Iran War and Transnational Islamic Jihad
US-led invasion of Iran, prompts us to re-visit the Islamic concept of jihad, holy war in the name of Islam. Late S. Gurbachan Singh Sidhu and I explored this topic in our joint study of Sikh Religion and Islam in 2001(electronic link at footnote).
Some Muslims believe that all true Muslims should join jihad as their religious duty, to promote a global Islamic revolution. From the Islamic viewpoint, Jihad is like dharam yudh in Sikhi, a religious war for the righteous cause. It means striving or struggling in the way of God. It refers to the inner spiritual struggle against sin and outer struggle to defend Islam.
Converting non-Muslims to Islam is one aspect of Jihad where Sikhi and Islam part company. In fact, Sikhs actively oppose conversions by force, or by direct or indirect incentives. Starting with Guru Tegh Bahadur, Sikhs have made many sacrifices for religious freedom of all.
Regarding forced conversions and cruelty inflicted in the name of Islam, Guru Arjan Sahib reminded Muslim rulers of His day:
ਮੁਸਲਮਾਣੁ ਮੋਮ ਦਿਲਿ ਹੋਵੈ ॥ To be Muslim is to be kind-hearted (SGGS Ang 1084).
Guru Nanak Sahib reminds us that the True Guru, or, as is the Islamic belief, the one chosen by God, unites humanity:
ਨਾਨਕ ਸਤਿਗੁਰੁ ਐਸਾ ਜਾਣੀਐ ਜੋ ਸਭਸੈ ਲਏ ਮਿਲਾਇ ਜੀਉ ॥੧੦॥
O Nanak, know Him as the True Guru, who unites all with the Lord. ||10|| (SGGS Ang 72)
Regrettably, extreme interpretation of Islamic concept of Jihad continues to drive the world towards transnational global conflict. According to sources, terrorist networks driven by violent jihad, are operating across the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe. Western countries led by the US, regard them as a global threat to international peace and security and continue to take military action against countries like Iran.
It should be understood that there are different interpretations of the Holy Quran among Muslims themselves on what is a religious war or jihad. The Islamic stance needs to be understood from the Islamic world-view. The Islamic belief is that Islam is the one and only correct path to the ultimate goal of this life. Followers of other religious ideologies (including the Sikhs) would hold similar, albeit, subjective views about their own chosen paths. The difficulty arises when religious codes legislate for open discrimination against other systems.
Sikhism is opposed to spreading religion through war. The nearest concept to Jihad is dharam yudh (fight for justice or the righteous cause). Use of force for propagating religion runs contrary to Sikh belief and practice. The divinely inspired compositions of Muslim and Hindu saints have been included in Sri Guru Granth Sahib and given the same status as the hymns of the Sikh Gurus. Sikhism, therefore, demonstrably preaches that no single ideology has the monopoly of access to God or the Ultimate Truth. The Sikh Gurus went further when Guru Tegh Bahadhur (Nanak IX) gave His life to uphold the right of another religion, Hinduism at the time, to follow own path.
However, Sikhism is not opposed to the use of force per se (albeit strictly as a last resort) for defending freedom to practise religion or civil rights against an aggressor.
According to analysts, the violent jihadist movement poses a complex, evolving, and dangerous threat to global stability, necessitating a combination of security, political, and ideological responses.
Outdated religious ideologies, Western or Eastern, need re-interpretation under universal human rights.
Further reading:
sikh-religion-and-islam-a-comparative-study-gurbachan-singh-sidhu-gurmukh-singh.pdf
Gurmukh Singh OBE
E-mail: sewauk2005@yahoo.co.uk
https://www.sikhiwiki.org/index.php/Gurmukh_Singh_OBE