Question:

Written questions addressed to me by one of the Shaykhs from outside the Kingdom [of Saudi Arabia], to which I replied as follows:

From Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah bin Baz to our respected brother, may Allah grant him beneficial knowledge and the ability to act upon it, Amin. Peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be upon you.

To proceed: I have received your letter dated 2/3/1394 AH, may Allah connect you with the bond of guidance and success. I have understood the three questions you included regarding “Wahhabism,” and here is the answer to them: What is Wahhabism, and is it a fifth school of thought (madhhab), or does it follow one of the four madhhab?

Answer:

This term is used by many people to refer to the call of the Imam and Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab ibn Sulayman at-Tamimi al-Hanbali (may Allah have mercy on him), and they call him and his followers “Wahhabis.” Anyone with the slightest insight into the movement and call of Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (may Allah have mercy on him) knows that he rose to spread the call of pure monotheism (Tawhid) and to warn against all types of polytheism (Shirk), such as attachment to the dead and others, including trees, stones, and the like. Regarding creed (Aqidah), he (may Allah have mercy on him) was upon the path of the Pious Predecessors (Salaf as-Salih), and regarding branches of jurisprudence (Furu’), he was upon the school of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal ash-Shaybani (may Allah have mercy on him), as indicated by his books, his legal rulings (fatawa), and the books of his followers, his sons, his grandsons, and others, all of which have been printed and spread among the people.

Imam Muhammad (may Allah have mercy on him) rose at a time when the “strangeness of Islam” had intensified, and the clouds of ignorance had overshadowed the Arabian Peninsula and elsewhere—except for what Allah willed—and the worship of rivals [to Allah] and idols had spread. There was nothing for the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) to do but to roll up his sleeves in earnest, struggle, and fight, dedicating his efforts to eradicating the paths of misguidance. He used various means to spread monotheism, purified from superstitions, among the people. It was among the blessings of Allah (Glorified be He) that He granted success to Imam Muhammad bin Saud, the Emir of Diriyah at that time, to accept this call. He stood with him in this path, along with his children, those under his command, and those who followed him in this good, may Allah reward them all with every good, forgive them, and grant their descendants success in everything that contains His pleasure and the welfare of His servants.

The regions of the Arabian Peninsula continue to live under the shadow of this blessed call to this day. His call/Da’wah (may Allah have mercy on him) was in accordance with the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). Wahhabism is not a fifth school of thought, as the ignorant and those with ill intent claim; rather, it is a call to the Salafi creed and a renewal of the landmarks of Islam and monotheism that had become obscure in the Arabian Peninsula, as previously mentioned.