Origins of Salafism & Wahabism

[S.A.M.]

I came across this in one of the blogs I peruse (Akram's Razor):

How many educated Muslims know the differences, whether historical or philosophical, between the original movement of Salafism (e.g., Abdu, Rida and the gang) and 20th century Wahhabism?

How many Muslims could give a reasonably balanced and historically informed account of Wahhabism's role in the Muslim world after the discovery of oil in the Gulf?

How many Muslims could explain the difference between the theological outlook of Ikhwanis (to the extent they even share one) and various other contemporary Islamist movements and the beliefs of Wahhabis?

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So what is Salafism? I read somewhere that some schools in Salafism completely reject the idea of mixing politics and religion, but the Muslim Brotherhood has an aggressively political agenda.

And what is Wahabism? Is it the ideology of Wahab or the influence of other scholars like Ibn Kathir, Ibn al-Qayyim and particularly Ibn Taymiya, who played a much greater and more influential role than Wahab?


Any takers?

 

[S.A.M.]

Here is an article on contemporary Salafism in America:

http://www.wwrn.org/article.php?idd=22629&sec=33&cont=all

 

[Baron Max]

Interesting. But I keep wondering ...if Muslims feel such isolation and segragation in America, why are they so intent on staying? And why are so many Muslims so intent on immigrating to such a place? Are they wanting to just suck what they can from the American way of life, then denigrate it for the very things that make it what it is?

I'm also struck by the feelings of Muslims that they're somehow discriminated against, as if they are the only group to ever have those feelings. Every single group of people who set foot upon this continent, and I'd suggest it's probably true of every other nation at one time in its existence, have had feelings of being discriminated against and disliked/hated. Well, golly, none of that's new!

And wanting to isolate themselves from American society because they don't like American society ....yet they choose to come here, and they chose to stay?! I just don't get it ...if I went somewhere and found that no one liked me, why would I want to stay there? It makes no logical sense to me. And worse, why would I want to raise a family in such an environment? Does that make any sense to anyone?

I swear, sometimes I really do think that we should just have open season several times a year, and let anyone and everyone just shoot, blow up, maim, kill, dismember, hack to death, crucify, ......anyone and everyone that they want ...without punishment or condemnation. Say four times a year, to match the four seasons ....open hunting and killing season ...no permit necessary ...just kill whoever you want ...as many as you want.

EDIT: I wanted to add something that I forgot; EITHER have the open hunting season, OR ...use absolute force and power to MAKE everyone love everyone else equally ...and if they refuse, shoot 'em! Forced integration and acceptance OR open hunting seasons ....I just don't see any other way to satisfy everyone about everything. Force and power, or death and destruction ...ain't no middle ground bullshit, which just extends the bickering and hatred and discrimination.

Baron Max

 

[Ghost_007]

Hi Samcdkey

This list covers most of the current day Salafis/Wahabis:

1. Muhammad Abduh Jamal al Afghani Salafiyah - common with many modernists
2. Madhkhalis further subdivided into
-Faleh al Harbi group
-Haddad group
-Maribi group
-Maghrawi group
-Abdul Muhsin Abbad group
-Ahya types who call against the others and claim to be on the middle ground.
3. The Sahwis ( these are the ones that call themselves Hanbali), further subdivided into:
-Turathi group in Kuwait
-Qutubi group
-Sururi group who are realy just a salafi ikhwani group
-Hawali conspiratorial group
-Ittihad Somali group
-Sad al Faqihs anti Saudi group
-Markaz ad Dawah wal Irshad Pakistan
-Ahlul Hadith -although some sub groups of them are with the Madkhalis
-Ansar as Sunnah in Egypt and Sudan
4 Salafiyah Jihadiyah, further divided into:
-Zarqawi group
-Abu Muhammad al-Maqdisi group opposed to Zarqawi
-Abu Qatadah supporters who are against the above two
- Omar Bakri - Muhajirun, now disbanded
-Abu Basir, one of the few who has principles that prevent him from accepting suicide bombings, 9/11, attacking civilians.
-The unknowns: those extreme individuals that disagree with all of the above and make Takfir on almost everyone.

______________

The roots of Wahabism go back to Ibn Taymiyya (1263–1328), an extremely controversial figure. He was a brilliant thinker however the mainstream view is that he is not a reliable, his views on the tenants of faith (aqidah) are said to be incompatible with Islam, Wahabis on the other hand refer to him as Shaykh-ul-Islam, they take everything from him without question. As a result of Ibn Taymiya’s deviations, he was put in prison on numerous occasions. He is heavily criticised for his anthropomorphism (attributing a body to God).

Some info on Ibn Taymiya.

http://www.sunnah.org/history/Innovators/ibn_taymiyya.htm

It was Muhammad ibn Abd-al-Wahab (1703-1792) (a student, not a scholar) that revived the teachings of Ibn Taymiyya. Many people saw that Abd-al-Wahab would bring about nothing but trouble, his own father and brother (who were scholars) condemned him, refuted his teachings and warned people about his fitnah. We are told he travelled around in order to gain knowledge, he is said to have made a name for himself debating with the scholars of Basrah, he allegedly wrote ‘Kitab-al-Tawheed’ there, this book is widely distributed Worldwide by the Wahabis. It is a very simple book however the mainstream position (Ahlus-Sunnah) is that it is a book of innovation . It is said to have some major mistakes. According to Abd-al-Wahab, those that had associated partners with God (shirk) were liable to be killed and have their women, property taken. This is how it all began. The rest is history. The Ahlus-Sunnah regard Abd-al-Wahab as a deviant and even go as far as calling him and his followers Khawarijites. (those that part with the Muslims and declare them disbelievers).

Wahabism is Salafism. The followers of Abd-al-Wahab used to call themselves Wahabis, it was only in the 1960s-70s that they rebranded themselves as Salafis. They did this because the word Wahabi acquired strong negative connotations across the Muslim World.

More to come.

 

[S.A.M.]

Do you know any good book which discusses the work of Ibn Taymiya?

 

[cato]

Are they wanting to just suck what they can from the American way of life, then denigrate it for the very things that make it what it is?

yeah, basically. however, its not just Muslims that do it. pretty much everyone does that. every foreign person i have heard talk about it has criticized America for something or another (except my Ukrainian friend, but nobody want to live in the Ukraine =] )

I think American Muslim kinda get a bad rap. pretty much every other major immigrant group has lived in isolated areas at one point or another (china town, Greek town, ect). they are really no different than any other immigrants, except that one in a million want to blow shit up.

 

[Ghost_007]

Do you know any good book which discusses the work of Ibn Taymiya?

There’s Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani’s biography of Ibn Taymiyya in “al-durar al-kaamina fi a‘yaan al-mi’at al-thaamina” (The Hidden Pearls Concerning the Famous People of the Eighth Century) It discusses his works and everything about him – don’t know where you can get that tho.

The link below has some transcript from the book:

http://www.sunnah.org/fiqh/ibntay03.html

Another good book is Reliance of the Traveller (Umdat as-Salik) by Ahmad ibn Naqib al-Misri (translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller) – widely available

http://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm

'Umdat al-Salik wa 'Uddat al-Nasik (Reliance of the Traveller and Tools of the Worshipper) is a Sunni manual of Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence). It is based mainly on the fiqh conclusions of Imam al-Nawawi, the great Hadith master (hafiz) and Shafi'i scholar of jurisprudence (mujtahid). The appendices form an integral part of the book and present original texts and translations from classic works by al-Ghazali, al-Nawawi, al-Qurtubi, al-Dhahabi, Ibn Hajar and others, on topics of Islamic Law, faith, spirituality, Qur'an exegesis and Hadith sciences, making the work a living reflection of Islam as understood by some of its greatest scholars. It has also biographical notes about every person mentioned (391 biographies), bibliography of each work cited (136 works), and a detailed subject Index (95 pages). Of the 136 works drawn upon in its commentary and appendices, 134 are in the original Arabic. The sections and paragraphs have been numbered to facilitate cross-reference.

You can get a lot of info from Islamic websites.

Here are some links:

http://www.sunna.info/antiwahabies/wahhabies/htm/taymiah.htm - very thorough

http://village.flashnet.it/users/fn034463/tawhid1.html - not specifically about Ibn Taymiyah, is targeted at Bilal Philips (Wahabi scholar)

 

[everneo]

Is there any substantial difference between Wahabis and Khawarijites ?

 

[Ghost_007]

Is there any substantial difference between Wahabis and Khawarijites ?

Great question!

__________________

Khawarij

The sect of the Khawarijites, or Khawarij, existed in the time of the Successors of the Companions. They were a large group of several tens of thousands of Muslims, composed mostly of individuals who had memorised the Quran and who devoted themselves to much worship, prayer and fasting. They declared the totality of the Companions of the Prophet (saws) and whoever of the Muslims were with them to be apostate, disbelievers, and took up arms against them. The practices of declaring other Muslims apostate and of taking armed action against the central Muslim authority, the Caliphate, became and continue to be the hallmark of the Khawarij past and present.

__________________

In our time, this armed rebellion and takfir took place sin north-eastern Arabia at the turn of the nineteenth Century CE as mentioned by the scholars of Islam:

The name Khawarij is applied to those who part ways with the Muslims and declare them disbelievers, as took place in our time with the followers of Ibn ‘Ab al-Wahhab who came out of Najd and attacked the Two Noble Sanctuaries.

(Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-muhtar ‘ala al durr al-mkhtar (3:309), “Bab-al-Baghat’)

The scholar al-Sawa said:

The Khawarij altered the interpretation of the Quran and Sunnah, on the strength of which they declared it lawful to kill and take the property of Muslims as may now be seen in their modern counterparts, namely, a sect in the Hijaz called Wahabis.

(Al-Sawi, Hashiya ala tafisr al-jalalayn (v. 58:18-19) in Cairo, 1939 al-Mashhad al-Husayni edition (3:307-8) repr. Dar Ihya al-Turath al-Arabi in Beirut)

The above experts are nothing new. The categorisation of the Wahabis as Khawarijites has been a dominant recurring thematic feature of Sunni heresiography for the past 200 years. Only recently has it become politically incorrect among ulama to criticise the Wahabi/’Salafi’ sect.

The exercise of takfir is the chief mark by which the neo- Khawarij can be recognised in our time. They are those that address the Muslims with the libellous chants of: kufr (unbelief), bid’a (innovation), shirk (idolatry) haram (forbidden).

__________________
It is incorrect to call all Wahabis deviants and khwarajites. The mainstream consensus is that the Wahabis/Salafis have some deviant beliefs however these beliefs do not negate their Islam. They still fall under the Ahlus-Sunnah wah-Jamaah. This is why Wahabis still fall under the Sunni category. With the Jihadi and Takfiri Wahabis it is slightly more complicated.

The Wahabi-Takfiris (Al-Qaeda etc.) are commonly called Khawarijites by other Sunni Muslims and even by Wahabis. Groups such as the Saviour Sect, Al-Ghurabah (in the UK) are also referred to as Khawarijites by Sunnis and also Wahabis. One example of how they make Takfir - they do not recognise any country that doesn’t follow their understanding of Shariah law. If you ask a Wahabi-Takfiri about Muslim lands, they will say none exist as none are following the law of Allah. They will not even recognise countries like Saudi Arabia. They completely reject democracy, they see that as Shirk (Associating partners with Allah), they believe only Allah has the right to Govern and they don’t recognise any manmade laws, this is why we see threats against polling stations and all the rest of it. They regard those that vote as apostates (non-Muslim), this is why they routinely kill innocent voters. We have seen this many times across the World.

The Prophet was always telling the Muslims to be moderate and to avoid extremism. He also predicted that the Khawarijites would rise again near the End Times and we can see this happening before our very eyes, the Messenger of Allah spoke the truth.

 

[Ghost_007]

Here is a very important link:

http://www.sunnah.org/history/The Kharijites and their successors.htm

_______________________

The Kharijites and their Successors

The heresy of the Departers [Kharajites] was the first group of people who deviated from the pure and sublime faith of Islam. The first and worst of those who departed from the Sunni path was the Kharijī known as the Dhul-Khuwaisarah. The Companion Abu Sa`īd al-Khudrī (r) related, “Once Sayyidina `Alī (r) sent some gold ore wrapped in dyed leather from Yemen to the Prophet of Allah (s), and he divided it among four people: Zaid al-Khalīl, al-Aqra ibn Hābis, Unaiyna ibn Hisn and Alqamah ibn Ulāthah.

A person among the Companions remarked that they had a better claim to the wealth than these people. When this remark reached the Prophet (s), He said, “Will you not trust me whom the One above the heavens has trusted? Information comes to me from the heavens morning and evening.”

Then a man with sunken eyes, high check bones, protruding forehead, thick beard and a shaven head, stood up and said, “Muhammad! Fear Allah!” The Prophet (s) turned to him and replied, “Woe be to you, am I not the person who fears Allah (s.w) the most?” The man than walked away and Khālid ibn al-Walīd (r) jumped up and said, “Perhaps one who observes prayer says with his tongue what is not in his heart.” The Prophet (s) said, “I was not commanded to pierce the hearts or the people or slit open their bellies.”

He (s) glanced at the man who was walking away and said, “There will arise a people from among the progeny of this man who will recite the Qur'an but it will not go beyond their throats. They will pass through the religion as an arrow passes through its target.”

Khālid ibn al-Walīd (r) asked the Prophet (s), “O Prophet of Allah (s) this man has all the [athar] effects of sunnah, his eyes are red due to crying, his face has two scars of tears on his checks, his feet are swollen due to standing the whole night in [tahajjud] night vigil, he has a thick beard …” The Prophet (s) replied, “The meaning of this Verse [qul in'kuntu tuhib'būna allāh fat'tabiunī] say if you love Allah follow me.” He asked, “How O Prophet of Allah (s)?' He (s) replied, 'Be kind like me, be compassionate, love the poor and the destitute, be gentle, care and love your brothers and be protective.’”

The cursed man was called Dhul-Khuwaisarah at-Tamīmī and he is considered the first of the Kharijī to arise in Islam. The root of his sickness was that he preferred his own opinion above that of the Prophet (s). If he had waited to hear what the Prophet (s) had to say, he would have realized that no opinion can be given precedence over that of The Prophet (s), and it was his individual's tribe men who later rose in arms against the fourth Khalipha Sayyidina `Alī ibn Abi Talib (r).

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Muhammad ibn `Abdul Wahhāb at-Tamīmī of Najd, a descendant of Dhul-Khuwaisarah, revived the Kharijite sect, some of whom call themselves Wahabis and others who call themselves Salafis. He spread their evil thought amongst the Bedouins of Najd, encouraging them to revolt against the Ottoman caliphate, with the help of the British, just as their forebears had revolted against the early caliphs.

We have been told that the Khawarijites would keep rising again and again. The Awliyah-Allah have stated that when Imam Mahdi makes his appearance these Khawarijites will denounce him. We are also told that they will eventually side with the Anti-Christ in order to fight against the Majority of the Muslims!