The Global Islamic Media Front, an advocacy group for al-Qaeda, has issued yet another discourse concerning the proper psyche a Muslim must possess in order to pursue jihad. From the SITE Institute:
Jihad, described in the document as the “strongest of the religion’s imperative duties,” is considered most beneficial to a mujahid when he is able to see beyond the “visible struggle,” remain pure and devoted to Allah, and “is the one whose heart was devoted to these degrees and no one stopped his eagerness to please Allah and be allowed into paradise.”
To achieve the elevated state of being in jihad, the text highlights seven degrees, or stages, that a Muslim must ascend mentally. The initial degrees entail faith in Allah alone, following Prophet Mohammad and avoiding the ways of the “people of desire,” determination to be righteous and absolving one’s self of sin, and accepting piety. Further, a mujahid must be “convinced that the assignment of the umma to jihad is a way to glory,” find solace in the promise of paradise, and physically prepare for jihad. The final degree, should the enemy not be consumed, calls for the mujahid to continue jihad until “consolidation or until it goes over to the next generation as a pursuit of the faith and keeping to the heritage of the prophecy.”