HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Shaheed'' ( ,  ,   ; pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) denotes a
martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
in
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
. The word is used frequently in the
Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
in the generic sense of "witness" but only once in the sense of "martyr" (i.e. one who dies for his faith); the latter sense acquires wider usage in the ''
hadith Ḥadīth ( or ; ar, حديث, , , , , , , literally "talk" or "discourse") or Athar ( ar, أثر, , literally "remnant"/"effect") refers to what the majority of Muslims believe to be a record of the words, actions, and the silent approval ...
''. The term is commonly used as a posthumous title for those who are considered to have accepted or even consciously sought out their own death in order to bear witness to their beliefs. Like the English-language word ''martyr'', in the 20th century, the word ''shahid'' came to have both religious and non-religious connotations, and has often been used to describe those who died for non-religious ideological causes. This suggests that there is no single fixed and immutable concept of martyrdom among
Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
and
Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...
. It is also used in
Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
.


Etymology

In
Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
, the word ''shahid'' means "witness". Its development closely parallels that of the Greek word ''martys'' ( gr, μάρτυς, label=none, ; also "martyr" in the
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...
), the origin of the term ''
martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...
''.


Quranic references

A shahid is considered one whose place in
Paradise In religion, paradise is a place of exceptional happiness and delight. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical or eschatological or both, often compared to the miseries of human civilization: in paradis ...
is promised according to these verses in the
Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...
: The Quranic passage that follows is the source of the concept of Muslim martyrs being promised Paradise:


Hadiths

The importance of faith is highlighted in the following hadith: It is thus not the outcome that determines the placement in Heaven but rather the intention. Nonetheless, Paradise for a shahid is a popular concept in the Islamic tradition according to Hadith, and the attainment of this title is honorific. The Prophet
Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد;  570 – 8 June 632 Common Era, CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Muhammad in Islam, Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet Divine inspiration, di ...
is reported to have said these words about martyrdom: Several hadith also indicate the nature of a shahid's life in Paradise. Shahids are thought to attain the highest level of Paradise, the Paradise of al-Firdous. Furthermore, Samura narrated: There are at least five different kinds of martyrs according to hadith. One who dies protecting his property is also considered a martyr according to Hadith: While the Qur'an does not indicate much about martyrs' death and funeral, the hadith provides some information on this topic. For example, martyrs are to be buried two in one grave in their blood, without being washed or having a funeral prayer held for them. The following Hadith highlight this:


Sikhism

The word ''shahid'' ( pa, ਸ਼ਹੀਦ) is also found in
Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
, a religion founded by Guru Nanak in the northwest part of the Indian subcontinent (now Pakistan and India). It means a martyr. The term was borrowed from the Islamic culture in Punjab when Sikhism was founded, and before the start of the
British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...
it referred to the Sikh people who met death at the hands of oppressors. Another related term is ''shahid-ganj'', which means a "place of martyrdom". The most discussed ''shahid'' in Sikhism have been two of their
Guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...
s, namely Guru Arjan and Guru Tegh Bahadur for defying Islamic rulers and refusing to convert to Islam. Guru Arjan was arrested under the orders of the Mughal Emperor
Jahangir Nur-ud-Din Muhammad Salim (30 August 1569 – 28 October 1627), known by his imperial name Jahangir (; ), was the fourth Mughal Emperor, who ruled from 1605 until he died in 1627. He was named after the Indian Sufi saint, Salim Chishti. Ear ...
and asked to convert to Islam.Pashaura Singh (2005)
Understanding the Martyrdom of Guru Arjan
Journal of Philosophical Society, 12(1), pages 29–62
He refused, was tortured and executed in 1606 CE. Historical records and the Sikh tradition are unclear whether Guru Arjan was executed by drowning or died during torture. His martyrdom, that is becoming a ''shahid'', is considered a watershed event in the history of Sikhism. Guru Tegh Bahadur's martyrdom resulted from refusing to convert and for resisting the forced conversions of
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
s in
Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
to
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
because he believed in freedom of conscience and human rights. He was publicly beheaded in 1675 on the orders of
Mughal emperor The Mughal emperors ( fa, , Pādishāhān) were the supreme heads of state of the Mughal Empire on the Indian subcontinent, mainly corresponding to the modern countries of India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Mughal rulers styled t ...
Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
in
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
.
Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib is one of the nine historical Gurdwaras in Delhi. It was first constructed in 1783 as a small shrine by Baghel Singh to commemorate the martyrdom site of the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur and was probably expanded ...
in Delhi marks the ''shahid-ganj'', or place of execution of the Guru. The Sikh have other major pilgrimage sites, such as the shahid-ganj in Sirhind, where two sons of
Guru Gobind Singh Guru Gobind Singh (; 22 December 1666 – 7 October 1708), born Gobind Das or Gobind Rai the tenth Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. When his father, Guru Tegh Bahadur, was executed by Aurangzeb, Guru Gobind Sing ...
were bricked alive by Mughal Empire army in retaliation of their father's resistance. In Muktsar, near a lake is a shahid-ganj dedicated to forty men who died defending Guru Gobind Singh.


Modern usage

In the course of the eighteenth century, there were several wars of independence within the colonial territories of the Muslim World. Many of the soldiers who died during these conflicts were given the title shahid upon their burial."Martyrdom". In ''The Islamic World: Past and Present''. Ed. John L. Esposito. Oxford Islamic Studies Online. 5 December 2012.
/ref> Various Muslims have died under
fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...
and
communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
regimes during the course of the twentieth century and as well as more recent genocides including the Bosnian genocide,
Rohingya genocide The Rohingya genocide is a series of ongoing persecutions and killings of the Muslim Rohingya people by the Burmese military. The genocide has consisted of two phases to date: the first was a military crackdown that occurred from October 2016 ...
, and
Uyghur genocide The Chinese government has committed a series of ongoing human rights abuses against Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities in Xinjiang that is often characterized as genocide. Since 2014, the Chinese government, under the a ...
. Massacres against Muslims have also occurred such as the Christchurch mosque shootings in New Zealand in 2019. A Muslim who is killed defending his or her property is considered a martyr. For example, in
Pakistan Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
and
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
the word "shaheed" is used to denote martyrs who have died in the way of Islam or in the defence of their nation.


Women

A woman is considered "shahida" ( ') if she dies during the fulfillment of a religious commandment. A woman can also be considered a martyr if she dies during childbirth. There are examples of women fighting in war such as
Nusaybah bint Ka'ab Nusaybah bint Ka'ab ( ar, نسيبة بنت كعب; also ''ʾUmm ʿAmmarah'', ''Umm Umara'', ''Umm marah''Ghadanfar, Mahmood Ahmad. "Great Women of Islam", Riyadh. 2001.pp. 207-215), was one of the early women to convert to Islam. She was one of t ...
. The first martyr (male or female) in Islam was
Sumayyah bint Khayyat Sumayyah bint Khabbāṭ ( ar, سُمَيَّة ٱبْنَت خَبَّاط) or Sumayyah bint Khayyāṭ (; c. 550 – 615 CE / 72 BH – 7 BH), was the mother of Ammar ibn Yasir and first member of the ''Ummah'' (Community) of the Islamic pro ...
, who was executed for her conversion to Islam. She died after Abu Jahl, an anti-Muslim leader of the
Quraysh The Quraysh ( ar, قُرَيْشٌ) were a grouping of Arab clans that historically inhabited and controlled the city of Mecca and its Kaaba. The Islamic prophet Muhammad was born into the Hashim clan of the tribe. Despite this, many of the Qur ...
stabbed her in the abdomen. Though her name is not common in the modern Muslim dialogue, ancient Islamic literature makes note of the events at the end of her life.Cook, David (2007). ''Martyrdom in Islam''. Cambridge University Press. . p. 14.


Other religions

Over a period of time, the word "shahid" began to be used by non-Muslims such as
Arab Christians Arab Christians ( ar, ﺍَﻟْﻤَﺴِﻴﺤِﻴُّﻮﻥ ﺍﻟْﻌَﺮَﺏ, translit=al-Masīḥīyyūn al-ʿArab) are ethnic Arabs, Arab nationals, or Arabic-speakers who adhere to Christianity. The number of Arab Christians who l ...
to denote their own martyrs. So the word is still used by Christians in Arab-speaking countries, including the names of churches. Examples are the Forty Martyrs Cathedral ( ar, كنيسة الأربعين شهيد) in
Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...
,
Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
and the Saint George the Martyr Cathedral ( ar, كنيسة القدّيس الشهيد مار جرجس) ar, متري هاجي اثناسيو, 2005، اديرة وكنائس دمشق وريفها : (بحث ميداني توثيقي تاريخي اثري), pp. 57–58. in
Damascus )), is an adjective which means "spacious". , motto = , image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg , image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg , seal_type = Seal , map_caption = , ...
. In South Asia,
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
s adopted the word "shahid" as a synonym to the
Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...
word "hutātmā" (हुतात्मा in
Devanagari Devanagari ( ; , , Sanskrit pronunciation: ), also called Nagari (),Kathleen Kuiper (2010), The Culture of India, New York: The Rosen Publishing Group, , page 83 is a left-to-right abugida (a type of segmental Writing systems#Segmental syste ...
and হুতাত্মা in
Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
; हुत् and হুত্ hut = sacrificing, आत्मा and আত্মা ātmā = soul, thus hutātmā = sacrificing soul / martyr), to denote Hindu martyrs.


See also

*
Istishhad Istishhad ( ar, اِسْتِشْهَادٌ, istišhād) is the Arabic word for "martyrdom", "death of a martyr", or "heroic death". In recent years the term has been said to "emphasize... heroism in the act of sacrifice" rather than "victimizatio ...
, in Islam, the act of martyrdom or the seeking of martyrdom *
Jihad Jihad (; ar, جهاد, jihād ) is an Arabic word which literally means "striving" or "struggling", especially with a praiseworthy aim. In an Islamic context, it can refer to almost any effort to make personal and social life conform with Go ...
, an Islamic religious duty, meaning ''struggle'' *
Martyrdom in Judaism Martyrdom in Judaism is one of the main examples of Jews doing a ''kiddush Hashem'', a Hebrew term which means "sanctification of hename". An example of this is public self-sacrifice in accordance with Jewish practice and identity, with the poss ...
* Martyrdom in Christianity *
Martyrdom in Sikhism Martyrdom is a fundamental institution of Sikhism. Sikh festivals are largely focused on the lives of the Sikh gurus and Sikh martyrs. Their martyrdoms are regarded as instructional ideals for Sikhs, and have greatly influenced Sikh culture and pra ...
*
Martyrdom video Martyrdom videos are video recordings, generally from Islamist jihadists who are about to take part in a suicide attack and expect to die during their intended actions. They typically include a statement by the person preparing to be a martyr for ...
, a video recording the acts of Islamic martyrs * Persecution of Muslims * Shahada, the Islamic creed *
Shahid (name) Shahid or Shahed ( ar, شاهد ') is a given name translating to " Witness" in Arabic and "Beloved" in Persian, mostly found in South Asia. Shahid, or Shaheed (Arabic: شهيد šahīd, plural: شُهَدَاء šuhadāʾ; female: šahīda), or ...
* Shahidka, a term for Islamist Chechen female suicide bombers


References and footnotes


External links

* {{Authority control Arabic words and phrases Islamic terminology Sikh terminology