Shahid (martyr)
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Shaheed (Arabic: شهيد šahīd, plural: شهداء šuhadā’) is a religious term in Islam, that literally means "witness". It is a title that is given to a Muslim after his death, if he died during fulfillment of a religious commandment, or during a war for the religion.
The shaheed is considered as one that his place in Paradise is promised, according to the verse in the Qur'an "Think not of those who are slain in Allah's way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord." ("Aal-e-Imran" sura, verse 169).
A woman is considered "shaheeda" (شهيدة) if she died during fulfillment of a religious commandment, but there is an argument among the Muslim sages as to whether a woman can participate in a war for religion. Most of them claim that it is not allowed to a woman to participate in war, including war for the religion. During the Intifada, women participated in suicide attacks, but most of them were secular [citation needed]. The leader of Hamas, Ahmed Yasin, who related to the issue, said that a woman is allowed to perform a suicide attack (in his words: action in which she become "shaheeda") only if she did a deadly sin, like defilement of her family's honour. In these circumstances, according to his claim, the act is penance of the sin and gives her the title "shaheeda".
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[edit] The origin of the term
It is possible that the term is translation of the Greek word "martyr", which also literally means "witness", and "martyr" is used as parallel term in Christianity to the religious meaning of "shahid". Muslim interpretations to the term opine that the "shahid" testify in his death on his faith, or that the "shahid" die during saying the shahadah (الشهادة - the principle of Islam).
[edit] The different meanings of the term
The word "shahid" nowadays is associated to non-Muslims with attacks performed by Muslim militias and Muslim paramilitary organizations, because people of these organizations use this title after the death of a suicide bomber. With that, in the Muslim culture the term can have a meaning unrelated to war - so for instance, King Abdullah I of Jordan is called shahid, since he was murdered by an assassin while praying in the al-Aqsa mosque. Also pilgrims to Makkah who were killed by an accident in the way get after their death the title "shahid". In the Arab culture the term is used in the meaning of "war slain".
[edit] Use of the word in Sikhism
In Sikhism, the term (spelt Shaheed) is used to describe any person who has courted martyrdom in the defence of their faith. Hence, many Sikhs have been given the title of "Shaheed" due to their heroic actions from the 16th Century to the present day.
[edit] Popular Misconceptions
Popular belief among many Muslims is that the body of a shaheed does not cool down and does not rot. If a woman dies unmarried, it is said that she gets a bridegroom in Paradise.
