THE SUPREME JIHAD

Confusion and ambiguity surround the term ‘jihad’. Radical fundamentalist self-styled Islamic groups claim that the seemingly endless violence they have unleashed in different parts of the world is Islamically-sanctioned jihad. In contrast, their ideological Muslim opponents insist that this violence has nothing whatsoever to do with true Islamic jihad, and that, in fact, it is its polar opposite. Much has been written, by scholars of diverse ideological persuasions, about jihad. Literally, the word denotes striving to one’s utmost. Often, Muslims use the term in connection with exertion or striving in God’s path. Tahir-ul-Qadri is one of Pakistan’s well-known Islamic scholars. A prolific writer, he has emerged as a powerful voice for interfaith dialogue and reconciliation in recent years and as a strident critic of terrorism in the name of jihad that is playing such havoc in large parts of the world, including in his own country. In this slim volume, he critiques the discourse of radical jihadism and offers a refreshing alternative perspective on jihad. He accomplishes this in a rather novel way. He makes hardly any appearance in the text himself. Instead, he puts together Qur’anic verses, sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and remarks by noted early Muslims (mainly classical Islamic scholars) on jihad to convey an understanding of jihad that is vastly different from that of Islamist radicals. These quotations appear to be enough in effectively challenging the radical Islamist interpretation of jihad without their need for any commentary or elaboration.