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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
The Allegation that ibn Abdul-Wahhaab revolted against the Ottoman
Caliphate
As mentioned in Chapter 2, Najd, at the time of ibn Abdul-
Wahhaab, was not truly under the authority of the Ottoman rulers.
Indeed, it had been left on its own for quite some time. It evolved into
a rather lawless state with each small village or Bedouin tribe having
its own ruler. These rulers feuded and fought repeatedly with the
others around them. Furthermore, when ibn Abdul-Wahhaab began his
call in earnest, upon moving to al-Uyainah, he did so with the
agreement and in alliance with the local ameer or established
authority. Similarly, when he moved to al-Diriyyah, he made a pact
with the ameer of that land for some twenty years, Muhammad ibn
Saud. Hence, at no time did ibn Abdul-Wahhaab revolt against the
rulers in his area. Furthermore, since Najd was never truly part of the
Ottoman rule, he never revolted against the Ottoman rulers either. 1
Even though such was the case and even though such should
have been clear to those living at that time, this did not prevent the
opponents from making the false claim against ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
and his followers that they were nothing more than renegades who
revolted against the legitimate authorities. Ibn Afaaliq wrote, “Your
monotheism (tauheed) includes revolting against the Muslims… That
is blasphemy not tauheed.” 2 As noted earlier, ibn Abideen also
considered the “Wahhabis” renegades. Dahlaan, al-Amali and others
also made similar claims. 3 Some, such as Abdul-Qadeem Zaloom,
even blamed the “Wahhabis” for the fall of the Ottoman Empire,
claiming that the British were supplying Muhammad ibn Saud and his
son Abdul-Azeez with weapons and money. 4
On this point, ibn Abdul-Wahhaab made his beliefs very clear.
They are the same beliefs held by the ahl al-Sunnah wa al-Jamaah
throughout its history. In his letter to the people of al-Qaseem, ibn
Abdul-Wahhaab wrote, “I believe in the obligation to listen and obey
1 True, the new state did eventually go to war against other tribes in Najd as well
as against al-Ahsaa, Hijaz, Iraq and so forth, but that was all after having been
attacked and being placed in a situation where the legitimate rulers were
forced to defend themselves.
2 Quoted in al-Abdul-Lateef, p. 233.
3 Cf., al-Abdul-Lateef, p. 233.
4 Cf., al-Abdul-Lateef, pp. 233-234.