Jihad, Holy War and Terrorism in Islam

 Islam is a greatly misunderstood faith, especially in the western world, and no Islamic term is more widely misunderstood and decried as the word Jihad. Jihad often is mistranslated to mean Holy War. Some non-Muslims misunderstand the term to indicate the waging of war against disbelievers, to convert them to Islam or kill them. Often, the word Jihad is thought to be synonymous with terrorism, but this couldn't be further from the truth.

Jihad comes from an Arabic word meaning "to make an effort" or "to strive towards a goal." Jihad means " exerting oneself" or "to struggle." In the Islamic context, it means to struggle against one's evil inclination. So, any effort of self-improvement, whether enhancing one's spirituality, education, or financial situation, is an act of Jihad. 

"We shall certainly guide those who strive for Our cause to Our path. God is certainly with the righteous ones" (Quran 29:69)

This Verse applies to one who spiritually struggles to attain closeness to and seek the pleasure of God. Jihad comes in different forms. The essential Jihad, known as Major Jihad, is Jihad An-Nafs (the Jihad of the soul). This is the spiritual struggle between two powers within humans: the soul and the body. The soul is prone to becoming corrupt from within oneself, external influences, or both sources.

"Verily, the soul is inclined to evil" (Quran 12:53)

Islam expresses the importance of purifying, cleansing, and restraining oneself from submitting to sinful desires. Islam expects its followers to prefer their souls and conscience instead of their bodies and desires by striving to resist urges and inner temptations. They are expected to avoid acts of disobedience and instead perform acts of obedience pleasing to God.

"And whoever strives only strives for the benefit of himself. Indeed, Allah is free from need of the worlds" (Quran 29:6)

 Islam emphasizes self-improvement, self-development, self-restraint, and self-control to shape one's life in the best manner for personal benefit and the good of society. This Jihad is intended to purify the soul. The concept involves struggling against the greed for worldly purposes, arrogance, pride, envy, jealousy, hatred, hypocrisy, insincerity, vanity, narcissism, and other evil traits Satan uses to lead humanity astray into destruction. Every Muslim must strive daily to overcome these evils to the best of their ability. The Jihad of the soul includes the struggle to perform good deeds to please God and become closer to Him. Allah states in His Book:

"He has succeeded who purifies it." (Quran 91:9)

 Scholars state that the successors to whom this Verse refers are those individuals who purify their souls by obeying God and restraining from sins and evil doing. The other primary Jihad is Jihad Al-Shaytan (Jihad against Satan). Satan's main aim is to destroy the religion of humanity by attacking them with continuous whispers regarding their belief in God and to tempt, corrupt, and mislead people away from God's guidance.

 "O, you who have believed, enter into submission completely and perfectly and do not follow the footsteps of Satan. Indeed, he is to you a clear enemy" (Quran 2:208)

The whispers of Satan come to both righteous people and the wicked. These whispers can be detrimental to one's spiritual, emotional, physical, and psychological well-being. One needs to fight against Satan, warding off the doubts the demon stirs up that undermine faith in God and resisting the corrupt desires he provokes.