A Revelation-Based Analysis of Prophetic Governance in Organizing Collective Participation in Jihad: With an Emphasis on the Principle of “al-Jār ka-al-Nafs”

Collective responsibility and participation in jihad occupy a central place in Islamic thought and are emphasized in the Qur’an and in the conduct and governance of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). Following the Prophet’s migration to Medina, the formation of a new political and social community required mechanisms to regulate relations among diverse groups, organize collective responsibilities, and mobilize social capacities for common defense and the fulfillment of public responsibilities. The Covenant of Medina
is among the most significant historical documents reflecting this process of social and political organization. One principle associated with the Covenant is expressed in the phrase al-jār ka-al-nafs (“the neighbor is like oneself”), whose meaning and implications have been debated in Islamic studies, hadith scholarship, jurisprudence, and Islamic history. This study aims to elucidate the model of Prophetic governance for organizing collective participation in jihad through a revelation-based analysis of the principle of al-jār ka-al-nafs in the Covenant of Medina. Its central research question is: How can this model be conceptualized through a revelation-based analysis of al-jār ka-al-nafs in the Covenant of Medina? The study also examines the principle’s documentary and semantic validity, focusing on the meaning of jār and whether it denotes a “neighbor” or “a person seeking protection or asylum.” This distinction is significant because the two interpretations have different implications for understanding the principle’s social and governmental functions within the community of Medina. The study adopts a qualitative, multistage methodology. First, it examines the documentary and semantic dimensions of the relevant tradition through hadith, rijāl, jurisprudential, linguistic, and exegetical sources, with particular reference to major Shi‘i hadith collections, including al-Kāfī and Tahdhīb al-Ahkām, and through comparison with historical accounts of the Covenant of Medina. The documentary analysis indicates that substantial cumulative evidence supports the tradition and that converging historical and hadith evidence corroborates the existence of a written covenant regulating relations among the Muhājirūn, the Anṣār, and other inhabitants of Medina. Although the chain of transmission does not attain the highest level of authenticity owing to scholarly debate concerning one transmitter, the cumulative documentary, textual, and jurisprudential evidence supports the reliability of the transmitted material for scholarly analysis. Second, the study undertakes a semantic and contextual analysis of al-jār
ka-al-nafs. Although lexical sources recognize both “neighbor” and “protected person” as possible meanings of jār, the findings indicate that interpreting the term exclusively as a person seeking protection is less compatible with the broader context of the Covenant. Drawing on linguistic evidence, the tradition’s internal and external contexts, the social circumstances surrounding the Covenant, and related clauses governing relations among Medina’s inhabitants, the study concludes that jār is more appropriately understood as “neighbor.” This meaning, however, extends beyond geographical proximity to denote a member of Medina’s social and political community embedded in a network of reciprocal rights and responsibilities. The principle thus reflects a broader conception of social solidarity and mutual obligation within the political community. The revelation-based dimension of the study is further developed through qualitative analysis using grounded theory procedures. Selected Qur’anic verses concerning participation and nonparticipation in jihad are systematically coded and categorized to identify the underlying pattern governing collective participation. The method of referring transmitted traditions to the Qur’an serves as the primary means of assessing their semantic compatibility with revelation, while grounded theory provides a methodological framework for organizing Qur’anic data and identifying relationships among concepts and categories. Through open, axial, and selective coding, the findings are organized into three principal categories: causal, contextual, and intervening conditions. The causal conditions indicate that collective participation is rooted in religious obligation, preparedness, cooperation, proportional contributions according to individual capacity, and collective cohesion. The contextual conditions concern the social and organizational environment in which participation occurs, including distinctions between individuals with legitimate excuses and those who withdraw from collective responsibility without valid justification. The intervening conditions encompass psychological, ideological, social, economic, and physical factors that may facilitate or constrain participation. These findings indicate that collective responsibility requires more than the declaration of a religious obligation; it also depends on responsible individuals and institutional mechanisms capable of organizing participation fairly and effectively. The study further finds that Prophetic governance in this domain rests on establishing just rules and mechanisms for mobilizing and distributing society’s human and material capacities. Within this framework, al-jār ka-al-nafs can be understood as a governance principle that supports reciprocity, cooperation, social solidarity, and the equitable distribution of collective responsibilities. Its particular significance lies in the equitable distribution and rotation of duties: the costs and responsibilities of collective defense should not remain permanently concentrated among a limited group while other capable members of society remain disengaged. Rather, each eligible member should contribute according to their capacity, circumstances, and position within the collective system. Accordingly, the model encompasses human and financial participation, mutual cooperation, justice and equality, the equitable distribution of responsibilities, the strengthening of religious commitment, the removal of barriers to participation, and the enhancement of knowledge and awareness. Its implications extend beyond military capacity to sustainable security, social cohesion, collective identity, administrative integration, moral and spiritual development, and greater social self-reliance. The study concludes that the Prophetic model reflected in the Covenant of Medina provides a comprehensive framework for transforming individual capacities into organized collective potential through justice, cooperation, reciprocity, and responsible participation.