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Dar al-Islam ( Arabic: literally house of submission) is a term widely used in the Islamic world to refer to those lands under Muslim government(s). In the conservative tradition of Islam the world is divided into two components: dar al-Islam, the house of submission or the house of God, and dar al-Harb, the house of war; the home of the infidels or unbelievers (Arabic: kufr). The terms are usually understood to refer, respectively, to those lands currently administered by Muslim governments and those administered by non-Muslim governments. The exact definitions of these territories can vary widely according to the viewer's concept of who is and is not a Muslim, and which governments are or are not Muslim in practice.The Muslim worldview espoused by the terms dar al-Islam and dar al-Harb is further confused by the addition of a third 'house' during the Ottoman era. The term dar al-Ahd, meaning the 'house of treaty', was invented to describe the Ottoman Empire's relationship with its Christian tributary states. See dar al-Ahd.
The goal of some aggressive Islamist organizations, such as Osama bin Laden's al-QaedaAl-Qaeda ( Arabic: #x627;لقاعده "the foundation" or "the base") is a militant Islamist organization founded by Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan in 1988 to expand the mujahideen resistance movement against the Soviet occupa network, is to expand the borders of dar al-Islam at the expense of dar al-Harb, and to create a universal Islamic community. According to their philosophy, this is the meaning of the term jihadJihad is an Arabic word which comes from the Arabic root word "jahada"; which means "exerting utmost effort" or "to strive. The word connotes a wide range of meanings, from an inward spiritual struggle to attain perfect faith to an outward material strugg. Another philosophy that espouses this terminology is the Saudi WahhabistWahhabism (sometimes spelled Wahabbism or Wahabism is a movement of Islam named after Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab ( 1703 1792). It is a fundamentalist movement of the Sunni form of Islam and has become an object of increased interest because it is the majo tradition. However, bin Laden and the Wahabbis differ on the important point of whether jihad may be pronounced and undertaken by individuals, or is a power reserved to the state. Bin Laden takes the former view, most likely emanating from his readings of Sayyed Qutb.
Recently, prominent Western Muslim intellectuals have challenged the dar al-Islam (Dar-Essilm)/dar al-Harb worldview, suggesting additional 'houses' to describe differing situations. See dar al-Amndar al-Amn ( Arabic: house of safety is a term proposed by Western Muslim philosophers to describe the status of Muslims in the West. The freedom to practice the religion of Islam without Islamic control of the government is a relatively new concept in Is, dar al-Dawadar al-Dawa ( Arabic: house of invitation is a term used to describe a region where the religion of Islam is newly arrived. Since the population has not been exposed to Islam before, they may not fit into the traditional definition of dar al-Harb. On the, dar al-Kufrdar al- Kufr ( Arabic: house of unbelievers is a term used by the Prophet Muhammed to refer to the Quraish-dominated society of Mecca between his flight to Medina (the Hijra) and his triumphant return. For much of Islamic history, the preferred term used, dar al-Shahada.
See also: Baghdad, Ibn Battuta, Hezbollah, Dar es-Silm , Dar al-Harb, Dar-al'Ahd , jihad, Christendom
Western Muslims and the Future of Islam, by Tariq Ramadan, was a significant source in the updating of this article.
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