse 24 in Mathew chapter 10, which attributes to Jesus (peace be upon him) that he said “Do not think that I came to cast peace on earth. I did not come to cast peace but rather a sword.”

War in Islam is defensive, not to force people to embrace the religion. In a treaties about fighting Ibn Taymiyyah said “Regarding the wars that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) engaged in with disbelievers (29 battles), it was the disbelievers who transgressed or were the direct or indirect cause. This asserts that the basic principle with disbelievers is peace not war. Were war the original principle, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would start fighting with them. The overwhelming narrations concerning his life reveal that he did not start fighting with anybody.”

Thus, jihad is defensive, according to Ibn Taymiyyah. This is what many Qur’anic verses indicate giving the compelling the reasons. One of them is injustice represented in expulsion from home and restriction on religious freedom “Permission is given to those who are being fought because they have been wronged.” Exegetes consider this verse as the first one concerning fighting. In his book on the Prophet’s biography, Ibn Hisham said about the occasional reason for sending it down: Before al-`Aqabah Pledge of Alliance, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was not permitted to wage war or shed blood. He was only commanded to call to the way of Allah, have patience with hurt, and pardon the belligerent. Quraysh had so oppressed his fellow émigrés testing their religion and expelling them from their countries that they had turned to be either oppressed for their religion, tortured at their hands, or fugitives in other countries. Some of them were in Ethiopia, others in Medina, and others elsewhere.

When Quraysh defied Almighty Allah, refused the honour he intended to give them, belied His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), tortured and expelled those who worshipped Him, professed His oneness, believed His Messenger, and kept hold to His religion, Almighty Allah gave permission to His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) to fight them and take revenge from those who wronged and oppressed them. Thus, the first verse sent down concerning giving permission for him to engage in war, shed blood, and fight those who oppressed them was, according to reports that reached me on the authority of `Urwah ibn al-Zubay along with other scholars, the saying of Almighty Allah “Permission is given to those who are being fought because they have been wronged. And indeed, Allah is omnipotent to give them victory. These are the ones who have been expelled from their homes without any right, for nothing more than saying: Our Lord is Allah! For had Allah not [decreed to] repel some people by means of others, demolition would certainly have come to hermitages, and churches, and synagogues, and mosques, in which the name of Allah is much mentioned. Yet, most surely, Allah shall support whoever supports Him. Indeed, Allah is most surely all-powerful, overpowering. These are the ones who – when We set them [in authority] over the land – they establish the Prayer, and give the Zakah – charity, and enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong. Yet to Allah belongs the ultimate end of all affairs.”

This means: I only permitted fighting for them because they – namely, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions (may Allah be please with them all) – were wronged while they did nothing wrong to people except that they worshipped Allah, established Prayer, gave out Zakah – charity, enjoined good, and forbad evil.

The other reason is to save and aid the helpless. This is indicated by a verse in the chapter of al-Nisa’ (the Women) that reads “Then what is with you that you do not fight in the path of Allah, and for the helpless among the men and the women and the children who say: Our Lord! Bring us out of this city whose people are wrongdoers. And appoint for us, from Yourself, and ally. And appoint for us, from Yourself, a supporter.”

The third reason is to drive back aggression as in the chapter of al-Baqarah (the Cow) “And fight in the path of Allah all those who fight you. But do not commit aggression. Indeed, Allah does not love those who commit aggression.”
This verse was considered by Ibn Jareer as the first verse concerning fighting. It means that you are not to wage war against your enemy, but you have to drive back their aggression in the cause of Allah because you thus defend yourself and you will be right because you have been wronged.

In this context of resisting aggression and stopping the wrongdoer without excess, (we consider these verses): “But as to those who defend themselves, after having been wronged, there is no cause [for blame] against them. But the rightful cause shall be only against those who wrong people and who commit injustice in the land without any right. It is these who shall have a most painful torment. But, most surely, one who remain patient and who forgives [great shall be his reward]; for indeed these are among the commandments of [Allah that must be kept with] diligent resolve.”

In the last two verses we notice commending patience and tolerance after giving permission to drive the aggression back.

This war is subject to all the criteria of virtue. It is to drive back aggression without excessive use of violence. The weak should be aided and religious freedom should be respected. There are strict rules concerning the preservation of civilians, weak people, workers, villagers, clergymen, and women.

Fruitful trees and animals should be safeguarded; no forest should be burnt, no civilians should be hurt, treaties should be honestly respected even if they seem unfair sometimes. It is a clean war with one leadership. It is not a bloody game where the army kill, loot, and assault as they like. It is a necessary war. In contemporary terms, it is a war supported by the international law, the international treaties, and the United Nations Charter, particularly article 51.

The 5th article of the NATO agreement states: “Parties of the agreement consider that any military attack against any of them in Europe or North America to be against all parties. If this happens, they regard that each party has the legitimate right to defend itself individually or collectively as acknowledged by the 51st article of the Charter of the United Nations. Each party should help the other individually or through the agreement of all parties.” So many are the false conceptions about Islam! These will be the subject to the next article, by the help of Allah.

There are still wrongful accusations launched against the civilisational image of Islam, notably the one stating that “Islam is a religion of violence in essence, and a religion of rupture with the other,” depending on mistaken excerpts from the Qur’anic texts.

In the following, we shall clarify the image and prove that it is possible to counter such an approach against the others, bearing into mind that our Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance as indicated in a previous article.

We should compare this approach with the following texts taken from the Old Testament in order to see how Islam is indeed the true mercy sent to the worlds. In the Torah, for example, nations are divided into two categories. With regard to the first category, Jehovah asks his people to offer others conditions of peace [When thou comest nigh unto a city to fight against it, then proclaim peace unto it] (Deuteronomy: 20:10), and if such conditions are accepted and they surrender, they should be slaves to Israel [And it shall be, if it make thee answer of peace, and open unto thee, then it shall be, that all the people that is found therein shall be tributaries unto thee, and they shall serve thee.] (Deuteronomy: 20 11) However, if they did not surrender peacefully then you triumphed over them, then kill all their men by the sword [And when the LORD thy God hath delivered it into thine hands, thou shalt smite every male thereof with the edge of the sword: But the women, and the little ones, and the cattle, and all that is in the city, even all the spoil thereof, shalt thou take unto thyself; and thou shalt eat the spoil of thine enemies, which the LORD thy God hath given thee.] (Deuteronomy: 20: 13-14)

Nonetheless, such categorised and classified use does not apply to non-Hebrew peoples residing within the Promised Land, as they shall suffer a ‘curse’, a term often translated as ‘deprivation,’ ‘holy destruction’ or ‘the curse of destruction’. In the context of the theology of Deuteronomy, the infliction of a curse on a certain group is but an equivalent to complete genocide for their personal, social and spiritual life. The German scientist Thomas Schieffelin said: “We believe in the original Torah as a holy book from God, which contains guidance and light, but the human practices distorted the content and misused application.” Islam has established the relationship with the followers of other religions on love and righteousness, unless Muslims are not transgressed upon. Allah, the Almighty, says, {Allah does not forbid you to deal justly and kindly with those who fought not against you on account of religion and did not drive you out of your homes. Verily, Allah loves those who deal with equity.} Interpreting this verse, Ibn Al-Arabi Al-Maliki says, “To give them a share of the money.

Our religion Islam also calls to spread peace. The Prophet (PBUH) said, “To spread peace (by saluting each other saying “As-Salamu Alaikum”; peace be with you) with respect to those you know and those you know not.” This is a part of a Sahih Hadith.

There are fair testimonials by Western individuals on Muslims’ practices. For example, Thomas Arnold said: “If the Caliphs had chosen one of these plans (i.e., temptation to adopt Islam or extermination of Christianity), they would have wiped out Christianity as easily as what happened to Islam during the reign of Ferdinand and Isabella in Spain; by the same method which Louis XIV followed to make Protestantism a creed whose followers were to be sentenced to death; or with the same ease of keeping the Jews away from Britain for a period of three hundred fifty years.”

Richard Staper, an English merchant who lived in Turkey during the sixteenth century, specifically in 1578, held a comparison between the treatment by Muslim Turks to Orthodox and the treatment by Spain to them, saying: “Though the Turks are in general of the fiercest nations, they still allowed all of them, the Roman Catholics and Greek Orthodox, to preserve their religion and follow their consciences as they chose: they allowed them their churches to perform their sacred rituals in Constantinople and many other places. This is in contrast to what I can testify to from living in Spain for twelve years; not only were we forced to attend their Papist celebrations, but our lives and properties were in danger also.”
The German researcher Thomas Schieffelin provides a picture of Islam as follows: Violence is not a virtue in itself; rather, Islam served to rectify the Arab tribal violence by subjecting it to the laws of God.

As explained by Goldziher (1850-1921), the term ‘Jahiliyah,’ which usually referred to the ignorance of the tribal society before Islam, has primarily a broader meaning, i.e., ‘Barbarism: Any uncivilized, reckless, and brutal behaviour by those who are not affected by the Divine Revelation and mercy.’

Complaining of the treatment by the Polish Catholics to Polish Orthodox and describing them as cursed, demons of abomination, and ruthless-hearted because of their brutality in treating Christians, Patriarch Makarios said: “The Polish wish to exterminate people of the Orthodox faith. May Allah make the Turkish state eternal, because they do not interfere with the Jews or Christians, provided they pay their taxes. The Polish Catholics were not satisfied by taking the taxes and tithes from the brothers of Christ, but placed them under the authority of the Jewish oppressors, the enemies of Christ, who did not even allow them to build churches nor did they leave for them priests who know the secrets of their religion.”
Finally, we should point out three things to be meditated on by the fair among the Westerners.

First: When Islam appeared, the relations among the nations were based on the law of force which involved permanent hostility against the others if they did not surrender or fuse with the dominant powers in terms of religion, culture, customs and traditions. Under this situation, the teachings of the Islamic religion came to call for peace {But if they incline to peace, you also incline to it} and the establishment of treaties with enemies {Except those of the Polytheists with whom you have a treaty, and who have not subsequently failed you in aught, nor have supported anyone against you. So fulfil their treaty to them to the end of their term. Surely Allah loves Al-Mattaqun (the pious)}.

Second: Allah’s tradition with respect to His messengers and prophets is to commission some of them with certain duties different from those assigned to others. For example, some of them were assigned to call to worship Allah and undertake preaching and guidance as represented in the missions of Jesus (PBUH) and our Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) for 13 years from the beginning of his call to his companions to show patience and forgiveness, as some of them were tortured in Mecca and others immigrated to Abyssinia then to Medina. Also, some messengers were commissioned, in addition to the call for the way of Allah, to establish the ‘State of Right’, and they received a detailed Shari’ah (religious laws) which they were commanded to apply to people’s life, as represented in the mission of Moses (PBUH) as well as that of our Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) after his immigration to Medina and establishment of the state of Islam, requiring Jihad to repel the aggression and face the aggressors, along with the consequent mechanisms whose objective is to govern humanity according to justice.

Third: The essence of the message cannot be judged according to the behaviours and actions of the followers of such message. Put differently, the behaviours of the Muslim rulers against their enemies throughout history were characterized by being right and sometimes wrong, and we do not absolve our history, but the right behaviours were indeed more than the wrong ones, especially when compared with the behaviour of our neighbouring Christians in their wars against Islam, whether in terms of the genocide practiced in Andalusia, the Crusades which lasted for two centuries, and the colonial wars that continued for three centuries, aborting any revival of the Islamic world. The two fathers Joseph Cook and Louis Gardier said that the Crusades broke down the Muslims’ civilisational launch.

As for this war, which has started with the beginning of this century and whose end cannot be known except by Allah, the Almighty, and according to the testimony of Christian historians, the blood of innumerable numbers of innocent Muslims as well as Jews was shed. They demonstrated barbarity unparalleled in history except under the Tartars military attack on Baghdad. However, they did not apologise to the Muslims as they apologised to the Jews.
Is it possible then to attribute to Jesus (PBUH) the ruthless practices committed by the Christians against humanity?
Does the Pope have the courage to apologize to the Muslims instead of repeating the Byzantine controversy?
We shall continue with the rest of papal statements in episodes to come.

This beautiful word “jihad” has been subject to extreme points of view at both ends.

What does the concept of jihad literally and technically mean and what are its reasons in the Noble Quran?

The word Jihad is an infinitive of the verb jahada. It means to do one’s utmost and exert one’s effort to reach an end that is usually desirable.

In Islam, as al-Raghib said in his al-Mufradat, there are three kinds of this concept according to his words:

1. Jihad against a manifest enemy.
2. Jihad against the Satan.
3. Jihad against one’s soul.

The last two meanings are found in ahadith reported by Imam Ahmad in his Musnad and Abu Dawoud in his Sunan on the authority of Fudalah ibn `Ubayd that he said, “The [true] striver is the one who strives against his soul in obedience to Almighty Allah.”

In another weak hadith reported by al-Bayhaqy on the authority of Jabir, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said after returning from his last march to Tabuk “We returned from the minor jihad to the major one.”

He also interpreted it to mean combating one’s whims. Moreover, serving parents is a sort of jihad. He (peace and blessings be upon him) said “Strive for their sake.”

Ibn Taymiyyah defined jihad saying: It comprehends all sorts of worship, whether inward or outward, including love for Allah, being sincere to Him, relying on Him, relinquishing one’s soul and property for His sake, being patient and austere, and keeping remembrance of Almighty Allah. It includes what is done by physical power, what is done by the heart, what is done by the tongue through calling to the way of Allah by means of authoritative proofs and providing opinions, and what is done through management, industry, and wealth.

As for the first meaning, which is striving against people, this is the most widespread meaning. It is jihad against non-Muslims in the sense of fighting and engaging in war. There are many qur’anic verses and Prophetic ahadith concerning its merits, conditions, and regulations. Its practices through history between Muslims and others have been echoing. Up until now we still hear discussions over this subject ranging from acceptance to rejection, admiration to condemnation. Many have justified aggressive wars and worldly greed under the pretext of jihad. Others neglected jihad and refrained from driving back aggression and resisting the enemy and thus the results were grave. There are many movements that do not abide by the regulations of jihad and thus distorted the image of Islam and caused hardship and loss to Muslims.

Many unjustly accuse Islam considering jihad as something that needs no justification and that it is a call to constantly fight the non-Muslims as Priest Hanz Fu-King, quoted by Murad Huffman, said.

There are many examples like this one in the statements of orientalists by which they justify waging an aggressive war against Muslims to civilise and subdue them.

The truth is that the concept of jihad in Islam is not always synonymous with fighting. Jihad is a wider concept. It is a sort of defending the truth and calling to it through the tongue. Almighty Allah said in the chapter of al-Furqan “Persevere in impelling them with this [Quran], with a mighty impelling”; that is, establish the compelling arguments and present to them the proofs one after the other. Obviously, reciting the Quran does not involve military actions. Hence, not every jihad is fighting and not every fighting is jihad. Jihad is also a call for freedom.

Jihad could be a military action. There are military actions that are not jihad. Ibn Khaldun divided wars into four kinds according to their motives. He said that the origin of all wars is the desire for revenge. But two kinds of wars constitute transgression and turmoil: competitive war (expansive war) and transgressive war waged by brutal nations.

The other two kinds are just wars: one waged out of anger for the sake of Almighty Allah and His religion, which is the meaning of jihad, and the other waged against those who rebel against authorities, which is a war to safeguard the regime as he called it.

In the next article, we will continue talking about the illusions related to the concept and ruling of jihad in Islam.

In the aftermath of 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, a strong humanitarian response was prompted all around the globe to provide aid for the survivors and offer condolences to the hard-hit countries for the heavy death toll they incurred. This was all normal and “human”.
Sympathy is inherent in us. At some point, man inevitably feels belonging to this world and senses that the life or death of one person is equal to the lives or deaths of all people. This is the essence of life and death: It is not a matter of magnitude; life is life, and death is death, regardless of who, when, and how many. This fact is emphasized in the Qur’an: {Whoever kills a soul not (in punishment) for (killing another) soul or out of spreading corruption in the earth it shall be (reckoned) as though he has killed all people. And whoever saves its life it shall be (reckoned) as though he has saved the lives of all people}.
That worldwide response was rather an awakening of the human conscience, which had sadly turned apathetic after the many and many atrocities committed by man on earth, {sowing corruption and shedding blood} as the Qur’an puts it.
While censuring such insensitivity, ruthlessness, and use of lethal weapons that mark today’s world, it is our duty to commend that internationally concerted efforts in solidarity and sympathy with the victims, inspired by moral and religious ideals. In particular, Islam requires benevolence not only towards Muslims but actually towards every human, or even living, being. In an authentic hadith, the Prophet said, “In every creature with a moist liver (i.e., every living animal) there is a reward”. This splendid metaphor implies that every living being deserves care and help to keep the divine gift of life. Simply the fact that a creature has a liver makes it eligible for mercy and compassion. Cats, whales, humans, and all species are the fellow inhabitants of this world.
Contrary to the mainstream notion, religious differences never prevent mutual sympathy at times of crisis or when a calamity befalls. Once, the Prophet saw a Jewish funeral procession, and as a sign of condolence, he stood up. When his Companions told him that the deceased was non-Muslim, he commented, “Is not it a soul?!” By doing so, the Prophet was teaching us that respect for the human soul and pity for the sufferers are not limited to the followers of Islam but extend to all people.
In line with the teachings of our compassionate and tolerant religion, we Muslims are expected to embody such noble values and virtues and show solidarity with the victims, Muslims and non-Muslims. This is the very message of us and of all heavenly religions, from Prophet Adam to Prophet Muhammad.

Solidarity within the human community is the first lesson to learn from the disaster — a lesson that should create a deep understanding of the nature of relation between the dwellers of this planet as one family. To be credible, this requires reconsideration of how the world is managed, to put it on more solid moral grounds. Needless to say, the world has become like a huge jungle where beasts ferociously fight and where selfish benefit, blind force, and “the more you kill, the more welcomed and respected you are” constitute the prevailing code of conduct. In such a havoc, international law and covenants are worthless, illogicality is the norm that the human mind must accept, and masters of war are spreading the culture of killing everywhere.
As an Arab poet wrote,
We live in such an insane time when
Whoever does not go insane is not deemed sane
Does this solidarity apply to the victims of manmade disasters? This question is asked to man, to the “big pirates” and the “small pirates”. Natural disasters are inevitable incidents in this mortal universe, created and predestined with ultimate wisdom by the Maker of this universe. The 2004 earthquake is not the first and will not be the last. It is a fact of life, just like life and death, health and illness, youth and senility, sleeping and awakening, summer and winter, heat and coldness.
This planet and its inhabitants are subject to the ups and downs of life. We must respect our world, which is our home, our host, our abode. Allah says, {Then (there is) habitation (for you upon the earth), and then a repository (in the grave). Truly, We have made the signs utterly distinct for a people who can understand}. In fact, this earth is like a mother for us, as it is wherefrom we come to life and whereto we will return. Allah says, {From it have We created you, and to it shall We return you, and from it shall We bring you forth another time}.
That home is unprecedentedly violated by the greedy from among its inhabitants. The nonrenewable resources are excessively consumed, the nature is gravely polluted due to industrialization, climate changes are going on rapidly, sea ice is melting, the phenomenon of “greenhouse effect” is looming large, and toxic waste spreads everywhere contaminating even the depths of oceans. Virtually, Allah says, {Corruption has prevailed in the land and the sea because of (all the evil) that the hands of people have earned}.
We need to make a new start with our environment. This is the second lesson: to relink to the heaven. Astounded by the terrible calamity and wondering about its reasons, one asks two types of questions, some legitimate and some illegitimate.

The first type relates to studying the physical laws. Why did the earthquake occur? How to predict earthquakes? How to design quakeproof buildings? Where to live safe from seismic activity? These questions do not conflict with the acknowledgment of the Lord’s Power and Will. As Caliph `Umar Ibn Al-Khattab said, “We are fleeing from something predestined by Allah to something predestined by Allah”.
The other, illegitimate, questions are such type that involves blame to Allah, Exalted be He, under their own laws. Why did our Lord do that while He is the All-Merciful? This manifests sheer ignorance of the ultimate Wisdom of Allah, the Almighty, the All-Wise: {He shall not be questioned as to what He does, while they shall be questioned}. Allah allows such disasters to happen to make humanity feel how weak it is and to warn it against deviation. Allah says, {He is the One Who shows you lightening to inspire (in you) fear and hope}. They are also meant to arouse people’s conscience to repent to Him. The prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The sun and the moon are two of Allah’s signs. They never go into eclipse for the death or for the life of anybody. Thus, when you see them (undergoing eclipse), have recourse in Prayer”.
People should resort to supplication and repentance from sins, for a disaster may be a form of punishment. Allah says, {And not a single affliction strikes you but that it is for what your own hands have earned, and He pardons much}. It may also be a classification, as in the hadith: “And a drowning person is a martyr”. Or it may be a reminder of the ultimate end of this universe. Allah says, {When the earth quakes with its (utmost) quaking}.
Returning to virtue, establishing justice, stopping destruction, shunning selfishness and arrogance, and creating a global system underpinned by morality and ideals are the best ways to alleviate the impact of natural disasters on humanity and to “moralize” the international system around ethics advocated by religion and good human disposition, rather than such immorality and queerness associated with false modernity and civilization.
Perhaps the biggest lesson to derive from the incident is that humanity should become all aware of three basic facts:
1. All people are members of one global family and must cherish solidarity and cooperation.
2. The Earth is the global home that everyone must love and take care of.
3. Man is weak before Divine Power and needs virtue to beautify and optimize his life in this world.
To conclude, this article is not meant to attack or condemn the global system. It is just a discussion of the facts and a presentation of advice, for whoever {listens with heed}.