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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
to al-Diriyyah. This was a bond that superseded tribal, city-state and
family loyalties, for it was a bond of faith.
The land of Najd was well-accustomed to raids and skirmishes
between the tribes, Bedouins and city-dwellers. 1 Such was nothing
new. Indeed, that was the manner by which a tribe’s rule would be
expanded or strengthened. However, in the past, those expeditions
were meant basically for worldly purposes. They were not done in the
name of Islam, with the hope that they would help spread the Islamic
state and bring more followers into its fold. Thus, although the
methods of the new state were much the same as what Najd was
familiar with, the purpose and the goal behind the fighting was much
different. 2 Speaking about this background, Ibn Abdul-Wahhaab wrote
to some who used to fight and now that the jihad had come were
hesitant,
O Allah, how strange!… You used to fight against Ibraaheem ibn
Sulaimaan [the Ameer of Tharmadaa] due to one word he would
say about your neighbor or due to a donkey worth about twenty
dollars that he would take from you. For that, you would sacrifice
your wealth and your men… Today, Allah has given you the religion
of His prophets which is the price of Paradise and freedom from
the Fire, and now you are acting cowardly? 3
Furthermore, this new state was truly under the leadership of a
religious scholar and reformer. Although Muhammad ibn Saud (and
later Abdul-Azeez ibn Muhammad) were officially the political
leaders, Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab still had a great influence
over the affairs of the state. 4 In general, all important matters were
1 For more details concerning the nature of these raids, see Vassiliev, pp. 45-47.
2 Some sources describe the first clash between the followers of Muhammad ibn
Abdul-Wahhaab and others as a small raiding party of about seven men who
surprised a party but since none of them knew how to ride a camel, they were
not able to capture their booty. Al-Uthaimeen (Al-Shaikh, pp. 58-59) shows that
there does not seem to be any substance to these reports. Al-Uthaimeen also
discusses how some of the later writers do their best to show the call to be very
weak at the beginning in order to emphasize the greatness of their victories
later.
3 Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab, Muallifaat, vol. 7, p. 207.
4 Al-Uthaimeen, Al-Shaikh Muhammad, pp. 70-71, shows that Muhammad ibn
Abdul-Wahhaab’s influence was not as complete and total as some authors
imply. Furthermore, as the new state became larger and larger, Muhammad
ibn Abdul-Wahhaab left more of its affairs to its political leaders as he
concentrated on teaching the faith. However, ibn Abdul-Wahhaab was always
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