By Cyril Anderson

Part One of Two

The Real Meaning of Jihad

  The news these days is filled it seems with hoodlums in ski masks cutting off heads and blowing up civilians in the name of “jihad.”  These actions of these misled fools and the slanted coverage of the news media serve to darken and savagely distort the image of what is actually a noble and essential human concept.  Quite simply, jihad means to “strive,” or “to struggle.”  This definition is very general and broad, and reflects the fact that despite the common Western misunderstanding that jihad is synonymous with armed conflict, the term is actually a very broad one.

In general, jihad means to strive or struggle for the sake of good, or to resist wrongs.  This general understanding is reflected, for example, in a linguistically related word, ijtihad, which refers to the effort expended by Islamic scholars to derive legislation from the Islamic sources.  It is true that jihad can refer to armed conflict, whether to defend oneself against attack or oppression, or to come to the defense of others under similar dangers, as long as the conflict is carried out according to certain stringent ethical guidelines, including no killing of women, children, the elderly, or non-combatants, humane treatment of POWs, and avoidance of the destruction of the economic infrastructure of the opponent, such as farmland and other vital elements necessary for the civilian population.  However, by focusing only on this aspect, one misses most of the picture and undermines the real concept. 

The Jihad of Mothers

As mentioned by the prophet (saws), outward fighting is only the smaller part of jihad, with the greater part being the inner jihad, the battle against the demons within oneself, to overcome hardship, fear, and self-doubt to accomplish good works and to make the world a better place. One of the lesser-known examples of this concept of the greater jihad is one which is entirely in the domain of women, and that stands as one of the most important and essential forms of struggle for the human race; namely, the jihad of the mother. Pregnant women and mothers undergo many struggles for the sake of the noble undertaking of helping to bring the next generation of human life into the world.

The pregnant woman undergoes suffering and discomfort throughout her pregnancy.  Early on, she is plagued by nausea as her body’s hormonal chemistry is turned upside down to prepare to grow human life within her.  Her child lives off of her almost as a parasite, taking in her blood and taking nutrients from within.  If there is any shortage in the diet, her body is designed to take from her own in order to give preference to the child.  If she is low on her calcium intake, it will be taken from her bones.  As she gains as much as a half of her body mass during the pregnancy, she experiences other discomforts.  Her back aches under the strain of the extra weight, and her breasts and feet ache from swelling.  Her skin stretches, ripping the lower layers of skin, and scarring her body for life.  She is plagued by constant need to urinate and by difficulty breathing as the expanding child presses on her organs.  And this is only the prelude for the bigger battle, the labor.

Generally, according to Islamic law, women are excused from the duty put upon men to put their lives on the line in battle to defend their nation.  But those men who claim that it is because of some inherent psychological weakness relative to men or of women’s “too delicate sensibilities” would do well to attend first hand the births of their children.  Only then will they realize that the reason these women are excused from this duty is because as mothers they have already proved themselves on another battlefield just as trying, and that they are excused from this duty only as a mercy from the Lord of the Worlds in appreciation for a job well done.  Only then will they realize the reason why The Prophet (saws) said that a woman atones through the suffering of childbirth for any sins she has committed in her life from beforehand and up to the end of the labor, and why he said that the woman who dies in childbirth dies a martyr as legitimate as any man who falls in battle.  As a soldier feels pain, so too does she feel pain.  As the soldier bleeds, so too does she bleed.  She shares the same groans of effort and the same exhilaration of victory at the moment of triumph.  She is in every sense, a true mujahida, with the battle scars to prove it.

Narrations from the prophet (saws) and the imams (as) speak at length as well about the benefits given by God to mothers for their sacrifices and efforts for their children.  One of these struggles on the part of the mother is that of feeding the baby, particularly if she breastfeeds.  This takes a lot of effort on the part of the mother, however Islam also lists numerous rewards that the mother gains for doing so.  Narrations indicate that woman atones for many sins each time she breastfeeds.  This is a balance for the baby’s right to breast milk for at least the first six months of its life.  This six months figure is, incidentally the same time period recommended by the World Health Organization, due to the numerous health benefits to the child offered by human breast milk.   Other struggles of motherhood include lack of sleep and lack of energy.  It is for these and other reasons that Muhammad (saws) so famously stated that “paradise lies at the feet of mothers,” and why, when asked who one should honor most after God and the Prophet, answered, “your mother.  your mother.”

It is largely because of such strains and incapacitations placed upon women through their biological role as mothers that women are guaranteed, according to Islamic law, financial support and maintenance from their husbands or family. 

                                 Part One             Part Two