A Nineteenth Century View of Jihad

Abstract

In the Qur'an jihad is only one of several duties which are incumbent upon the Muslim. The Arab conquests, however, gave a psychological twist to Islamic thought, as a result of which the duty of jihad was exalted in the Traditions. The Sunni theory of jihad developed against the need to reconcile religious theory and historical precedent. The Shi'a were not faced with this problem and were able to reject historical precedent and to exaggerate the religious element. The disappearance of the twelfth imam in 260/873 and the death of the fourth agent (nd'ib khdss) (1) of the 'hidden imam' in 329/940 without having named a successor had important consequences for the Shi'i conception of jihdd, the obligation to undertake which became limited during the concealment of the imam. In spite of this, it was in connexion with the theory of jihad that certain important developments occurred in the field of political theory in the course of the nineteenth century. The first great period of Shi'i jurisprudence and theology was the Buyid period when the main lines which were to be followed in later times were laid down. Shaykh Mufid (d. 413/1022-3) added to the dar al-isldm and the ddr al-harb a third category, the ddr al-Tman. This comprised those places in which the true faith, i.e. Ithna 'Ashari Shi'ism, prevailed, whereas the ddr al-isldm consisted of those places