JIHAD

the term "holy war" originates not with islam but with the christian crusaders who first used it to give theological legitimacy to what was in reality a battle for land and trade routes.

"holy war" was not a term used by muslim conquerors,

and it is in no way a proper definition of the word jihad.

there are a host of words in arabic that can be definitively translated as "war";

jihad is not one of them.

the word jihad literally means "a struggle", "a striving", or "a great effort".

in its primary religious connotation (sometimes referred to as "the greater jihad"),

it means the struggle of the soul to overcome the sinful obstacles that keep a person from God.

this is why the word jihad is nearly always followed in the Quran by the phrase

"in the way of God."

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from reza aslan - NO GOD BUT GOD