Opinion Regarding Muhammad bin 'Abdul Wahab and Wahabis

By Maulana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri Translated by Ebrahim Saifuddin

Question: Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab used to consider the blood, property and honor of the Muslims to be halal. Additionally he would ascribe everyone with shirk and degrade the Salaf. What is your opinion regarding him and do you consider the takfir of the Salaf and ahl al-qibla to be permissible or what is your opinion in this matter?

Answer: Near us the ruling of these is the same as what the author of al-Durr al-Mukhtar has stated. He writes that the Khawarij is a group with power who went against the Imam using taawil (interpretation) to considering him to be baatil, meaning on kufr, or in sin and disobedience. This would make fighting against him wajib. With this interpretation, these people consider our blood and properties to be halal (i.e. expendable) and they imprison our women. Further he states that the ruling on these people is that of the rebels. He added, we do not do takfir of these people as this action of theirs is through interpretation, although it is something which is baatil.

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Opinion Regarding Muhammad bin 'Abdul Wahab and Wahabis

Allamah Shaami in his Haashiya has stated, Just like how in our times the followers of Abdul Wahhab have come out of Najd and have overpowered the Harmain. They call themselves to be of the Hanbali Mathhab but their aqeedah was that only they are Muslims and any who have a different aqeedah are mushriks. On these grounds, they considered the killing of the ahl al-sunnah and the ulema of ahl al-sunnah to be permissible. And then Allah (swt) destroyed their power. After this, I say that neither Abdul Wahab nor any of his followers are in our chains of mashaikh whether it is tafsir, fiqh, chain of knowledge of hadith or tasawwuf. Considering the lives, property and honor of the Muslims to be halal, can either be from haq or ghayr haq. So if such a ruling is from ghayr haq and was reached without any interpretation, then it is kufr and the person will be outside the fold of Islam. And if taawil is done but the taawil is not permissible by shariah then it will be disobedience and sin. However, if this ruling is from haq then all this is permissible, nay rather wajib. As for the takfir of the Salaf is concerned, we would never dare do such things because takfir of any of them is not accepted by us and this act is schism and bida. We do not even consider the mubtadieen from ahl al-qibla to be kafir unless they deny any of the essentials of deen. Yes, if such a denial is established, then we do takfir on them and practice caution. And this is our way and the way of our mashaikh

(al-Muhannad ala al-Mufannad)

Related Read: Letter by Imam Sulaiman ibn Suhaim az-Zubairi about Muhammad ibn Abdul Wahab

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