WAHHAB, MUHAMMAD IBN 'ABD AL-

born 1703, 'Uyaynah, Arabia [now in Saudi Arabia] died 1792, Ad-Dir'iyah theologian and founder of the Wahhabi movement, which attempted a return to the "true" principles of Islam. Having completed his formal education in the holy city of Medina, in Arabia, 'Abd al-Wahhab lived abroad for many years. He taught for four years in Basra, Iraq, and in Baghdad he married an affluent woman whose property he inherited when she died. In 1736, in Iran, he began to teach against what he considered to be the extreme ideas of various exponents of Sufi doctrines. On returning to his native city, he wrote the Kitab at-tawhid ("Book of Unity"), which is the main text for Wahhabi doctrines. His followers call themselves al-Muwahhidun, or "Unitarians"; the term Wahhabi is generally used by non-Muslims and opponents. 'Abd al-Wahhab's teachings have been characterized as puritanical and traditional, representing the early era of the Islamic religion. He made a clear stand against all innovations (bid'ah) in Islamic faith because he believed them to be reprehensible, insisting that the original grandeur of Islam could be regained if the Islamic community would return to the principles enunciated by the Prophet Muhammad. Wahhabi doctrines, therefore, do not allow for an intermediary between the faithful and Allah and condemn any such practice as polytheism. The decoration of mosques, the cult of saints, and even the smoking of tobacco were condemned. When the preaching of these doctrines led to controversy, 'Abd al-Wahhab was expelled from 'Uyaynah in 1744. He then settled in Ad-Dir'iyah, capital of Ibn Sa'ud, a ruler of the Najd (now in Saudi Arabia). The spread of Wahhabism originated from the alliance that was formed between 'Abd al-Wahhab and Ibn Sa'ud, who, by initiating a campaign of conquest that was continued by his heirs, made Wahhabism the dominant force in Arabia since 1800.