This means struggling yourself to perform a good dead just to please Allah is the greatest holy war you could ever do.
All the actions that we take such as avoiding haram things and controlling your nafs from the desires is the greatest jihad that anyone could do. Just imagine, you going to a western school, you see everyone with different hair styles. Your desires are to show your hair as well but still you wear that hijab controlling your nafs, not showing your hair or anything, you are doing jihad in the way of Allah. Isn’t that everyday Jihad? We all know that we are created and sent to earth by Allah for a test, to test your faith in Allah. If you do things like Hijab, controlling your nafs from haram foods, praying namaz, fasting, coming to the mosque even though there are brilliant programs on TV and keeping a beard, all these involve some kind or struggle and strive. Why? To follow what Allah has told us to do without caring about anything else. Shaitaan is someone who stops us from performing these deeds, if you avoid him completely, you are in an even greater advantage. You know, everyday, after I come home from school, I get so tired that I cannot do anything. Sometimes I have just got to eat but most of the time alhamdulillah, I get changed, do my wudho and obtain my wajib daily prayers. Now that is a great jihad for me because my nafs always tells me to sit down and relax but I manage to ignore it and get on with my namaz.
Allah has given us two choices, to live an easy life without restraining yourself, not doing what HE has asked you. This will lead you to loose out the next life but if you really struggle and strive, and have it the hard way, you will receive the easiest life in the here after. It’s the next life that we have to prepare for but if you just relax and have it your way in this one you will fail. For example, you have an exam on a subject and you are given some time to prepare for it, but you relax in that particular time without revising then you will obviously fail in you exam.
By struggling and striving, we are not just pleasing Allah but getting a great deal of thawaab as well.
When a mother brings up her child with hardships and difficulty, trying to make her child a good Muslim by taking him to madressa even though it 2 or 3 hours away from their house, she is struggling and striving in the way of Allah because you want that child of your to please Allah in future as well which is why this hadith explains:
“Heaven is under the mothers feet”.
So remember, we are all made to prepare for our next life, so please Allah by struggling and striving so that you may receive a good place in Jannah with an easy life to lead.
“The first person to enter paradise is a martyr”.
