More and more Muslims who don’t understand that jihad is a peaceful interior struggle.
From “the place where your heart wants to smile“:
And prepare against them all you can of power, including steeds of war to terrorise the enemies of Allah and others besides whom you may not know, but Allah does know. And whatever you shall spend in the Cause of Allah shall be repaid unto you, and you shall not be treated unjustly.” [Quran 8:60]
In commenting on this verse, the Messenger (SAWS) said: “Indeed, power is shooting, power is shooting, power is shooting.” [Sahih Muslim]
Narrated Abu Hurairah (RA) that the Messenger (SAWS) said: “If anyone keeps a horse for Jihad in the Way of Allah, motivated by his faith in Allah and his belief in His Promise, then he will be rewarded on the Day of Resurrection for what the horse has eaten or drunk and for its dung and urine.” [Sahih Al-Bukhari]
John Esposito, Ibrahim Hooper, and Karen Armstrong should stop lecturing non-Muslims about peaceful jihad and devote themselves to explaining it to Muslims.
Jihad literally means “˜to struggle”. In the military sense it is meant in the context, “˜to struggle against oppression”. Jihad is therefore an act to liberate people from the oppression of tyrants. Jihad is not illegal acts of terror against innocent people. When tabloid journalism mistakenly informs the masses that Jihad is “˜to commit illegal acts of terror”, they are revealing the lack of their research and the extent of their unprofessional approach to the subject.
Actually, journalists are simply repeating what the perpetrators say when they blow up office buildings and night clubs; in the “tyrant’s” offices and nightclubs there are no innocents.
According to the verse above (“And prepare against them all you can of power…”), military training is an obligation in Islam upon every sane, male, mature Muslim, whether rich or poor, whether studying or working and whether living in a Muslim or non-Muslim country. The Prophet (SAWS) explained the meaning of the term ‘power’ in the above verse during a Friday Sermon by mentioning that power was specifically shooting.
The verse mentions ‘what you can…’, meaning that the Muslims must prepare to the utmost of their ability and circumstances.
‘Steeds of war’ refer to the horses that were prepared for battle. In this day and age, the scholars of Islam have explained this term to mean all forms of modern weaponry such as infantry weapons, tanks, artillery, aircraft, etc.
And to think that there are people who say Islam cannot adopt to modern time and is stuck in a medieval mindset.
The above verse is a clear evidence that military training of all sorts is an Islamic obligation, not something optional. Furthermore, the obligation is according to one’s ability, in that the Muslims must use every means at their disposal to undertake military and physical training for Jihad.
The article goes on to talk about physical training, followed by that ever so common religious obligation, Firearms Training.
Firearms training differs from country to country. In some countries, possession of firearms by the public is illegal, in other countries it is legal. In some countries of the World, especially the USA, firearms training is available to the general public. One should try to join a shooting club if possible and make regular visits to the firing range. There are many firearms courses available to the public in USA, ranging from one day to two weeks or more. These courses are good but expensive. Some of them are only meant for security personnel but generally they will teach anyone. It is also better to attend these courses in pairs or by yourself, no more. Do not make public announcements when going on such a course. Find one, book your place, go there, learn, come back home and keep it yourself. Whilst on the course, keep your opinions to yourself, do not argue or debate with anyone, do not preach about Islam and make Salah in secret. You are going there to train for Jihad, not call people to Islam.
Useful courses to learn are sniping, general shooting and other rifle courses. Handgun courses are useful but only after you have mastered rifles.
But remember:
Keep firearms unloaded and out of reach of children.