Short answer
Jihad means striving, or making an effort, in the way of God (﷾). It does not mean "holy war". The Arabic word for war is harb, which is a different word. No Arabic phrase meaning "holy war" is found in the Qur'an or in the sayings of the Prophet (ﷺ). He told a man who wanted to go and fight to make his jihad in serving his parents. He counted speaking out against wrong as jihad too. Fighting is one form of jihad. It is allowed only within limits God (﷾) has set, and only a lawful authority may declare war. No one may take the law into his own hands.
Full explanation
What the word means
Jihad comes from an Arabic root meaning effort and striving. The Qur'an uses it for effort of every kind in God's (﷾) way. So a Muslim's struggle against his own faults, against poverty or against injustice can all be jihad. Surat al-Furqan is a chapter revealed in Mecca, before fighting was ever permitted. In it the Prophet (ﷺ) is told to strive hard against the unbelievers "with the Qur'an", that is, with its message. Another verse promises guidance to all who strive in God's (﷾) cause. Another says that whoever strives, strives for the good of his own soul.
“Therefore listen not to the Unbelievers, but strive against them with the utmost strenuousness, with the (Qur'an).”
“And those who strive in Our (cause),- We will certainly guide them to our Paths: For verily Allah is with those who do right.”
“And if any strive (with might and main), they do so for their own souls: for Allah is free of all needs from all creation.”
“And strive in His cause as ye ought to strive, (with sincerity and under discipline). He has chosen you, and has imposed no difficulties on you in religion; it is the cult of your father Abraham. It is He Who has named you Muslims, both before and in this (Revelation); that the Messenger may be a witness for you, and ye be witnesses for mankind! So establish regular Prayer, give regular Charity, and hold fast to Allah! He is your Protector - the Best to protect and the Best to help!”
Jihad in the Prophet's (ﷺ) own words
The Prophet (ﷺ) gave the word a wide meaning. He sent a volunteer home to make his jihad in caring for his parents. He said that whoever strives against wrongdoers with his tongue is a believer. He also told the women that the best jihad for them is a well-performed pilgrimage (Hajj, the pilgrimage to Mecca).
Abdullah ibn Amr reports that a man asked the Prophet's (ﷺ) permission to go on jihad. The Prophet asked whether his parents were alive. When he said yes, the Prophet told him: then make your jihad in serving them.
Abdullah ibn Mas'ud reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said that every prophet before him had disciples who followed his way; then came successors who said what they did not do and did what they were not commanded. Whoever strives against them with his hand is a believer, whoever strives against them with his tongue is a believer, and whoever strives against them with his heart is a believer.
Aisha reports that she said jihad was seen as the best deed, and asked whether the women should not fight too. The Prophet (ﷺ) answered that the best jihad for them is a pilgrimage (Hajj) performed well and accepted.
| Form | What was said |
|---|---|
| With the Qur'an | In Mecca, before fighting was allowed: strive hard with its message |
| Serving parents | A volunteer for battle was sent home to make his jihad in serving them |
| Speaking out | Whoever strives against wrongdoers with his tongue is a believer |
| Pilgrimage | For the women, the best jihad is a well-performed Hajj |
| Fighting | Only within limits, and declared only by a lawful ruler |
Where "holy war" comes from
Arabic has its own word for war, harb, and the Qur'an uses it, as in 8:57. The phrase "holy war" (al-harb al-muqaddasa) appears nowhere in the Qur'an or the hadith (the recorded sayings and deeds of the Prophet (ﷺ)). One well-known English translation of Sahih Muslim 1731 renders the Prophet's (ﷺ) orders to his commanders as "make a holy war". But the Arabic word there is ughzu, which means "go out on campaign". The word "holy" was added by the translator.
“If ye gain the mastery over them in war, disperse, with them, those who follow them, that they may remember.”
In this widely used English translation of Sahih Muslim, the Prophet's (ﷺ) order to his commanders in hadith 1731, the Arabic ughzu (go out on campaign), is rendered "Make a holy war". The Arabic has no word meaning "holy".
Buraida reports that when the Prophet (ﷺ) appointed a commander he told him to fear Allah and to be good to his men, and not to steal from the spoils, break a pledge, mutilate the dead or kill children. Before any fighting the enemy was to be offered three choices: accept Islam; if not, pay the jizya, and then the Muslims must hold back from them; and only if both were refused, fight.
How the news made "jihad" a catchword
In English the word has drifted. The Cambridge Dictionary first defines jihad as a religious struggle against evil in yourself or in society. It now also gives a second use: war or terrorism carried out by some Muslim extremists. The news has done much to spread that second use. A Cardiff University study of British newspapers from 2000 to 2008 found that 36% of stories about British Muslims were about terrorism. The nouns used most often for British Muslims were terrorist, extremist, Islamist, suicide bomber and militant. In such reporting "jihad" became a quick word for an attack. That use is wrong and misinformed. It takes one form of jihad, fighting, strips away the limits Islam puts on it, and hands the word to the very people who break those limits.
Defines jihad first as, in Islam, a religious struggle against evil in yourself or in society. It also gives the word as used to refer to war or terrorism carried out by some Muslim extremists against people who they believe are a threat to their religion.
A study of British national newspapers from 2000 to 2008. It found that 36% of stories about British Muslims were about terrorism or the war on terror, that the nouns used most often in relation to British Muslims were terrorist, extremist, Islamist, suicide bomber and militant, with very few positive nouns such as scholar, and that the commonest adjectives were radical, fanatical, fundamentalist, extremist and militant.
Fighting: allowed, but within limits
Fighting is one form of jihad. In the books of Islamic law, the chapter called the Book of Jihad is the law of war, and it is a law of limits and it forbids terrorism in all its ugly forms. The first permission to fight was given to people who were being attacked and wronged. Every fight is bound by a command not to transgress limits. The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children. He told every commander not to break a pledge or mutilate the dead. Some people have not fought the Muslims for their faith or driven them from their homes. Towards them the Qur'an allows kindness and justice, for Allah (﷾) loves those who are just. The full law of war, and Islam's ban on terrorism, are set out on their own pages.
“To those against whom war is made, permission is given (to fight), because they are wronged;- and verily, Allah is most powerful for their aid;-”
“Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah loveth not transgressors.”
Ibn Umar reports that a woman was found killed during one of the Prophet's (ﷺ) campaigns, and the Prophet forbade the killing of women and children.
Buraida reports that when the Prophet (ﷺ) appointed a commander he told him to fear Allah and to be good to his men, and not to steal from the spoils, break a pledge, mutilate the dead or kill children. Before any fighting the enemy was to be offered three choices: accept Islam; if not, pay the jizya, and then the Muslims must hold back from them; and only if both were refused, fight.
“Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your) Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loveth those who are just.”
Only under a lawful authority
War in Islam is not declared by individuals or groups. The Prophet (ﷺ) called the ruler a shield behind whom Muslims fight. Muslim jurists (scholars of Islamic law) hold that the decision to go to war belongs to the lawful ruler. The only exception is defending against a sudden attack when there is no time to ask him. They also hold that trial and punishment belong to a lawful court with a qualified judge. No individual may decide whom to kill or punish.
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: whoever obeys the ruler obeys me, and whoever disobeys him disobeys me. The ruler (imam) is a shield: fighting is done behind him and protection is sought through him. If he commands piety and rules justly he is rewarded, and if not, the burden is on him.
Ibn Qudamah, a Hanbali jurist, holds that the matter of jihad is entrusted to the ruler (imam) and his judgement, and that the people must obey him in it. He makes one exception: if an enemy attacks suddenly and there is no time to ask the ruler, the people may defend themselves without his permission. He also holds that a Muslim who enters a non-Muslim land under a promise of safety (aman) may not betray its people or take their property, because the safety was given on the understanding that he would not betray them, even if this was not said in words.
Ibn Qudamah, a Hanbali jurist, holds that, as a rule, no one may carry out a fixed penalty (hadd) except the ruler (imam) or the one he appoints to act for him. The only exception he allows is an old ruling on a master and his own slave, which has no application today.
Groups that misuse the word
Some armed groups have put the word in their names. Among them are Egyptian Islamic Jihad, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Islamic Jihad Union. Britain bans all three as terrorist organisations. They are wrong to use the word for what they do, because Islam forbids terrorism. The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children. He said that whoever rises against his community, striking down the good and the wicked alike, has nothing to do with him. In 2014, more than 120 Muslim scholars wrote to the leader of the group calling itself the Islamic State. Among them was the Grand Mufti of Egypt. They told him that killing the innocent is forbidden in Islam. A group cannot turn what Islam forbids into jihad by giving itself the name.
The UK government's list of organisations banned under the Terrorism Act 2000. It includes Egyptian Islamic Jihad and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (both proscribed in March 2001), the Islamic Jihad Union (July 2005) and Harakat-ul-Jihad-ul-Islami (October 2005).
Ibn Umar reports that a woman was found killed during one of the Prophet's (ﷺ) campaigns, and the Prophet forbade the killing of women and children.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said: whoever attacks his community, striking down the good and the wicked alike, sparing not even the believers, and not keeping faith with those given a pledge of security, has nothing to do with me, and I have nothing to do with him.
An open letter from Muslim scholars, muftis and imams around the world to the leader of the group calling itself the Islamic State. Its signers include Shawqi Allam, the Grand Mufti of Egypt, and Abdallah bin Bayyah, with scholars and leaders from Nigeria, Pakistan, Indonesia and North America. Its summary lists what it says is forbidden in Islam, among them: killing the innocent; killing emissaries, and so journalists and aid workers; declaring people non-Muslim unless they openly declare disbelief; harming or mistreating Christians or any People of the Scripture; forcing people to convert; torturing people; and disfiguring the dead. It adds that bringing slavery back is forbidden in Islam, because it was abolished by universal consensus, and it condemns his taking women as concubines as a revival of strife and corruption.
Perspectives
The common objection: jihad is holy war
Many critics say jihad means holy war: a religious duty to fight unbelievers until they submit.
Critics say jihad means holy war, a duty to fight unbelievers until they submit.
Rebuttal
The Qur'an uses jihad for striving of every kind, even striving with the Qur'an itself in Mecca, before any fighting was allowed. The Prophet (ﷺ) called serving your parents a jihad. In a well-known English translation, the word "holy" was added by the translator. Where jihad does mean fighting, the decision belongs to the lawful ruler. And every fight is bound by the command not to go beyond the limits. The picture of a holy war owes much to the news, where jihad became a quick word for terrorism. A Cardiff University study found that 36% of British press stories about British Muslims were about terrorism.
Critics point to armed groups that call themselves "Islamic Jihad" as proof of what the word means.
Rebuttal
A name does not make an act lawful. Britain bans Egyptian Islamic Jihad, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the Islamic Jihad Union as terrorist groups, and Islam forbids what they do. The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children. And he disowned whoever strikes down the good and the wicked alike. In 2014, more than 120 Muslim scholars, among them the Grand Mufti of Egypt, wrote that killing the innocent is forbidden in Islam. These groups are wrong to use the word. And the news is wrong to take their use of it as its meaning.
The Islamic perspective
Jihad means striving in God's (﷾) way. It can be against one's own faults, for one's parents, or against wrongdoing with the tongue. When a lawful authority declares war, it can be in battle, always within the limits God (﷾) has set. The Prophet (ﷺ) bound every fight with limits no Muslim may cross.
The Qur'an uses jihad for striving of every kind. That includes striving with the Qur'an itself in Mecca, before any fighting was allowed.
The Prophet (ﷺ) called serving one's parents, and speaking out against wrongdoers, forms of jihad. He called a good pilgrimage the best jihad for women.
Harb is the Qur'an's word for war.
In a well-known English translation of Sahih Muslim 1731, the word "holy" was added by the translator. The Arabic ughzu means go out on campaign.
Permission to fight was given to those attacked and wronged. Every fight is bound by the command not to transgress limits.
The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children, breaking pledges and mutilating the dead.
The decision to go to war belongs to the lawful ruler, not to individuals or groups. The only exception is defending against a sudden attack.
Groups that put "jihad" in their names for acts of terrorism misuse the word. The Prophet (ﷺ) forbade killing women and children. And he disowned whoever strikes down the good and the wicked alike.