Haqiqat Dawat al-Imam al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab al-Salafiyya
- Author died
- 1435 AH
- Editions
- Rābiṭat al-Adab al-Ḥadīth bi-al-Qāhirah
Haqiqat Dawat al-Imam al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab al-Salafiyya (The Reality of the Salafi Call of Imam Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab) is an Arabic historical and theological treatise by the Saudi author Abd Allah bin Saad al-Ruwayshid (d. 1435 AH), written as a concise exposition of the life, theological principles, and historical impact of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab.
Background and Composition
The author had previously published an extensive two-volume biographical work titled al-Imam al-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab fi al-Tarikh (Imam Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab in History). At his residence in the al-Badi'ah district of Riyadh, Abd al-Aziz ibn Abd Allah ibn Baz requested that al-Ruwayshid compile a concise summary accessible to general readers, noting that the detailed two-volume study was primarily utilized by specialized researchers. al-Ruwayshid complied with this request, and the concise volume was published through the Modern Literature Association (Rabitat al-Adab al-Hadith) in Cairo alongside the release of the second edition of his larger work.
Content and Structure
The book is structured into several thematic sections covering the history, doctrines, and reception of the reform movement:
- Biography and Travels: A summary of Ibn Abd al-Wahhab's lineage, his birth in al-Uyaynah (1115 AH / 1703 CE), his early education under his father, and his study journeys to Mecca, Medina, Basra, al-Zubayr, and al-Ahsa.
- Stages of the Call: The implementation of his reform mission, the political alliance with Muhammad ibn Saud, the sponsorship of the Saudi ruling house, and the opposition and external challenges faced by the movement.
- Scholarly and Literary Impact: An examination of Ibn Abd al-Wahhab's writings, sermons, and correspondence, along with his influence on the scientific and literary renaissance in the region.
- Doctrinal Documents: The inclusion of two historical treatises elucidating the reality of the Salafi creed, notably an epistle penned by Imam Abd al-Aziz ibn Muhammad ibn Saud addressed to scholars and judges across the Islamic world, including Mecca, Medina, the Levant, Egypt, and Iraq.
- Reception and Poetry: The geographic spread of the movement beyond the Arabian Peninsula, evaluations by Arab and Muslim scholars, Western assessments (including entries in the Encyclopaedia Britannica and writings of European and American orientalists), and poetic works composed by contemporary and later poets in support of the movement.
Sources
The author concludes the work with a bibliography of principal sources, which includes classical chronicles such as Husayn ibn Ghannam's Rawdat al-Afkar wa-l-Afham, Uthman ibn Bishr's Unwan al-Majd fi Tarikh Najd, and Abd al-Rahman al-Jabarti's Aja'ib al-Athar. It also utilizes modern historical and analytical studies by scholars such as Abd al-Rahman al-Rafi'i, Abd al-Halim al-Jundi, Abd al-Karim al-Khatib, Shakib Arslan, and Western historical surveys such as Hamilton Gibb and Harold Bowen's Islamic Society and the West, in addition to the collected works of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab.
Answer updated