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The Book of Tawhid: The Right of Allah Upon His Servants

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For other uses, see Kitab al-Tawhid.
The Book of Tawheed, which is Allah’s right over His servants
AuthorMuhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab
Original titleكتاب التوحيد الذي هو حق الله على العبيد
Translators
  • English: Sameh Strauch[1]
  • English: Dar us-Salam Publications[2]
  • Bengali: Ahmed Hassan[3]
  • Russian: Unknown at the moment[4]
  • Philipino: Abdullah Omar Naseef[5]
LanguageArabic
SubjectMonotheism
Published1703- 1791
PublisherDar-us Salam Publications (English and Arabic)
Publication placeEmirate of Diriyah (modern-day Saudi Arabia)
ISBN978-6038412435
Original text
كتاب التوحيد الذي هو حق الله على العبيد at Arabic Wikisource

Kitab at-Tawheed (Arabic: كتاب التوحيد) (Book of Monotheism) is a Sunni book about monotheism in the Athari school of thought. The book is the primary source for Wahhabi beliefs on monotheism. The book was written by the Hanbali scholar Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. The book is banned in Russia since 16 July 2007 due to it being considered "extremist" by the Russian government.[6]

History

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Following early education in Medina, Ibn ʿAbd-al-Wahhab traveled outside of the Arabian Peninsula, venturing first to Basra[7][8] which was still an active center of Islamic culture.[9] During his stay in Basra, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab studied Hadith and Fiqh under the Islamic scholar Muhammad al-Majmu'i. In Basra, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab came into contact with Shi'is and would write a treatise repudiating the theological doctrines of Rafidah, an extreme sect of Shiism. He also became influenced by the writings of Hanbali theologian Ibn Rajab (d. 1393 C.E/ 795 A.H) such as "Kalimat al-Ikhlas" which inspired Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab's seminal treatise "Kitab al-Tawhid".[10][11]

Summary

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Original corpus of Kitab al-Tawhid (The Book of Monotheism) written by Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab on display, 2018 in National Museum of Saudi Arabia, Riyadh

The book focuses on how God is one and that God should only be worshipped alone without any middleman (called monotheism).[12] It also disapproves of the worship of more than one God (which is called polytheism or shirk) and also refutes innovation within Islam by strictly following the Qur'an and hadith.[13] The book also tries to show the dangers of polytheism to the reader and the punishment for polytheism in Islam. The book also condemns the use of black magic or fortune telling (both called sihr or shirk) in any form such as amulets and astrology.[14]

Muhammad Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab sought to revive and purify Islam from what he perceived as non-Islamic popular religious beliefs and practices by returning to what, he believed, were the fundamental principles of the Islamic religion. His works were generally short, full of quotations from the Qur'an and Hadith, such as his main and foremost theological treatise, Kitāb at-Tawḥīd (Arabic: كتاب التوحيد; "The Book of Oneness").[9][15][16][17] He taught that the primary doctrine of Islam was the uniqueness and oneness of God (tawhid),[18][19] and denounced those religious beliefs and practices widespread amongst the people of Najd. Following Ibn Taymiyya's teachings on Tawhid, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab believed that much of Najd had descended into superstitious folk religion akin to the period of Jahiliyya (pre-Islamic era) and denounced much of their beliefs as polytheism (shirk).[20][21] He associated such practices with the culture of Taqlid (imitation to established customs) adored by pagan-cults of Jahiliyya era.[22] Based on the doctrine of Tawhid espoused in Kitab al-Tawhid, the followers of Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab referred themselves by the designation "Al-Muwahhidun" (Unitarians).[23][24]

The "core" of Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab's teaching is found in Kitāb at-Tawḥīd, a theological treatise which draws from material in the Qur'an and the recorded doings and sayings of the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Hadith literature.[25] It preaches that worship in Islam includes conventional acts of worship such as the five daily prayers (Salat); fasting (Sawm); supplication (Dua); seeking protection or refuge (Istia'dha); seeking help (Ist'ana and Istigatha) of Allah.[26]

According to the political scientist Dore Gold,[27] Muhammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab presented a strong anti-Christian and anti-Judaic stance in his main theological treatise Kitāb at-Tawḥīd,[27] describing the followers of both Christian and Jewish faiths as sorcerers[27] who believe in devil-worship,[27] and by citing a hadith attributed to the Islamic prophet Muhammad[Note 1] he stated that capital punishment for the sorcerer is "that he be struck with the sword".[27][28] Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab asserted that both the Christian and Jewish religions had improperly made the graves of their prophet into places of worship and warned Muslims not to imitate this practice.[27][29] Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab concluded that "The ways of the People of the Book are condemned as those of polytheists."[27][30]

Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab had believed that visiting the tomb of Muhammad was a righteous deed, referring to it as "among the best of deeds" while condemning its excesses.[31][32]

References

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  1. ^ Abdul-Wahhab, محمد بن عبد الوهاب Muhammad bin (2010-01-01). Kitab At Tawheed - Explained By Muhammad Ibn ' Abdul - Wahhab. Translated by Strauch, Sameh. International Islamic Publishing House. ISBN 978-603-501-078-8.
  2. ^ Kitab at-Tawheed Archived 2024-06-16 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 17 May 2024
  3. ^ Kitab at-Tawheed (bn) Retrieved 18 May 2024
  4. ^ Kitab at-Tawheeed (ru) Retrieved 23 June 2024
  5. ^ Kitab at-Tawheeed (ph) Archived 2024-06-16 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved 1 September 2024
  6. ^ ""Книга единобожия" входит в список запрещенной литературы" [Kitab at-Tawheed included in list of banned literature]. islamnews.ru (in Russian). 16 July 2004. Archived from the original on 11 June 2008. Retrieved 20 May 2024.
  7. ^ ibn Ghannam: 75–76.
  8. ^ ibn Bishr: 7–8.
  9. ^ a b Laoust, H. (2012) [1993]. "Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb". In Bearman, P. J.; Bianquis, Th.; Bosworth, C. E.; van Donzel, E. J.; Heinrichs, W. P. (eds.). Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition. Vol. 11. Leiden: Brill Publishers. doi:10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_3033. ISBN 978-9004161214.
  10. ^ J. Delong-Bas, Natana (2004). Wahhabi Islam:From Revival and Reform to Global Jihad. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 22. ISBN 0195169913. Ibn Abd al-Wahhab set out for Basra (located in modern Iraq), where he pursued additional studies in hadith and fiqh with an important scholar and madrasa (Islamic school) teacher, Muhammad al-Majmu'i... It is believed that Ibn Abd al-Wahhab came into contact with Shiis during this stay in Basra,... he specifically targeted only one particular extremist sect, the Rafidah, in only one treatise.
  11. ^ Bradford, Joe (2022). "IbnʿAbd al-Wahhāb, Muḥammad". In L. Esposito, John (ed.). Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World: Digital Collection. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acref/9780197669419.001.0001. ISBN 9780197669419.
  12. ^ "Ilorin Journal of Arts and Social Sciences: IJASS : a Publication of the School of Arts and Social Sciences, Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin". Ilorin Journal of Arts and Social Sciences: IJASS : A Publication of the School of Arts and Social Sciences, Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin. Nathadex Publishers: 264. 2002. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  13. ^ Farooq, Mohammad Omar (2023). Bangali: Ayin, Ayinsarboshota Abong Sangskar (Toward Our Reformation: From Legalism to Value-Oriented Islamic Law and Jurisprudence) (in Bengali). International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT). p. 244. ISBN 979-8-89193-131-2. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  14. ^ Abukhalil, As'Ad (2011). The Battle for Saudi Arabia: Royalty, Fundamentalism, and Global Power. Seven Stories Press. ISBN 978-1-60980-173-1. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
  15. ^ Haykel 2013, pp. 231–32.
  16. ^ Khatab 2011, pp. 65–67.
  17. ^ Saeed 2013, pp. 29–30.
  18. ^ Esposito 2003, p. 333
  19. ^ "Allah". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 28 May 2008.
  20. ^ Saeed 2013, p. 29.
  21. ^ Weismann, Itzchak (2001). "7: Local Renaissance under the Centralizing Regimes (1883-1918)". Taste of Modernity: Sufism, Salafiyya, and Arabism in Late Ottoman Damascus. Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 268. ISBN 90-04-11908-6.
  22. ^ Riexinger, Martin (2022). "2: Model, Not Idol The Recasting of the Image of Muḥammad in Mukhtaṣar sīrat al-rasūl by Muḥammad b. ʿAbd al-Wahhāb (d. 1792)". In Chih, Rachida; Jordan, David; Reichmuth, Stefan (eds.). The Presence of the Prophet in Early Modern and Contemporary Islam. Vol. 2. Heirs of the Prophet: Authority and Power. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. p. 55. ISBN 978-90-04-46674-6.
  23. ^ Martin, Richard C. (2004). Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World. New York: Macmillan Reference USA. p. 727. ISBN 0-02-865603-2.
  24. ^ Martin, Richard C. (2016). Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World (2nd ed.). Farmington Hills, MI: Gale. p. 1236. ISBN 978-0-02-866269-5.
  25. ^ Commins, David (2009). The Wahhabi Mission and Saudi Arabia. I.B. Tauris. p. 12. This brief essay is of tremendous significance for the Wahhabi mission and the subject of enduring controversy between supporters and detractors. It represents the core of Ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab's teaching and the foundation of the Wahhabi canon.
  26. ^ Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, Kitab al-Tawhid
  27. ^ a b c d e f g Gold, Dore (2003). Hatred's Kingdom: How Saudi Arabia Supports the New Global Terrorism. Washington, D.C.: Regnery Publishing. p. 25. ISBN 0895261359.
  28. ^ Muhammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab, Kitab al-Tawhid (Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam Publications, 1996) Chapter 24, particularly p. 97.
  29. ^ Muhammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab, Kitab al-Tawhid (Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam Publications, 1996, p. 83)
  30. ^ Muhammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhab, Kitab al-Tawhid (Riyadh: Dar-us-Salam Publications, 1996, Chapter 9, p. 51)
  31. ^ J. Delong-Bas, Natana (2004). "The Theology and Worldview of Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab". Wahhabi Islam:From Revival and Reform to Global Jihad. New York: Oxford University Press. p. 67. ISBN 0195169913. Consequently, 'Abd al-Wahhab noted that although visiting Muhammad's grave was a worthy act it must not be done in a spirit or intent that compromises monotheism. Finally, prayer should never be conducted in a cemetery
  32. ^ ibn Abdul Wahhab, Muhammad. "Chapter 22 The protectiveness of Al-Mustafa (May Allah be pleased with him) of Tawhid and his blockading every path leading to Shirk". Kitab At-Tauhid (PDF). Dar us Salam Publications. 4) The Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) forbade visiting his grave in a certain manner, though visiting his grave is among the best of deeds. 5) The Prophet (May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him) forbade us making excessive visits to his grave

Notes

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  1. ^ The attribution of this hadith is disputed; according to other sources it should be attributed to 'Umar ibn al-Khattab, companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate.
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