Sayyid Ahmad Zayni Dahlan al-Makki’ ash-Shafi’i (d.1304 AH / 1886 CE)




Sayyid Ahmad Zayni Dahlan(ra)


Ad-Durar-us-Saniyyah fir-Raddi ‘alal-Wahhabiyyah

(a treatise refuting the Wahhabiys)


 (a treatise of the tribulations inflicted by the Wahhabiyyah)




Sayyid Ahmad ibn Zayni Dahlan was of the eminent scholars of his time and the Shafi’i mufti of Makkah during the second half of the 13th century. He was born in 1231AH. He lived when the first printing press was established in Makkah, which resulted in a number of his works being printed. He wrote chiefly on fiqh and history. Aside from his writings, his major contribution to the madhhab came in the form of his numerous students, including Sayyid `Alawi ibn Ahmad al-Saqqaf, Sayyid Abu Bakr Shatta, Shaykh `Umar Ba Junayd, and Sayyid Husayn ibn Muhammad al-Hibshi.

Some of the works published by the Sayyid include:

1- Sharhu Matn-il-Alfiyyah; (an explanation of the text of al-Alfiyyah in the Arabic language)
2- Tarikh-ud-Duwal-il-Islamiyyah bil-Jadawil-il Mardiyyah; (a history of the Islamic states)
3- Fath-ul-Jawad-il-Mannan ‘alal-‘Aqidat-il-Musammati bi Fayd-ir-Rahman fi Tajwid-il-Qur’an; (a summary of the tajwid rules of recitation of the Qur’an)
4- Khulasat-ul-Kalam fi Umara’-il-Balad-il-Haram; (the history of the rulers of Makkah)
5- Al-Futuhat-ul-Islamiyyah; (a history of the opening of the different countries by Muslims)
6- Tanbih-ul-Ghafilin, Mukhtasaru Minhaj-il-‘Abidin; (a summary exposing the good manners of the worshippers)
7- Ad-Durar-us-Saniyyah fir-Raddi ‘alal-Wahhabiyyah; (a treatise refuting the Wahhabiys)
8- Sharh-ul-Ajurrummiyyah; (an explanation of an Arabic grammar text)
9- Fitnat-ul-Wahhabiyyah; [this booklet] (a treatise of the tribulations inflicted by the Wahhabiyyah).

Sayyid Muhammad bin ‘Alawi al-Maliki gives his sanad to Sayyid Ahmad Dahlan in his abridged book of Ijaza, Iqdatu l-Farid as follows,From his father, Sayyid ‘Alawi al-Maliki from Sayyid ‘Abbas al-Maliki

Najdi Evil History Repeats Itself  

Their prophet

Mu-hammed ibn Abdul Wahhab Najdi



This was done because he said:

 “This is the hair of the period of Kufr therefore it must be shaven off”.

This shaving off of the female hair carried on for some time until anindignant woman stood up and challenged:

 “Why don’t you shave off the beards of your recruits when they enter you Deen. That is also the hair of the period of Kufr?”

“Hair is the precious ornament of a female as is the beard for a male. Is it apt to leave human beings deprived of their ornaments bestowed upon them by Allahu ta’ala?”


Shaykh Zayni Dahlan  (ra)  said in his book Futuhat al-Islamiyya  (vol.2, pg. 268):

“The sign of the Khawarij (the first deviant sect that appeared in the time of the Companions)  concerning the  shaving of the head, was not found in the  Khawarij of the past, but only in theNajdi’s of our time!” 


( Read the full version in Arabic & English)

 In brief


During the reign of Sultan Salim III (1204-1222 AH) many tribulations took place. One was the tribulation of the Wahhabiyyah which started in the area of al-Hijaz{ where they captured al-Haramayn, and prevented Muslims coming from ash-Sham and Egypt from reaching their destination to perform Pilgrimage (Hajj). Another tribulation is that of the French who controlled Egypt from 1213 A.H. until 1216 A.H. Let us here speak briefly about the two adversities, because each was mentioned in detail in the books of history and in separate treatises.

Background On The Tribulations Of The Wahhabis
Muhammad Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab started as a student of knowledge in the city of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam: al-Madinah al-Munawwarah. Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab’s father was a good, pious man among the people of knowledge as was his brother, Shaykh Sulayman. His father, his brother, and his shaykhs (teachers of religion) had the foresight Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab would innovate a great deal of deviation and misguidance, because of their observance of his sayings, actions, and inclinations concerning many issues. They used to reprimand him and warn people against him.

Some Of The Beliefs Of Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab

What Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab’s father, brother, and shaykhs speculated about him came true
–by the Will of Allah, ta^ala. Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab innovated deviant and misleading ways and beliefs and managed to allure some ignorant people to follow him. His deviant and misleading ways and beliefs disagreed with the sayings of the scholars of the Religion. His deviant beliefs led him to label the believers as blasphemers!
He falsely claimed visiting the grave of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, and performing the tawassul by him as shirk. Additionally, he falsely claimed visiting the graves of other prophets and righteous Muslims (awliya’) and performing tawassul by them was shirk as well. He added to this by saying, “To call upon the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, when performing tawassul by the Prophet is shirk.” He passed the same judgment of shirk on the ones who call upon other prophets and righteous Muslims (awliya’) in performing tawassul by them.

In an effort to give credibility to his innovations Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab embellished his sayings by quotations which he selected from Islamic sources, i.e., quotations which are used as proofs for many issues but not the issues which Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab was attempting to support. He brought false statements and tried to beautify them for the laymen until they followed him. He wrote treatises for them until they believed that most of the People of Tawhid were blasphemers.

Alliance With The Su^udiyy Family

Moreover, Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab called upon the princes of eastern Arabia and the people of ad-Dar^iyyah to support him. They carried his doctrine and made this endeavor a means to strengthen and expand their kingdom. They worked together to suppress the Bedouins of the deserts until they overcame them and those Bedouins followed them and became foot-soldiers for them without pay. After that, these masses started to believe that whoever does not believe in what Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab said is a blasphemer, and it is Islamically lawful (halal) to shed his blood and plunder his money.

The matter of Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab started to evidence itself in 1143 A.H. and began spreading after 1150 A.H. Subsequently, the scholars–even his brother, Shaykh Sulayman and the rest of his shaykhs– authored many treatises to refute him. But Muhammad Ibn Su^ud, the Prince of ad-Dar^iyyah in eastern Arabia, supported him and worked to spread his ideology. Ibn Su^ud was from Banu Hanifah, the people of Musaylimah al-Kadhdhab{9}. When Muhammad Ibn Su^ud died, his son ^Abdul-^Aziz Ibn Muhammad Ibn Su^ud took over the responsibility of fulfilling the vile task of spreading the Wahhabi beliefs.

Many of the shaykhs of Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab in al-Madinah used to say, “He will be misguided, and he will misguide those for whom Allah willed the misguidance.” Things took place as per the speculation of the scholars. Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab claimed his intention behind the madhhab he invented was “to purify the tawhid” and “repudiate the shirk.” He also claimed people had been following the shirk for six-hundred years and he revived their Religion for them!!

The Methodology Of Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab

Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab took the verses revealed to speak about the blasphemers and applied them to the Muslims. The following examples from the Qur’an illustrate this point. Allah, ta^ala, said in Surat al-Ahqaf, Ayah 5:
This verse means: [Who is more astray than the one who performs supplication (du^a’) to [worship] other than Allah; the one other than Allah he supplicates to will not answer his du^a’.]
Allah, ta^ala said in Surat Yunus, Ayah 106 :
This verse means: [Do not perform supplication (du^a’) to [worship] other than Allah; the one other than Allah you supplicate to will not benefit you and will not harm you.]

The verses in the Qur’an similar to these ones are numerous. Muhammad Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab gravely misinterpreted the previously cited verses and said: “The Muslim who asks help from the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, other prophets, or the righteous people (salihun), or who calls or asks any of them for intercession is like those blasphemers mentioned in the Qur’an.” According to the false claim of Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab, the Muslims who do these things are blasphemers.

This verse means: [Those who worship the idols said: “We do not worship them except to achieve a higher status from Allah.”]

These verses mean: [If you ask them, ‘Who created the heavens and earth?’ They will say, ‘Allah’.]

In Surat az-Zukhruf, Ayah 87, Allah said:
Which means: [If you ask them, ‘Who created them?’ They will say, ‘Allah’.] Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab falsely concluded from these verses that the Muslims who perform tawassul are similar to those blasphemers.

The Scholars Refute Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab





Al-Bukhariyy narrated by the route of Ibn ^Umar, may Allah raise their ranks, that the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, described the Khawarij as those who took the verses revealed about the blasphemers and attributed them to the believers! In the narration by the route of Ibn ^Umar the Prophet said:

which means: <<What I fear most for my nation is a man who mis-explains the Qur’an and takes it out of context.>> This hadith and the previous one apply very well to the Wahhabis.

Debating With The Scholars Of Makkah

Initially, the Wahhabis sent a group to Makkah and al-Madinah thinking they would be able to spoil the belief of the scholars of these two holy cities and tamper with their belief through lies and fabrications. When they reached there and declared their beliefs, the scholars of Makkah and al-Madinah refuted them and established the Islamic evidences against them–which they could not refute. The scholars were certain about the Wahhabis’ ignorance and misguidance and found them absurd and thoughtless.

After evaluating their beliefs and finding them full of many types of blasphemy, the Wahhabis fled like frightened zebras fleeing from a lion. Hence, after establishing the proofs, the scholars wrote an attestation against the Wahhabiyyah to the Head Judge of Makkah confirming the Wahhabis as blasphemous because of their beliefs. The aim of the scholars was to disclose the misguidance of the Wahhabis and make it known to the Muslims near and far. This action took place during the rulership of Sharif Mas^ud Ibn Sa^id Ibn Sa^d Ibn Zayn, the ruler of Hijaz who ordered the imprisonment of those unjust Wahhabis. Sharif Mas^ud Ibn Sa^id Ibn Sa^d Ibn Zayn died in 1165 A.H.

Some Wahhabis managed to escape their imprisonment. They went to ad-Dar^iyyah and spoke about what they encountered in Makkah. This made the Wahhabis more devilishly haughty, and they started attacking the tribes which were loyal to the prince of Makkah.

Outbreak Of Hostilities:
Fighting In At-Ta’if, Makkah, And Juddah

The fighting between the Wahhabis and the prince of Makkah, Mawlana Sharif Ghalib Ibn Mus^id Ibn Sa^id Ibn Sa^d Ibn Zayd, broke out after 1205 A.H. Many battles took place between the prince and the Wahhabis. Although many people were killed, the Wahhabis’ strength kept intensifying. Their innovations kept propagating until most of the Bedouin tribes paid allegiance to them–even the Bedouins who were under the rulership of the prince of Makkah.

In 1217 A.H., they marched with big armies to the area of at-Ta’if. In Dhul-Qa^dah of the same year, they lay siege to the area the Muslims were, subdued them, and killed the people: men, women, and children. They also looted the Muslims’ belongings and possessions. Only a few people escaped their barbarism.

After at-Ta’if{18} came under their control, the Wahhabis planned to march towards Makkah, but this was during the time the Muslims were performing Pilgrimage, and many of the Muslims from ash-Sham and Egypt were in Makkah. The Wahhabis knew if they attacked Makkah at that time all the people performing Pilgrimage would join in fighting them. They stayed in at-Ta’if until Hajj was over, and the people had returned to their countries. Then the Wahhabis and their armies set out to attack Makkah. Sharif Ghalib did not have enough power to face these armies, so he went to Juddah. The people of Makkah were afraid the Wahhabis would treat them in the same manner the people of at-Ta’if were treated, so they negotiated and surrendered to them. The Wahhabis granted the people of Makkah security and entered Makkah on the eighth of Muharram, 1218 A.H. They occupied themselves there for fourteen days ordering the Muslims to repent and embrace Islam–since the Wahhabis falsely claimed them as blasphemers. The people were prohibited from doing what the Wahhabis incorrectly believed to be blasphemy, like performing tawassul and visiting the graves.

Having gained control of at-Ta’if and Makkah, the Wahhabis turned their armies towards Juddah to fight Sharif Ghalib. When they surrounded Juddah, Sharif Ghalib bombarded them with cannons and projectiles. He killed many Wahhabis and prevented the conquering of Juddah. After eight days, the Wahhabis departed Juddah to return to their own territories. The Wahhabis left some of their army in Makkah and appointed ^Abdul-Mu^in, the brother of Sharif Ghalib, as prince. ^Abdul-Mu^in only accepted this position to protect the people of Makkah and shelter them from the evil mistreatment of the harmful Wahhabis.

In the month of Rabi^-ul-‘Awwal of the same year, Prince Ghalib left Juddah accompanied by Sharif Basha–the governor of Juddah and the representative of the Supreme ^Uthmaniyy Sultan. They arrived in Makkah with their army and overpowered the Wahhabis. They expelled the Wahhabi army and this brought Makkah back under the authority of Sharif Ghalib.

The Capture Of Makkah

The Wahhabis left Makkah and became involved with fighting many of the tribes. They captured at-Ta’if and appointed ^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy as the governor. This governor joined forces with some of the Wahhabis’ soldiers and started fighting the tribes next to the borders of Makkah and al-Madinah until they pledged allegiance to them. They eventually subdued all the tribes and captured all the lands originally under the authority of the Governor of Makkah. After this, ^Uthman al-Madayiqiyy mobilized his army in an attempt to capture Makkah. In 1220 A.H. they lay siege to Makkah and then surrounded it from all directions to tighten this siege. They blocked the routes to the city and prevented supplies from reaching there. It was a great hardship on the people of Makkah. Food became exorbitantly expensive and then unavailable. They resorted to eating dogs.

Sharif Ghalib was compelled to ask for reconciliation with the Wahhabis. He accepted for some people to arbitrate between them. He signed an agreement with conditions stipulating the rulership of Makkah would be kept for him, and the people of Makkah would be treated leniently. The Wahhabis accepted these conditions. They entered Makkah by the end of Dhul-Qa^dah in 1220 A.H. They also gained control of al-Madinah. They plundered what was in the room of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, took all the money that was there, and did some disgraceful acts. They appointed a man among them, Mubarak Ibn Madyan, as the governor of al-Madinah.

The Wahhabis ruled Makkah and al-Madinah for seven years.During these years, they prevented the people of ash-Sham and Egypt from entering Makkah carrying the cloak of the Ka^bah when they came to perform pilgrimage. The Wahhabis started to make the cloak for the Ka^bah from black material. They prevented the people from smoking tobacco. When they found someone smoking they punished him fiercely. During this time, the Wahhabis destroyed the domes built on the graves of the righteous Muslims.


This is a very brief summary of the story of Muhammad Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab. To talk at length on each of these details would be very lengthy. The tribulations inflicted by the Wahhabis were a calamity for the Muslims. The Wahhabis shed a great deal of blood and robbed a great deal of money; their harm was prevalent and their evil spread.

Many of the hadiths of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, spoke explicitly about this tribulation. One narration said:
which means: <<There will be people who come from the eastern side ofArabia who will recite Qur’an, but their recitation will not pass beyond their collarbones{28}. They will go out of Islam as swiftly as the arrow goes through the prey. Their sign is shaving their heads.>> This hadith was mentioned in many narrations, including Sahih-ul-Bukhariyy and other books of hadith. There is no need to expound on listing these narrations or their narrators because they are well-known and of the sahih classification.

The Prophet said: “Their sign is shaving their heads.” This is an explicit reference to the Wahhabi sect. They used to order all those who follow them to shave their heads. None of the previous sects, i.e., those who came before the Wahhabis, like the Khawarij or other innovators, had this sign.

As-Sayyid ^Abdur-Rahman al-Ahdal, the Mufti of Zabid, used to say: “There is no need for writing against the Wahhabis. For, in refuting them, it is sufficient to mention the hadith of the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam: <<Their sign is shaving their heads>> since no other innovators had ever done it.”

It happened once that a women made her point against Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab when they compelled her to follow them and she did. He ordered her to shave her head. She told him: “Since you order the woman to shave her head, you have to order the man to shave his beard. The hair of the women is her decoration and the decoration of the man is his beard.” Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab could not answer her.

Among of what the Wahhabis used to do was to prevent the people from asking the Prophet, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, for his intercession–although the hadiths about the Prophet’s intercession are numerous and are of the mutawatir classification. Most of his intercession is for the Muslims of his nation who committed major sins. The Wahhabis also prohibited Muslims from reading Dala’il-ul-Khayrat–which includes saying as-Salat on the Prophet and mentioning many of the Prophet’s complete descriptions. They said this is blasphemy. They also prevented Muslims from saying as-Salat on the Prophet on the minarets after the Adhan. Once a righteous blind Muslim was calling Adhan and said as-Salat on the Prophet after the Adhan. The Wahhabis brought him to Ibn ^Abdul-Wahhab who ordered his execution.

If I [the author] was to pursue the mischievous things the Wahhabis did, I would fill notebooks and lots of papers. However, what has been mentioned thus far is enough.



Comments are closed.

Up ↑

%d bloggers like this: