2006, IV - The Muslim Sunrise

Saad Ahmad is an Oshkoshresident, e-mail:saad.ahmad@gmail.comAtlanta Journal-ConstitutionForce and religion havesituational linkThe pope recently quoted the Qur’an,Chapter 2, Verse 256, “there is nocompulsion in religion,” and he stated thatthis was the lowest point of power in Islam.What a beautiful teaching it is by itself. Andthe sweetest part of it is that it was revealedto the prophet Muhammad at the highestpoint of power. Why? Islam had gainedascendancy in Arabia, but God cautionedman to allow for free will. Consequently,the idea of Islam “spread by the sword” mustbe false. Who is attracted to any religion byforce? To the contrary, one Arab mercenarywas bent on killing Muhammad with asword, but when he heard his sister recitingthe Qur’an, he fell in love with it and becamea Muslim instead.Allison Knight-KhanPowder Springs, GAThe Broadside(George Mason University StudentNewspaper)“The Meaning of Jihad”Luqman Tahir MahmoodPresident of Ahmadiyya Muslim StudentAssociationSeptember 25, 2006In light of the Pope’s recent remarks, andin the hopes that it will inform those whodo not know the true meaning of what isJihad in Islam — be they Muslims or peopleof any other faith — I have decided to writethis paper in order to evaporate any notionthat the Jihad of early Islam has any relationto the Jihad that is being shouted at the headevery battle today where Muslims areinvolved. The issue about Jihad needsclearing up for Muslims especially becauseit seems that every skirmish is labeled Jihad.This labeling has greatly increasedmisunderstanding of Islam and has led insome cases to people distrusting this mostpeaceful religion.In Islam, there is no compulsion inmatters of faith. God clearly states in theHoly Qur’an that right is certainly distinctfrom wrong, and that people are given freewill. No one can be coerced or forced intodoing anything, especially when it comesto matters of faith. Faith is a matter of theheart, when people see Muslims praying andprostrating towards God in utter humility, itis solely due to their love of God and thetrue realization of His existence that theyhave attained through following Islam andthe Holy Founder of Islam (peace andblessings be upon him).What is Jihad then? The literal meaningis to strive. This can be striving in any sense,whether it is against the passions of oneself,against oppression or against others indefense.There are types of Jihad that have beengiven precedence by the Holy Prophet. Onreturning from an expedition to Tabuk, heis reported to have said that the Muslimsare returning from the lower Jihad to thegreater Jihad meaning that which was thestruggle to purify ones self. This makes itclear as to which Jihad the Holy Prophetconsidered to be the greater one. So dotoday’s Muslims who advocate Jihad againstone and all, even against other Muslims orpeople of other faiths who look at Islam witha crooked eye, know it better than theFounder of Islam himself?In the Holy Qur’an, it clearly states thatpermission to take up arms is given to thoseagainst whom war is made, because theyhave been wronged and Allah, indeed, haspower to help them (22:40). Who are thosepeople that have been wronged? Those whohave been driven out from their homesunjustly, only because they said, ‘Our Lordis Allah,’ and Allah will, surely, help himwho helps Him. Allah is, indeed, Powerful,Mighty (22:41).It becomes apparent that permission tofight is given to Muslims in self-defense.This type of Jihad is to defend againstoppression, because in the Holy Qur’an Godsays that if a people were not there to defendagainst the oppression of others, then therewould be a free reign to commit every sortof injustice in the world. This principle ofthe Holy Qur’an is founded even in Americatoday. When a person commits a crimeaccording to the laws of the government, thebest action to take is to try him and, ifconvicted, put him in prison for howeverlong the law states. That person is not givenfreedom to continue his crime, because thatfreedom may prompt others to do the same.When this is the law of worldlygovernments, then what room is left tocriticize Islam for its early defensivestruggles against its oppressive enemies?The Holy Founder of the AhmadiyyaMuslim Community, Hazrat Mirza GhulamAhmad, states this in regards to the wars thattook place in early Islam.Let it be perfectly clear that there is nocompulsion in religion according to Islam.Nowhere in the Holy Qur’an is it justifiedto kill innocent people just because theyprofess a belief different than yours, and, infact, it is stated in the Holy Qur’an that tokill one innocent person is like killing all ofmankind.The Muslims of today should realize thatthe greatest Jihad in Islam is that which leadsto peace, because Islam’s literal meaning ispeace. How can one claim to associatethemselves with the religion of peace ifpeople continuously try to create friction andtake up any opportunity to declare Jihad andraise slogans against another person orplace? To those who think that Islam everresorted to force to spread its message, thefounder of the Ahmadiyya MuslimCommunity writes: “The religion that caneasily establish its truth and superiority bysound intellectual arguments, heavenly signsor other reliable testimony, does not needthe sword to threaten men and force aconfession of its truth from them.”Islam never had any use for physical forcein spreading its message. In fact, it was inMuslim lands that people of other religionsescaped in refuge from persecution. Historybears witness to the fact that no sword fellupon the hearts of the Chinese that causedsome of their provinces to become totallyMuslim. There was no coercion used againstthe largest Muslim country in the world,Indonesia, to pledge itself to One God.All of these countries are giving lie to theaccusation that Islam was spread by forceand the truth is that there was no compulsionin the spread of Islam, except the heart ofthe Holy Prophet which compelled all heartsand flooded them with love and regard forhim. Why such love? As Hazrat MirzaGhulam Ahmad (peace be upon him)explains concerning the Holy Prophet: “Heis not God, but through him we have seenGod. His religion which has come to us is amirror of Divine Powers. Had it not beenfor Islam, it would have been difficult in thisage to appreciate what Prophethood is andwhether miracles are possible and whetherthey are part of the law of nature.”This is the Jihad that is demanded ofMuslims today — the Jihad of putting forththe true character of the Holy Prophet, notonly in word but in character. I hope thatthe misgivings and misunderstandingsconcerning Islam are put to rest, and thatthose who have questions about Islam willnot hesitate to address those questions to us.We are more than willing to answer eachand every question that anyone has aboutIslam or about anything that I have written.32 MuslimSunrise