Research Article

Dilemmas of Salafi-Wahhabi Discourse in the Context of Takfir, Tashbih and Tajseem

Volume: 21 Number: 1 June 30, 2021
EN TR

Dilemmas of Salafi-Wahhabi Discourse in the Context of Takfir, Tashbih and Tajseem

Abstract

The Wahhabi movement, which was established by Muhammad b. Abdulwahhab (d. 1206/1792), spread in a short time with the support of the state, first in Najd, Hejaz, and other regions of Arabia, and then in the whole Islamic world with financial support. Although this movement attributes itself to the Selef, studies show the pioneers of today's Salafi-Wahhabites are Abdullah b. Wahb (d. 38/658) the leader of the Kharijiyya which is also known as the Wahbiyya movement, Muhammad b. Karram (d. 255/869), founder of the Karramiye school which is based on anthropomorphist/corporealist (attributing bodily properties to God) and the assimilationism (ascribing attributes to God that are shared by created beings) and in the later period Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328) and one of his students Ibn al-Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 751/1350). An invitation to the Qur'an and Sunnah against the sect fanaticism; whose first cores were seen from Ibn Taymiyya; became a state policy with the joint activities of Muhammad b. Abdulwahhab and the Saud Dynasty, and within the framework of this understanding all creed, fiqh, and mystic sects and traditions were opposed. Many violent groups have emerged as a result of this Wahhabi movement. One of the imams of the Kaaba, al-Gamidi, describes the scholars of the Ahl-i Sunnah as “polytheist grave worshippers who offers shirk” and lists the names of the scholars that have adopted this creed; ranging from Imam Ghazali (d. 505/1111) to Imam Suyuti (d. 911/1505); accusing them to be heretics. The trend of Salafi-Wahhabism started with the claim of allegiance to the Quran and the Sunnah; by leaving aside the tradition of 14 centuries and labeling it as the "religion of the ancestors"; entails belief principles that are reflected in the ISIS organization and have become the source of new dilemmas and crises today. Another problem of the Salafi-Wahhabi movement is their anthropomorphist/corporealist and assimilationist belief, which they become a part of by reading mutashabih expressions in the nass (words of the Quran and Hadith) with their literal meaning. Tajseem is the embodiment of Allah, attributing bodily properties to Him and claiming that He is made up of parts, whereas tashbih is likening Allah to His creations. Examinations show that Ahmed b. Hanbel (d. 241/855) and his predecessors had no belief in tajseem and tashbih. Ibnu'l-Cevzî (d. 656/1201), one of the imams of the Hanbali sect, argued that this understanding of tajseem and tashbih; which was tried to be attributed to Ahmed b. Hanbal; was not the way of the Hanbal and Hanbalî Sect. To prove this, he wrote the book " Daf' Shubah al-Tashbih bi-Akaff al-Tanzih" and revealed that the tajseem and tashbih believes were not originally in Hanbelî thought but tried to be attributed to the Hanbelî sect later. From the time of Ahmed bin Hanbal to this day there have been many scholars that have opposed tajseem and tashbih and have provided evidence that this belief has no place in the Hanbali Sect. To see the degree to which it has reached in Salafi-Wahhabism we will be giving examples from Abdulaziz Ibn Bâz (d. 1999), Nâsıruddin al-Elbânî. (d. 1999), Muhammad Ibn Useymin (d. 2001), who are considered to be the leaders of today’s Salafi-Wahhabi school. In our article, we have chosen these three people as they are very important for the Salafi-Wahhabis. They value these leaders greatly and give great importance to their opinions so much that the fatwas in which these three leaders unite are accepted by some Wahhabîs as they are equal to ijma. Ibn Usaymin, one of the contemporary Wahhabi leaders, who is considered by the Wahhabis as the imam, claims that it is constant for Allah to suffer or go through His own suffering based on the literal understanding of the Quran verses and hadiths and that Allah has His own unique izari (cover worn on the bottom) and rida (cover worn on the top). Ibn Bâz the former chief mufti of Saudi Arabia, highly respected by the Wahhabîs, also claims that Allah has a unique shadow based on the literal understanding of the nass, but that its arbitrariness is unknown and that this belief belongs to Ahl-i Sunnah wa'l-Jamaat. Here, the biggest dilemma of the Salafi-Wahhabis is that they relate their views and expressions, which include tajseem and tashbih, to their Salaf scholars. In this article, we have analyzed whether Salafi-Wahhabism; which tries to attribute itself to the Ahl-i Sunnah wa'l-Jamaat; is correct and appropriate in the context of the belief of takfir (excommunication) and tajseem. In our article, we used comparative and explanatory methods from qualitative research techniques.

Keywords

References

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Details

Primary Language

Turkish

Subjects

Religious Studies

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

June 30, 2021

Submission Date

February 20, 2021

Acceptance Date

June 8, 2021

Published in Issue

Year 1970 Volume: 21 Number: 1

ISNAD
Tığlıoğlu, Mehmed Zahid. “Tekfir, Teşbih Ve Tecsim Bağlamında Selefî- Vahhabî Söylemin Çıkmazları”. Marife Dini Araştırmalar Dergisi 21/1 (June 1, 2021): 205-229. https://doi.org/10.33420/marife.883987.