ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Wahhabism Familiarity With The Life of The Founder of Wahhabism Wahhabism is ascribed unto Shaykh Muhammad*,* the son of ’Abd al-Wahhab of Najd. This ascription has been derived from the name of his father ’Abd al-Wahhab.

And as some scholars put it, the reason why this creed has not been attributed to Shaykh Muhammad himself and has not been called Muhammadiyyah is for fear lest the followers of this creed would find a kind of association with the name of the Holy Prophet (s)[^1] and would misuse this ascription. Shaykh Muhammad was born in 1115 A.H. in the city of ‘Uyayna which was located in Najd. His father was a judge in this city.

Ever since his childhood, Shaykh Muhammad had a great liking for the study of books on tafsir ( Qur’anic interpretation ), hadith ( tradition ), and aqa’id (principles of beliefs). He learned the Hanbali jurisprudence from his father who was one of the Hanbali scholars. From the bloom of youth, he regarded as indecent many of the religious doings of the people of Najd.

After going on a pilgrimage to the house of Allah and performing its rites, he headed for Medina where he rejected the resorting of the people to the Holy Prophet (s) near his shrine. He then returned to Najd, and from there he went to Basrah with the aim of later leaving Basrah for Damascus. He spent some time in Basrah and embarked on opposing many doings of the people. The people of Basrah, however, cast him out of their city.

While on his way from Basrah to the city of al-Zubayr, he was about to perish due to the intensity of the heat, thirst, and toll of walking in the desert. But a man from al-Zubayr, seeing the Shaykh clad like the clergy, endeavoured to save him. He gave the Shaykh a gulp of water, set him on a mount, and took him to the city of al-Zubayr.

The Shaykh wanted to travel from al-Zubayr to Damascus, but as he did not have sufficient provisions and could not afford the expenses of the journey, he changed his destination and headed for the city of al-‘Ahsa. From there, he decided to go to Huraymala*,* one of the cities of Najd. At this time which was the year 1139 AH, his father ’Abd al-Wahhab had been transferred from ‘Uyayna to Huraymala. Shaykh Muhammad accompanied his father and learned (the material in) some books from his father.

He set out on rejecting the beliefs of the people of Najd. For this reason, altercation and debates ensued between him and his father.