The view of modern Islamic activists, that "Islam must = rule the=20 world and until Islam does rule the world we will continue = to=20 sacrifice our lives," [2] has been solidly rooted in = traditional=20 Islam ever since the early divine sanction of violence that = came to=20 Muhammad in Medina: "O Prophet! Rouse the Believers to the = fight,"=20 the Kuran orders, and promises that twenty Muslims, "patient = and=20 persevering," would vanquish two hundred unbelievers; if a = hundred,=20 they will vanquish a thousand. [3] Allah further orders the = faithful=20 to fight the unbelievers and be firm with them, [4] "and = slay them=20 wherever ye catch them." [5] The end of the fight is = possible only=20 when "there prevail justice and faith in = Allah"=E2=80=94everywhere. [6]

Such scriptural basis made Islam different from Judaism = and=20 Christianity in creating the foundations for a theocratic = universal=20 state with unlimited aspirations. From Muhammad's second = year in=20 Medina on, Islam combined the dualism of a universal = religion and a=20 universal state and became "Islam's instrument for carrying = out its=20 ultimate objective by turning all people into believers." = [7]

Even in the absence of an active military campaign = against=20 dar al-harb at any given moment in time, Islam = postulates=20 the funda-mental illegitimacy of its existence and the = embrace of a=20 permanent "rejection of the other" by every bona fide Muslim = as a=20 divine obligation. Jihad did not necessarily mean permanent=20 fighting, but it did mean a permanent state of war and = permanent=20 instability wherever Muslim populations began to gain a = foothold.=20

In addition to the verses of the Kuran, there are dozens = of=20 hadiths with Muhammad's assurances that Allah = guarantees to=20 all jihadi warriors instant paradise in case of martyrdom, = or=20 "reward or booty he has earned." [8] To be a Muslim was a = win-win=20 proposition. Muhammad assured his troops of rewards in = hereafter and=20 profit in this life:

Only after the universal Islamic Empire is established, = the=20 notion of an "inner" jihad=E2=80=94that of one's personal = fight against his=20 ego and sinful desires=E2=80=94may become prominent, but it = was predicated=20 on the assumption that the external, real jihad "in = the=20 path of Allah" was nearing its completion.

The concept of spiritual struggle was never meant to = replace, let=20 alone abrogate the original, warlike meaning. Furthermore, = all jihad=20 is "defensive jihad" once it is accepted that the legal = formulation=20 of the relationship of Muslims to others is based on the = principle=20 that Islam is a universal message which the whole of mankind = must=20 accept or else submit to.

Since no political system or material power is allowed to = put=20 hindrances in the way of preaching Islam, any such = "hindrance"=20 constitutes an act of "aggression" and Islam has no recourse = but to=20 remove them by force. [10]

Muhammad may not have performed any miracles in his = lifetime, but=20 his followers took the victorious spread of Islam by the = invading=20 Arab armies, starting at Badr, as a sure sign of divine = favor.=20 Following the first four caliphs, the conquered lands were = turned=20 into an Arab empire ruled by Muslim warriors who lived = entirely on=20 the spoils of war, that is, the poll and land taxes paid by = the=20 subjugated peoples.

"My livelihood is under the shade of my spear," that is, = from=20 booty and poll tax, Muhammad declared, and the faithful = followed his=20 example. [11] All conquered lands were duly transformed into = the=20 House of Islam, where umma had been established, = while the=20 rest of the world belonged to the House of War inhabited by=20 Harbis.

As for remaining unconquered lands and cultures, the = House of=20 Islam is in a state of permanent war with the lands that = surround=20 it. The never ending war can be interrupted by truces, but=20 peace will only come with the completion of global=20 conquest.

There is an intermediate stage known as Dar al = Sulh=E2=80=94when=20 the Muslims are a minority community and need to adopt = temporarily a=20 peaceful attitude in order to deceive their neighbors. Mecca = before=20 Muhammad's move to Medina is the model for which the Muslim = diaspora=20 in the Western world provides contemporary example. The = model was=20 provided by Muhammad, who accepted a truce with Mecca = when he=20 was in an inferior position but broke it as soon as his = recuperated strength allowed. Then he offered his pagan = compatriots=20 the choice of conversion or death.

The final objective all along is Dar al Islam, = where=20 Muslims dominate and infidels are converted or massacred: = "fight and=20 slay the pagans wherever ye find them, and seize them, = beleaguer=20 them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem [of war]; = but if=20 they repent, and establish regular Prayers and practice = regular=20 Charity, then open the way for them: for Allah is = Oft-Forgiving,=20 Most Merciful." This, "the Verse of the Sword" (9:5) allows = only one=20 way out for pagans to be spared from being slain: to become = Muslims.=20 Islamic scholars agree that this single verse abrogates 124 = earlier=20 verses=E2=80=94the ones that are quoted most regularly by = Islam's apologists=20 to prove its tolerance and benevolence as a "religion of = peace."

"People of the book" had the third option of paying the = poll=20 tax=E2=80=94a crushing burden for most=E2=80=94with a = trembling hand: "Declare war=20 upon those to whom the Scriptures were revealed but believe = neither=20 in Allah nor the Last Day, and who do not forbid that which = Allah=20 and His Apostle have forbidden, and who refuse to = acknow-ledge the=20 true religion until they pay the poll-tax with a hand of = humility=20 and are totally subjugated." [12]

The entire Sura 9 has been accordingly called "a = chapter=20 of war proclamations." Thereafter the Muslims were = obliged=20 to wage war against all unbelievers. They = could=20 contemplate tactical ceasefires, but never its complete = abandonment=20 short of the unbelievers' abject submission. This is the = real=20 meaning of Jihad.

Its meaning as the obligatory and = permanent war=20 against non-Muslims has not changed since Muhammad: "Those = who=20 believe fight in the cause of God." [13] For the fallen and=20 victorious alike, the rewards are instant and plentiful: = "Let those=20 fight in the cause of God who barter the life of this world = for that=20 which is to come; for whoever fights on God's path, whether = he is=20 killed or triumphs, we will give him a handsome reward." = [14] The=20 firm promise of instant bliss remains to this day a powerful = incentive to would-be martyrs from Iraq's markets to = London's mass=20 transit system.

The conquered peoples were "protected persons" only if = they=20 submitted to Islamic domination by a "Contract" = (Dhimma),=20 paid poll tax=E2=80=94jizya and land = tax=E2=80=94haraj to their=20 masters. Any failure to do so was the breach of contract, = enabling=20 the Muslims to kill or enslave them and confiscate their = property.=20

The cross could not be displayed in public, the people of = the=20 book had to wear special clothing, and they were not allowed = to=20 carry weapons. They had to take in Muslim travelers, = especially=20 soldiers on a campaign. [15]

The resulting inequality of rights in all domains between = Muslims=20 and dhimmis was geared to a steady erosion of the = latter=20 communities by the attrition and conversion. By the time = Timur's=20 invasions at the end of the 14th century the Christians = became a=20 minority in their own lands where no other religion had been = known=20 until the Muslim conquest. They endured for centuries lives = of quiet=20 desperation.

In the conquered lands the dynamics of Islamization were = at work,=20 different in form, perhaps, between Spain and Syria, but = always=20 following the same pattern determined by the ideology and = laws of=20 jihad and Sharia, and leading to transformation of native = Christian=20 majorities into religious minorities. The = initial=20 choice of the vanquished was not "Islam or death" but "Islam = or=20 super-tax." But over time Sharia ensured the decline of all = other=20 religions it was "tolerating" such as Eastern Christianity. = The=20 sapping of the captives' vitality and capacity for renewal = was the=20 long term norm.

It is remarkable that in this age of rampant victimology = the=20 persecution of Christians by Muslims has become a taboo = subject in=20 the Western academe. A complex web of myths, outright lies, = and=20 deliberately imposed silence dominates it. Thirteen = centuries of=20 religious discrimination, causing suffering and death of = countless=20 millions, have been covered by the myth of Islamic = "tolerance" that=20 is as hurtful to the few descendants of the victims as it is = useless=20 as a means of appeasing latter-day jihadists. The silence = and lies,=20 perpetrated by the Western academe and media class, = facilitates the=20 perpetuation of religious discrimination and persecution = even today.=20

The cover-up is not new. Writing more than six decades = ago,=20 Arthur Jeffery dismissed as "the sheerest sophistry" the = tendency=20 apparent in his own time that sought to explain away = Muhammad's=20 warlike raids as "defensive wars" or to interpret Jihad as = merely a=20 bloodless striving in missionary zeal for the spread of = Islam: "The=20 early Arabic sources quite plainly and frankly describe the=20 expedi-tions as military expeditions, and it would never = have=20 occurred to anyone at that day to interpret them as anything = else."=20 [16]

Contemporary apologists for Islam in the academe have = moved on,=20 however, and now routinely make claims that would have been=20 considered eccentric if not openly fraudulent only a = generation ago.=20 Their "Islam is peace" mantra invokes the alleged Kuranic = quote, "If=20 you kill one soul it is as if you have killed all mankind," = but=20 without Allah's essential proviso, "unless it be . . . for = spreading=20 mischief," i.e., resisting Muslim rule. They assert that the = usual=20 modus operandi of the early Muslims should be = judged in its=20 "context," that this was "normal behavior" at the time.

The same understanding, however, is not extended towards = those=20 Europeans=E2=80=94often coarse and decidedly unpleasant = characters that=20 joined the Crusades=E2=80=94who attempted to turn the tables = and take the=20 battle back into the enemy camp, and whose actions those = same=20 Western friends of Islam so sternly condemn today. [17] = Their=20 assurance that only the "spiritual" definition of Jihad is = the real=20 one, practiced by "most Muslims," amounts to distorting the = well=20 documented history of centuries of very physical "striving" = by=20 generations of Muslim warriors.

The reality of militant jihad as a centuries-long = religious and=20 legal institution of Islam has a rock-solid rooting in its=20 scriptures, traditions, and in all four schools of Sunni=20 jurisprudence. [18] Even the renowned master of the = allegedly=20 peaceful and tolerant Sufi sect, al-Ghazali (d. 1111) opined = that=20 "one must go on jihad (i.e. warlike razzias or raids) at = least once=20 a year... One may use a catapult against them [non-Muslims] = when=20 they are in a fortress, even if among them are women and = children.=20 One may set fire to them and drown them."

One of the most prominent Islamic jurists and = philosophers of all=20 time, Ibn Khaldun, summed up the "consensus" that is valid = to this=20 day. He defined holy war as a religious duty based on the=20 universal-ism of the Muslim mission and the obligation to = convert=20 all men to Islam by persuasion or force. He readily concedes = that=20 the holy war is not a religious duty for other religions, = but=20 explains that unlike them "Islam is under obligation to gain = power=20 over all other nations."

The apologists assert that Muslims are called by the = Kuran to=20 strive for peace, but the "peace" that is believers are = called upon=20 to implement is impossible unless it is established under an = all-pervasive Islamic rule. Such "peace," resulting from = jihad, does=20 not only have the meaning of the absence of war, it is also = a state=20 of security that is attainable only once Islam defeats all = infidels,=20 kills, converts or subjugates them, and conquers their = lands. This=20 is a concept of peace "completely different from the = Enlightenment=20 concept of eternal peace that dominates Western thought. = Only when=20 the entire world is a Dar al-Islam will it be a = Dar=20 a-Salam, or House of Peace." [19]

This is exactly the same definition of "peace" as that = used by=20 the Soviet empire in the period of its external expansion=20 (1944-1979): it is the objective, but it is fully attainable = only=20 after the defeat of "imperialism as the final stage of = capitalism"=20 and the triumph of the vanguard of the proletariat in the = whole=20 world. [20]

Endnotes

* Please note that the footnote numbering = does not=20 follow the book's numbering.=20

1. Ibn Warraq (1995), p. 219.

2. Al-Badr spokesman Mustaq Aksari, CNN, September = 19,2001

3. 8:65

4. 9:123

5. 2:191

6. 2:193

7. Majid Khadduri, quoted in Bostom (Ed), op. cit, p. = 311.

8. E.g. as quoted in The Dictionary of Islam by = Thomas=20 Patrick Hughes:

"God is sponsor for him who goeth forth to fight on the = road of=20 God. If he be not killed, he shall return to his house = with=20 rewards and booty, but if he be slain, he shall be taken = to=20 Paradise."

"I swear by God I should like to be killed on the road = of God,=20 then be killed and brought to life again, then killed = again and=20 then brought to life again, so that I may obtain new = rewards every=20 time."

"Guarding the frontiers of Islam for even one day is = worth more=20 than the whole world and all that is in it."

"The fire of hell shall not touch the legs of him who = be=20 covered with the dust of battle in the road of God."

"This religion will ever be established, even to the = Day of=20 Resurrection, as long as Muslims fight for it."

"In the last day the wounds of those who have been = wounded in=20 the way of God will be evident, and will drop with blood, = but=20 their smell will be as the perfume of musk."

"Being killed in the road of God covers all sins, but = the sin=20 of debt."

"He who dies and has not fought for the religion of = Islam...=20 [is] a hypocrite."

"Fighting in the road of God, or resolving to do so, is = a=20 divine duty. When your Imam leader. orders you to go forth = to=20 fight, then obey him."

9. Mishkat II, p. 253

10. Cf. Sayyid Qutb quoting Ibn Qayyim in Bostom (Ed.), = op.=20 cit.

11. This Hadith has been removed from the Internet = version of=20 Sahih Bukhari (Vol. IV-88), but it can be found in the print = version=20 translated by Muhammad Muhsin Khan.

12. 9:29,30

13. 4:76

14. 4:74

15. A host of additional petty rules were either enacted = or=20 adopted that were meant to humiliate non-Muslims. Some of = them were=20 summarized in the "Pact of Umar," in which the Christians = were=20 forced to solemnly declare, inter alia, "we shall show = deference to=20 the Muslims and shall rise from our seats when they wish to = seat=20 down... We shall not ride on saddles. We shall clip the = forelocks of=20 our head. We shall not display our crosses or our books = anywhere in=20 the Muslims' thoroughfares or in their marketplaces... we = shall not=20 build our homes higher than theirs." Disobedience meant = death:=20 "Anyone who violates such terms will be unprotected. And it = will be=20 permissible for the Muslims to treat them as rebels or = dissenters:=20 it is permissible to kill them." That "protection" was also=20 abolished if the dhimmis resisted Islamic law, gave = allegiance to=20 non-Muslim power, harmed a Muslim or his property or = committed=20 "blasphemy."

16. Quoted in Andrew Bostom (Ed.), The = Legacy of=20 Jihad, Amhrerst, New York: Prometheus, 2005, p. 25. = This=20 exceptionally valuable collection of extracts and documents = dating=20 back to the earliest days of Islam contains hitherto = unavailable=20 texts in English by a number of Islamic scholars and = scholars of=20 Islam.

17. Notably e.g. Muhammad : A Biography of the = Prophet=20 by Karen Armstrong.

18. I.e. Maliki, Hanbali, Hanafi, and Shafi'i. For = relevant=20 quotes by a representative of each school cf. Bostom (Ed.), = op. cit,=20 p. 27.

19. Bassam Tibi of Gottingen University, as quoted in = "Islamic=20 Scholar Warns U.S. of 'Two-Faced' Muslims." NewsMax.com = Wires, June=20 20, 2002.

20. As per Ayatollah Khomeini, "those who study jihad = will=20 understand why Islam wants to conquer the whole world: all = the=20 countries conquered by Islam or to be conquered in the = future will=20 be marked for everlasting salvation."

From Defeating Jihad, by Serge = Trifkovic. View=20 the full table of contents and short chapter summaries at Regina=20 Orthodox Press. Please consider leaving a positive = review for = this book on=20 Amazon.com. Finally, tell your friends and family to = read this=20 book! Posted with the publisher's permission on July 28,=20 2006.

Defeating Jihad

Chapter 3: Jihad

by Serge Trifkovic

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