Question

Why was Jihad movement important?Very detailed answer

Answer 1

Explanation:

The importance of jihad is rooted in the Quran’s command to struggle (the

literal meaning of the word jihad) in the path of God and in the example of the

Prophet Muhammad and his early Companions. In its most general meaning,

jihad refers to the obligation incumbent on all Muslims, individuals and the

community, to follow and realize God’s will: to lead a virtuous life and to extend

the Islamic community through preaching, education, example, writing, etc.

Jihad also includes the right, indeed the obligation, to defend Islam and the

community from aggression. Throughout history, the call to jihad has rallied

Muslims to the defense of Islam.

Since the late 20th century, the word jihad has gained remarkable

currency: used by resistance, liberation, and terrorist movements alike to

legitimate their cause and motivate their followers. The Afghan Mujahiddin, the

Taliban and the Northern Alliance, have waged a jihad in Afghanistan against

foreign powers and among themselves; Muslims in Kashmir, Chechnya,

Daghestan and the southern Philippines, Bosnia and Kosovo have fashioned

their struggles as jihads; Hizbollah, HAMAS, and Islamic Jihad Palestine have

characterized war with Israel as a jihad; Algeria’s Armed Islamic Group has

engaged in a jihad of terror against the government there and Osama Bin Laden

and al-Qaeda have waged a global jihad against Muslim governments and the

West.

The importance of jihad is rooted in the Quran’s command to “struggle or

exert” (the literal meaning of the word jihad) oneself in the path of God. The

Quranic teachings have been of essential significance to Muslim self-

understanding, piety, mobilization, expansion and defense. Jihad as struggle

pertains to the difficulty and complexity of living a good life: struggling against the

evil in oneself – to be virtuous and moral, making a serious effort to do good

works and help to reform society. Depending on the circumstances in which one

lives, it also can mean fighting injustice and oppression, spreading and defending

Islam and creating a just society through preaching, teaching and, if necessary,

armed struggle or holy war.

The two broad meanings of jihad, non-violent and violent, are contrasted

in a well-known Prophetic tradition. Muslim tradition reports that, when

Muhammad returned from battle, he told his followers “We return from the lesser

jihad to the greater jihad.” The greater jihad is the more difficult and more

important struggle against one’s ego, selfishness, greed, and evil.