Traits That Believers Must Have According to Surah At-Tawbah
This is according to Hani Chitchian, a member of the Quran and Etrat School of the University of Tehran, speaking in the 24th session in a series on Surah At-Tawbah. Following are excerpts from his remarks in the session:
Surah At-Tawbah provides some features believers should have. After the epic of Ashura, someone came to Imam Sajjad (AS) to persuade him to fight enemies. Then the Imam read verse 112 of Surah At-Tawbah and told the man that he would join Jihad if people with these qualities can be found in their front.
“Those who repent, those who worship Allah and praise (Him); those who journey, those who bow, those who prostrate themselves; those who order righteousness and forbid evil, and those who observe the limits of Allah give glad tidings to the believers.” (Surah At-Tawbah, verse 112)
Jihad does not mean killing and playing. A person who intends to spread religiosity and guidance must have true qualities and then use force for defending if necessary. We have not come to kill and be killed. The main issue is guidance.
The basis of fighting in Islam is to fight with faith. When the Holy Prophet (PBUH) orders war, he means the war of the believers. In the logic of all prophets, the purification of the battlefield has been mentioned. When 70 people are martyred in the most heinous manner, they wake up the world. History shows that the Prophet (PBUH) paid special attention to purifying the mujahids on the battlefield as they did not seek to gather an army at any cost.
In the logic of Islam, prisoners are taken so as to guide them not for trading them for money. The battle is for guidance; therefore, the faithful must be pure.
The mentioned verse points to “those who repent” at any moment; “those who worship” and take God as their sole Lord.
“Those who praise” describes those who not only laud and worship God but move towards Him. It creates a sort of obedience in the faithful.
The next word “Saeh” literally means constantly moving. Mujahids do not stop, rather, they are always moving and this movement is done in the path of growth. “Those who bow” and “those who prostrate themselves” refer to complete obedience and submission to God.
Enjoining the good means inviting to the good, forbidding the bad, and avoiding what is bad, and then protecting and guarding the limits of God. These last three data-x-items are more practical.
