The Concept of jihād in the Writings of Abdessalam Yassine

David Alexander Bienert Worcester College

Acknowledgments I would like to thank the following people for their help and support: Michael Willis, Ronald Nettler, Jan Geert van Gelder, Christopher Melchert, Juan A. Macías Amoretti, and Avi Spiegel.

Note on transliteration: The transliteration of Arabic letters in this thesis shall follow the standard system, with the following exceptions:

‫ﺡ‬

=

ħ ş đ ŧ ż

‫= ﺹ‬ ‫= ﺽ‬ ‫ﻁ‬ ‫ﻅ‬ = =

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Table of Contents
Introduction Abdessalam Yassine and al-‘adl wa al-iħsān Overview of Secondary Literature This Thesis Primary Sources The Structure of al-iħsān al-minhāj al-nabawiyy Introduction The Godly Personality – Characteristics and Affluents The Eleven Types of jihād Spiritual Education Ideology and Indoctrination Establishing the Islamic State Greater and Lesser jihād Individual and Communal jihād Greater jihād Greater jihād in the Mystical Sense Identity and Education The Persistence of Secular Ideologies in the Muslim World Islamic Virtues The Lesser jihād Unarmed Armed Violence and Force The Uprising Inception of the Islamic State after Uprising Poetry Yassine’s Theory of Society and History Mysticism and Orthodoxy Mysticism Orthodoxy Historical Change Islamic Society – Spiritual Meritocracy The Second Caliphate Conclusion 1 1 4 8 10 11 13 13 16 18 19 25 35 48 48 49 52 55 61 63 65 65 68 74 77 80 84 86 86 88 93 96 97 99 104

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1) Introduction

Abdessalam Yassine and al-‘adl wa al-iħsān Abdessalam Yassine is a Moroccan Islamic intellectual, the founder and spiritual leader of a movement nowadays called al-‘adl wa al-iħsān (“Justice and Spirituality,” henceforth al-‘adl). The movement is the largest and most active politico-religious association in Morocco. Apart from recruiting new followers, its activities range from participating in demonstrations, organizing Islamic charity and welfare societies, providing social services, food,