Posted on 06/04/2003 5:57:30 PM PDT by SauronOfMordor
Thus peace may be accepted but not if Muslims have the upper hand. In addition to the evidences of the Qur’an, Sunnah and Ijma-as Sahabah present clear evidences of the reality of Jihad.
Abdullah ibn Umar (ra) relates that the Prophet of Allah (saw) said:
“I have been ordered to initiate the fighting of people, until they testify that there is no god save Allah, that Muhammad is Allah's Prophet, establish Salat and pay Zakat. If they do that they save their blood from me, except by the right of Islam, their account will be to Allah” [Bukhari and Muslim].
In another hadith related by Anas ibn Malik;
“Three are the origin of faith, to refrain from saying; 'they are disbelievers,' if they say there is no god save Allah, merely because of a sin or bad action. Secondly, that Jihad is continuous until the Day of Judgement, till the last one of my Ummah fights the 'Dajjal'. Thirdly to believe in the Qadr.”
If Jihad is only defensive war how can it continue until the Day of Judgement? If it was so Jihad would be periodic and would not be continuous. Moreover, this completely contradicts evidences from the life of the Prophet (saw) and the example of Sahabah.
In the nine years that followed the Hijrah to Madinah (where permission was given to fight) the Prophet (saw) personally led 28 military campaigns, and during the same period the Companions (ra) embarked on another 51 military campaigns.
If one looks in detail at these expeditions and battles one finds clear evidence that the Prophet (saw) and the companions undertook both defensive and offensive action. The battles of Uhud and Ahzab are clear examples of defensive battles - on the other hand, Tabuk and Mutah are clear examples of offensive wars. Indeed the Prophet (saw) took part in thirteen expeditions and eleven major battles in which he took the initiative and launched offensive action. Likewise of the 51 Sariyah (campaigns), 39 were offensive. How can one say, therefore, that Jihad is only defensive?
Transgression
"Fight in the way of Allah, those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah verily loves not transgressors” [TMQ Al-Baqarah:190 ].
The above verse describes the way in which Jihad is being carried out. It refers to the limits that have to be observed when engaging the enemy. It by no means implies that Jihad is defensive. Islam has its own regulations of war - the limits Muslims are strictly commanded to adhere to, are not to kill women, children, old men, and priests who do not participate in war against Muslims. To attack such people would be to transgress the limits set by Allah (swt) because they are not "those who fight you". However, if they fight against Muslims on the battlefield then to fight them would not be transgression. Muslims are also commanded to treat war prisoners kindly not to torture them or mutilate dead bodies - all of these actions would amount to a transgression.
Transgression would also arise if a nation was attacked without first calling them to Islam. Muslims are ordained to call their enemies to Islam before fighting against them. If they refuse, Muslims should call them again to pay Jizya and submit to the laws of Allah (swt). If the enemy refuses again, Muslims should fight them in order that there be no persecution, and the Deen should be for Allah alone. This procedure should be observed, otherwise the limits have been transgressed and, “Allah verily loves not transgressors.”
The verse; "it is permitted for those to fight, that they have been wronged", does not tell us to fight because we have been wronged. It merely gives us the permission to fight. The question of the reason for fighting does not enter into it. If being “wronged” were the reason then Muslims would have been able to fight in Makkah. In Makkah, after great suffering the Companions approached the Messenger of Allah (saw) asking him for permission to fight the enemy. The Messenger (saw) replied, "Be patient, I have not been permitted to fight" [Ibn Hisham].
The verse "it is permitted for those to fight, that they have been wronged", which was revealed in Madinah, gave the permission to fight.
The Call
Before a land is opened up to Islam the inhabitants must be invited to Islam. Without this call the fight is not allowed. This call may take a variety of forms: direct invitation, conferences, via the media and so on and so forth. The Prophet (saw) for example sent letters to the leaders, like the following letter sent to Heraclius of Rome:
"In the Name of Allah Most Gracious Most Merciful. From Muhammad, Servant and Messenger of Allah, to Heraclius Emperor of Rome. Peace be upon those who follow the Guidance. I invite you to Islam; accept Islam, you will be safe, Allah will grant you two-fold reward; if you turn away, the sin of (the wrongdoings of) all the people will be upon you. "O people of the Book come to an agreement between-us and you, that we worship none but Allah, and that we shall associate no partners to Him, and that none of us shall take other for words beside Allah and if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we have surrendered to Him." Muhammad, Messenger of Allah.
Prior to the Battle of Qadisiyyah, Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (ra) sent a delegation to Yazdagird, Emperor of Persia, headed by An-Nu'man ibn Muqarrin with the purpose of inviting the Emperor to Islam. Yazdagird greeted the delegation in the following way:
"Why have you come to our dominions and why do you want to invade us? Perhaps, you have designs on us...and seek to venture against us because we are preoccupied with you, but we do not wish to inflict punishment on you".
An-Nu'man replied:
"Indeed Allah has been Kind and Merciful to us and has sent to us a Messenger to show us the good and command us to follow it, to make us realise what is evil and forbade us from it. The Messenger promised us if we were to respond to what he commands, Allah would bestow on us the good of this world and the good of the hereafter. Not much time has elapsed but Allah has given us abundance in place of hardship, honour in place of humiliation and mercy and brotherhood in place of our former enmity. The Messenger has commanded us to summon mankind to what is best for them and to begin with those who are our neighbours. We therefore invite you to enter into our Deen. It is a Deen, which beautifies and promotes all good and which detests and discourages all that is ugly and reprehensible. It is a Deen, which leads its adherents from the darkness and tyranny of unbelief to the light and justice of Iman. Should you respond, positively to us and come to Islam, it would be our duty to introduce the Book of Allah in your midst and help you to live according to it and rule according to its laws. We would then return and leave you to conduct your own affairs. Should you refuse however, to enter the Deen of Allah we would take the Jizya (tribute) from you and give you protection in return. If you refuse to give the Jizya, we shall declare war on you" (Ibn Sad in his Tareekh).
This is the reality of the call to Islam and the manner in which it spread. It is a call to deliver people from the servitude of man to the service of Allah (swt), not a desire for exploitation and domination.
Consider these noble words of Umar ibn al-Khattab (ra) to Sad ibn Abi Waqqas (ra) as he bade farewell to the Muslim army that was to confront the Persians at Qadisiyyah.
"O Sad! Let not any statement that you are the uncle of the Messenger of Allah or that I or you are the companion of the Messenger of Allah distract you from Allah. Allah Almighty does not obliterate evil with evil but he wipes out evil with good.”
“O Sad! There is no connection between Allah and anyone except obedience to Him. In the sight of Allah all people whether nobleman or commoner are the same. Allah is their Lord and they are His servants seeking elevation through taqwa and seeking to obtain what is with Allah through obedience. Consider how the Messenger of Allah used to act with the Muslims and act accordingly..."
Are these the words of a leader to an army that is embarking on conquest for the sake of domination and exploitation? Clearly not.
The Opening of Lands
The opening of lands by the means of Jihad is to destroy the material obstacles that prevent people from entering Islam. The objective is not to exploit the lands in the manner of the imperialists but to free men from the servitude of other men to the worship of Allah (swt). The proof that Islam never exploited or dominated in the manner of the imperialists is the success of Islam in melting the different nations into one Ummah.
History has proved that the unjust conquering of lands alienates the conquerors from the conquered. In the entire history of the world no nation has been able to impose its will on a people to the extent that the people themselves freely leave their own culture and nationality, and adopt freely the will of the conqueror. The Greeks, Romans, Nazis, British, French, Italians, and so on, all tried and all failed. In recent times we have seen countless examples of nations fighting for their independence and freedom from imperialism. The conquerors have always sought to dominate and the conquered have always been treated as second-class citizens.
(Excerpt) Read more at muziqpakistan.com ...
We better do it to them before they do it to us.
Upholds the principle of free will; but I don't see any "material obstacles" preventing United States citizens from entering Islam. There are millions of practicing Muslims in this country. They can go live in the woods, fields or mountains, shun entertainment and materialism, and raise goats and berries; have freedom to practice their religion, and at the same time be perfectly accepted.
I wonder what "obstacles" exist in other countries that prevent people from embracing Islam?
Or, is the author contrasting Jihad with our temporary safekeeping of "unfree" countries like Afghanistan & Iraq?
It becomes clearer when you read this part of the above article again:
The Messenger has commanded us to summon mankind to what is best for them and to begin with those who are our neighbours. We therefore invite you to enter into our Deen[def: subjugation, authority]. It is a Deen, which beautifies and promotes all good and which detests and discourages all that is ugly and reprehensible. It is a Deen, which leads its adherents from the darkness and tyranny of unbelief to the light and justice of Iman. Should you respond, positively to us and come to Islam, it would be our duty to introduce the Book of Allah in your midst and help you to live according to it and rule according to its laws. We would then return and leave you to conduct your own affairs. Should you refuse however, to enter the Deen of Allah we would take the Jizya (tribute) from you and give you protection in return. If you refuse to give the Jizya, we shall declare war on you" (Ibn Sad in his Tareekh).The duty of Muslims is to:
WorldNetDaily.com: "CANADIAN IMAN SUPPORTS JIHAD AGAINST U.S." by Art Moore (ARTICLE SNIPPET: "A North American Muslim leader says he supports Saddam Hussein's call for jihad and believes Middle East Muslims should take up arms to expel U.S. troops from Iraq. "If I were there, I would fight with them," said Gamal Solaiman, imam of the mosque in Canada's capital, Ottawa. "I would fight the Americans with my nails and teeth," he declared Sunday in an interview with the CanWest News Service.") (April 8, 2003)
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