Al-Farabi: A Philosophical Evaluation of Jihad

Al-Fārābī was a pioneer in the philosophical discussions on jihad, like many other political categories. His point of view should be explained in both literal- lexical presence of jihād in the text and also content level - the relationship between the concept of jihād and theoretical philosophy. The explanation has led to bringing about certain complexities and difficulties in reading Al-Fārābī’s texts. As far as we know, there are four opinions among contemporary commentators. On the one hand, Al-Fārābī is introduced as a defender, and on the other hand, he is considered to be an opponent of jihād. This paper seeks to study analytically the above views, to evaluate the most plausible form of their views, to examine their validity and inaccuracy, and finally, to move towards the most justified reading in a comparative framework. Justifying the presence of the lexical of jihād in Al-Fārābī’s works, the authors conclude that Al-Fārābī’s theoretical philosophy, focusing on his politics and theology, precludes the justification of any philosophical defense of jihād.