Athar al-Dawa al-Wahhabiyya fi al-Islah al-Dini wa al-Umrani fi Jazirat al-Arab wa Ghayriha
- Author died
- 1378 AH
- Editions
- Athar al-Dawa al-Wahhabiyya fi al-Islah al-Dini wa al-Umrani fi Jazirat al-Arab wa Ghayriha
Athar al-Dawa al-Wahhabiyya fi al-Islah al-Dini wa al-Umrani fi Jazirat al-Arab wa Ghayriha (The Impact of the Wahhabi Call on Religious and Civilizational Reform in the Arabian Peninsula and Beyond) is a treatise by the Egyptian scholar Muhammad Hamid al-Fiqi (d. 1378 AH / 1959 CE), examining the origins, theology, and historical impact of the reform movement of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab .
Background and Composition
The work originated as a series of lectures delivered by al-Fiqi at the headquarters of Jama'at Ansar al-Sunna al-Muhammadiyya in Cairo, an organization he founded and presided over . Al-Fiqi concluded the preface in Cairo on 10 Dhu al-Qi'da 1354 AH (February 1936 CE), and the treatise was published that same year (1354 AH) by Matba'at al-Nahda on Abd al-Aziz Street in Cairo .
Al-Fiqi framed the treatise as an effort to present an accurate account of the reform movement, its founder, and its supporters, aiming to refute widespread misconceptions and allegations circulating among the public and educated classes in Egypt and across the Islamic world .
Contents and Core Arguments
The book explores both the theological foundations and the socio-political effects of the movement in the Arabian Peninsula and surrounding regions :
- The Term "Wahhabiyya": Al-Fiqi notes that the designation is grammatically non-standard, as derivation from the founder’s given name would yield "Muhammadiyya" rather than "Wahhabiyya" (which derives from his father's name) . He emphasizes that the inhabitants, scholars, and rulers of Najd did not traditionally apply this label to themselves, identifying instead by their regional origin as Najdis and by their jurisprudential and creedal affiliation as Hanbalis . He posits that the term was popularized outside Najd by political and intellectual adversaries during the early military expansions led by Abd al-Aziz ibn Muhammad ibn Saud and his son Saud al-Kabir toward Iraq and the Levant .
- Theological Position: Al-Fiqi argues that Ibn Abd al-Wahhab did not introduce a novel school of thought (madhhab) or invent new religious doctrines; rather, his mission was a revival of orthodox Islamic practice based directly on the Quran and Sunna . He details its focus on purifying worship from polytheism (tawhid al-uluhiyya) and affirming divine attributes (tawhid al-asma' wa-al-sifat) according to the understanding of early Muslim generations (al-salaf al-salih), without distortion (tahrif), allegorical reinterpretation (ta'wil), or anthropomorphism (tashbih) .
- Civilizational and Civic Reform: The text highlights how religious reform contributed to civil and institutional development (al-islah al-umrani), fostering political unification, public security, and legal administration in Arabia under Saudi governance .
Reception and Assessment
The book has been cited in modern historiography and Islamic studies as an influential defense of the movement produced by an Al-Azhar-trained scholar . Western scholars, including Henri Laoust in his entry on Ibn Abd al-Wahhab for the Encyclopaedia of Islam, included al-Fiqi's treatise among their reference sources . Later scholars have noted that while the book provides a concise overview substantiated by direct citations from Ibn Abd al-Wahhab's writings, it omitted a formal academic apparatus of bibliographic references .
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