Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Alhassanain (p) Network for Islamic Heritage and Thought

Immigration and Jihad

Author(s):Ayatullah Murtadha Mutahhari

Translator(s):Najim al-Khafaji

Publisher(s): Dar Al-Hadi Publications London U.K.

www.alhassanain.org/english

Table of Contents

Introduction 3

Translator's Note 4

Introduction to the Arabic Translation 6

Lecture One 8

Awaiting relief from suffering 14

Notes 19

Lecture Two 21

Jihad 26

Notes 31

Lecture Three 32

Notes 40

Introduction

If we had come across this book twenty or thirty years ago, we would not have paid much attention to it. This is particularly true in the current climate where foreign lands, especially the Western world, have become the residence of millions of Muslims, the majority of whom have left their homelands to escape persecution and save their faith.

Therefore, immigration and jihad have become among the important topics that occupy the minds of Muslims in this time and age. It is not only because the subject is subtle, but a source of worldly aggravation.

It is for these reasons that we have decided to translate it into English, to make it an addition to theMutahhari series published by Dar Al-Hadi , London, which has been created as a result of consultation withHujjatul Islam as-Sayyid Jawad ash-Shahristani , the Chairman ofAlul Bayt (a.s .) Foundation for Reviving the Heritage.

It has been decided that the translation of this work be among the first books that deserve to be translated, not only because it is an important one, but because of its significance among the circles of young men and women.

In the end, I pray to the Almighty to bestow success on us in both this world and the hereafter. I would like to express my gratitude toNajim al-Khafaji for his translation andHayder al-Khoee for his help.

Fadhil Bahrululum

Dar Al-Hadi Publications

London, U.K.

Thul Hijja 1423 H. (February 2003)

Translator's Note

In undertaking the translation of this booklet,Alhijrah wal Jihad, Immigration and Jihad, by Martyr AyatollahMurtadha Mutahhari , I have been keen on conveying the meaning to the English reader in Standard English from the Arabic text that was translated from Farsi. I hope I have succeeded in this task. I also hope that this translation will benefit people who are interested in acquiring knowledge about Islamic topics.

It is noteworthy, however, that the booklet is a record of a series of lectures the late author had delivered in gatherings held in Tehran for the annual commemoration of the martyrdom of ImamHussain (a.s .). Thus, and as has already been pointed out by the Arabic translator, the reader may come across some repetitions, that are characteristic of a sermon/lecture-delivering style, although I have done my best to minimize these to a level that, I think, is acceptable.

Where I thought the meaning of the text would be enhanced or rendered more intelligible, I have put the additional words, which do not constitute part of the original text, between square brackets, thus []. I did the same with other pieces of information I have provided that are, in my judgment, beneficial to the reader. On certain occasions, I felt the need to keep the Arabic word, which I enclosed between these ( ) brackets, alongside its English equivalent, so as to reinforce the meaning. On other occasions, I resorted to using them interchangeably.

In this translation, I relied on the first Arabic edition (1987), published by the Office of International Relations, Organization for Islamic Information, PO Box 1313/14155, Tehran, Iran.

Najim al-Khafaji ,

BA, MIL.

London, UK, July, 2002

Introduction to the Arabic Translation

This book is a record of a series of lectures given by the Islamic intellectual Martyr AyatollahMurtadha Mutahhari in one of the mosques in the Iranian capital Tehran in 1975, i.e. some three years before the triumph of the Islamic revolution. It is noteworthy that those years witnessed the high point of the Shah’s persecution of and clamping down on dissidents.

The discussions in these three lectures revolve around the concepts of both immigration (hijra ) and jihad (struggle, or fighting back). The author’s methodology of research was based on the following general guidelines:

Explaining the semantics of both the concepts of immigration and jihad and their importance within the system of Islamic rules.

Discussing examples of real life situations of both the concepts and the conditions when Islam makes it incumbent on its followers to pursue immigration and jihad as religious duties.

Facing up to the false arguments about and misconceptions of both the subjects. The author paid special attention to taking issue with the attempts to make redundant immigration and jihad in the context of Islamicsharia law. That is, the proponents of this trend, by giving more weight to the superficial meaning of the two concepts, seek to justify the recoiling from social work.

By reinforcing the lawful obligation of immigration, ProfessorMutahhari has sought to demolish the pretexts clung to by many people who chose to go astray from the path of Islam. Those people seem to quote “force majeure”, (or power that cannot be acted or fought against) to defend their deviant ways.

This book discusses these two subjects in a way which may leave you with the conclusion that the author is talking about identical twins. In this regard, AyatollahMutahhri has followed theQur’anic approach in dealing with these two topics for they are hardly mentioned separately in the Holy Qur’an.

By opting to discuss these subjects from a practical perspective, the author has aimed to highlight this approach from an educational standpoint, as it is more beneficial than the purely academic theoretical approach; and once again, he had followed in the footsteps of the Holy Qur’an in this regard.

As regards the translation From Farsi into Arabic, I have resorted to the following:

I have done my level best as not to interfere with the original text, only insofar as the Arabic syntax necessitated.

I have opted for leaving some passages, which may seem as if the author is repeating himself, as they are. I believe there is no harm in so doing because of the nature of the original material, i.e. being delivered by way of lectures on the one hand, and, on the other, by recapping on certain points, the lecturer/author had sought to add force to the argument by introducing new elements to the discussion.

And as is customary in the gatherings held to commemorate the martyrdom of ImamHussain (a.s .), [which usually take place during Muharram and Safar of the IslamicHijri Calandar ], the orator in these lectures had finished each lecture up by making references to certain aspects of the story of the martyrdom of the Imam (a.s .). This, I also have chosen to leave unchanged, above all, for its educational value.

MuhammadJa’far Baqiri ,

Translator of the Farsi text into Arabic,

Tehran, Iran, 1987.