A Short History and Summary of Wahhabism

u/LiesAboutKnowingYou has requested that I do a few explanatory pieces on various topics related to Islam and its role in the Syrian Civil War. Today, I will try to summarize the history and message of the Wahhabist movement, and the resulting legacy of possibly the most widely known Salafist, Shaykh Abd al-Wahhab. If you have any further questions regarding Wahhabism, please feel free to ask in the comments below, or message me. If any errors have been said in this summary, please feel free to point them out with sources, please.

Early History

Since the third generation of the first Muslims died off, many important Islamic scholars have espoused the good character of the Salaf. While the term "salafi" had been in use for quite a while, the first recorded use of Salafi to describe an ideological group was used by Abu Sa'd Abd al-Kareem as-Sama'ni in the 10th century to describe what would come to be known as a Salafist. Over the next few centuries, the term Salafi began to grow in use, but never quite reached the importance and popularity as it did during the early generations following the die-off the Salaf.

Life of Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab

Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab is widely considered to be the key figure in reviving the Salafist movement and create the Wahhabist school of thought.

Shaykh Wahhab was born in 1703 in Uyayna, a small village just northwest of Riyadh, present-day Saudi Arabia, then-named Nejd. Early on in life, his studies in a Hanbali Islamic school were frought with his poor study skills, arrogance, and defiance towards teaching authority.

Hoping for Shaykh Wahhab to grasp his own potential, his teacher recommended that he study under Shaykh Mohammad Hayya Al-Sindhi, a prominent scholar in Medina. Shaykh Hayya would go on to shape Shaykh Wahhab's early views on Islam, and is primarily known for influencing Shaykh Wahhab's views on the permissibility of tombs.

After finishing his studies in Medina, Shaykh Wahhab traveled to Basra to finish his Islamic education, where his views on Islam were consolidated and confirmed. After traveling to Baghdad and marrying, he returned to his home village of Unayna in 1740.

Once he returned to Unayna, Shaykh Wahhab gained a strong following very quickly among the conservative population of the village, including the village leader himself. Entering into a political agreement that exchanged imperialist political support for religious support, the two began spreading their influence across the Nejdi desert. Among Shaykh Wahhab's first acts were the leveling of Zayd ibn al-Khattab's grave complex (as the locals were worshipping at it), cutting down trees supposedly revered by locals, and personally stoning a women that had confessed adultery to him. After these actions reached the ears of many influential tribes in Nejd, the leader of Unayna betrayed Shaykh Wahhab, exiling him to the Nejdi desert.

In 1744, the ruler of a town nearby Unayna took Shaykh Wahhab in, recognizing his actions in Unayna as significant. Muhammad ibn Saud entered into a political agreement with Shaykh Wahhab, each of them promising each other full support in their actions to bring stability and piety to the Nejdi desert. Shaykh Wahhab proceeded to declare a jihad on neighboring tribes who worshipped at graves and made pilgrimages to tombs.

As Shaykh Wahhab's age increased, he became increasingly ideologically split from Muhammad ibn Saud, who preferred immediately going to fight rather than Shaykh Wahhab, who preferred preaching and persuasian before fighting in his later years. After Muhammad ibn Saud's successor, Abdulaziz ibn Muhammad, embraced a forced conversion war strategy, Shaykh Wahhab retired from the theater of war, instead retiring to preaching in Wahhabist-controlled territory before dying at the age of 88. He was buried in an unmarked grave in the Nejdi desert, as per his wishes.

Legacy of Shaykh Wahhab

Shortly after Shaykh Wahhab died, his forces still allied to the Saud family became far more extreme, adopting the war strategies of the Sauds, as they proved far more efficient. Committing war atrocities left and right, they culminated in the attempted conquering of Karbala, during which entire mosques were stripped and looted, whole populations of men were killed, and women and children were enslaved. These actions were repeated during the attack on Ta'if. In 1818, the Ottoman Empire defeated the expansionist armies of Saud and Wahhab, leaving them to consolidate their religious power in the Nejdi desert.

Since the little Ottoman influence allowed the Wahhabist school of thought to be enforced upon the masses by the ruling al-Saud family, it soon became almost like a native culture. In the Saud family's attempt to consolidate the teachings, it is reported that over 40,000 executions and 350,000 amputations were performed in accordance with the teachings of Shaykh Wahhab.

With Saudi Arabia's massive oil wealth proving beneficial to its worldwide influence, Salafi Islam and the Wahhabist school of thought spread throughout the Middle East. Most notably, the actions of Shaykh Wahhab and the Wahhabist army have influenced such infamous figures as Osama bin Laden, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and the Saudi royal family. As of late, over 50% of Saudis self-identify as Wahhabists. It's clear that Shaykh Wahhab's actions in the Nejdi desert all those years ago have influenced the Islamic world in a significant manner.

Tenants of Wahhabism

• Replicate the actions of the Salaf
• Rejection of speculative philosophy
• Regarding of praying at graves and other intercessions as polytheism
• Rejection of all innovations in Islamic worship in any form
• Emphasis on following all teachings of Islam as purely as possible, with no room for laziness
• Emphasis on the importance of takfir
• Literal interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah

Anti-Wahhabism Controversy

Wahhabism has been criticized heavily by both Muslims and non-Muslims alike for its blatant disregard for historical artifacts, Muslim lives, and causing of strife between Muslim sects. The Chinese government and German government have openly criticized the ideology.

The Term 'Wahhabist' Controversy

The term "Wahhabist" has been criticized by followers of Salafism and the Wahhabist school of thought for making a slur out of one of the names of Allah, "al-Wahhab". Many instead claim to follow the "school of thought of al-Wahhab" or more simply, just claim to be simple Muslims.