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One: My Level Of Eduction In Pakistan: I was born into orthodox Muslim family. Both my parents were not practicing Muslims but I did receive some religious education in our village Masjid by Hafiz Barkat. Education consisted of learning how to read the Arabic script of the Quran, which I was not keen on and did the best to avoid it and despite occasional beatings. I did not learn the method of reading Arabic script. Only religious interest I had was monthly Giyarweenh Mehfil hosted in our Masjid. That too was special effort for the Math-thahi distributed after the end of Mehfil. My knowledge of deen consisted of basics of Tawheed, belief in angels, Prophet-hood of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi was’sallam), judgment day, resurrection, being accountable for deeds, paradise, physical side of prayers, human-ness (i.e. Bashari’at) as well as Noorani’at of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi was’sallam), finality, historical event of Prophet Yusuf (alayhis salaam), the saga of Karbala, accounts of wars in connection with Prophet (sallallahu alayhi was’sallam), Apart from knowing these I had no real knowledge of my own belief. The knowledge I did possess of belief was imparted by elders and for which they did not have any evidence. It was mere repetition of what was heard from Scholars of Ahle Sunnat which they repeated and transmitted to me. Two: Immigration To England And Interest In Reading: I came to England at the age of around fourteen years but on the passport the age was lower. As a result of emigration I had English language difficulty and found it difficult to make friends. Being on my own and no real social event I began visiting my local library and began reading Urdu news paper. At that time my Urdu was very poor but regular visits to library helped me to improve my Urdu considerably. During these visits I learnt that library hosts an Urdu section of books which I explored and began borrowings books, starting with novels. Eventually I read all the novels and moved to books of history. The library hosted a very small section on Islamic history and Muslim history. I began reading these books and when this section was fully explored decided to venture into religious section. Religious section in the library does not particularly represent a particular sect rather it consisted of mixtures of books. I must point out that the library lacked books from Ahle Sunnat. Most of the books present were either written by Wahhabis, or Deobandi, or Shia, and Islamic side was not represented, if it was, I cannot recall ever reading anything which I would say represented Islamic position. Three: My Knowledge Of Other Sects: In those days my perception regarding Wahhabis was that they are insulters of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi was’sallam) and Awliyah-Allah. They do not celebrate birthday of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi was’sallam) and do not make dua for the deceased on every Thursday (i.e. Jumma-rat Khatam), do not believe in Awliyah-Allah, do not host monthly Giyarweenh gatherings in their Masjid. Regarding the Shia I only knew they loved Hadhrat Ali, Hadhrat Fatimah, Hadhrat Hassan, Hadhrat Hussain (Allah be pleased with them all) and that they beat themselves on every tenth Muharram. I had no knowledge of existence of Deobandi’s or Qadiyani’s or Pervezi’s nor was I aware of their beliefs. I had no idea about any other source of deen apart from Quran. My first recollection of word Hadith stems from a childhood discussion with a class fellow called Waseem, who was from Purana Akalgarh. I vaguely recall asking him are you Sunni or Wahhabi and he said I am Ahle Hadith. That’s my earliest recollection of word Hadith but I had no idea what Hadith was until after coming to England. Looking back at that time all my friends; Waseem, Naveed, Asim Khan, Saleem, Khurram Riyaz, Mehboob and Jaleel were Wahhabi’s. There was reason for this because Aziz Public School was situated first in Deep Purana Akalgarh which is Wahhabi part of Islamgarh. Then it was moved to another area called Mehtay-na Mura but again it was deep in Wahhabi territory. But I recall there was no religious discussion between us friends hence no influence. Four: Recollections Of Disputes With Wahhabis: My first recollection of discovering that there is bone to pick with Wahhabis with regards to our difference was when Asim Nazir’s father died in a car accident two more passengers. The three bodies were sent back home uncle Nazir was Muslim and resident of our village; Murra Rathiyan, but the other two who were relatives of uncle Nazir but were Wahhabis in belief. If I recall correctly they were from Hyderabad. When the bodies arrived back home the issue of funeral was contended and brothers of uncle Nazir wished his funeral not be lead by a Wahhabi Maulvi. But the relatives of the other two wished for a single funeral for the three and plans were to have the funeral in Hyderabad. Implications of which would have been Wahhabi Maulvi leading funeral prayers which the Muslims resented. Yearly Milad march started from main bazar near the GolChok and marched toward Hafiz Ishaq’s madrassa near Chungi. Then turn back toward GolChok once it reached GolChok it took right turn and via Mehtay-na Murra route went deep into Purana Akalgarh for Fatiha at a buzurg’s tomb. Purana Akalgarh being epic centre of Wahhabism in Islamgarh had problem with this visit by Muslims. There according to elders fight use to break out between Muslims and Wahhabis but this was not something which I witnessed. As a child I use to be part of the Juloos and the Juloos as accompanied by police to ensure security and harmony. There I remember being told by elders to avoid going to Purana Akalgarh with Juloos due to chance of sectarian violence. Five: Developed Interest In Islamic Literature: My religious education/interest began after I read several books from library and it was this time I became familiar with what Hadith is and what Bukhari/Muslim and other Hadith books are. Understanding what the content of these books is, I borrowed volume three of Sahih bukhari [it was only one on the shelf] all others were out. I enjoyed reading it so much that I never returned it back and still is in my possession, and as a result I had to pay for the volume. Also read other books but it caused a lot of confusion because the library hosted books of every sect and every view point. Reading all these different view points on same topics and not realizing that these view points are sectarian differences being presented by different sects, I came to reconcile the confusion with; deen is complex, cannot be understood by likes of me, i am a commoner and only top class intellects properly understand deen. Up till then I had read books of Islamic history, books of Fatwah, aqeedah, sectarian issues. Some of the books were already in the house because of my Taya Abdul Aziz [founder of Aziz Public School in Purana Akaalgarh - which I attended]. After he had passed away my Taya Muhammad Najeeb kept his older brothers books and stuff as memrobilia which managed to get my hands on and read. Up to leaving from Derby Moor Community School I relied on Pear Tree library for religious material and until then my religious leaning was non-sectarian and I was not aligned with a sectarian label. But after leaving DMCS in 1998 all this changed and my sectarian label became defined in Wilmorton College. Six: Learning About Islam And Christianity And Giving Dawah To Christians: Leaving DMCS I attended to Wilmorton College in Derby. In the college all of my friends associates were orthodox Muslims - but nothing of sectarian issues were ever discussed. This is where internet became available to me. With internet on my side the limit of research was only my imagination and ability. I cannot recall why or how I became interested in Islam and Christianity issue but i did. A lot of time was invested in researching the differences and learning to refute Christianity. Enter, late Sheikh Ahmed Deedat (rahimullah alayhi ta’ala), some how I stumbled upon website dedicated to his material - and his small book Combat Kit became my fave read and study guide along with his speeches and debates. Not being content with just listening to them I began barrowing them from Noor's shop [was close to Gurdwara in Normanton - now closed] Eventualy I started purchasing these videos from the same rental shop. Empowered with this knowledge began debating on online forums and giving dawah. With dawah came the draw back having to bear the criticism of Christians against Islam. Not being trained to process information and deduce conclusions and carry out research I was entirely on the mercy of research of others. As result I was introduced to various websites dedicated to answering christian criticism of Islam, to name few UnderstandingIslam, IslamicAwareness, MostMerciful, Bismikaallahuma, AnsweringChristianity, and a directory like website Sultan.org. These websites were the major websites but there were some less prominent ones - one of them was run by Abdul Raheem Green [a Christian convert to Wahhabism]. The field of giving dawah to christians was/is lead by Wahhabis. Two Christians I discussed often in college was Ruth/Judith [one of the two names] and Chris - drowned around 2008 without having the fortune of becoming Muslim. I would say, my internet associates, apart from Usman Sheikh [contributed articles to Bismikaallahuma on NT - long ago quit] everyone was Wahhabi but nothing was discussed between us. Seven: Crisis Of Loss Of Love And Finding New Direction: During my discussions with Christians I had to bear with a lot criticism/disrespect directed toward Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam) and this had a negative effect on my love for the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam). Hadith of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam) states a Muslim is not momin until he loves me more then his children, wealth, wife, parents and anything else. I came to realize that giving Dawah to Christians has removed this love from my heart. When someone insulted my parents or any member of family naturally I felt anger but when the Christians insulted/disrespected Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam) my response was mute and did not contain the ghairat e imaani which a Muslim with untainted heart has. I began to think about why this changed occurred and realized that originally like all Muslims I had the fire of ghairat e imani in me but consistently being exposed to criticism and disrespect of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam) I have become desensitized in this regard. It was then that I decided to withdraw from preaching to Christians and preserve my Iman and purity of heart. After withdrawing from this field I decided to channel my energy into learning about Islamic creed. Note this was time when my religious knowledge about creed of Islam was bare minimum. One Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) who is not like His creation, sent Prophets, the last/final being Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam). There will be judgment day, accountability, leading to hell or paradise, reward or punishment and angels. And also believed Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was'sallam) was Noor e mujasim [i.e. Noor as Human] apart from this my knowledge of aqeedah was zero and the little i know was from word of mouth with no one ever discussing from Quran/Hadith. In this back drop I began to research material for aqeedah. At that time I had little to no knowledge of differences in creed of Muslims and assumption was all are Muslims and will have same aqeedah. Eight: My Spree Of Reading Books On Creed: With this mind set the very first book I read on aqeedah was Kitab at-Tawheed of Khariji Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab the Najdi. This book was followed by English translation of Taqwiyat Ul Iman written Ismail Dehalvi [a man who deliberately disrespected Prophets and Awliyah in this book] and published by Darussalam - Wahhabi publishers. I was advised I read the Urdu version of Taqwiyatul Iman and it was gifted to me by some brother from net. It had Taqwiyatul Iman (by Ismail Dehalvi), Takzira Al Ikhwan (by Ismail Dehalvi), and Nasihat Al Muslimeen (by Khuram Ali Bolahri). Studied, Qawaid Al Arba (i.e. Four Principles), Asool as-Salatha (i.e. Three Principles), Nawaqid Al Islam[1] (i.e. Nullifiers Of Islam), Creed Of Hamawiyyah, and Creed Of Wasatiyyah. All these books had major effect on my creed but Kitab at-Tawheed and Taqwiyatul Iman greatly effected my understanding of what ‘real’ Tawheed and Shirk are. The authors of these books expressed Tawheed and declared Shirk, in such and such a belief/creed. Another book which I read was written by Palan Haqqani's [Deobandi] book Shariah Not Ignorance [Urdu: Shariat Ya Jahalat - literally, Shariah Or Ignorance]. These three books laid the foundation of my deviation. Please note, even though these books presented a sectarian point of view. Kitab at-Tawheed employs Khariji methodology of Shirk and with its aid judges everything Shirk irrespective of if it is Shirk or not in true Islamic sense or not. Taqwiyatul Iman employed same Khariji methodology of Shirk and result was countless non-Shirk acts were declared Shirk. Despite this both these books did not declare their sectarian background nor did these books mention the sect which they are targeting. Due to absence of mention from which angle these books are being written and who is the target of these books, these books are taken by the readers as representation of Islamic belief. So what would a gullible reader know whose sectarian perspective he is reading and if this perspective is compatible with Islamic teaching or not. The gullible Muslim goes to shop with good faith and reads the name of the book and with good intentions purchases and reads it without ever realizing the misguidance he has made part of his belief. These books provide no clue to which sect is indoctrinating them and gullible Muslim is indoctrinated into Wahhabism – which is a offshoot of Kharijism. Unfortunately I was one of those gullible Muslims who fell into trap of these books and these books succeeded in indoctrinating me with Khariji methodology of determining Shirk and Kufr. Programing my self with Khariji literature I began to search for like minded people and material which compliments what I had read and to promote what I had learnt. Since I had given up the aspirations of being a preacher to Christians. I had to find a new interest and new cause with which I could promote Wahhabism as well as benefit Muslims via that cause. Nine: Jhangvi MSN Community And Discussions With Its Members: On MSN communities there was a Deobandi community named Jhangvi named after the firebrand Deobandi Haq Nawaz Jhangvi. It was here where my beliefs about Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) being Noor being sent as human were challenged and first time I became aware that these beliefs are not compatible with the beliefs of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab and Ismail Dehalvi. I was told this is the belief of Barelwi’s and Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhabm, Ismail Dehalvi etc. … were all against the Barelwi’s and informed that books Kitab at-Tawheed, Taqwiyatul Iman were written in refutation of the Shirk of Barelwi’s. I recall during a discussion I was told Barelwi’s believe Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) was not a human being but they believe he was Noor. In response to which I replied but I believed he was a human being and Noor and so did my family therefore it doesn’t make sense you saying this. But discussion dragged along and Satan made me forget and coated over the truth with falsehood. Then they quoted me verses of Quran and said, see Quran says he is human like us and the Barelwis believe he is not. I conceded the error of Barelwis on this topic and agreed with the Deobandis. Subjects of Ilm Al Ghayb and Hadhir Nazir were also discussed with the members of Jhangvi community and on both subjects I had agreed with their understanding at the end of it. Regarding different types of Tawassul my mind was already made up after I had read Kitab at-Tawheed and Taqwiyatul Iman hence there was no need to discuss. Number of points which enabled to me determine my position on these issues. Dua means to call, to invoke, to call, to supplicate. Dua is worship. Now the subjects, asking help directly from deceased – Shirk. Asking the deceased to make Dua on your behalf – Shirk. Judged to be Shirk solely on the basis that deceased is being called upon to help which makes the call as worship which is Shirk. At that time I did not have any problem with directing Dua to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) but mentioning a Nabi or Wali, like: ‘O Allah grant me a son because I am your servant and I love the Prophet you sent as the last/final Prophet and I have accepted him as a Prophet from you. So O Allah I invoke you and do not disappoint me.’ But later on through discussions online I came to understand this understanding was incorrect and Ismail Dehalvi made mistake in this regard. I was told, this is also Shirk because this type of Tawassul was similar to how polytheists invoked Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) through their idol gods. Ten: How Some Of These Books Effected My Belief: It would be good idea to actually briefly state how Kitab at-Tawheed and Taqwiyatul Iman greatly changed my world view. It is important to point out that not all the points I will mention have been explicitly stated in Kitab at-Tawheed. I quite frequented PalTalk and often discussed and listened to speeches by ‘brothers’ who explained Kitab at-Tawheed. Their explanation helped me to realize to whom the vague parts of Kitab at-Tawheed apply and anything which I state which is not mentioned is likely to be from those discussions if not then from forums. After reading Kitab at-Tawheed I came to believe to wear Taweez is Shirk and to slaughter an animal on the name of anyone other then Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is Shirk. And it was applied upon – the common mans vow/nazr: ‘I will sacrifice a goat in the name of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Al Jilani (rahimullah) if Allah granted me a son.’[2] I was told because they say they will sacrifice the animal on the name of deceased they commit Shirk and they said the meet of such animal is Haram.[3] Also to vow, to perform a act of worship/charity with intention to gift the reward to a deceased person was deemed as vow to other then Allah which was understood to be Shirk. To say: ‘O Messenger Of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam)!’ Or to say: ‘O Ali (radiallah ta’ala anhu) help!’[4] In addition to this I came to believe that people excessively respecting/loving the pious people resulted in Muslims falling into Shirk hence the Prophets/Saliheen should be treated as they are ordinary human beings and emphasis should be placed on their being ordinary to ensure people do not make them equals with Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala).[5] I learnt to apply the verses revealed for polytheists upon Muslims in order to establish Shirk of Muslims. This methodology was of Khawarij according to Abdullah Ibn Umar (radiallah ta’ala anhu) and the modern Khawarij the leader of whom is Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab employed exactly same methodology in Kitab at-Tawheed. Also the concept of blocking the means to Shirk was learnt which means anything that can lead to Shirk should be discredited and destroyed if it is possible.[6] Read footnote 4 for demonstration of what was and is done to block the means to Shirk. Also came to believe that the Muslim majority is engaged in worship of idols (i.e. graves, Awliyah-Allah, Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) and those who are worshipped beside Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) are Taghoot.[7] Eleven: I Believed Muslims Worship Idols: In addition to this I also came to believe some members of Ummah of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) will worship idols. Even though we officially believed in some members of Ummah yet me and my co-religionist – Wahhabis lived a contradiction and those who follow this sect continue to live this contradiction. is believe majority of Muslims are guilty of [major] Shirk and they continue to do so and I fondly quoted the verse: “Most believed not in Allah except that they associate others with Him.” [12:106] Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhabi employed this verse in his Kitab at-Tawheed and Ismail Dehalvi in his Taqiwatul Iman.[8] This verse is often used to justify the charge of [major] Shirk levelled against Muslims because the Muslims. Educated Muslims argue that we believe in Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) hence we are not guilty of Shirk so Wahhabis like me quoted this verse to say, yes you do, but not without associating partners with Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). Hence you are no different from the polytheists of Makkah. Once the knowledge learnt was forgotten and I like all Wahhabis began to interpret or understand Quran by itself – taking the literal meaning of verses in discussion Wahhabis come to and I came to believe majority of Muslims were guilty of Shirk. In fact Ismail Dehalvi wrote, [belief in] actual Tawheed is a rare but most of the people do not understand meaning of Tawheed and Shirk, and yet claim to have faith but in reality are trapped in Shirk. He continues to write about various qualifies which will make a Muslim Mushrik in his warped definition and understanding of Shirk, and end with saying, someone in time of difficulty invokes the name of someone, someone in his during his speech takes an oath of another, point is that what ever a Hindu does in relation to his idols, all this is done by those false Muslims to their saints, prophets, imams, matyrs, angels and fairys, and yet claim to be Muslim. Then he writes praise be to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) and writes, with that mouth and and their this claim [of being Muslim], Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) said truly in Surah Yunus, and then he quotes the verse quoted above. In other words, he stated majority doesn’t know Tawheed and Shirk, yet claim to be people of faith. Implications of which in the context of chapter is that majority is only claiming to be Muslim but in reality isn’t. He then writes qualifiers which point why in his beliefe the majority is guilty of Shirk or Mushrik. He then states with their polytheistic mouth they claim to be Muslims, and reality of this majority is that most of them do not believe in Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) accept that they commit Shirk. Implication of which is obvious that according to him and Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab majority of Muslims are Mushriks. In the same chaper after he quotes 12:106 he goes on to present excuses which he says Muslims present in defence of their [polytheistic] belief and in response to which he writes, in presence of RasoolAllah (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) the disbelievers said such things and Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) did not accept nothing from them (i.e. of their excuses why they have polytheistic beliefs and actions) and Allah was displeased with them and declared them liars hence in Surah Yunus Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) said, and they worship besides Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) that which does not benefit nor does any harm and say they are our intercessors to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) and say do you tell Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) which He does not know, He is unique in heavens and earth, from those which they attribute to Him. [10:18] Implication here is that Ismail Dehalvi has stated, majority of the Muslims worship others beside Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). Just from this first chapter I learnt that the majority of Muslims are unaware of what Tawheed and what Shirk is. And Majority of Muslims commits acts which nullify their belief in Islam yet despite they claim to be Muslims. I also learnt those who claim to be Muslims make excuses in defence of their belief like the polytheists made for their own beliefs and lastly but not least I learnt that majority is guilty of worshiping others beside Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). Twelve: Manual Of Takfir And Killing: Without going to too much detail about lessons learnt from his books I can summarize. Taqwiyatul Iman is basicly a gold mine for those who look for reasons to declare Muslims as Mushriks. Ismail Dehalvi wrote, qualifiers of Shirk, these qualifiers consist of everything a orthodox Muslim does. Hence every practice of Muslims is stated to be Shirk in one sense or another. And one who studies this book comes to conclusion that the [vast majority of] Muslims are in fact Mushrik and he and his co-religionists are only true monotheists. After this realisation the Takfir of [vast majority of] Muslims is easy, like one, two, three, for Phd holder. Another note worthy quality of this book is that it is a master piece of insults and disrespect directed toward Prophets and Awliyah of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala).[9] Once studied there is no doubt in my mind that a person would have any love and respect left for Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) in his heart. This book is death sentence to love and respect of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) and Awliyah of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). And if you are involved in religious discussions on internet forums, you might have heard Wahhabi/Deobandi members equating Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) to a postman, or having no greater position in deliverance of message of Islam than a postman has in delivering a letter.[10] In fact years ago, in my search for pure Islamic teaching I visited a Wahhabi website which had the following statement: “As for the authority of the Sunnah, then it must be understood that the role of the Prophet Muhammad (S) was not as a mere postman who, after delivering his letter, has no concern with it whatsoever. The Messenger was not sent just to deliver the Book of Allah, but to expound it and demonstrate a practical example of its contents.” [Ref: AllaahuAkbar.net, scribd] Note even though the author of this statement is actually refuting the: understanding that role of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) was no greater then postman, he has still not done away with the postman label. Please pay attention to his words, Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) was not as a mere postman. In this sentence the word mere has been used in meaning of; just, only and simply. In other words according to the author he was not just/only a postman but was something else also and he states it was his duty deliver the message [as a postman] and to explain it. So note that apple hasn’t fallen further from the tree of Wahhabism and Taqwiyat Ul Iman. Shade of which is disrespect and insulting the Prophets and the friends of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). One of the most valuable and lesson learnt reading Ismail Dehalvi was from his book Tazkiratul Ikhwan and for which evidence of Quran and Ahadith was available hence I have not abandoned it. This lesson was regarding definition of innovation. In the mentioned book he explained that definition of innovation has been classifed as good innovation and evil innovation by one group of scholars and the other has determined there is only one type of innovation – without going into detail of good and bad innovation – and according to these group of scholars – innovation is evil by default hence specifics are not required. In this book he also emphatically states, To eliminate Shirk, was the reason for which the Quran had descended and the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) fought the disbelievers and now in this [Shirk] Muslims have fallen into.[11] Thirteen: MAW Written Material And What It Taught Me: Coming Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab’s booklet, four fundamental principles. In this booklet he basicly argues polytheists against whom Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) fought, they believed in Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) despite this they were not Muslims. In second principle he states polytheists sought intercession of their gods and goes on to state intercession is of two kinds, permitted and prohibited. Permitted he states is one which is sought from Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) and where intercessor is permitted to interceed by Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) etc. Prohibited is which is sought from anyone other then Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) on matters which none has the ability perform except Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). In third principle he states, Arabs worshipped; Prophets, pious people, stones, trees[12], sun and moon. And states that Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) fought all of the polytheists without making distinction between any of the polytheists. Then he goes on to give proof for what he has stated. His first, second and third principles are actually a build-up to the fourth principle: “That the polytheists in our era (i.e. Muslims of Arabia and generally of entire world) are more severe in their (committing of) shirk than the first polytheists (i.e. who lived during Prophet’s time). This was since the first polytheists used to associate partners with Allah at times of ease and worship Him sincerely during times of hardship. However, the polytheist s in our era constantly commit shirk in times of ease as well as in times of hardship.” So basicly he laid the foundation of his charge of Shirk in the first three principle in fourth principle he declared the Muslims of entire world of being more strict in persuing Shirk then the polytheists of pre-Islamic era. In other words he considered the pre-Islamic era polytheists to be lesser polytheists then the Muslims of his time. Not just that, note he stated in principle three Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) fought the polytheists without sparing any excuse for any of them. So now in fourth principle he has declared the Muslims of being worse in Shirk then polytheists of pre-Islamic era – what is he implying? Spare the worse type of polytheists (i.e. Muslims) or fight them without making distinction between any of the so called Muslims? It is obvious that if fighting lesser polytheists was acceptable then fighting the greater polytheists would also be acceptable. And indeed his armies ransacked cities of Muslims and killed countless Muslims on basis of his these teachings and continue to do so under various ‘terrorist’[13] organisational names – such as Al Qaidah, ISIS, Boko Haram, Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan, etc. Robbed the Muslims of their property and dishonored their women with rape because they believed these women were women of polytheists hence to enslave them and to engage in sexual intercourse with them without Nikkah is permissible. Fourteen: Palan Haqqani Of Shari’at Ya Jahalat: Palan Haqqani’s book Shari’at Ya Jahalat – is basicly a further extention of belief of Ismail Dehalvi and generally Deobandism. In which he states the Muslims are worshipers of Peers/Pirs yet affirm the belief that Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is their God.[14] Also he accused the Muslims of subcontinent of not believing in Quran, or Hadith, or reliable texts of Hanafi Madhab. This is a sneaky way of Takfir of vast majority of Muslims in subcontinent and unfortunately I had swallowed all this without any objections. I also read some where in his book where he equated the majority of Muslims of subcontinent with following the footsteps of Jews and Christians. In order to justify the charge of Shirk levelled against Muslims. He stated the Muslims have common beliefs and practices which connect them with pre-Islamic Arabian polytheism and Hinduism of subcontinent. In other words he stated Muslims of India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Aghanistan are polytheists. Basicly Palan Haqqani presented the beliefs of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab found in his works but did add his own material and discussed subjects controversial in subcontinent as well. From reading his book it was clear to the influence of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab on him. For example he writes, idolatory started when people made replicas of pious to remember them, later Satan incited people to worship these.[15] Yet son Qari Muhammad Tayyib and great grandson of founder of Madrassa of Deoband and author of, Seerat Pak, writes emphatically that idolatory started from Kabah because it was so deeply revered as a sanctury of god. The people of Arabia took the stones from it and shaped them, and worshipped what they created. This history of idol creation and worship author of this book attributed to Tareekh Ibn Khalidoon.[16] The point I am making is that he ignored his traditional Deobandi position due to influence of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab. Over all this book reinforced my understanding of what I had read in, Kitab at-Tawheed, Taqwiyatul Iman, Tazkiratul Ikhwan. This book also pointed me to new direction – to subjects of Hadhir Nazir, Ilm Al Ghayb and due to earlier resistance and eventual surrendering of my judgment on Jhangvi MSN community regarding my understanding of these two topics. I took everything on board written on these two subjects. Also on Fiqhi subjects such as Mawlid, Urs, Isaal as-Sawab I surrendered my judgment citing lack of knowledge of Quran and Hadith, and personal lack of knowledge, and accepted his positions. Note he wrote numerous times in his book the Peer and the scholars who don’t know about Quran and Sunnah teach these things, and they are driven by earning wealth, hence they twist Quran and Hadith to promote these things to earn money. After reading this through out the book I had basically come to accept and agree with him. Imust have thought if the scholars don’t know as he is saying then what is my worth so it is best to just to accept his position. I vaguely remember reading book of Omar Bakri, leader of Al Muhajiroon organisation, [if I recall correctly] it was titled, Creed Of Ahlus Sunnah Wal Jammah. Basicly this book was composed of Wahhabi beliefs and stated which beliefs of it were in common with which sect. Reading it I came to realize according to Omar Bakri, Wahhabism has more in common with the Khawarij then any other sect. Through my studies after coming to orthodox Islam I agreed that core theology of Wahhabism which revolves around polytheism is of Khawarij. Fifteen: Confusion Regarding Dates Sorted: Readers who know about sectarian differences would have noted that I was reading books written by scholars of Deobandi and Wahhabi sects. There was a reason for this – I visisted PalTalk quite frequently where Wahhabis recommended that I read, Kitab at-Tawheed, Qawaid Al Arba, Taqwiyatul Iman in English, and Creed Of Hamawiyyah, Wasatiyyah, Kitab Al Iman, Al Ubudiyyah written by Ibn Taymiyyah. Even though I was reading books of Deobandi scholars as well but due to my associations with Wahhabis I inclined toward Wahhabism and adopted the label Wahhabi. Another point - the books I had read of Deobandi scholars did not contradict teaching of Wahhabism but rather both sects agree on the issues hence no contradiction was noticed. I took interest in disputes between orthodox Islam and Shia. Whilst carrying out research into disputes my attention was brought to Jhangvi group which hosted discussions on these subjects and this lead me to Deobandi website KR-HCY. On Jhangvi community after I had disputed with the members on some issues which I had not dealt with in the material I had read prior to this. Even though the issues were reconciled in their favour they recommended that I read, Palan Haqqani’s book; Shariah Ya Jahalat, and Urdu original of Taqwiyatul Iman. It has been over a decade – around fourteen years since I surrendered my Wahhabism in late 2001, and around ten years since I have given-up Deobandism – later part of 2005. Some aspects have confused me and I cannot place them in choronological order. Others I cannot recall precisely and I have aproximated and this includes numbers of years being influenced by Wahhabism. My hardcore Wahhabism years roughly numbered two years but if I count my two years of college then I was Wahhabi for about 4 years but this includes the roughly two years where I was naturalising Wahhabism. If I include my time spent on Jhangvi community and studying books due to the recommendation of Deobandi members till my conversion to Deobandism then time in Deobandism would be from 2000 to 2005. My official conversion to Deobandism took place sometime in 2002. Considering all this and generalising based on years then I was member of Wahhabi sect from 1998 to 2002 which amounts to four years of life being spent as Wahhabi. From official conversion which took place sometime in 2002 to leaving Deobandism sometime in 2005, my years in Deobandi sect are three. And finally from 2005 till 2016, or till of now, I have been Muslim for 10 years. Sixteen: When I Studied Material Of HT and Al Muhajiroon: Also do note, I did not investigate into matters of Fiqh/Madhab hence my Hanafi Madhab has remained constant throughout my life. Another thing, I cannot recall when I started reading material of Hizb ut-Tahrir (i.e. Khilafah Magazine) or when I studied, Constitution Of Khilafah. CoK was given to me by my associate Asif [he was/is member of Hizb ut-Tahrir] and he went through the material with me to explain ideology of HT. Hizb ut-Tahrir did not contribute anything toward my becoming Wahhabi therefore I am not going to state anything about this group. Al Muhajiroon was a Wahhabi group but I had no interest in their activities apart from their aqeedah material [by Amir and Bilal in WC] but influence of Al Muhajiroon was limited on me. So I was never really became a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir or Al Muhajiroon at any time of my life but did read material from both groups, more of Hizb ut-Tahrir then Al Muhajiroon. I found Hizb ut-Tahrir’s philosophy of establishing Khilafah interesting.[17] I also have jumbled some account. The earlier part of this account of my Wahhabism/Deobandism was intending to be brief. Just to inform readers of my past associations and sources of influence. I had no plan to write a comprehensive account so I crammed everything without putting everything in order and without specifying details. Now I have decided to write a comprehensive account hence the details contradicts the brief account and I have revised the material. I intended to finish Wahhabi and Deobandi episode on part ten, and then continue with how I became orthodox Muslim. But later decided against it and thought it would be good idea to state what I gained from Taqwiyatul Iman, and Kitab at-Tawheed. Even that I expanded to include other foundational material of Wahhabism – Qawaid Al Arba of Ibnul Wahhab and Deobandi Palan Haqqani’s, Shari’at Ya Jahalat. I do not claim this to be absolutely accurate account of my naturalization to Salafism and then to Deobandism but I have done my level best to put everything to pen truthfully and to best of my memory. Seventeen - You’re What You Eat And What You Read: As a result of reading books mentioned earlier and not mentioned I quitely engaged in preaching and promoting Wahhabist ideology over the internet but not through aggressive prostelzing but passive. I found best way of indoctrinating unsuspecting Muslims into Wahhabism was to use another cause as means of getting into a circle of people[18] and while their focus would be mutualy agreed cause I would gradually impart to them theology and philosophy of Wahhabism. Fortunately, due to passive method of prostelyzing I didn’t gain any converts to Wahhabism but must have influenced individuals with the Wahhabi thought. Those who were interested in learning about ugly side of Shiaism departed after experiencing my unreasonable amount of anti-Shia rehtoric and Takfir directed toward Shia generality and Shia scholarship. This was result of listening to likes of Mawlana Haq Nawaz Jhangvi, Mawlana Isar Ul Qasmi, Mawlana Zia ar-Rahman Farooqi, Mawlana Mohsin Raza Farooqi [he is a ex-Shia and convert to Deobandism], and Mawlana Ali Sher Haidri. A prominent feature in their lectures was to say: Kafir! Kafir! Shia Kafir! And the following was said right after the mentioned: Joh na manay voh bi Kafir! Meaning - one who does not believe [Shia are Kafir] that one is [also] Kafir. They often quoted what the Rawafiz had written in their books against mothers of believers - Hadhrat Aysha (radiallah ta’ala anha), and Hadhrat Hafsa (radiallah ta’ala anha). Also what the Rawafiz have written regarding the companions of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam), including Hadhrat Abu Bakr Siddeeq (radiallah ta’ala anhu), Hadhrat Umar Farooq (radiallah ta’ala anhu), and Hadhrat Uthman Ghani (radiallah ta’ala anhu). And what the Rawafiz wrote was so ugly, vile, flagrant abuse; anyone with spec of faith in their hearts would have been moved to tears and his emotions and judgment will agree with: Kafir! Kafir! Shia Kafir![19] I was also member of KR-HCY forum and to present united front against the Rawafiz we did not discuss/debate in public differences between Muslim, Deobandi, Hanbali Wahhabism and Wahhabi Ghayr Muqallideen. Eighteen – Becoming Disillusioned With Wahhabism – Group Of Satan: My becoming Wahhabi was not really a intellectual decision because circumstances and associations presented me with Wahhabi written material. Yet my decision to leave Wahhabism was based on achieving greater intellectual maturity and knowledge of Quran and Ahadith. I was first alarmed when I discovered the Ahadith about Najd which was quoted to me by a Muslim to refute me. Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) refusing to supplicate for region of Najd but supplicated for Syria and Yemen – stating group of Satan will emerge from Najd and afflictions will eminate from Najd. Upon investigation of Wahhabi position on these Ahadith I came to understanding Najd is in Iraq. Call it chance or Allah’s (subhanahu wa ta’ala) help. I found Hadith in which it was stated Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) fought in Najd, here. Implications of which were, if Najd is Iraq then Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) must have fought a war in Iraq but research into matter proved that region of Iraq was not attacked by Muslims in life of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) nor he fought in Iraq. Also I was told this Hadith was about Khawarij and they emerged from Iraq hence Najd is Iraqi city of Basrah and historically Basrh was part of Najd of Arabian Peninsula. When this was investigated, I learnt the first group of Khawarij did not emerge from Basrah but they seperated from army of Hadhrat Ali (radiallah ta’ala anhu) after battle of Siffin - 657, which took place in Syria.[20] And then in 658 Hadhrat Ali (radiallah ta’ala anhu) had fought Khawarij in Iraq at Nahrawan, near capital Baghdad. Putting it simply Khawarij emerged from Syria as a sect and not from Iraq. Iraq was the place of battle between army of Amir Ul Momineen Hadhrat Ali (radiallah ta’ala anhu) and Khariji army. It was the Iraqis who killed the Khawarij in battle at Nahrawan and this is attested by Hadith found in Muslim and narrated by Abu Said Al Khudri (radiallah ta’ala anhu), here. Realising this argument does not hold weight either in light of established facts. Upon further investigation into the subject of, group of Satan emerging from Najd, I found Ahadith which precisely pointed to a particular direction. Ahadith stated group of Satan will emerg from direction of East. I consulted the maps and realized city of Raqqah the place of battle of Siffin from where Khawarij emerged is due North of Madinah, hence it cannot be East. Also Baghdad was long way off direction of East. I was willing to be flexible to accomadate Basrah into East but my generosity wasn’t willing to allow absolute distortion – to include Baghdad into East, it was over stretching my generosity. And as I mentioned earlier Basrah even if allowed to be in East would not suffice because Khawarij emerged as a sect at Siffin. Investigating this subject yeilded more Ahadith, group of Satan will emerge from direction of sunrise, Prophet pointed from Minbar of Masjid Nabvi toward Hadhrat Aysha’s house while pointing to direction from where the group of Satan will emerge from. The first Hadith – of sunrise – sunrises from different place every day, changing from south east to north east then returning, from north east to south east. I narrowed down the region from where the group of Satan will emerge by checking the furthest region from where the sunrises between to extremities – roughly it was from northern border of Kuwait to western boder of Oman, as demonstrated here. Hence the region of group of Satan was between the northern and southern boundaries of sunrise. The Hadith which precisely pointed to direction from where the group of Satan would emerge was of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) pointing toward the house of Hadhrat Aysha’s to indicate the direction of East from where it would emerge. After locating the from where Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) pointed toward her house, I drew a straight line from his position to her house. Note her house is where Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) is burried in his heavenly abode and the out come was a line pretty precisely pointing to Riyadh. My research on this Hadith years later culminated into this article, here. Eventually I had a precise direction to which I could be little flexible with and viola I had my Najd. Note, Najd was always known and indicated on maps, it was and is Najd known to all, situated in central Saudi Arabia, and surrounds area around capital Riyadh, see evidence of it, here. Importance of Najd and its location was/is crucial to understanding the origin of Wahhabism. Another argument in defence of Iraq being Najd was that, in the Hadith of Najd from where group of Satan would emerge, the word Najd (i.e. raised, elevated land) is used in linguistic meaning and not as a name of locality or region. Logical response to this was, in that case Syria and Yemen could also be linguistic usage – hence Syria, Yemen could be any land that fits the linguistic meanings of these words. Also Najd could be any land in East, such as mount K2, Everest, or even highiest battle ground, Kargil. It was irrational that a region which was known by name (i.e. Najd), location (East Of Madinah, central Arabia), was not considered Najd mentioned in Hadith of group of Satan. Nor there was a president where Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) ever used a name of region for linguistic usage. Also I used topological maps available on internet to see if traditional location of Najd fits into linguistic meaning of Najd or did it fit on Iraq as my Wahhabi co-religionists believed and attempted to prove. My investigation to see if linguistic meaning fitted Iraq or central Arabian province lead me to believe location of Najd is in central Arabia – region surrounded by Saudi capital Riyadh and not Iraq. This understanding was later further cemented when I carried out thorough research into matter and the fruits of that labour were published in the following article, here. Note location of Najd is important because the founder of Wahhabism was born in Najd. Wahhabi sect emerged from Najd and accused Muslims of being worst then polytheists of pre-Islamic era. Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab legalised killing of Muslims under the pretext that they are disbelievers, looting of their property, and enslavement of Muslim women. Also English translation of Kitab at-Tawheed details of which I mentioned in footnote eight, on page ten claims to portray the condition of Najd[“], and on page fifteen under heading; impact of Dawah, states Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab fought struggled against Muslims of Najd until he gained victory in Najd[^]. This is explicit confirmation that Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab was Najdi. Once it became apparent to me that Wahhabi sect was strong contender for being the group of Satan which was to emerge from Najd, I was disillusioned but still held to Wahhabism for reasons unknown. I guess the reason Najd is in central Arabia and Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab’s Wahhabi sect emerged from it, must not have been concrete reason enough to leave it. Nineteen - Becoming Disillusioned With Wahhabism – Muslims Are Mushrik: Anyone who is familiar with Wahhabism will know that core teaching of its founder was; Muslims have fallen into major Shirk, they are worse in polytheism then the polytheists of Arabia, Tawheed had disapeared from Arabian Peninsula until Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab had reintroduced it. And as a result of these convictions Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab believed it is permissible to kill Muslims, take their property, enslave their men, women and children. Note even though I have used generic term ‘Muslim’ which does not specify a particular group of people. It should be noted his target was members of Ahle Sunnat - subcontinent’s equivlent is Barelwi. The foundation of all actrocities was the belief that Muslims have fallen into polytheism hence they are no longer Muslim – worse then disbelievers of pre-Islamic era. So I decided to investigate the claim that Muslims are polytheists. When I judged using the principles of Tawheed and Shirk learnt from Wahhabism I came to conclusion which these principles were primed to produce – these people were indeed Mushrik. It would be best to mentioned some principles to indicate what I mean. Words of Hadith, dua [directed to Allah subhanahu wa ta’ala] is worship, distorted and applied as: [every] dua [to the dead] is worship, and we all know worship of anyone other then Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) is major Shirk. Another, any help sought from one who does not possesses the means to grant what is asked from him/her is Shirk. In other words, ma fawq al asbab help sought from anyone is Shirk. In light of first mentioned principle, saying ‘Ya RasoolAllah!’ is Shirk because I have used harf e nida (i.e. words of call) and I have called upon ‘dead’ Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam). Therefore as per Wahhabism I am guilty of worshipping Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam).[23] The second principles basicly teaches that if someone does not possess power, ability, right, to grant something and one ask from him/her then such a person is guilty of major Shirk. Suppose I ask from, a friend right to enter paradise because he does not possess the right to grant entry to paradise, I have committed major Shirk according to Wahhabism. But often this principle is applied to asking from the dead. So asking help from the dead would be major Shirk.[24] Coming back to the subject – when ever I used the principles of Wahhabism I arrived at same understanding; Sufis are Mushrik. I cannot recall how or where I read/heard the Ahle Sunnats position that Muslim Ummah as whole will not committ major Shirk. Where as position of Wahhabism was that vast majority of Muslims have fallen into major Shirk and only a minority are upon Tawheed – this minority was none other then followers of Wahhabism. As a Wahhabi my position was clear to me, Ummah has fallen into Shirk, like Jews and Christians had fallen into Shirk, based on the Ahadith of, tribes of my Ummah will worship idols, here. Based on all the Ahadith used by Wahhabis it was clear to me that Muslims will worship idols according to Ahadith. During this period it dawned on me that scholars of Ahle Sunnat read the very same Ahadith, in Arabic, yet do not agree with Wahhabi understanding of these Ahadith. Was it because all of them were insanely jealous of true understanding of these Ahadith given by Wahhabis, or were they such staunch defiers of truth that they would not accept truth because they loved prestige they have due to being scholars of heretics? I came to conclusion, you know, Ali, some might be jealous, and some from them deny the Wahhabi understanding of these Ahadith because they have a status, but surely in hundereds of thousands of Muslim scholars there would be few who were honest, truthful, sincere in finding the truth, and they exhorted all effort to learn the real meaning of these Ahadith, and after all the effort and sincere search for the truth, they found their understanding to be correct. And how do I know the understanding which I hold to is the truth after all I am just believe what was told to me. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) stated in Quran, obey Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) and Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam), refer to people of authority, but when in dispute refer to Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) and his Messenger (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam), so based on this command of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) I decided to investigate the matter in dispute. So the very first aspect I investigated was, the Hadith referenced above, which idols does it refer to? Does it refer to deceased Saliheen, or their graves, or idols in true sense? Note, we used these Ahadith to argue the Muslims are worshiping idols and by idols we meant, graves and deceased Saliheen in those graves.[25] So I embarked upon this quest of finding the truth for my self and I was surprised. I found out that Ahadith which I have been using to mean graves and Saliheen burried in the graves, due to their generality in meaning, have been explained by other Ahadith, to mean idols such as Al-Lat, Dhi Al Khalasa, and Al Uzza. The following is article which establishes this position in light of Ahadith, here. The next was Hadith of Ummah of RasoolAllah (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) following the footsteps of Jews and Christians. After bit of pondering over the meaning and relating it to current state of affairs of Muslims – how they emulate the West in eating, sleeping, dress, behavioural habbits as well as desire and aspire to follow the morality of West, it became apparent to me that Hadith did not mean emulating them in polytheism but emulating them in their way of life. Note Hadith says, emulating both Jews and Christians, and their collective achievement is Western worlds present reality. A article was dedicated to explain in detail the understanding I arrived at that juncture of my life, here. The next point of contention was, that according to Wahhabism Muslims will worship idols but the scholars of Ahle Sunnat believed non-Muslim Arabs would revert to idolatory after a sweet cool musky wind blows which will take the life of Muslims, and I found the position of Ahle Sunnat to be substantiated from evidence of Ahadith, here. The following article is in support of article linked prior to it, here. So far it was clear to me that Wahhabis misinterpret the Ahadith to fit their own agenda and it was also apparent to me that at the very least no Hadith establishes major Shirk in the majority of Ummah of RasoolAllah (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam). Okay, addmitted the Wahhabis misinterpret the Ahadith but the correct understanding does not imply majority will not be guilty of major Shirk. Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) emphatically stated that Muslims will not worship others beside Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). When I subjected my Wahhabi understanding to test I came to realize that this is inclusive of all Muslims and not just Sahabah, here. I needed something to absolve the Arab Muslims from major Shirk. A statement of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) in which he stated Muslims of Arabia will not worship others beside Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). This would suffice and refute the claim of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab that Arabs were steeped into major Shirk in his life time, and it would be enough to refute his entire mission and his entire invented religion of Wahhabism. Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala) guided me to a Hadith in which Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) is reported to have said, by Allah Satan will not be worshipped in Arabian Peninsula. When I investigated the meaning of this Hadith in light of Quran I understood that Satan worship is synonym for idol worship. In other words idols would be not be worshipped in Arabian Peninsula. Based on the Ahadith of worship of idols by Arabian tribes, I uderstood Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) had made Takhsees of the general rule by stating tribes of Ummah will worship idols. Meaning idols would not be worshipped in Arabian Peninsula except until after the blowing of wind, except until after the death of all Muslims. Two articles dedicated to this understanding of Hadith of Satan not being worshipped in Arabian Peninsula are, here and here. Twenty – Why I Left Wahhabism: The entire foundation of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhabs movement was, Arabs have become Mushriks [even before the blowing of cool musky sweet wind which was to kill all Muslims] for this and these reasons. This belief of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab does not stand with teaching of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) because he has taught Arabian Peninsula will not see idol worship until after the blowing of wind and the death of all Muslims, and after this event Kuffar living in Arabia will revert to idolatory. So when I realised the contradiction between Wahhabism and teaching of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) I decided to choose the teaching of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) and gave up all teachings, all principles, of Wahhabism on which I use to judge all matters of creed. Simply because if the principle produces a teaching which goes against teaching of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) then just the teaching on its own isn’t incorrect but the principle which resulted this teaching also is incorrect. The legitimacy of Wahhabism was based on the thesis that Muslims are engaged in major Shirk in Arabian Peninsula. Yet there was to be no major Shirk in the belief of people of Arabian Peninsula until after the death of Muslims. Therefore I concluded Wahhabism was an irreligious Khariji rebellion against established Muslim tradition. After further investigation into the subject of Kharijism I learnt Wahhabi sect fulfilled all the prophecies of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) regarding the group of Satan of Najd. Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) had foretold, the group of Satan will kill Muslims, they will spare disbelievers, they will shave their heads, and their pants would be above their ankles. Also studied history of Wahhabi sect and found them fulfilling the details, such as killing Muslims, skin-head shaving, their out word adherence to Sharia being unrivalled compared to the people of their age/locality. Once it was clear to me that Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab was born in Najd, his Wahhabi band Ikhwan - original ISIS, emerged from Najd and did all the evil in Najd. I distanced my self from Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab’s killing of Muslims, looting property of Muslims, enslavement of Muslim men and women. As my understanding of definitions of Shirk/Tawheed developed from perspective of Ahle Sunnat and when I became familiar with various divisions in each subject my convictions became solidified – Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab and his band of terrorists and those who have germinated ever since were/are a branch of Khawarij. Due to my stern and out spoken nature I condemed his, and actions of those who followed him with strongest, harshest words I could mint with combination of Takfir, on PalTalk, in a Wahhabi disscussion group.[26] As a result I fell out with my PalTalk Wahhabi buddies and I then officially renounced my Wahhabism on Understanding-Islam forum and I have never looked back to regain my faith in Wahhabism. TwentyOne – Jhangvi Community The Arena Of Sectarianism: At the time when I abandoned Wahhabism as mentioned earlier I was already part of Jhangvi community and the envoriment of the community was such that we all strived to refute the Rawafiz and this required knowledge. To help me to acquire knowledge about the disputed subjects between Muslim, Deobandi, Wahhabi and Shia I was recommended to read Urdu books such as: Tohfa Athna Ashariyyah by Shaykh Abdul Aziz Muhadith Dehalvi (rahimullah alayhi ta’ala) Tareekhi Dastawaiz by Maulana Zia ar-Rahman Farooqi, Rad ar-Rawafiz by Mujadid Alif Saani Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindi (rahimullah alayhi ta’ala), and Radd Ur-Rifdha by Imam Ahmad Raza (rahimullah alayhi ta’ala). Hidayat Ush-Shia by Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri, and Irshad Ush-Shia by Sarfaraz Khan Safdar. Also I became embroiled in Muslim vs Deobandi, Wahhabi disputes – such as Noor & Bashr, Hadhir Nazir, Ilm Al Ghayb and these issues were resolved in favour of Deobandism. And also started to learn the legal status of disputed issues of Fiqh under guidance of Deobandis and with aid definition of innovation learnt from Wahhabis. I was told Barelwis are steeped in innovations and their practices have no evidence from Sunnah of Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) and following issues are innovations which the Barelwis have fallen into: celebration of Mawlid, various days appointed for supplicating for the deceased relatives – Dua of Thursday (i.e. Khatam Juma-raat), Dua of 4th, Dua of 10th, Dua of 40th, Giyarweenh (i.e. Dua on 11th of every Islamic month), Urs/Barsi (i.e. commemorating life of a Wali or Aalim - yearly), Dua after funeral (i.e. Dua Bad e Janazah), Konday[27], sending blessings upon Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) before the call of prayer (i.e. Salawat/Durud Qabl Azaan), supplication of Fatihah[28], and issue of reciting Salat upon Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa aalihi was’sallam) using non-prophetic Durud/Salat.[29] Also upon joining Jhangvi community I had also become familiar with Qadiyanis and their teachings and realised the disputes of Ahnaf of subcontinent with Ghayr Muqallideen (i.e. non-conformist Wahhabism of subcontinent) but issues of Ahnaf vs Ghayr Muqallideen were never studied in my Deobandism years. Jhangvi community as opposed to KR-HCY forum had no restrictions on what subjects can be discussed and it was Jhangvi community opened my eyes and introduced me to different sects and allowed me to gain knowledge about these sects through the lense of Deobandism.