Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

On jihad

This refers to the report “The jihad in ‘God’s Own Country’” (March 9). The book the author refers to, Tuhfat al-Mujahideen, was first published in English by the Madras University in 1942. Tuhfat al-Mujahideen was one of the earliest anti-colonial manifestos and was translated into many European languages. Zayn-ad-Din wrote against the Portuguese colonial incursion and his fight was with the then king of Calicut, Zamorin. Other Books, Calicut, came out with a reprint of the Tuhfat al-Mujahideen with a foreword from Dr. K.K.N. Kurupp, former Vice-Chancellor of the University of Calicut and Professor of History, in 2006. There are four Malayalam translations of the work. To relate the jihad mentioned in this book to the jihad as it is understood today is as dangerous as George Bush’s use of the word ‘crusade’ for the ‘war against terror.’

A. Ahsan,

Kozhikode

Abdul Aziz,

New Delhi

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Congress piles up losses
Skilled workers in short supply
The Democratic Party’s red phone fortnight
One nation, indivisible
Oh! What a lovely waiver
It boils down to voter turnout in Spain
Unnecessary
On jihad
Timely

Copyright © 2008, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu