Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab
Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab was born in the town of Uyaina to a highly
respected and religious family. In keeping with his family tradition, he
exhibited a keen interest in religion and was profoundly perturbed by
contemporary deviations from Islamic teachings which included serious
deviations from the teachings of the Prophet, (Sallallaahu Alayhi Wasallam).
He therefore undertook to bring about a revival of Islam in its simplest and
original form. Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab did not found a new sect. His sole
purpose was to re-establish Islam in its purest form.
His forthright sermons led to his persecution. When he and his family were
driven out of Uyaina, Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab sought the protection of
Muhammad bin Saud, in Ad-Dar’iyah, the home of the House of Saud.
Muhammad bin Saud and Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab found they had
interests in common, pre-eminently a desire to see all the Arabs of the
Peninsula brought back to Islam in its simplest and purest form. In 1744,
they therefore took an oath that they would work together to achieve this
end. Muhammad bin Saud’s son, Abdul Aziz, married the daughter of Imam
Muhammad. Thus, with an oath and a marriage, the two leaders sealed a pact
between their families which has lasted through the centuries to the present
day.
Imam Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab died in 1792.