true nature of jihad

December 30, 2015

Footprints on the Sands of Time 4

Ours is an age of unparalleled spiritual pollution and deeply instilled ignorance about the human purpose. It’s an age in which religious practitioners of all faiths are feeling more and more claustrophobic, as society accords them less and less breathing space and loses interest in their concerns. The pressures now brought to bear on Religion to keep chipping away at the Sacred to concede Continue reading

contemporary concerns

blessings in na relationship, harmony in marriage, importance of moral code for society, Islam and martydom, Islam and revolutions, jihad in Islam, manufacturing public consent, Muslims choosing a spouse, piety in Islam, sufis & salafis, true nature of jihad
October 7, 2015

Khawarij Ideology, ISIS Savagery: Caliphate & Jihad

The first instalment of this blog (here) charted the rise of Islam’s first heterodox sect, the Khawarij, who were described by the Prophet ﷺ as being: ‘the worst of mankind and beasts’1 and ‘dogs of Hellfire.’2 We saw how their defining traits were: (i) rebellion (khuruj) against legitimate state rule; (ii) declaring Muslims to be apostates (takfir) for sins or opinions Continue reading

contemporary concerns, politics & society, salafism reconsidered, theology

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Ibn al-Qayyim on why jihad is fought, ibn Kathir on the Khawarij, Ibn Taymiyyah on multiple Muslim states, ISIL, ISIS, ISIS are Khawarij, Islamic ruling on ISIS, Islamic State, jihad is not perpetual war, khalifah, khawarij, proofs against ISIS, sneaking out to join ISIS, true nature of jihad, true reasons why Muslims wage jihad, who are the Khawarij of our times?

About Me

My name is Surkheel Sharif (aka Abu Aaliyah). Born and raised in London, England, I began my more formal, but gradual studies of the Islamic sciences around the late 1980s (just a few years after having quit my degree in Astrophysics). I also gained an MA in Islamic Studies from Birkbeck College, University of London, in 2009.

I’ve translated a few Islamic works from Arabic into English; one of them, a short text on Muslim spirituality, called The Exquisite Pearl (2000). I have also authored a few books, including: More Fish Please & the Earth’s Complaint (2011); Fussing Over the 15th of Sha’ban & the Golden Rule of Differing (2011); A Muslim’s Guide to Modernity (2025); and Salafism Reconsidered (forthcoming)

I am the founder and current Director of the Jawziyyah Institute (est. 1999): a non-profit organisation dedicated to cultivating an Islam true to its time-honoured tradition, relevant to its current context, and of benefit to wider society.

true nature of jihad

Footprints on the Sands of Time 4

Khawarij Ideology, ISIS Savagery: Caliphate & Jihad