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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
Muslims or the extreme of accepting rightfully non-Muslims into the
fold of Islam (hence, not putting an end to evils and idolatry that
should be stopped). Thus, in general, it is important that these types of
topics be understood in some depth. For these reasons—and in the
presence of the idolatrous practices that had swept through the Muslim
lands by his time—ibn Abdul-Wahhaab paid a great deal of attention
to these types of issues and brought them to the forefront after they
had been seemingly neglected by Muslim scholars for centuries.
However, issues of this nature are also important when
discussing ibn Abdul-Wahhaab because they form the greatest of the
attacks and doubts cast upon ibn Abdul-Wahhaab and his followers.
Indeed, it can rightfully be called a topic in which even those who
appreciated or believed the same as ibn Abdul-Wahhaab had some
confusion or doubt, not to speak of those who were looking for any
excuse to castigate and attack him. 1
In addition, this topic differs from some of the other topics in
that concerning this topic, many of his opponents were in agreement
with ibn Abdul-Wahhaab on a theoretical level but not so on a
practical level. In other words, as ibn Abdul-Wahhaab wrote in some
of his letters, they recognized that the actions that ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
were describing as kufr (disbelief) and shirk (idolatry) were in fact
kufr and shirk. However, they disagreed with him actually putting that
into practice by then fighting against such kufr and shirk and against
1 For example, al-Shaukaani wrote in his biographical work al-Badr al-Taali bi-
Mahaasin min bad al-Qarn al-Saba, “However, they [the ‘Wahhabis’] believe
that anyone who falls outside the authority of the ruler Najd and is not obeying
his orders is outside of the fold of Islam.” According to al-Bistawi, al-Shaukaani
wrote that work while the fighting was going on between Abdul-Azeez and
Shareef Ghaalib. Al-Abdul-Lateef notes that it is part of al-Shaukaani’s
fairness that he reported what he heard about the call of ibn Abdul-Wahhaab.
He would say, “Some news has reached us about them and Allah knows best
concerning its truthfulness.” In any case, al-Shaukaani praised Abdul-Azeez’s
letter stating their beliefs and he also wrote an ode in praise of ibn Abdul-
Wahhaab. Al-Abdul-Lateef notes that Muhammad ibn Naasir al-Haazimi, who
praised ibn Abdul-Wahhaab, also held this kind of misconception concerning
ibn Abdul-Wahhaab’s teachings. Al-Abdul-Lateef then states that apparently
al-Haazimi abandoned such criticism after the truth became clear to him.
Similar was the case with Sideeq Hasan Khaan. He once said that the ahl alhadith
of India have nothing to do with the “Wahhabis” because the
“Wahhabis” spill the blood of innocent people. (Sideeq Hasan Khaan was
discussed in detail in the previous chapter.) Cf., al-Abdul-Lateef, pp. 159-160.
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