Refutation of Wahhabism in the Nineteenth Century: Texts from the Islamic West as a Case Study

The book Al-Radd ‘ala al-Wahhabiyyah refers to two works by Hamadi Al-Raddisi and Asma Nouira, Tunisian scholars of Islamic studies and professors of political science. These works were published under the titles Al-Radd ‘ala al-Wahhabiyyah fi al-Qarn al-Tase‘ ‘Ashar (2008) and Al-Radd ‘ala al-Wahhabiyyah: Nusūs al-Sharq al-Islami (2012). This report, however, focuses on the first book, Al-Radd ‘ala al-Wahhabiyyah fi al-Qarn al-Tase‘ ‘Ashar. Written in Arabic, it comprises 336 pages and was first published by Dar al-Talia‘a in Beirut. A portion of the book, titled Innovators of the East, was translated into Persian by Kazem Hatami Tabari and published in 2016 by Mash‘ar Publishers in 208 pages.

The book is divided into two distinct sections. The first section, titled Al-Dirasah (The Study), provides an analytical overview of the correspondence between the Wahhabis and Islamic scholars. It consists of an introduction and five chapters: Chapter One, Rasa’il Aslam Taslam; Chapter Two, Al-Wahhabiyyah; Chapter Three, Responses of Tunisian and Maghrebi Scholars to Wahhabism; Chapter Four, Responses to Wahhabism in the Islamic World; and Chapter Five, Doctrinal Stakes. The second section contains writings of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, scholars from West Africa, and their responses. This structure aims to offer a comprehensive understanding of the intellectual exchanges and theological debates surrounding Wahhabism in the nineteenth century.