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Deception in the Media
On November 5th, 2009, a Muslim Army Major named Nidal Malik Hasan opened fire at Fort Hood in Texas. Many innocent people died, and Hasan has been charged with thirteen counts of premeditated murder and more than thirty counts of attempted murder.

Shortly after the Fort Hood shooting, CNN posted an article titled “Murder Has No Religion” (by Arsalan Iftikhar), which claimed that such attacks are forbidden in Islam. The article began:
Most of the world's 1.57 billion Muslims know that the Holy Quran states quite clearly that, "Anyone who kills a human being ,  it shall be as though he has killed all of mankind. ,  If anyone saves a life, it shall be as though he has saved the lives of all of mankind." (http://www.cnn.com/2009/OPINION/11/09/iftikhar.fort.hood/index.html)

Notice that the article portrays Islam as a religion that condemns killing of any kind. But is this what the Qur’an actually says? Unfortunately for CNN’s readers, the author didn’t give a reference, so readers were left to find the quotation themselves. Yet when we turn to 5:32-33 of the Qur’an (the source of CNN’s severely edited quotation), we get a surprisingly different picture of killing in Islam:

For this reason did We prescribe to the children of Israel that whoever slays a soul, unless it be for manslaughter or for mischief in the land, it is as though he slew all men; and whoever keeps it alive, it is as though he kept alive all men; and certainly Our apostles came to them with clear arguments, but even after that many of them certainly act extravagantly in the land.

The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His apostle and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement.

Two things are worthy of note in this passage. First, the teaching appealed to by CNN (“whoever slays a soul . . . it is as though he slew all men”) was given “to the children of Israel” (i.e. the Jews). It was not given to Muslims. Second, even if Westernized Muslims want to apply this verse to themselves, the verse obviously permits killing people who spread “mischief in the land.” Indeed, the very next verse commands Muslims to murder, crucify, and dismember those who wage war against Islam and “make mischief” in Muslim lands.

Since the United States has maintained a military presence in predominantly Islamic countries, knowledgeable Muslims understand that, according to Muhammad, U.S. soldiers meet the “mischief-making” criterion, and should therefore be killed. It’s no coincidence that Major Hasan targeted soldiers, many of whom were being deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.


Thus, CNN quoted two carefully edited portions of a passage that justifies the killing of enemy combatants and used them to show that Islam condemns attacks such as the Fort Hood shooting. While deceptions like this are easily spotted, there is much confusion in the world concerning the role of violence in Islam. This short pamphlet will clear up some of the confusion.

Peace, Violence, and Abrogation
Muslims in the West are quick to point to passages such as Qur’an 109:6 (“You shall have your religion and I shall have my religion”) and 2:256 (“There is no compulsion in religion”) as evidence that Islam is a religion of peace. When confronted with harsher passages such as 9:5 (“Slay the idolaters wherever you find them”) and 9:29 (“Fight those who believe not in Allah”), Westernized Muslims interpret these verses in light of the more peaceful teachings of the Qur’an, typically saying something like: “Well, the Qur’an can’t be commanding us to kill unbelievers, since it says that there’s no compulsion in religion.”

Hence, Westernized Muslims pick the verses of the Qur’an they find most attractive, and they use these verses to sanitize the rest of the Qur’an. But is this the correct way to interpret the Qur’an? Unfortunately, the answer is no. The Qur’an presents its own method of interpretation—the Doctrine of Abrogation.

Qur’an 2:106—Whatever verse we shall abrogate, or cause [thee] to forget, we will bring a better than it, or one like unto it. Dost thou not know that God is almighty?
Qur’an 16:101—When We substitute one revelation for another—and God knows best what He reveals (in stages)—they say, “Thou art but a forger”: but most of them understand not.

According to the Qur’an, then, when Muslims are faced with conflicting commands, they aren’t supposed to pick the one they like best. Rather, they are to go to history and see which verse was revealed last. Whichever verse came last is said to abrogate (or cancel) earlier revelations.
What happens when we apply this methodology to Qur’anic verses on peace and violence?

The Call to Jihad: Three Stages
When we turn to Islam’s theological sources and historical writings (Qur’an, Hadith, Sira, and Tafsir), we find that there are three stages in the call to Jihad, depending on the status of Muslims in a society.

STAGE ONE—When Muslims are completely outnumbered and can’t possibly win a physical confrontation with unbelievers, they are to live in peace with non-Muslims and preach a message of tolerance. We see an example of this stage when Muhammad and his followers were a persecuted minority in Mecca. Since the Muslims were entirely outnumbered, the revelations Muhammad received during this stage (e.g. “You shall have your religion and I shall have my religion”) called for religious tolerance and proclaimed a future punishment (rather than a worldly punishment) for unbelievers.

STAGE TWO—When there are enough Muslims and resources to defend the Islamic community, Muslims are called to engage in defensive Jihad. Thus, when Muhammad had formed alliances with various groups outside Mecca and the Muslim community had become large enough to begin fighting, Muhammad received Qur’an 22:39-40:

Permission (to fight) is given to those upon whom war is made because they are oppressed, and most surely Allah is well able to assist them; Those who have been expelled from their homes without a just cause except that they say: our Lord is Allah. . . .

Although Muslims in the West often pretend that Islam only allows defensive fighting, later revelations show otherwise.

STAGE THREE—When Muslims establish a majority and achieve political power in an area, they are commanded to engage in offensive Jihad. Hence, once Mecca and Arabia were under Muhammad’s control, he received the call the fight all unbelievers. In Surah 9:29, we read:
Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the Religion of Truth, from among the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.

Notice that this verse doesn’t order Muslims to fight oppressors, but to fight those who don’t believe in Islam (including the “People of the Book”—Jews and Christians).

Not surprisingly, we find similar commands in Islam’s most trusted collections of ahadith (traditions containing Muhammad’s teachings).

Sahih al-Bukhari 6924—Muhammad said: “I have been ordered to fight the people till they say: La ilaha illallah (none has the right to be worshipped but Allah), and whoever said La ilaha illallah, Allah will save his property and his life from me.”

Sahih Muslim 30—Muhammad said: “I have been commanded to fight against people so long as they do not declare that there is no god but Allah.”

Here again, the criterion for fighting people is that the people believe something other than Islam.

It’s clear, then, that when Muslims rose to power, peaceful verses of the Qur’an were abrogated by verses commanding Muslims to fight people based on their beliefs. Islam’s greatest scholars acknowledge this. For instance, Ibn Kathir (Islam’s greatest commentator on the Qur’an) sums up Stage Three as follows: “Therefore all people of the world should be called to Islam. If anyone of them refuses to do so, or refuses to pay the Jizyah, they should be fought till they are killed.”

When Muslims Reach Stage Three
Abrogation also accounts for shifting attitudes regarding Jews and Christians in the Qur’an. While Muslims are to be friendly to Jews and Christians when the former are outnumbered, the Islamic position changes when Muslims reach Stage Three, at which point Christians and Jews are to recognize their inferior status and pay the Jizyah (a payment made to Muslims in exchange for not being killed by them). Consider some of Muhammad’s later teachings about Christians and Jews:

Qur’an 5:51—O you who believe! do not take the Jews and the Christians for friends; they are friends of each other; and whoever amongst you takes them for a friend, then surely he is one of them; surely Allah does not guide the unjust people.

Qur’an 9:30—And the Jews say: Uzair is the son of Allah; and the Christians say: The Messiah is the son of Allah; these are the words of their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved before; may Allah destroy them; how they are turned away!

Qur’an 98:6—Those who reject (Truth), among the People of the Book and among the Polytheists, will be in Hell-Fire, to dwell therein. They are the worst of creatures.

Sahih Muslim 4366—Muhammad said: “I will expel the Jews and Christians from the Arabian Peninsula and will not leave any but Muslim.”

Al-Bukhari, Al-Adab al-Mufrad 1103—Muhammad said: “Do not give the People of the Book the greeting first. Force them to the narrowest part of the road.”

Needless to say, these teachings can hardly be considered peaceful or tolerant.

Muslims in the West
Since Muhammad obviously commanded his followers to fight unbelievers (simply for being unbelievers), why do Muslims in the West deny this? Here we must turn to Surah 3:28, which reads:

Let not the believers take disbelievers for their friends in preference to believers. Whoso doeth that hath no connection with Allah unless (it be) that ye but guard yourselves against them, taking (as it were) security.

According to this verse (which uses a variation of the word Taqiyya, meaning “concealment”), Muslims are not allowed to be friends with non-Muslims. However, if Muslims feel threatened by a stronger adversary, they are allowed to pretend to be friendly. Ibn Kathir comments: “In this case, such believers are allowed to show friendship outwardly but never inwardly.” Abu Darda, one of Muhammad’s companions, put it this way: “We smile in the face of some people although our hearts curse them.”

Assessment
Is Islam a religion of peace? No. Islam is a religion that pretends to be peaceful when Muslims are too weak to win a war. When Islam is dominant, Muslims are commanded to subjugate or kill everyone around them. (Just look at how non-Muslims are treated in Muslim countries; compare this constant abuse and persecution with what is being proclaimed about “peaceful” Islam by Westernized Muslims.) Of course, there are many Muslims who aren’t violent. Many Muslims in the West love peace and tolerance. But they didn’t get these values from Islam. They got them from the West, and now they’re reinterpreting Islam based on their Western values. For dedicated Muslims, however, there are only two possible situations to be in: (1) fighting unbelievers, and (2) pretending to be peaceful while preparing to fight unbelievers. Either way, conquering the world in the name of Allah is always the goal.

For Further Study
For a video detailed video discussion of this information:
http://www.answeringmuslims.com/p/jihad.html

To learn more about these issues, be sure to visit these sites:
www.Answering-Islam.org
www.AnsweringMuslims.com http://www.youtube.com/user/Acts17Apologetics
For some specific articles, please visit the following links:
http://answering-islam.org/Silas/swordverse.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Silas/femalecaptives.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Silas/jihad.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/badawi_mushrik.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/badawi_tolerance.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/badawi_holy_war.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/na_debate.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Authors/Wood/two_faces.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Authors/Wood/women.htm

The real western "muslim".

@Frosbel: too long. it kills the interest of potential readers.

advise; make many short posts and tell the gorilla that is posting his relatives the two monkeys to let you finish posting before his yapping begins.

^^^^

Sweetnecta:

@Frosbel: too long. it kills the interest of potential readers.

advise; make many short posts and tell the gorilla that is posting his relatives the two monkeys to let you finish posting before his yapping begins.

lol quite funny. Unfortunately it mirrors the average "moderate" muslim - blind and deaf to the realities of islam - terror, violence and death.

davidylan:

lol quite funny. Unfortunately it mirrors the average "moderate" muslim - blind and deaf to the realities of islam - terror, violence and death.

They are not only deaf to the TRUTH , but to logic , reasoning and overwhelming evidence.

@fros'hell, unfornately it is you christians who are not only deaf to the TRUTH , but to
logic , reasoning and overwhelming
evidence.
Your so called forged book sanctioned and approve killing and raping to the extent of approving killing of sucklings.

But you know the funniest thing? The christians usually claimed that it is only the old testament that apprrove killing and raping, that the new testament had overturned those vices. But are they not the one that called jesus god? If jesus is god, is it not jesus that approve killings during Moses era? I mean is it different god that exist during Moses era? Okay lets take a look at some of those blood thirsty verses in the the bible and see for ourselves the Book that actaully sanctioned killings and raping.

Punishment for sexual misconduct
Deuteronomy 22:13-29 "If any man takes a
wife, and goes in to her, and then spurns
her, and charges her with shameful
conduct, and brings an evil name upon her,
saying, `I took this woman, and when I
came near her, I did not find in her the
tokens of virginity,' then the father of the
young woman and her mother shall take
and bring out the tokens of her virginity to
the elders of the city in the gate; and the
father of the young woman shall say to the
elders, `I gave my daughter to this man to
wife, and he spurns her; and lo, he has
made shameful charges against her, saying,
"I did not find in your daughter the tokens
of virginity." And yet these are the tokens
of my daughter's virginity.' And they shall
spread the garment before the elders of the
city. Then the elders of that city shall take
the man and whip him; and they shall fine
him a hundred shekels of silver, and give
them to the father of the young woman,
because he has brought an evil name upon
a virgin of Israel; and she shall be his wife;
he may not put her away all his days. But if
the thing is true, that the tokens of virginity
were not found in the young woman, then
they shall bring out the young woman to
the door of her father's house, and the men
of her city shall stone her to death with
stones, because she has wrought folly in
Israel by playing the harlot in her father's
house; so you shall purge the evil from the
midst of you. "If a man is found lying with
the wife of another man, both of them shall
die, the man who lay with the woman, and
the woman; so you shall purge the evil from
Israel. "If there is a betrothed virgin, and a
man meets her in the city and lies with her,
then you shall bring them both out to the
gate of that city, and you shall stone them
to death with stones , the young woman
because she did not cry for help though she
was in the city, and the man because he
violated his neighbor's wife; so you shall
purge the evil from the midst of you. "But if
in the open country a man meets a young
woman who is betrothed, and the man
seizes her and lies with her, then only the
man who lay with her shall die. But to the
young woman you shall do nothing; in the
young woman there is no offense
punishable by death, for this case is like that
of a man attacking and murdering his
neighbor; because he came upon her in the
open country, and though the betrothed
young woman cried for help there was no
one to rescue her. "If a man meets a virgin
who is not betrothed, and seizes her and
lies with her, and they are found, then the
man who lay with her shall give to the
father of the young woman fifty shekels of
silver, and she shall be his wife, because he
has violated her; he may not put her away
all his days.

Stoning for preaching a different religion
.
Deuteronomy 13:6-11

"If your brother, the
son of your mother, or your son, or your
daughter, or the wife of your bosom, or
your friend who is as your own soul,
entices you secretly, saying, `Let us go and
serve other gods,' which neither you nor
your fathers have known, some of the gods
of the peoples that are round about you,
whether near you or far off from you, from
the one end of the earth to the other, you
shall not yield to him or listen to him, nor
shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare
him, nor shall you conceal him; BUT YOU
SHALL KILL HIM; your hand shall be first
against him to PUT HIM TO DEATH, and
afterwards the hand of all the people . You
shall STONE HIM TO DEATH with stones,
because he sought to draw you away from
the LORD your God, who brought you out of
the land of Egypt, out of the house of
bondage. And all Israel shall hear, and fear,
and never again do any such wickedness as
this among you.

Stoning for practising a different religion.
Deuteronomy 17:1-7

"You shall not sacrifice to the LORD your God an ox or a sheep in which is a blemish, any defect whatever; for that is an abomination to the LORD your God. "If there is found among you, within any of your towns which the LORD your God gives you, a man or woman who does what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, in transgressing his covenant, and has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven, which I have forbidden, and it is told you and you hear of it; then you shall inquire diligently, and if it is true and certain that such an abominable thing has been done in Israel, then you shall bring forth to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you shall STONE THAT MAN OR WOMAN TO DEATH WITH STONES . On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses he that is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. So you shall purge the evil from the midst of you.

Stoning for blasphemy. Leviticus 24:10-16

Now an Israelite woman's son, whose father was an Egyptian, went out among the people of Israel; and the Israelite woman's son and a man of Israel quarreled in the camp, and the Israelite woman's son blasphemed the Name, and cursed. And they brought him to Moses. His mother's name was Shelo'mith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan. And they put him in custody, till the will of the LORD should be declared to them. And the LORD said to Moses, " Bring out of the camp him who cursed; and let all who heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation STONE HIM . And say to the people of Israel, Whoever curses his God shall bear his sin. He who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall be put to death; all the congregation shall STONE HIM; the sojourner as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.

Leviticus 24:23

So Moses spoke to the people of Israel; and they brought him who had cursed out of the camp, and stoned him with stones. Thus the people of Israel did as the LORD commanded Moses.

Stoning for being a medium or a wizard Leviticus 20:27

"A man or a woman who is a medium or a wizard shall be put to death; they shall be stoned with stones, their blood shall be upon them."

Stoning for stubborn and rebellious sons Deuteronomy 21:18-21

"If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son, who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and, though they chastise him, will not give heed to them, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, and they shall say to the elders of his city, `This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.' Then all the men of the city shall STONE HIM TO DEATH WITH STONES; so you shall purge the evil from your midst; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

^^^^

Yemmy boy aka LagosShia , how now.

Please help me , what does your posting have to do with the article.

Lev 21:9  And the daughter of any priest, if  she profane herself by playing the   LovePeddler, she profaneth her father: she shall   be burnt with fire.

“And he that curseth his father, or his
mother, shall surely be put to
death. (Exodus 21:17)”

@fros'hell, mr bloody crusader, stop being an !mbec!le. I just want you to know that your forged book(bible) is the worst of all blood thirsty book that ever exist.

"Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember
that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid
wait for him in the way, when he came up
from Egypt. Now go and smite Amalek, and
utterly destroy all that they have, and spare
them not; but slay both man and woman,
infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel
and ass." (I Samuel 15:2-3)

I cant finish posting all those blood thirsty verses in the bible. So which religion is more violence?

yemmy1:

"Thus saith the LORD of hosts, I remember
that which Amalek did to Israel, how he laid
wait for him in the way, when he came up
from Egypt. Now go and smite Amalek, and
utterly destroy all that they have, and spare
them not; but slay both man and woman,
infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel
and Bottom." (I Samuel 15:2-3)

I cant finish posting all those blood thirsty verses in the bible. So which religion is more violence?

LagosShia, can you see what going to Koranic school from nursery school does to someone's reasoning ability.

How sad.

SMH !!

Yemmy 1 good one there, the grand hypocrites are indeed deaf to the truth

yemmy1:

@fros'hell, unfornately it is you christians who are not only deaf to the TRUTH , but to
logic , reasoning and overwhelming
evidence.
Your so called forged book sanctioned and approve killing and Desecrating to the extent of approving killing of sucklings.

But you know the funniest thing? The christians usually claimed that it is only the old testament that apprrove killing and Desecrating, that the new testament had overturned those vices. But are they not the one that called jesus god? If jesus is god, is it not jesus that approve killings during Moses era? I mean is it different god that exist during Moses era? Okay lets take a look at some of those blood thirsty verses in the the bible and see for ourselves the Book that actaully sanctioned killings and Desecrating.

:

yemmy1:

Stoning for practising a different religion.
Deuteronomy 17:1-7

"You shall not sacrifice to the LORD your God an ox or a sheep in which is a blemish, any defect whatever; for that is an abomination to the LORD your God. "If there is found among you, within any of your towns which the LORD your God gives you, a man or woman who does what is evil in the sight of the LORD your God, in transgressing his covenant, and has gone and served other gods and worshiped them, or the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven, which I have forbidden, and it is told you and you hear of it; then you shall inquire diligently, and if it is true and certain that such an abominable thing has been done in Israel, then you shall bring forth to your gates that man or woman who has done this evil thing, and you shall STONE THAT MAN OR WOMAN TO DEATH WITH STONES . On the evidence of two witnesses or of three witnesses he that is to die shall be put to death; a person shall not be put to death on the evidence of one witness. The hand of the witnesses shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. So you shall purge the evil from the midst of you.

Think not that I am come to destroy the law (Hebrew - Torah), or the prophets: I am come not to destroy, but to fulfil.
For verily I say unto you. Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law (Torah), till all be fulfilled.
Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven. HOLY BIBLE Matthew 5: 17-19

@vedaxcool, thanks for the Matthew 5: 17-19 to remind that ignorant fellow. Even if their pastor's eye is blind, didnt they see it themselves? It is not their fault, since they are like robot

@fros'hell the crudaser, I pity your dear life. Infact if truely I have being to Quran school since nursery school, I would have be in better position to shut that your stinky mouth for life. Ta lo ni aja to n gbo?(who is the owner of the dog barking?). If we are talking about religion, the Pagan have mouth than you christians.

Find out from Muslims what the concept of "Jihad" is in Islam:

Jihad:The Holy War of Islam and Its Legitimacy in the Quran

By:Ayatullah Morteza Mutahhari

http://www.al-islam.org/short/jihad/

[size=18pt]The Spiritual Significance of Jihad [/size]

Seyyed Hossein Nasr
Vol. IX, No. 1

And those who perform jihad for Us, We shall certainly guide them in Our ways, and God is surely with the doers of good. (Quran XXXIX; 69) 
You have returned from the lesser jihad to the greater jihad. (Hadith) 
The Arabic term jihad, usually translated into European languages as holy war, more on the basis of its juridical usage in Islam rather than on its much more universal meaning in the Quran and Hadith, is derived from the root jhd whose primary meaning is to strive or to exert oneself. Its translation into holy war combined with the erroneous notion of Islam prevalent in the West as the 'religion of the sword' has helped to eclipse its inner and spiritual significance and to distort its connotation. Nor has the appearance upon the stage of history during the past century and especially during the past few years of an array of movements within the Islamic world often contending or even imposing each other and using the word jihad or one of its derivative forms helped to make known the full import of its traditional meaning which alone is of concern to us here. Instead recent distortions and even total reversal of the meaning of jihad as understood over the ages by Muslims have made it more difficult than ever before to gain insight into this key religious and spiritual concept. 

To understand the spiritual significance of jihad and its wide application to nearly every aspect of human life as understood by Islam, it is necessary to remember that Islam bases itself upon the idea of establishing equilibrium within the being of man as well as in the human society where he functions and fulfills the goals of his earthly life. This equilibrium, which is the terrestrial reflection of Divine Justice and the necessary condition for peace in the human domain, is the basis upon which the soul takes its flight towards that peace which, to use Christian terms, 'passeth understanding'. If Christian morality sees the aim of the spiritual life and its own morality as based on the vertical flight towards that perfection and ideal which is embodied in Christ, Islam sees it in the establishment of an equilibrium both outward and inward as the necessary basis for the vertical ascent. The very stability of Islamic society over the centuries, the immutability of Islamic norms embodied in the Shari'ah, and the timeless character of traditional Islamic civilization which is the consequence of its permanent and immutable prototype are all reflections of both the ideal of equilibrium and its realization as is so evident in the teachings of the Shari'ah (or Divine Law) as well as works of Islamic art, that equilibrium which is inseparable from the very name of islam as being related to salam or peace. 

The preservation of equilibrium in this world, however, does not mean simply a static or inactive passivity since life by nature implies movement. In the face of the contingencies of the world of change, of the withering effects of time, of the vicissitudes of terrestrial existence, to remain in equilibrium requires continuous exertion. It means carrying out jihad at every stage of life. Human nature being what it is, given to forgetfulness and the conquest of our immortal soul by the carnal soul or passions, the very process of life of both the individual and the human collectivity implies the ever-present danger of the loss of equilibrium and the fact of falling into the state of disequilibrium which if allowed to continue cannot but lead to disintegration on the individual level and chaos on the scale of community life. To avoid this tragic end and to fulfill the entelechy of the human state which is the realization of unity (al-tawhid) or total integration, Muslims as both individuals and members of Islamic society must carry out jihad, that is they must exert themselves at all moments of life to fight a battle both inward and outward against those forces that if not combatted will destroy that equilibrium which is the necessary condition for the spiritual life of the person and the functioning of human society. This fact is especially true if society is seen as a collectivity which bears the imprint of the Divine Norm rather than an antheap of contending and opposing units and forces. 

Man is at once a spiritual and corporeal being, a micro-cosm complete unto himself; yet he is the member of a society within which alone are certain aspects of his being developed and certain of his needs fulfilled. He possesses at once an intelligence whose substance is ultimately of a divine character and sentiments which can either veil his intelligence or abett his quest for his own Origin. In him are found both love and hatred, generosity and coveteousness, compassion and aggression. Moreover, there have existed until now not just one but several 'humanities' with their own religious and moral norms and national, ethnic and racial groups with their own bonds of affiliation. As a result the practice of jihad as applied to the world of multiplicity and the vicissitudes of human existence in the external world has come to develop numerous ramifications in the fields of political and economic activity and in social life and come to partake on the external level of the complexity which characterizes the human world. 

In its most outward sense jihad came to mean the defence of dar al-islam, that is, the Islamic world, from invasion and intrusion by non-Islamic forces. The earliest wars of Islamic history which threatened the very existence of the young community came to be known as jihad par excellence in this outward sense of 'holy war'. But it was upon returning from one of these early wars, which was of paramount importance in the survival of the newly established religious community and therefore of cosmic significance, that the Prophet nevertheless said to his companions that they had returned from the lesser holy war to the greater holy war, the greater jihad being the inner battle against all the forces which would prevent man from living according to the theomorphic norm which is his primordial and God given nature. Throughout Islamic history, the lesser holy war has echoed in the Islamic world when parts or the whole of that world have been threatened by forces from without or within. This call has been especially persistent since the nineteenth century with the advent of colonialism and the threat to the very existence of the Islamic world. It must be remembered, however, that even in such cases when the idea of jihad has been evoked in certain parts of the Islamic world, it has not usually been a question of religion simply sanctioning war but of the attempt of a society in which religion remains of central concern to protect itself from being conquered either by military and economic forces or by ideas of an alien nature. This does not mean, however, that in some cases especially in recent times, religious sentiments have not been used or misused to intensify or legitimize a conflict. But to say the least, the Islamic world does not have a monopoly on this abuse as the history of other civilizations including even the secularized West demonstrates so amply. Moreover, human nature being what it is, once religion ceases to be of central significance to a particular human collectivity, then men fight and kill each other for much less exalted issues than their heavenly faith. By including the question of war in its sacred legislation, Islam did not condone but limited war and its consequences as the history of the traditional Islamic world bears out. In any case the idea of total war and the actual practice of the extermination of whole civilian populations did not grow out of a civilization whose dominant religion saw jihad in a positive light. On the more external level, the lesser jihad also includes the socio-economic domain. It means the reassertion of justice in the external environment of human existence starting with man himself. To defend one's rights and reputation, to defend the honour of oneself and one's family is itself a jihad and a religious duty. So is the strengthening of all those social bonds from the family to the whole of the Muslim people (al-ummah) which the Shari'ah emphasizes. To seek social justice in accordance with the tenets of the Quran and of course not in the modern secularist sense is a way of re-establishing equilibrium in human society, that is, of performing jihad, as are constructive economic enterprises provided the well-being of the whole person is kept in mind and material welfare does not become an end in itself; provided one does not lose sight of the Quranic verse, 'The other world is better for you than this one'. To forget the proper relation between the two worlds would itself be instrumental in bringing about disequilibrium and would be a kind of jihad in reverse. 

All of those external forms of jihad would remain incomplete and in fact contribute to an excessive externalization of human being, if they were not complemented by the greater or inner jihad which man must carry out continuously within himself for the nobility of the human state resides in the constant tension between what we appear to be and what we really are and the need to transcend ourselves throughout this journey of earthly life in order to become what we 'are'. 
From the spiritual point of view all the 'pillars' of Islam can be seen as being related to jihad. The fundamental witnesses, 'There is no divinity but Allah' and 'Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah', through the utterance of which a person becomes a Muslim are not only statements about the Truth as seen in the Islamic perspective but also weapons for the practice of inner jihad. The very form of the first witness (La ilaha illa' Lla-h in Arabic) when written in Arabic calligraphy is like a bent sword with which all otherness is removed from the Supreme Reality while all that is positive in manifestation is returned to that Reality. The second witness is the blinding assertion of the powerful and majestic descent of all that constitutes in a positive manner the cosmos, man and revelation from that Supreme Reality. To invoke the two witnesses in the form of the sacred language in which they were revealed is to practice the inner jihad and to bring about awareness of who we are, from whence we come and where is our ultimate abode. 

The daily prayers (salat or namaz) which constitute the heart of the Islamic rites are again a never ending jihad which punctuate human existence in a continuous rhythm in conformity with the rhythm of the cosmos. To perform the prayers with regularity and concentration requires the constant exertion of our will and an unending battle and striving against forgetfulness, dissipation and laziness. It is itself a form of spiritual warfare. 
Likewise, the fast of Ramadan in which one wears the armour of inner purity and detachment against the passions and temptations of the outside world requires an asceticism and inner discipline which cannot come about except through an inner holy war. Nor is the hajj to the centre of the Islamic world in Mecca possible without long preparation, effort, often suffering and endurance of hardship. It requires great effort and exertion so that the Prophet could say, 'The hajj is the most excellent of all jihads". Like the knight in quest of the Holy Grail, the pilgrim to the house of the Beloved must engage in a spiritual warfare whose end makes all sacrifice and all hardship pale into significance, for the hajj to the House of God implies for the person who practices the inner jihad encounter with the Master of the House who also resides at the centre of that other Ka'bah which is the heart. 

Finally the giving of zakat or religious tax and khums is again a form of jihad not only in that in departing from one's wealth man must fight against the coveteousness and greed of his carnal soul, but also in that through the payment of zakat and khums in its many forms man contributes to the establishment of economic justice in human society. Although jihad is not one of the 'pillars of Islam', it in a sense resides within all the other 'pillars'. From the spiritual point of view in fact all of the 'pillars' can be seen in the light of an inner jihad which is essential to the life of man from the Islamic point of view and which does not oppose but complements contemplativity and the peace which result from the contemplation of the One. 

The great stations of perfection in the spiritual life can also be seen in the light of the inner jihad. To become detached from the impurities of the world in order to repose in the purity of the Divine Presence requires an intense jihad for our soul has its roots sunk deeply into the transient world which the soul of fallen man mistakes for reality. To overcome the lethargy, passivity and indifference of the soul, qualities which have become second nature to man as a result of his forgetting who he is constitutes likewise a constant jihad. To pull the reigns of the soul from dissipating itself outwardly as a result of its centrifugal tendencies and to bring it back to the centre wherein resides Divine Peace and all the beauty which the soul seeks in vain in the domain of multiplicity is again an inner jihad. To melt the hardened heart into a flowing stream of love which would embrace the whole of creation in virtue of the love for God is to perform the alchemical process of solve et coagula inwardly through a 'work' which is none other than an inner struggle and battle against what the soul has become in order to transform it into that which it 'is' and has never ceased to be if only it were to become aware of its own nature. Finally, to realize that only the Absolute is absolute and that only the Self can ultimately utter 'I' is to perform the supreme jihad of awakening the soul from the dream of forgetfulness and enabling it to gain the supreme principal knowledge for the sake of which it was created. The inner jihad or warfare seen spiritually and esoterically can be considered therefore as the key for the understanding of the whole spiritual process, and the path for the realization of the One which lies at the heart of the Islamic message seen in its totality. The Islamic path towards perfection can be conceived in the light of the symbolism of the greater jihad to which the Prophet of Islam, who founded this path on earth, himself referred. 

In the same way that with every breath the principle of life which functions in us irrespective of our will and as long as it is willed by Him who created us, exerts itself through jihad to instill life within our whole body, at every moment in our conscious life we should seek to perform jihad in not only establishing equilibrium in the world about us but also in awakening to that Divine Reality which is the very source of our consciousness. For the spiritual man, every breath is a reminder that he should continue the inner jihad until he awakens from all dreaming and until the very rhythm of his heart echoes that primordial sacred Name by which all things were made and through which all things return to their Origin. The Prophet said, 'Man is asleep and when he dies he awakens'. Through inner jihad the spiritual man dies in this life in order to cease all dreaming, in order to awaken to that Reality which is the origin of all realities, in order to behold that Beauty of which all earthly beauty is but a pale reflection, in order to attain that Peace which all men seek but which can in fact be found only through the inner jihad.
 

http://www.al-islam.org/al-serat/jihad-nasr.htm

@Lagosshia, may Almighty ALLAH increase you in knowledge and understanding.
@frosbel, a word is enough for the wise

when will LagosShia post HIS OWN opinions instead of posting those of others for us to refute?

Yemmy1 is obviously burning with zeal like Zakir Naik. He thinks he has one on them. Throw a lot of verses at them and they would marvel that he can prove the Bible is corrupt.

All your apologetics have tried and failed. Try something new. Islam is the false religion.

Ruqaya:

@Lagosshia, may Almighty ALLAH increase you in knowledge and understanding.
@frosbel, a word is enough for the wise

I dont understand what "knowledge" you think lagosshia possesses that you expect allah to increase. The knowledge to plagiarize websites without saying anything meaningful?

^^^^
Truth hurts, whether plagiarized or original