Download The Father of Wahhabism One man`s vision on how to

January Eleventh, 1900
The Father of Wahhabism
One man’s vision on how to preserve Islam
Today we think back to a time more
than a hundred years ago, a time of
westernization. As the Industrial Revolution
waited in eager anticipation, many cultures
sought to preserve their way of life, and
resist the western ethics that were spreading
across the world.
One of the strongest resisters proved
to be the Muslim world, especially in
isolated areas. Muslims strove to keep the
ways of their ancestors, yet took a liking to a
future of complete theocratic government.
The most powerful and influential of these
governmental reforms was the spread of
Wahhabism. Wahhabism was founded by
Muhammad Ibn abd al-Wahhab in the
isolated Najd region of the Arabian
Peninsula. Abd al-Wahhab was a man who,
unlike his homeland, was not isolated for he
was well educated in several different places
of the Middle East, including Iraq, Iran,
and the Hijaz region. He returned to his
home in the Najd after decades of studying,
believing that Islam had taken a great
beating and was not at its former glory. He
was astonished to learn that his neighbors
had taken on a polytheistic faith:
worshipping the tombs and lives of saints,
bowing down to trees and stones, and
performing sacrificial ceremonies to “false”
idols.
Abd al-Wahhab would have none of
this so he quickly began preaching his ideas
on the sole worship of Allah, or
Wahhabism. He gained a handful of
followers who called themselves
Muwwahhidin, or “those who advocate
oneness.” He and his disciples began to
persecute fiercely the Sufi mysticism sects
and Shiism. They also wanted to abolish the
effort of trying to understand Allah’s
purpose and behavior. They planned on
replacing these thoughts with the
unquestioning worship of God or
Wahhabism.
As Muhammad Ibn abd al-Wahhab’s
ideas swept the region of Najd, he gained
more and more followers, whom he
convinced to declare jihad (war in the name
of a holy cause) on Arab tribes that resisted
his teachings. Abd al-Wahhab gained a
powerful alliance in the Najdian House of
Saud whose members agreed with Abd alWahhab’s principles. In fact, the Najdian
House of Saud went on a violent mission to
convert Muslims to their ideas. They
captured holy shrines of the Shiite and in
April 1803 they sacked the holy cities Mecca
and Medina, aiming to destroy the tombs of
holy men. Although these malevolent actions
were in the name of Wahhabism, Abd alWahhab himself preferred peaceful debate
and discussion, over violence.
Muhammad Ibn abd al-Wahhab
passed in 1790 because of reasons unknown.
His ideas and beliefs, however, did not die
with him. As mentioned before, the
Muwwahhidin captured significant cities in
the Arabian Peninsula in the early 1800s,
years after their leaders death. One
important participant was Abdullah
Wahhab, a man you was none other than
Abd al-Wahhab’s grandson. Abdullah
Wahhab claims in his document, The
Hisory and doctrines of the Wahhabis that
the “true believers” (Wahhab) entered Mecca
“without any fear of any created being, and
only of the Lord God” (Wahhab), in the
April of 1803. Although Abdullah Wahhab
says in his document that the Muwwahhidin
harmed none, it is obvious that several lives
were ended. He also states that as the
Muwwahhidin preached their ethics, the
inhabitants of Mecca “acknowledged {their}
belief, and there was not one among them
who doubted or hesitated to believe…”
(Wahhab) the ways of Wahhabism. Once the
people were convinced, the Muwwahhidin
proceeded to destroy the tombs of saints.
They also abolished taxes and old customs,
even banning tobacco.
Wahhabism was spreading quickly
especially after the capturing of Mecca. In
fact, Wahhabism movements were so
aggressive and thorough that the Ottoman
Sultan began to fear for his empire. The
Sultan soon convinced Egyptian military
leader, Muhammad Ali to suppress the
Muwwahhidin armies. In 1813 Muhammad
Ali’s armies ended the military campaign
after the execution of several Muwwahhidin,
including the murder of Abdullah Wahhab.
After the Ottoman reclamation of Mecca, no
military campaigns were ever executed again
by the Muwwahhidin.
Even though, no missions were
conducted again, Wahhabism still dug a
deep hole into the ground of Islam,
converting many Muslims and still
remaining a dominant sect today. Through
much effort and faith, Muhammad Ibn abd
al-Wahhab proves to be the most influential
man of his generation, becoming a truly
powerful visionary.
A map of the Arabian Peninsula