Jihad In Classical And Modern Islam

by Rudolph Peters

The notion of Jihad ("Holy War") is very much alive in the Islamic world, and plays a prominent political role. In the West, Jihad is often associated with violence and fanaticism. Muslims, however, emphasize that the real meaning is "effort toward a religiously commendable aim" and that it can be applied to both defensive warfare and peaceful activities for the sake of religion. The aim of the present book is to elucidate the concept of Jihad. It provides basic reading materials translated from Arabic and Turkish, an introduction, and two essays on modernist and fundamentalist interpretations and the significance of Jihad nowadays.