The Third Choice: Islam, Dhimmitude and Freedom by Durie Mark & Ye'or Bat & Bat Ye'or

The Third Choice: Islam, Dhimmitude and Freedom by Durie Mark & Ye'or Bat & Bat Ye'or

Author:Durie, Mark & Ye'or, Bat & Bat Ye'or [Durie, Mark]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Publisher: Deror Books
Published: 2010-02-01T05:00:00+00:00


On this principle Arabia was forcibly Islamized during the Ridda (apostasy) Wars, in an act of religious cleansing after Muhammad’s death.

It was a matter of dispute between the schools of Sunni law as to whether non-Arab pagans could be included in a dhimma pact. The disagreement was due to a discrepancy between the Quran and the Sunna: the Quran only allowed for the People of the Book to pay jizya, but Muhammad’s example established a precedent for accepting jizya from the pagan Zoroastrians.[18] When India was conquered, the dhimma was extended even to Hindus, a concession which was consistent with the Hanafi school of Islam that became established there.

In summary, within the Islamic state all non-Muslims who are not objects of war are considered to be dhimmis, people who are allowed to exist within the Dar al-Islam by virtue of their community’s surrender under the conditions of a dhimma pact at some time in the past. These are the conquered peoples of Islam.

Paying the jizya

The phrase ‘until they pay the jizya out of hand and are humbled’ in Q9:29 is of crucial importance for understanding the whole dhimmi condition, and we will devote some care to unpacking it. Although this is but one verse in the whole Quran, it is rich with meaning, and forms the foundation of the whole treatment of dhimmis in Islamic law.

The pivotal role of this verse in determining the status of dhimmis is often poorly understood, denied or concealed. The concept of a tribute paid in perpetuity by people dwelling in their own ancestral lands can seem so strange to the modern mind that special care is taken here to draw out the implications of these words for the reader, using the interpretations of Muslim scholars themselves down the centuries.

There are three key elements to consider in Q9:29: the jizya tribute itself, the phrase ‘out of hand’ (‘an yadin), and the concept of being ‘humbled’ (saghirun).

Jizya as compensation

The renowned Andalusian jurist Averroes (Ibn Rushd, d. 1198) explained that, according to established consensus of jurists, exacting jizya from Jews and Christians is one of the two purposes for making war against them, the other being their conversion to Islam:

Why wage war? The Muslim jurists agree that the purpose of fighting the People of the Book … is one of two things: it is either for the conversion to Islam or the payment of the jizya. The payment of the jizya is because of the words of the Exalted, ‘Fight against such as those who have been given the Scripture as believe not in Allah or the Last Day, and forbid not that which Allah and His Messenger hath forbidden, and follow not the religion of truth, until they pay the tribute readily being brought low.’ [Q9:29][19]



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