The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ... - IslamHouse.com

The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
Another important figure in the Indo-Pak subcontinent who is
usually tied into Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab was Sideeq Hasan
Khan (b. 1307/1890). 1 He lived a long time in Hijaz and Yemen. He
was greatly influenced by the thoughts of ibn Taimiyyah and his
teacher al-Shaukaani. He was the founder of the ahl al-hadith
movement in India. According to al-Nadwi, Sideeq Hasan Khan never
reached a definitive judgement concerning the “Wahhabis.” The
closest to the truth that he wrote about them was in Itihaaf al-
Nubalaa, even though the claim that they unjustifiably declared
Muslims disbelievers remained with him. 2 In his footnotes to al-
Nadwi’s work, Abdul-Aleem al-Bastawi adds a lengthy comment. He
notes that Khan lived during 1248-1307. As mentioned earlier, during
that time, Najd was overran and the “Wahhabis” were defeated. Lies
and falsehood about Najdis was spread throughout the Muslim world,
such that it was very difficult for anyone to publicly defend them.
Furthermore, the effects of the defeat of the mujahideen in Balakot,
India in 1246 were still strong. People were still being threatened and
punished for following the ways of the Sunnah, such that if one were
to say ameen aloud in the prayer, he would be severely punished.
Sideeq Hasan Khan reached a position of high political authority as
well as great scholarship. His enemies, in cahoots with the colonizers,
were always looking for some opportunity to attack him. In their eyes,
the worst crime he could commit would be to spread the Wahhabi
doctrine. Thus, Khan, unlike those who came after him, was never in a
position to defend the teachings of ibn Abdul-Wahhaab. However, his
greatest concern was to protect the true monotheists in India, those
who were accused of being “Wahhabis”, by defending their lives,
wealth and honor. Thus, he and others at his time of the ahli-hadith 3
spent much of their effort trying to show that these people had no real
connection with the people of Najd. In this way, what they said was
true because these monotheists in India did not take their beliefs from
the scholars of Najd, taking it directly from the Quran and Sunnah.
1 For a detailed discussion of Sideeq Hasan Khan and his numerous positive
statements about ibn Abdul-Wahhaab and his teachings, see Abdul-Jaleel, pp.
44-58.
2 Al-Nadwi, pp. 210-211.
3 In essence, the ahli-hadith of the Indian subcontinent are those who called to a
stricter following of the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him) and the way of the early generations of Islam.
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