Jāh
Definition
Jah is the desire for worldly status, influence, and prestige — the craving to be important, respected, and deferred to in one's community. Al-Ghazali presents jah as one of the most powerful and most socially normalised forms of worldly attachment: while the love of wealth is at least somewhat socially condemned, the desire for status is actively cultivated and rewarded by most societies, including religious ones. The person whose primary motivation is jah will compromise their principles whenever those principles threaten their status, and will perform whatever actions most effectively signal their importance — including, and especially, religious actions.
As understood in the classical tradition of Imam al-Ghazali and the scholars of his school.
How the scholars use Jāh.
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"He took with him a number of their boys from the sons of the priests and kings, totaling 90,000 boys. He threw the refuse into the temple and slaughtered pigs there. Among the boys were 7,000 from the house of David, 11,000 from the tribe of Joseph, son of Jacob, and his brother Benjamin, 8,000 from the tribe of Issachar, son of Jacob, and 14,000 from the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, sons of Jacob, and 14,000 from the tribe of Dan, son of Jacob, and 8,000 from the tribe of Asher, son of Jacob, and 2,000 from the tribe of Zebulun, son of Jacob, and 4,000 from the tribe of Reuben and Levi, and 12,000 from the rest of the children of Israel."
— Ibn Kathir, Volume 2 — From the Israelite Prophets to Pre-Islamic Arabia
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"He took with him a number of their boys from the sons of the priests and kings, totaling 90,000 boys. He threw the refuse into the temple and slaughtered pigs there. Among the boys were 7,000 from the house of David, 11,000 from the tribe of Joseph, son of Jacob, and his brother Benjamin, 8,000 from the tribe of Issachar, son of Jacob, and 14,000 from the tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali, sons of Jacob, and 14,000 from the tribe of Dan, son of Jacob, and 8,000 from the tribe of Asher, son of Jacob, and 2,000 from the tribe of Zebulun, son of Jacob, and 4,000 from the tribe of Reuben and Levi, and 12,000 from the rest of the children of Israel."
— Ibn Kathir, Volume 3 — The Sīrah: From the First Revelation to Badr
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"As اللّٰه says in سُورَة لُقْمَان: "If you ask them who created the heavens and the earth, they will surely say, 'اللّٰه.'" And in سُورَة المُؤْمِنُون: "Say, 'To whom belongs the earth and whoever is in it, if you should know?' They will say, 'To اللّٰه.' Say, 'Then will you not remember?' Say, 'Who is the Lord of the seven heavens and the Lord of the Great Throne?' They will say, 'To اللّٰه.' Say, 'Then will you not fear Him?' Say, 'In whose hand is the realm of all things - and He protects while none can protect against Him - if you should know?' They will say, 'To اللّٰه.' Say, 'Then how are you deluded?'" And in سُورَة يُوسُف: "Most of them believe not in اللّٰه except while they associate others with Him." اِبْن عَبَّاس explained: "You ask them who created the heavens and the earth, and they say: 'اللّٰه,' yet they worship others besides Him.""
— Ibn al-Qayyim, Volume One
Appears in
1 book in the library
Hear the term in context.
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