The conditions of fighting in the path of Allah.

Fighting in the path of Allah entails several matters. The first is sincerity of intention for the sake of Allah. The second is that it must be in accordance with the command of Allah. The third is that one must avoid the prohibitions of Allah in it. For this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: The first condition is that the intention behind it must be for the Face of Allah, and that the word of Allah be the highest. This is the sincerity. A person must not intend by his fighting to dominate the world, to possess the land, to plunder wealth, or to slaughter the offspring. If he intends this, then his fighting is not in the path of Allah. The second condition is that the fighting must be within the limits of the Shari'ah, such that there is no aggression against anyone. If there is aggression against anyone, then it is not in the path of Allah. An example of this is if there is a treaty between us and the mushrikin (those who associate partners with Allah) and then we break it and fight. This is haram (forbidden), and it is not fighting in the path of Allah, but rather it is a sin against Allah (Mighty and Majestic). For Allah the Exalted said: and He prohibited fighting while a treaty is in effect. He said: meaning that even if you have made a treaty with a people of disbelievers and you fear that they will betray you, it is not permissible for you to break the treaty. Rather, you should announce it to them on equal terms. That is, you should say to them: "There is no treaty between us and you on equal terms," until you are on equal terms, meaning until you are aware that the treaty has been broken. As for fighting while the treaty is still in effect, that is not in the path of Allah. The third matter is that one must avoid the prohibitions of Allah in it. If one does not avoid the prohibitions of Allah in it, then even if its origin is in the path of Allah, victory and triumph will not be realized in it. This is evidenced by what happened to the Muslims in the Battle of Uhud. In the Battle of Uhud, the situation was in their hands at the beginning of the day, and they had the upper hand. But they disobeyed, yes? They disobeyed the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), so they were abandoned, and the victory turned to the mushrikin. Allah (Mighty and Majestic) says: meaning that defeat occurred. Defeat occurred — Allah is the Greatest — Allah (Mighty and Majestic) turned the Muslims away from them, so they did not fight them . After this reprimand and admonition, by which those who come after them should take a lesson, He said after that: . And if we were to do as they did, are we guaranteed that Allah will pardon us? No. But the Companions were pardoned by Allah, and what they did became as if it had not happened. The important point is to say: In the path of Allah, there must be conditions. What do you say about a group that fights for nationalism? Is this in the path of Allah? It is not in the path of Allah. For this reason, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked about a man who fights for bravery, a man who fights for tribal loyalty, and a man who fights to show his status. Which of these is in the path of Allah? He said: meaning that none of these are in the path of Allah. The man fights for bravery because he is brave, and the brave man loves to fight, because bravery is his nature and boldness is his nature, so he loves this. The second fights for tribal loyalty and protection of his people. The third fights for showing off and reputation to show his status. Which of these is in the path of Allah? He said: .