Jihad

This question is often hurled at Muslims, either directly or indirectly, during any discussion on religion or world affairs. Muslim stereotypes are perpetuated in every form of the media accompanied by gross misinformation about Islam and Muslims. Islam is derived from the word ‘salaam’ which means peace. It is a religion of peace whose fundamentals teach its followers to maintain and promote peace throughout the world. Thus every Muslim should be a fundamentalist i.e. he should follow the fundamentals of the Religion of Peace: Islam. He should be a terrorist only towards the antisocial elements in order to promote peace and justice in the society.

There is no matter if you are a Muslims or non Muslims you must be familiar with the term Jihad  because its a hot topic on International media since from last one and a half decades. Jihad in Arabic does not mean “holy war.” It means “to strive, to apply oneself, to struggle, to persevere.” Jihad can be personal or it can be a community of persons struggling against oppression. In essence, it means to become closer to God in lifestyle and community. Jihad does not means killing any person or any non Muslim. but today International media is showing Jihad as killing innocent people. we often hear such words Jihadi terror, Islamic terrorism on media which as completely wrong terms. Jihad never means killing an innocent person. Islam never allows killing an innocent person.

 Islam prohibits all forms of terrorism, sabotage, and destruction, and demands the heaviest punishment on those who commit such vicious acts.

No sane person will respect a religion, let alone think about adopting it if it promotes senseless terror and taking innocent life in the Name of God.  The historical and contemporary examples of terrorism from other faiths are not meant to malign them, but presented for the purpose of education.

 To understand the meaning of the jihad, it’s types and how it differs from terrorism.