The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad Ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

By Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo

Published by The Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Dawah and Guidance The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ©2003, Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo Under Secretariat for Publications and Research Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Da'wall and Guidance 1425 H

The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

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Ministry of Islamic Affairs & Endowments, 2005 King Fahd National Library Cataloging-in-Publication Data Zarabozo, Jamaal al-Din M. The life, teaching and influence of Muhammad bin AbdulWahhaab: / Jamaal al-Din M. Zarabozo. - Riyadh, 2005 398p ; 24cm ISBN: 9960-29-500-1 1- Muhammad ibn Abdel Wahab ibn Sulayman, d. 1206 H. l-Title 217.2 dc

1425/7562

L.D. no. 1425/7562 ISBN: 9960-29-500-1

The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

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Preface In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful. All praises are due to Allah; we praise Him; we seek His help; we seek His forgiveness; and we seek His guidance. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil in our souls and the badness of our deeds. For whomever Allah guides, there is none to lead him astray. And for whomever He allows to go astray, there is none to guide him. I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, for whom there is no partner. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. To proceed: Verily, the truest speech is the Book of Allah. The best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. The worst affairs are the innovated ones. Every innovated matter is a heresy. And every heresy is a going astray. And ever}7 act of going astray is in the Hell-fire. I would like to take this opportunity to express praise and thank Allah for giving me the opportunity to write this work concerning a very important figure in Muslim history. I would also like to express my heartfelt thanks to the noble Shaikh Saleh Bin Abdulaziz Ali-Sheikh (Minister of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Da'wah and Guidance) for his support and words of encouragement, not just on this project but on every occasion in which we met. Dr. Hamad ibn Muhammad also deserves special mention for the support and encouragement that he offered. Among those working in the publications section of the Ministry, special thanks must go to Dr. Muhammad al-Suhaim and Abdul-Rahmaan Ali-Shaikh. There are many people that I would like to thank for their help in this particular work with respect to reviewing, proofreading and providing valuable reference. First, I must express my thanks to my beloved wife who is always a source of assistance and help. Special thanks must also go to Br. Jalal and Sr. Zainab for reviewing and commenting upon earlier versions of the manuscript. There are numerous others who are always deserving of mention in any of my books. For this particular work, though, I would especially like to extend my thanks to Br. Abdulkarim al-Saeed and Br. Nahar al-

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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

Rashid for their kind assistance that they are always willing to provide. Brs. Mohammad al-Osimi, Ahmad al-Teraiqi, Khalid alJerayed and a host of others also deserve mention. I can only pray that Allah rewards them and blesses them in both this life and the Hereafter. I pray that Allah accepts this work from me as being solely for His sake. As with all such work, the responsibility for any mistakes lies with the author. I ask Allah to forgive me for my shortcomings and to guide me to the Straight Path. Jamaal Zarabozo Boulder, CO Jan. 30, 2003

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I The Motivation Behind This Work This book is not one with a political agenda. It is meant neither to support nor to critique any contemporary regimes or policies.1 Indeed, the driving force behind this work is much greater and more important than that. It has to do with, first, the religion of Islam as preached by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) himself and, second, with the honor and rights of an individual Muslim, Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab. The name Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab (and correspondingly “Wahhabis” and “Wahhabism”) has been heard quite often throughout both the Muslim and non-Muslim worlds during the past two centuries. In reality, ibn Abdul-Wahhaab is not a man who is “shrouded in mystery.” His writings, as well as the writings of his closest students and descendents, are well-known and easily available today in virtually any part of the world. Although he is not shrouded in mystery what has been said about him over the years has definitely been filled with both fact and fiction. Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab was both a fellow human being and a fellow Muslim. As such, he has the right to be studied in an impartial and objective manner. That is, he has the right to a “fair trial.” No matter how much one may oppose his teachings, one does not have the right to wrong him. Indeed, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) has warned,

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This means that many issues that are bandied about today must be considered beyond the scope of this particular work. However, once the critique of certain policies is tied into Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab and what is called “Wahhabism,” then one is no longer speaking about the critique of a certain country, people or group today. Now one is speaking about principles related to the religion. One then has to study whether those principles are truly part of Islam or not. If it is concluded that Muhammad ibn AbdulWahhaab was truly following the way of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), then the attacks upon ibn Abdul-Wahhaab are also attacks on the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and the way of life he preached. For a Muslim, obviously, this makes this topic of utmost importance. In fact, it is incumbent upon Muslims to defend the honor and truth of their religion, their prophet and their brethren.

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The Life, Teachings and Influence of Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab

‫ﻣ ِﺔ‬ ‫ﺎ‬‫ﻡ ﺍﹾﻟ ِﻘﻴ‬ ‫ﻮ‬ ‫ﻳ‬ ‫ﺕ‬  ‫ﺎ‬‫ﻢ ﹸﻇﹸﻠﻤ‬ ‫ﺍﻟﻈﱡ ﹾﻠ‬ “Wrongdoing [shall be] darkness on the Day of Resurrection.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) When speaking about another person, such as ibn Abdul-Wahhaab or his followers, one should remember the Prophet’s teaching,

‫ﻪ‬‫ﺮﺿ‬ ‫ﻭ ِﻋ‬ ‫ﻪ‬ ‫ﺎﹸﻟ‬‫ﻭﻣ‬ ‫ﻪ‬‫ﺩﻣ‬ ‫ﻡ‬ ‫ﺍ‬‫ﺣﺮ‬ ‫ﺴِﻠ ﹺﻢ‬  ‫ﻋﻠﹶﻰ ﺍﹾﻟﻤ‬ ‫ﺴِﻠ ﹺﻢ‬  ‫ﹸﻛﻞﱡ ﺍﹾﻟﻤ‬ “All of a Muslim is inviolable to every other Muslim, with respect to his blood, wealth and honor.” (Recorded by Muslim.) One must also be cautious of the Prophet’s warning,

‫ﺏ‬  ‫ﺎ‬‫ﻦ ﺍﻟﻠﱠ ِﻪ ِﺣﺠ‬ ‫ﻴ‬‫ﺑ‬‫ﻭ‬ ‫ﻪ‬ ‫ﻨ‬‫ﻴ‬‫ﺑ‬ ‫ﺲ‬  ‫ﻴ‬‫ ﹶﻟ‬‫ﻧﻪ‬‫ﻤ ﹾﻈﻠﹸﻮ ﹺﻡ ﹶﻓﹺﺈ‬ ‫ﻮ ﹶﺓ ﺍﹾﻟ‬ ‫ﻋ‬ ‫ﺩ‬ ‫ﺗ ﹺﻖ‬‫ﺍ‬ “Beware of the supplication of the wronged for between him and Allah there is no barrier.” (Recorded by al-Bukhari and Muslim.) Even if one wants to argue that ibn Abdul-Wahhaab and his followers are not to be considered Muslims, one should be wary of speaking untruths about them. A narration recorded by Ahmad specifically states,

‫ﺏ‬  ‫ﺎ‬‫ﺎ ِﺣﺠ‬‫ﻧﻬ‬‫ﻭ‬‫ﺲ ﺩ‬  ‫ﻴ‬‫ ﹶﻟ‬‫ﻧﻪ‬‫ﺍ ﹶﻓﹺﺈ‬‫ﻭﹺﺇ ﹾﻥ ﻛﹶﺎ ﹶﻥ ﻛﹶﺎِﻓﺮ‬ ‫ﻤ ﹾﻈﻠﹸﻮ ﹺﻡ‬ ‫ﻮ ﹶﺓ ﺍﹾﻟ‬ ‫ﻋ‬ ‫ﺩ‬ ‫ﺗﻘﹸﻮﺍ‬‫ﺍ‬ “Beware of the supplication of the wronged, even if he be a disbeliever, for before it there is no barrier [that is, between it and Allah].”1 In all cases, impartiality, objectivity, scholarly integrity and fairness are to be expected from any Muslim. This must be true even when dealing with one’s enemies or one’s opponents. Allah has clearly instructed,

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Record by Ahmad. According to al-Albaani, this hadith is hasan. According to Hamzah Ahmad al-Zain, its chain is hasan. However, it should be noted that Shuaib al-Arnaaoot, et al., simply say that its chain is weak. See Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albaani, Saheeh al-Jaami al-Sagheer (Beirut: al-Maktab al-Islaami, 1988), vol. 1, p. 84; Hamzah Ahmad al-Zain, footnotes to Ahmad ibn Hanbal, al-Musnad (Cairo: Daar al-Hadeeth, 1995), vol. 10, p. 495; Shuaib al-Arnaaoot, et al., footnotes to Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad al-Imaam Ahmad (Beirut: Muassasah al-Risaalah, 1997), vol. 20, pp. 22-23.

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