by MEHMET HASAN BULUT
Though regarded as the Protestantism of Islam with its purified approach to religion, Wahhabism includes extreme interpretations that differ from Sunni Islam. Let’s take a look at what this belief constitutes and its consequences
Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) recently said that they started the spread of Wahhabism against the Soviets during the Cold War at the request of the United States. Well, did Wahhabism not once again come to the fore with the radical terrorist acts witnessed on 9/11? To answer that, it would be useful to take a brief look at the history of this belief.
Abd al-Wahhab: Mysterious personality
Wahhabism takes its name from the Islamic scholar Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab who was born in 1699 in Najd, located in the middle of Saudi Arabia. He traveled to various cities including Mecca and Medina and stayed in Basra for many years, where the East Indian companies were highly active. He went to Iran to study Aristotelian philosophy and met with the Ismaili missionary al-Makrami.
Returning to his hometown later, Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab revealed the reformist ideas that he had acquired during his travels. He formed a new sect by mixing the ideas of the Hanbali school, one of the four sects of Sunnism, with those of Islamic scholar Ibn Taymiyyah and his own. He made an alliance with the Prince of Diriyah Muhammad bin Saud Al Muqrin and came under his protection.
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