The Virtue of Jihad
یٰۤاَیُّهَا الَّذِیْنَ اٰمَنُوْا هَلْ اَدُلُّكُمْ عَلٰی تِجَارَةٍ تُنْجِیْكُمْ مِّنْ عَذَابٍ اَلِیْمٍ۱۰ تُؤْمِنُوْنَ بِاللّٰهِ وَ رَسُوْلِهٖ وَ تُجَاهِدُوْنَ فِیْ سَبِیْلِ اللّٰهِ بِاَمْوَالِكُمْ وَ اَنْفُسِكُمْ ؕ ذٰلِكُمْ خَیْرٌ لَّكُمْ اِنْ كُنْتُمْ تَعْلَمُوْن (سورة الصف: 11)
Translation: O believers! Shall I tell you about a trade that will save you from a painful punishment? Believe in Allah Almighty and His Messenger, and strive with your wealth and your lives in the way of Allah. This is better for you, if you have knowledge.
عَنْ أَبِيْ هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ : سُئِلَ النَّبِيُّ ﷺ أَيُّ الأَعْمَالِ أفضل؟ قَالَ : إِيمَانُ بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ، قِيلَ : ثُمَّ مَاذَا؟ قَالَ: الجِهَادُ فِي سَبِيل اللهِ قِيلَ: ثُمَّ مَاذَا ؟ قَالَ: حَج مبرورٌ، (متفق عليه)
(Sahih Bukhari: The Book of Hajj, Chapter: The Virtue of an Accepted Hajj; Sahih Muslim: The Book of Faith, Chapter: Explaining that Belief in Allah Almighty is the Best of Deeds.)
It is narrated from Abu Hurairah رضی اللہ عنہ that someone asked the Prophet ﷺ, “Which deed is the best?” He ﷺ replied, “To believe in Allah and His Messenger.” He was asked, “Then what comes after it?” He ﷺ replied, “To strive in the way of Allah.” Then he was asked, “What comes after that?” He ﷺ replied, “Hajj Mabrur,” meaning the Hajj that Allah has accepted.
عَنْ أَنَسِ بْنِ مالک رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللهِ ﷺ لَغَدْوَةً فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَوْ رَوحَةٌ خَيْرٌ مِنَ الدُّنْيَا وَمَا فِيهَا. (متفق عليه)
(Sahih Bukhari: Book of Jihad and Expeditions, Chapter: Going out in the morning and evening in the way of Allah, and the distance of a bow of one of you from Paradise. Sahih Muslim: Book of Leadership, Chapter: The Virtue of Going out in the Morning and Evening in the Way of Allah.)
It is narrated from Anas رضی اللہ عنہ that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Spending a morning or an evening in the way of Allah is better than the world and everything in it.”
عَنْ أَبِيْ هُرَيْرَةَ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ: قِيلَ لِلنَّبِيِّ اللهُ مَا يَعْدِلُ الجهاد في سَبِيلِ اللهِ ؟ قَالَ : لا تَسْتَطِيعُوهُ، قَالَ فَأَعَادُوا عَلَيْهِ مَرَّتَيْنِ أَو ثَلَاثًا كُلُّ ذلك يَقُولُ لَا تَسْتَطِيعُوهُ، وَقَالَ فِي الثَّالِثَةِ: مَثَلُ المُجَاهِدِ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ كَمَثَلِ الصَّائِمِ القَائِمِ القَانِتِ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ لَا يَفْتُرُ مِن صِيَامٍ وَلَا صَلَاةٍ حَتَّى يرْجِعَ المُجَاهِدُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ، (متفق عليه)
(Sahih Bukhari: Book of Jihad and Expeditions, Chapter: The Best of People is a Believer Who Strives with Himself and His Wealth in the Way of Allah. Sahih Muslim: Book of Leadership, Chapter: The Virtue of Martyrdom in the Way of Allah.)
Abu Hurairah رضی اللہ تعالی عنہ narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked, “Which deed is equal to Jihad?” He ﷺ said, “You do not have the strength for it.” The people repeated the same question two or three times, and each time he ﷺ gave the same answer: “You do not have the ability to do it.” Then he ﷺ said, “The example of a Mujahid in the way of Allah is like that of a person who fasts, stands in prayer, recites the verses of Allah, and does not become tired of fasting and praying until the Mujahid in the way of Allah returns home.”
عَن عَبدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ جُبَيرٍ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ ﷺ قَالَ: مَا اغْبَرْتُ قَدَمَا عَبْدٍ فِي سَبِيلِ الله فَتَمَسَّهُ النَّارُ . (أخرجه البخاري)
(Sahih Bukhari: Book of Jihad and Expeditions, Chapter: The One Whose Feet Become Dusty in the Way of Allah.)
It is narrated from عبدالرحمن بن جبیر رضی اللہ عنہ that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “It is impossible for the feet of a person that become dusty in the way of Allah to be touched by the Fire (of Hell).”
Explanation:
The meaning of Jihad is to make effort and bear hardship. In other words, all efforts made for the sake of the religion, whether physical, financial, verbal, practical, or written, are included in Jihad. It is one of the greatest acts because a person puts his life at risk, and sometimes he may even lose his life.
The Prophet ﷺ said that after having faith, Jihad in the way of Allah is a means of attaining the highest ranks and of being saved from sorrow, grief, hardships, and difficulties. Similarly, a Hadith states that after faith in Allah and migration, Allah prepares three houses for the one who performs Jihad: one around Paradise, one in the middle of Paradise, and one in the highest rooms of Paradise.
In another narration, Abu Dharr رضی اللہ عنہ said, “I asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ which deed is the best and most virtuous?” He ﷺ replied, “Believing in Allah, and then Jihad in the way of Allah.”
The importance of Jihad can also be understood from the words in which the Prophet ﷺ expressed his desire to be killed in the way of Allah, then brought back to life, then killed again, then brought back to life, and then killed again and brought back to life. These words were not merely intended to encourage the Ummah towards Jihad; rather, the Prophet ﷺ sincerely desired this from the depths of his heart.
May Allah Almighty grant us the ability to understand the importance of Jihad.
Benefits:
- The status of performing Jihad in the way of Allah is very high.
- Jihad is one of the greatest and most virtuous deeds.