Has Wahhabism Radicalised Sunni Islam

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Question:

Has Sunni Islam become radicalised due to Wahhabi Saudi influence? - A study of how Saudi influence has shaped Sunni Islam globally and whether it caused radicalisation. :::

Answer:

Imam Abdul Wahhab (rahimullah) on whose name the people have derived the term Wahhabis was an Islamic Reformer who reignited the preaching of the Prophet saws which had faded out due to innovations in religion and sectarianism.

So he tried to return Muslims to the Pristine Islam which was free from all adulteration - so to say that Islam was radicalized due to his efforts is false rather Islam was de-Radicalized due to the efforts of Imam Abdul Wahhab and the Saudi Government and Saudi scholars who follow the Salafi ideology.

Obviously anyone who tries to do something good is branded by his opponents by different names and accusations. So is the case with Wahhabis. No one refers to himself as Wahhabis generally only some groups refer to opposing groups as Wahhabis in their foolishness.

Why (so called) Wahhabis call themselves as Salafis?

The name Salafi refers to the one who attaches himself to that group of people about whom the Prophet , peace be upon him, said:

“The best of people is my generation, then those who come after them, then those who come after them (i.e. the first three generations of Muslims).” [Reported by Bukhari and Muslim - Mutawaatir].

This attachment is not to a single person or persons (i.e. scholars), which is the case of many groups present today. It is not an attachment to a person or even tens of people, but to that which will not err, since it is impossible that the Salaf would unite upon error or misguidance. So in his subscribtion to the way of the Salaf, the Salafi has attached himself to that which cannot go wrong.

This is taken from the hadith: “My Ummah will not unite upon error.” [Reported by at-Tirmidhee and Haakim - Sahih], and it is not correct that this hadith refers to the people of later ages, since it was only in the era of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and his Companions that the Ummah was free from widespread division and deviation. The deviant sects separated themselves from the Jamaa’ah after them, and from that time onwards their was disunity.

Who are the Salaf and who are the Salafis (so called Wahhabis) ?

The Pious Forefathers (i.e. As-Salaf as-Saalih) of the Islamic Community of Believers are the Companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him, their Followers (the Taabi’een and the Taabi Taabi’een (i.e. the first three generations of Muslims) and the Scholars of the Ahl-us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah after them who followed their way in belief and deed. Among them are :

Imam Abu Hanifah (150 AH), Al-Awzai (157 AH), Ath-Thawri (161AH), Al Laith ibn Saad (175 AH), Imam Malik (179 AH), Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak (181 AH), Sufyan ibn Uyainah (198 AH), Imam Ash-Shafi’i (204 AH), Ishaq (238 AH), Imam Ahmed bin Hanbal (241 AH), Al-Bukhari (256 AH), Muslim (261 AH), Abu Dawood (275 AH) and others.

Ibn Taymiyyah (728 AH), and his students: Adh-Dhahabi (748 AH), Ibn al-Qayyim (751 AH), Ibn Katheer (774 AH) and others.

Muhammed bin ‘Abd al-Wahhab (1206 AH) and many of his students.

And in our time: Abdul Aziz bin Baz, Muhammed bin Saalih Uthaimeen, Muhammed Naasir-ud-Deen al-Albaani.

The Salafis are the Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa’ah. They are the Taaifatul- Mansoorah (the Aided, Victorious Group) and the Firqatun-Naajiyyah (the Saved Sect) which have been mentioned in the following statements of the Messenger, peace be upon him:

“There shall not cease to remain a single group from my community upon the Truth, victorious; they are unharmed by those who abandon them and those who oppose them. They will remain (in my community and in such a state) until they fight the liar (i.e. the Anti-Christ (Dajjal).” [Reported in Sahih Muslim]

So Salafi (wahhabi) ideology is nothing new and it is not a group or a party and any muslim who adheres to Quran & Sunnah upon the methodology of the Companions of the prophet then he is a Salafi (Wahhabi)

All Major Salafi Scholars of past and present have denounced terrorism and extremism since long time even when these terrorists were still unknown

They have even advised Muslims to inform authorities of any terrorist plots if they have any leads.

Informing The Authorities Of Terrorist Plots

What LEADING Salafi Scholars have said regarding terrorism:

According to Shaykh ‘Abdul ‘Azeez Ibn Baaz (rahimahullaah), ”…Terrorism is to transgress upon people by way of unjustly striking or killing them, with no proof (to justify these actions); rather (these actions are committed) upon ignorance and dearth of insight; they are the terrorists who kill people unjustly, without any evidence from the Sharee’ah (Islaamic Law). Thus, they change people’s (state of) security, and they cause problems between them and between their countries; those are the terrorists.” So it must be understood that Islaam strongly condemns every facet of terrorism regardless of what the people might call it. Ibn Baaz (rahimahullaah) deemed it mandatory to destroy media that promoted Bin Laden’s views, and declared that it was forbidden for anyone to co-operate with him. He wrote: ”…It is obligatory to destroy and annihilate these publications that have emanated from al-Faqeeh, or from al-Mas’aree, or from others of the callers of falsehood (bin Laadin and those like him), and not to be lenient towards them. And it is obligatory to advise them, to guide them towards the truth, and to warn them against this falsehood. It is not permissible for anyone to co-operate with them in this evil. And it is obligatory upon them to be sincere and to come back to guidance and to leave alone and abandon this falsehood. So my advice to al-Mas’aree, al-Faqeeh and Bin Laadin and all those who traverse their ways is to leave alone this disastrous path, and to fear Allaah and to beware of His vengeance and His Anger, and to return to guidance and to repent to Allaah for whatever has preceded from them. How Muslims Should Behave in Non-Muslim Societies Shaikh Ibn Uthaimeen on Committing Suicide Attacking The Enemy by Blowing Oneself Up In a Car Shaikh Ibn Baz and Shaikh Ibn Jibreen on Hijacking and Kidnapping With Which Religion and Intellect are Suicide Bombings and Destruction Considered Jihaad? Shaykh al-Albaanee on the Islamic Ruling on Suicide Bombings ISIS Jihad in path of Saitan A Scholarly Response to the Terrorism and Anarchy in Paris, France Contemporary Salafi Scholars who have spoken against Terrorism & Extremism

Ask any Salafi who are the leading salafi scholars of today and he will mention Sheikh Bin Baz, Sheikh Naseeruddin Albani, Sheikh Uthaymeen, Sheikh Fawzan etc. And all scholars without any difference in opinion unequivocally have denounced extremism and radicalization.

I can challenge anyone to show proof from 1 Salafi scholar who praised or supported any terrorist group or has preached any radical ideology.

There is not a single terrorist group which is salafist as Salafi by very definition is against extremism.

There are broadly only 2 principle ideologies which promote extremism/terrorism in its extreme form

khawariji/takfeeri - Example being the likes of Ikhwanul Muslimoon, ISIS, Al Qaeda, Bokko Haram and all other sunni extremist groups
Raafidah - Hezbollah and Shia extremist groups backed by Iran

All the terrorist groups ideologies are derived from above 2 ideologies or are its variants.

There is a common misconception that Salafi/Wahhabi ideology is responsible for terrorism/extremism however there is no proof whatsoever rather it is due to lack of knowledge of Islamic ideologies amongst most of the so called experts who spread this misinformation knowingly or unknowingly.