Jihad

Jihad

Jihad is the Arabic word for “struggle”.  In the context of Islam, it has several applications.  Historically, it has been used most often to describe the conflict within one’s soul to repress and resist the temptation to sin, but modern radical and fundamentalist movements concentrate more on external jihad, or the struggle against the enemies of Islam.  In this context, it is similar to the idea of a holy war.