What is the way to jihad in our present age, and is it obligatory to agree with one's parents in this matter?

The questioner : We are required to perform jihad, so what is the way to jihad in the present time, and is it necessary to take the opinion of one's parents regarding jihad first?

The Shaykh : This is the problem of the Muslim world today. The way to jihad is that we strive against ourselves and our many desires in the present age. Part of this is that we set before our eyes the goal of preparing sufficient material readiness to establish the Islamic society and set up the Muslim state. But the problem is: where do we begin? Many of the Islamic groups today all aspire to one thing; they all want to establish the Islamic society and set up the Muslim state. But what is the way to that? There is no doubt that the way is to apply the Islamic Shari'ah. This is presented in many verses of the Qur'an, even those that have become known to young children, such as the saying of Allah the Exalted: . So what is the meaning of "the victory of Allah"? This meaning is also clear and evident even to beginners in the pursuit of knowledge. The victory of Allah is doing what Allah Mighty and Majestic has made obligatory upon every Muslim. Are there Muslims today, at least a group? Is there a Muslim group that has united and cooperated, and before all else, understood Islam with a correct understanding, and then applied Islam with a practical application? There may be individuals of this type, but a group that has covenanted to understand Islam with a correct understanding and to apply it with a practical application—this, unfortunately, does not exist, though perhaps it will exist soon. And this phrase, "understanding Islam with a correct understanding," actually requires a long explanation and clarification, because I believe that the starting point for achieving the desired goal for all Muslims, individuals and groups, begins with understanding Islam with a correct understanding and then applying it, or combining that with action. Perhaps many of you have heard the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): . In this hadith, I understand that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) described the disease and the cure; he described the illness and the treatment. In the course of describing the illness, he gave some examples, saying (peace and blessings be upon him): . This is an example from those examples. Perhaps all those present know what the sale of 'inah is. It is a type of usurious sale, and it is something with which some Islamic countries are afflicted today. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) says explicitly in this hadith: , meaning because of the violation of Allah Mighty and Majestic in some of what He has prescribed. Therefore, it is fitting for the violators that Allah Mighty and Majestic should subject them to humiliation. He mentioned, by way of example, among the things that cause the illness of the Muslims, the sale of 'inah. I say that he mentioned it by way of example, not by way of specification. It is an example of many rulings that some people make permissible by way of figurative interpretation or by way of deception. The sale of 'inah is called a sale, and some may cite as evidence for it the saying of Allah the Exalted: . They say, "Why do you prohibit the sale of 'inah? This is a sale that is covered by the text of the noble verse." We say that Allah Mighty and Majestic addressed His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) among other things He addressed him with, saying: . The sale mentioned in the previous verse must have its explanation taken from the Sunnah of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and his sayings. Since he prohibited the sale of 'inah, it is not permissible for us to include this type of sale in the generality of the saying of Allah the Exalted: . The sale of 'inah is a form of trading that the one in need of borrowing a sum of money resorts to. He knows, because of the corruption of society, that the Muslims today do not have that strong bond of faith that would lead some of them to support their poor or needy brother. The good loan, the loan for the sake of Allah Mighty and Majestic, has disappeared today among the Muslims. And because the affliction of being obsessed with the love of money and its accumulation has spread, even among the poor and those weak in material means, they resort to borrowing money by an unlawful means. Among these is the sale of 'inah. The sale of 'inah is when the man in need of a loan comes to a large merchant. Let us suppose this merchant is a car dealer, for example, or a dealer in rice or sugar or something similar. He asks the merchant to buy a car from him, and they agree on an installment price that is higher than the cash price. He buys the car, for example, for twenty thousand dinars, while its cash price is seventeen or eighteen thousand. Twenty thousand is recorded in the ledger as the price of this car. The reality is that the one who came to buy the car has no need for the car; he wants to take money. How does he get the money? After buying the car for twenty thousand on installments, this buyer returns to sell this car to the same merchant. He sells it to him for less than what he bought it for, but he sells it for cash, whereas he bought it on credit, i.e., on installments. They agree, for example, that he will be given eighteen thousand, and he takes it and leaves with it, while twenty thousand has been recorded against him. This is pure usury, but the sale was introduced as a means to make permissible what Allah Blessed and Exalted has forbidden. So the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) warned his Ummah from this sale, which involves deceiving regarding what Allah Mighty and Majestic has forbidden of usury.