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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
Similarly, Shaikh Abdul-Lateef, the grandson of Muhammad
ibn Abdul-Wahhaab, wrote, “Shaikh Muhammad [ibn Abdul-
Wahhaab], may Allah have mercy on him, was one of the most careful
and abstaining when it came to a general declaration of disbelief. In
fact, he did not even definitively declare the ignorant of the graveworshippers
who call upon other than Allah disbelievers. Nor did he
declare others disbelievers if they had not had one who advised them
and conveyed to them the proof that such actions make their doer a
disbeliever.” 1
Similarly, al-Sahsawaani stated that he met more than one
scholar of the followers of ibn Abdul-Wahhaab and he read many of
their books and he did not find any evidence for the false claim that
they declared “non-Wahhabis” disbelievers. 2
This does not mean that they would never declare any
individual a disbeliever. However, as Muhammad Rasheed Ridha
stated, they would only declare as disbelievers those who met the
conditions of disbelief as agreed upon by the Muslim scholars. 3 (In
refuting the Shiites’ claim that ibn Abdul-Wahhaab declared other
Muslims disbelievers, al-Qaseemi noted that this fact is laughable
coming from the Shiites who declare the best of all believers, the
closest Companions to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be
upon him), disbelievers. 4)
The Claim that the “Wahhabis” Are from the Khawaarij
Closely related to the previous claim concerning the followers
of ibn Abdul-Wahhaab is the claim that the “Wahhabis” are, in fact,
Khawaarij. The Khawaarij (or Kharijites) first appeared in the first
century of Islam and were opposed by the Companions and their
students. The Khawaarij were known for their declaration that non-
Khawaarij were all disbelievers. They also considered anyone who
committed a major sin a disbeliever. Furthermore, a characteristic of
the Khawaarij was that they shaved their heads and, finally, it is
described in the hadith that they would appear from the land of Najd.
1 Quoted in al-Abdul-Lateef, pp. 173-174.
2 Al-Sahsawaani, p. 419.
3 Muhammad Rasheed Ridah, footnotes to al-Sahsawaani, p. 419.
4 Cf., al-Abdul-Lateef, pp. 176-177.
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