Hadith about "greater and lesser Jihad"?

[Frodo Baggins]

I know there is supposed to be ONE hadith saying something about the "greater" Jihad being an "inner struggle", and the "lesser" Jihad armed struggle. Does anybody know which one it is?
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[humandecency]

The internal Jihad

Learning the Qur'an by heart is considered engaging in Greater Jihad

The internal Jihad is the one that the Prophet (pbuh) is said to have called the "greater Jihad".

But the quotation in which the Prophet (pbuh) says this is regarded as coming from an unreliable source by some scholars. They regard the use of "Jihad" to mean "holy war" as the more important.
The phrase Greater Jihad refers to the efforts of a believer to live their Muslim faith as well as possible.

All religious people want to live their lives in the way that will please their God.

So Muslims make a great effort to live as Allah has instructed them; following the rules of the faith, being devoted to Allah, doing everything they can to help other people.

For most people, living God's way is quite a struggle. God sets high standards, and believers have to fight with their own selfish desires to live up to them, no matter how much they love God.

The Five Pillars of Islam as Jihad
The 5 Pillars of Islam form an exercise of Jihad in this sense, since a Muslim gets closer to Allah by performing them.

Other ways in which a Muslim engages in the "Greater Jihad" could include:

Learning the Qur'an by heart, or engage in other religious study.
Overcoming things such as anger, greed, hatred, pride, or malice.
Giving up smoking.
Cleaning the floor of the mosque.
Taking part in Muslim community activities.
Working for social justice.
Forgiving someone who has hurt them.

The Greater Jihad Controversy
Prophet (pbuh) is said to have called the internal Jihad the "greater Jehid".

On his return from a battle, the Prophet (pbuh) said: "We are finished with the lesser jihad; now we are starting the greater jihad." He explained to his followers that fighting against an outer enemy is the lesser jihad and fighting against one's self is the greater jihad (holy war).

This quotation is regarded as unreliable by some scholars. They regard the use of jihad as meaning "holy war" as the more important.

However the quotation has been very influential among some Muslims, particularly Sufis.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/features/jihad/jihad2.shtml
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[humandecency]

As my simpleton brother may not post in his own name from my computer he is going to dictate a comment from which I totally disassociate myself from.

[Sir Galahad]

Dear Frodo Baggins,

Bernard claimed that this story can be found in the following Hadith.

[Frodo Baggins]

http://atheism.about.com/library/FAQs/islam/blfaq_islam_jihad.htm

In the Qur'an, however, and even in later Muslim usage, the term jihad is usually followed by the expression fi sabil Illah, which means "in the path of God." The description of violence against the enemies of the Muslim community as jihad fi sabil Illah gave a sacred meaning to what was otherwise just tribal warfare.

The Hadith is a collection of reports of sayings and actions of Muhammad, and it follows the Qur'an as the most important source of Islamic law. In Hadith collections, jihad almost always refers to armed action. As an example, there are nearly 200 references to jihad in the most standard collection of hadith, Sahih al-Bukhari, and all assume that jihad means warfare. It is not surprising, then, that the majority of classical theologians, jurists, and traditionalists understand jihad in a military sense.

Contrary to popular perception, jihad is not about forced conversions. It certainly may have filled that role very early on, when Islam was first expanding, but that hasn't been the case for a very long time. It is instead a political goal: bringing as much of the world under the control of Islam as is possible. This then allows for the fulfillment of two other goals: promoting Islam among non-Muslims and establishing a just political and social order (only possible under Islam).

Ibn Taymiya (1268-1328) took an even more active view of j'ihad. He argued that a ruler who fails to enforce the Shari'a (Islamic law) in all aspects forfeits his right to rule - thus, jihad against this ruler becomes acceptable, if not mandatory. One of the aspects of Shari'a which a Muslim ruler must enforce is, in fact, jihad itself - but against the enemies of Islam, especially those who threaten it form the outside. Taymiya's thoughts have heavily influenced Muslim extremists in the twentieth century, including the Muslim Brotherhood and Osama bin Laden.

But the root meaning of jihad simply refers to "effort," and that sense of the word never entirely disappeared. Thus, it is not unreasonable to point to jihad as involving both inward struggle (directed against evil in oneself) and also an outward one (against injustice in society or the world generally).

A Hadith expounds upon this understanding by recounting how Muhammad, upon returning from a victorious battle, told others that "We have returned from the lesser jihad (al-jihad al-asghar) to the greater jihad (al-jihad al-akbar)." When asked what this "greater jihad" could be in relation to the battle just fought, he informed them that it was the struggle "against oneself."

Of course, it must be noted that this particular Hadith does not appear in any of the authoritative collections, and even with the idea that the "greater jihad" is against internal evil, it nevertheless remains true that the battle against external evil remains a valid form of jihad. This Hadith has, however, been very influential among Sufi mystics through the centuries.
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[Sir Galahad]

Dear Frodo Baggins,

I quoted Bernard because his source might be correct. I have not checked it yet and therefore I do not know whether it is reliable.
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[Frodo Baggins]

I am still looking for the hadith in question.
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