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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab
that the delegation of scholars were ignorant people and determined
that they were disbelievers, leading to their imprisonment. Henceforth,
the rulers of Makkah refused permission for the followers of
Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab to perform the Hajj. Both of these
reports seem questionable, at best.
Al-Uthaimeen notes that the date of Dahlaan’s claim is when
the call to reform was at its very onset. Furthermore, there would have
been no reason to have sent so many scholars. Finally, it is
inconceivable that an event of that proportion would not have been
mentioned at all by ibn Ghannaam who recorded the greatest details
about the history of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab. Al-Uthaimeen
concludes that what the Turkish historian Sulaimaan Izzi recorded is
probably closer to reality. He states that in the year 1163 A.H. the
Shareef of Makkah informed the Ottoman Sultan of the appearance of
Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab in Najd. He informed him that the
scholars of Najd started to follow ibn Abdul-Wahhaab. He consulted
with the scholars of Makkah who concluded that Muhammad ibn
Abdul-Wahhaab should be convinced to change his views and, if he
did not do so, he should be put to death. Based on that, the Shareef of
Makkah sent a letter to Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab. There was a
delay in ibn Abdul-Wahhaab’s response. Therefore, the ruler of
Makkah captured sixty of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab’s
followers who were in the act of performing the Hajj; he punished and
then expelled them. 1
It is clear, says al-Uthaimeen, from Izzi’s description that the
information that the Shareef of Makkah had about Muhammad ibn
Abdul-Wahhaab was mostly based on rumors. This is further
supported by what Dahlaan himself stated. Ibn Ghannaam reported
that by this time, the opponents of ibn Abdul-Wahhaab in Najd were
already spreading false reports about him in the Hijaaz. 2 Thus, the first
news of ibn Abdul-Wahhaab that reached the Hijaz was distorted
news. 3
Al-Uthaimeen continues by noting that Izzi’s report gives the
impression that those whom the Shareef captured were not scholars.
They were simply pilgrims performing the Hajj. This is consistent
1 Al-Uthaimeen, Al-Shaikh Muhammad, p. 66.
2 Cf., ibn Ghannaam, vol. 1, pp. 160-161.
3 Al-Uthaimeen, Al-Shaikh Muhammad, p. 67.