25 April, 2024

16 Shawwal, 1445 H

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"Silence saves you from regret"

- Imam Ali (as) -

Learning
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Core Curriculum
Section 1 - God, Religion and Islam: An Introduction

  • Topic 1.1 - God, Allah and Religion

  • Topic 1.2 - What is “Religion” and What’s the Point of it Anyways?

  • Topic 1.3 - Introduction to Islam

  • Topic 1.4 - A Brief Introduction to the Prophet Muhammad (s), the Prophet of Islam

Section 2 - Foundations of Islam - Theology

  • Topic 2.1 - Satan, Jinns and Angels: Their Influence in the World

  • Topic 2.2 - The Islamic Concept of the Nafs: Battling the Human Ego

  • Topic 2.3 - The Sharīʿa: Purpose and Practice

  • Topic 2.4 - Nubuwwa: The Purpose of Prophethood in Islam

  • Topic 2.5 - Tawhīd: The Unity and Oneness of God in Islam

  • Topic 2.6 - The Usūl al-Dīn: The Fundamental Beliefs of Islam

  • Topic 2.7 - Adala: Divine Justice in Islam

  • Topic 2.8 - Entering Islam: The Shahada

  • Topic 2.9 - Maʿād: The Day of Judgment in Islam

  • Topic 2.10 - Imāmah or divinely guided leadership in Islam after the Prophet Muhammad.

Section 3 - Foundations of Islam - Obligatory Acts

  • Topic 3.1 - Accepting Islam: Putting Faith into Action

  • Topic 3.2 - The Furūʿ al-Dīn: The Fundamental Practices of Islam

  • Topic 3.3 - Salāt: Obligatory Ritual Prayers in Islam

  • Topic 3.4 - Fasting in Islam, its Purpose, Dos and Don’ts

  • Topic 3.5 - The Hajj Pilgrimage

  • Topic 3.6 - The Purpose of Zakat and Khums in Islamic Law

  • Topic 3.7 - Jihād in Islamic Law and Spirituality

  • Topic 3.8 - Commanding the Good and Forbidding Evil in Islam

  • Topic 3.9 - Tawalla and Tabarra, its Basics and Purpose

  • Topic 3.10 - The Five Categories of Islamic Law

  • Topic 3.11 - Niyya: Religious Intention as the Foundation of Islamic Practice

  • Topic 3.12 - Ritual Purity in Islamic Law: Understanding Tahāra and Najāsa

  • Topic 3.13 - Other Obligatory and Forbidden Acts in Islam

Section 4 - Prophethood in Islam

  • Topic 4.1 - A Brief Biography of the Prophet Muhammad (s): The Prophet’s Childhood (PART I of III)

  • Topic 4.2 - Bio: The Prophet Muhammad as a Prophet of God (PART II of III)

  • Topic 4.3 - A Brief Biography of the Prophet Muhammad (s): The Prophet’s Character (PART III of III)

  • Topic 4.4 - The Prophet Muhammad (s) as Messenger and Teacher

  • Topic 4.5 - The Prophet and his Relationships

  • Topic 4.6 - The Prophet’s Sunnah and Hadith

  • Topic 4.7 - Ghadīr and Arafah: The Two Last Sermons of the Prophet

  • Topic 4.8 - Jesus and Mary in Islam

Section 5 - The Qur'an and Hadith

  • Topic 5.1 - Islam and Other Religions

  • Topic 5.2 - What is the Qur’an? A Short Introduction to Islam’s Holy Book

  • Topic 5.3 - The Structure of the Holy Qur’an

  • Topic 5.4 - The Quran and Islamic law

  • Topic 5.5 - The Qur’an, Allah and Humankind

  • Topic 5.6 - Hadith and Sunnah, difference and variations

  • Topic 5.7 - The Reliability of Hadiths

  • Topic 5.8 - A Reflection on Verses of the Holy Qur’an

  • Topic 5.9 - Hadith al-Thaqalayn

  • Topic 5.10 - Imam Ali (as) and Nahj al-Balagha.

  • Topic 5.11 - Taqlid and Tawḍih Al Masail Genre of Literature

Section 6 - Measuring Good and Bad in Islam

  • Topic 6.1 - Guidance According to Islam

  • Topic 6.2 - Life and Death in Islam

  • Topic 6.3 - Heaven and Hell in Islam

  • Topic 6.4 - The Effects of Our Actions in this World

  • Topic 6.5 - The Gray Areas of Islamic Law and Morality

  • Topic 6.6 - Benefits of Islamic Law in this World

  • Topic 6.7 - Good and Bad Deeds: The Spiritual Consequences of our Choices

  • Topic 6.8 - The Effect of Culture and Environment in Shaping our Religious Choices

  • Topic 6.9 - Fate and the Consequences of our Choices in Islam

  • Topic 6.10 - Trivializing the Harām

  • Topic 6.11 - Sinning Against Others and their Delayed Punishment

  • Topic 6.12 - The Three Kinds of Rights in Islam

  • Topic 6.13 - Major Sins in Islam

  • Topic 6.14 - Repentance and Forgiveness of Sins in Islam

  • Topic 6.15 - Kufr in Islam

  • Topic 6.16 - Why Allah Allows People to Sin

Section 7 - The Legacy of the Prophet Muhammad (s) and his Ahl al-Bayt (as)

  • Topic 7.1 - Islam and Knowledge: the Importance of Islamic Education

  • Topic 7.2 - The Ahl al-Kisa

  • Topic 7.3 - Imamah in the Qur’an

  • Topic 7.4 - Fatima al-Zahrah (as)

  • Topic 7.5 - A Brief Look at the Lives of the Imams (Imam al-Hasan until Imam Muhammad al-Baqir)

  • Topic 7.6 - A Brief Look at the Lives of the Imams (Imam Jafar al-Sadiq until Imam Hasan al-Askari)

  • Topic 7.7 - A Brief Look at the Life and Importance of Imam al-Mahdi (aj)

  • Topic 7.8 - Salawat and Atonement in Islam

  • Topic 7.9 - The Companions (Sahaba) of the Prophet According to the Qur’an

  • Topic 7.10 - Clerical Hierarchies in Muslim Communities

  • Topic 7.11 - Mosques in Islam

  • Topic 7.12 - The Philosophy of Karbala and Majalis

  • Topic 7.13 - A Brief Biography of Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (as)

  • Topic 7.14 - The Battle of Karbala: A Brief History

Section 8 - Islamic Relationships, Sects and Conflicts

  • Topic 8.1 - Islam and Rights

  • Topic 8.2 - Islam and Religious Conflicts

  • Topic 8.3 - Major Sects of Islam

  • Topic 8.4 - Sunnism and Shi’ism, beginnings and historical developments.

  • Topic 8.5 - Misconceptions about Shi’ism

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Special Topics
Section 9 - Independent Topics

  • Topic 9.1 - Muslim Converts – Welcome to Islam!

  • Topic 9.2 - Basic Dos and Don’ts of Being a Muslim

  • Topic 9.3 - Halal Food and Zabiha

  • Topic 9.4 - Modesty in Islam

  • Topic 9.5 - Family, Parents and Marriage in Islam

  • Topic 9.6 - Marriage in Islam

  • Topic 9.7 - Islam and Sex

  • Topic 9.8 - Women’s Menstruation in Islam

  • Topic 9.9 - Music, Alcohol, Drugs and Pork in Islam

  • Topic 9.10 - Islam and Science

  • Topic 9.11 - A Reading List of Islamic Knowledge

  • Topic 9.12 - Islam and Sufism

  • Topic 9.13 - Ritual Prayers and Supplications in Islam

  • Topic 9.14 - Death & Burial Rituals in Islam

  • Topic 9.15 - The Battle of Armageddon: An Islamic View

  • Topic 9.16 - The Muslim Calendar

  • Topic 9.17 - Muslims and non-Muslims in the Shariah

  • Topic 9.18 - A Timeline of Major Events in Islamic History

  • Topic 9.19 - Introducing the Qur’an: Why it is the way it is

  • Topic 9.20 - The School of Imam Jafar al-Sadiq

  • Topic 9.21 - Major Fields in Islamic Studies

  • Topic 9.22 - The Caliphate in Sunni and Shia Islam

  • Topic 9.23 - The Spread of Islam: After the Prophet until the Ottoman Empire

  • Topic 9.24 - Islam, Racism and Anti-Semitism

Section 10 - Islam, Religion, and Modern Controversies

  • Topic 10.1 - Modern Fallacies about God: where Theists and Atheists Agree

  • Topic 10.2 - Tawhīd: The Muslim God according to the Prophet Muhammad and the Ahl al-Bayt (as)

  • Topic 10.3 - God’s Existence: The Argument From Being (Wujūd)

  • Topic 10.4 - God’s Existence: The Kalam Cosmological Argument

  • Topic 10.5 - God’s Existence: The Argument From Design

  • Topic 10.6 - The Problem of Evil, Suffering and Pain

  • Topic 10.7 - Why did God Create Us? The Purpose of our Creation

  • Topic 10.8 - Why Humans Need Religion according to Islam

  • Topic 10.9 - Jahl and Spiritual Ignorance in Islam

  • Topic 10.10 - Faith in Islam: Belief without Evidence?

  • Topic 10.11 - Do Non-Muslims Go to Hell?

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Jihād in Islamic Law and Spirituality

Abstract

The are two kinds of Jihad in Islam, one minor and the other major. The minor jihad is a war of self-defense against hostile powers. The major jihad is a struggle against one’s evil desires. 

INTRODUCTION 

 

Bismillāhir Rahmānir Rahīm, As-salāmu ʿAlaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh. Peace be upon you brothers and sisters. 

 

Welcome back to the Muslim Converts Channel! Religion is not always an easy thing. For many people, believing in Islam isn’t too hard. More difficult than this is practicing Islam and its commandments. This is often where the real struggle lies. 

 

However, there is a struggle that we don’t see which put frankly, is the most difficult of our struggles. Recall in our last section we discussed the issue of the nafs that commands us to evil. The duty of a Muslim is to struggle against evil. The hardest evil to fight against is the evil of ourselves. 

 

As in the case with the nafs, evil begins from the inside which everyone must struggle against. Sometimes this evil manifests itself outwardly as well so if you are evil inside, you may also do evil things on the outside. 

 

The evil within and without must be struggled against. This struggle in Islam is called jihād. Jihād is the 6th item of the furūʿ al-dīn and is one of the most critical religious practices of Islam. In this lesson, we will look at the two kinds of jihad, the major and minor. The major jihad is the internal jihad, and the minor jihad is the external one. 

 

BODY OF TEXT 

 

“O Prophet! Encourage the believers to go for Jihad. If there are twenty patient ones amongst you, you will overcome 200...” (Chapter 8, verse 65 of the Holy Qur’an) 

 

Imam Jaʿfar al‑Sādiq (a) said: The Messenger of Allah (s) dispatched a contingent of the army (to the battlefront). Upon their (successful) return, he (s) said: Blessed are those who have performed the minor jihad and have yet to perform the major jihad. When asked, What is the major jihad? the Prophet (s) replied: The jihad of the self (struggle against self). 

 

Jihad literally means struggle. In Islam, it means to struggle for the sake of Allah. This can be done in two ways. The first way is through something we call the “Minor Jihad” and the second way is what we call the “Major Jihad”.  

 

The Minor Jihād or al-Jihād al-Asghar, is the most well-known kind of Jihād because there is so much coverage of it on TV nowadays. The minor Jihad is sometimes known as “holy war” and it is a means for self-defense. This Jihad can also be looked at as an “outer jihad” or a “fighting jihad”. Its portrayal in the media, of course, is not really correct even if some fundamentalist Muslims encourage and stick to this false narrative.  

 

First, according to the Prophet Muhammad (s) and the Imāms of the Ahl al-Bayt (as), this fighting Jihad is not supposed to be offensive. If you look at the life of the Prophet (s), there is not a single instance where he went to war with non-Muslims who were at peace with him. The God of Islam is a God of peace. 

 

All of his wars were defensive in nature. This kind of defensive Jihad was also practiced by the Imams like Imam Husayn (as) at Karbala. 

 

So basically the minor Jihad is when an aggressing army attacks you, or your village or town is invaded and you defend yourself. It is a defense of the Muslim community or Ummah. The defense takes place as long as the aggressing party is attacking you. In Islam, if they want to make peace, then we are advised to accept peace and turn away from war as much as we can.  

 

This jihad comes with strict rules and regulations. Even in a state of defense, Muslims are not allowed to kill innocent civilians, including old men, women and children. Furthermore, they are not allowed to destroy property or even trees. 

 

Sometimes this jihad can also take place in other “outer” forms. For example, one can have a jihad of the pen where one defends Islam against vicious propaganda. In this sense, it is a defense of one’s religion. At other times, one can lead a “jihad” against poverty. What all these have in common is that they are a jihad or struggle against evil.  

 

The second form of Jihad is called the Major Jihad or al-Jihād al-Akbar. According to the Prophet Muhammad (s), this is the most difficult evil to fight for it is a struggle for one’s own soul. Within ourselves, there is an inner self called the nafs al-ammāra, or the nafs which commands to evil and immorality.  

 

This is in contrast to one’s “good” self that has two levels. The first is the nafs al-lawwāmah or the reproaching self. This is where we resist our evil thoughts and inclinations. The second level of the “good self” is the nafs al-mutma’innah, that is, the peaceful soul, where one reaches such a high degree of self-control that the struggle barely takes place anymore.  

 

So the jihād al-akbar is the jihad against the evil self. This one is the hardest because it is an on-going struggle inside our hearts against bad desires and sins (like wanting to lie, gossip, fornicate, being jealous etc.) throughout our lives.  

 

In this sense, this jihad is a struggle between 1) the divine and angelic powers that we have inside us which command us to the good and  2) the satanic forces that want us to follow our bad desires. 

 

How does one win this battle though? It sounds like a pretty tough struggle. Remember we had a specific discussion on the nafs previously. Winning this inner battle means winning against our bad habits and developing new and good ones. The more we get used to saying no to our bad desires, the stronger our will becomes and the easier it becomes to say “no” to them overtime. But if we are constantly submitting to whatever desires our evil selves push us to, we will get used to that and over time, it will get harder and harder to say no to the bad desires. 

 

Until Next Time, Thank you for watching. As-salāmu ʿAlaykum wa rahmatullāhi wa barakātuh 

Nafs al-Mut’mainnah

The self which has attained peace and tranquility, and does not need to struggle as much against desires as they have been pacified. 

Nafs al-Lawwāma

The self which struggles against immorality and evil

Nafs al-Ammāra

The ego or self that commands to evil

Jihad al-Asghar

Minor or Lesser Jihad, struggle and self-defense against hostile powers

Jihad al-Akbar

Greater Jihad, struggle against the evil self

Jihad

Struggle against Evil

Q1

What is the best way to struggle against my evil nafs?

Develop the habit of saying “no” to it.

Q2

What is al-Nafs al-Ammārah?

It is the self or ego which commands us to do evil. It is what Muslims must struggle against.

Q3

What is Jihad al-Asghar?

It is the minor Jihad, it is defending oneself or one’s community against warring aggressors.

Q4

What is Jihad al-Akbar?

It is the greater Jihad, it is the jihad against one’s evil desires.

Q5

What is Jihad?

Jihad is struggle against evil

Muslim
God
Allah
Afterlife
Prophet Muhammad
Messenger of Allah
Religion
Ahl al-Bayt
Sin
Sins
Salvation
Soul
Spirit
Imam Jaʿfar al-Sādiq
Islamic law
spiritual lives
ummah
Faroo-e-Deen
nafs
nafs al-ammārah
nafs al-lawwāmah
nafs al-mut’mainnah
jihad
greater jihad
lesser jihad
minor jihad
jihād al-akbar
jihād al-asghar
struggle
holy war

Immigration and Jihad by Murtaza Muttahari 

Jihad: Holy War in Islam by Murtaza Muttahari 

Jihad al-Akbar by Imam Khomeini 

Jihad and Shahadat by Ayatollah Taleqani

The Scholarly Jihad of the Imams by Saeed Akhtar Rizvi