Exposing the Wahhaabies in their wrong

interpretations of the Qur`aan

Praise be to Allaah, the Lord of the worlds. The One Who protects the Religion by scholars who
implement their knowledge, who are humble and who are knowledgeable about Allaah. May Allaah
raise the rank of Prophet Muhammad sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, his kind Aal, Companions and those
who genuinely follow them. May Allaah protect the nation of Prophet Muhammad sallallahu ^alayhi
wa sallam from what Prophet Muhammad sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam fears for it. Thereafter: Allaah
ta^ala revealed in Al-Qur`an:

‫ن‬ ْ ‫خير ويأ‬ ْ َ ُ ‫ول ْت َك ُن من ْك ُم أ‬

َ ‫و‬ ‫ر‬ ‫م‬
ْ ُ ُ َ ِ َ ْ َ ‫ل‬ ‫ا‬ ‫لى‬ ِ ‫إ‬ ‫ن‬
َ ‫و‬ْ ‫ع‬
ُ ْ ‫د‬َ ‫ي‬ ‫ة‬
ٌ ‫م‬
ّ ْ ِ ْ َ
‫ف‬
ِ ‫و‬ ْ ‫عُر‬ ْ ‫م‬ َ ْ ‫ِبال‬
‫ن‬ ْ ْ َ َ ُ ‫عن ال ْمن ْك َر و‬
َ ‫و‬ْ ‫ح‬
ُ ِ ‫ل‬ ‫ف‬ ‫م‬
ُ ‫ل‬‫ا‬ ‫م‬
ُ ‫ه‬
ُ ‫ك‬ ِ ‫ئ‬ ‫ل‬ ‫أو‬ َ ِ ُ ِ َ ‫ن‬ َ ‫و‬
ْ ‫ه‬
َ ْ ‫وي َن‬
َ
Aayah 104 of Surat Aal-^Imraan (S3) means: “Let there arise from among you a group of people
who invite to righteousness, who command the obligatory and who forbid the unlawful. Those
are the ones who shall be successful”. In the aforementioned verse we are encouraged to speak out
against those who are acting unlawfully. In fact warning against the deviant and straying people is not
just recommended, but it is an obligatory matter. Also, since warning against the person who cheats the
Muslims in articles of trade is obligatory, it is even more important to warn against the person who
deceives others in what pertains to the religious rules. Sadly, there are people nowadays who claim to
be following the Prophet sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, but who are spreading misguidance throughout
the world. The Messenger of Allaah, sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam, warned us against such people as
was mentioned in the hadeeth related by Al-Bukhaariyy, Muslim and others:
َ ُ
‫م‬ْ ‫ه‬ ُ ْ ‫من‬
ِ ‫ف‬
ُ ‫ر‬ ِ ‫ع‬ ِ ْ ‫ن ب ِأل‬
ْ َ ‫ ت‬،‫سن َت َِنا‬ َ ْ‫مو‬ ُ ّ ‫ ي َت َك َل‬،‫جل ْدَت َِنا‬ ِ ‫ن‬
ْ ‫م‬ِ ‫س‬
ٌ ‫أَنا‬
،‫وت ُن ْك ُِر‬َ
َ ‫نأ‬َ َ
‫ها‬َ ْ ‫في‬
ِ ُ‫وه‬ ُ َ ‫قذ‬
ْ ‫ف‬ َ ‫م‬ ْ ‫ه‬ُ ‫ع‬ َ ‫طا‬ ْ ‫م‬ َ ‫م‬ َ ّ ‫هن‬َ ‫ج‬ َ ‫ب‬ ِ ‫وا‬ َ ْ ‫عَلى أب‬َ ٌ‫عاة‬
َ ُ‫د‬
This means: “There are people from our nation who speak the same language as we speak, but who mix
the truth that you know with the falsehood that you reject. They beckon to Hellfire and invite others to
their deviation. Those who obey them will be thrown into Hellfire.”
Hence, it is of utmost importance for the Muslim to investigate thoroughly about the person from
whom they acquire the religious knowledge. In the introduction to his book, As-Saheeh, Imam Muslim
narrated the saying of the highly respected follower of the companions, Muhammad ibn Seereen, who
said:

ْ ُ ‫ن ِدي ْن َك‬
‫م‬ َ ‫و‬ ُ ْ ‫ن ت َأ‬
ْ ُ‫خذ‬ ْ ‫م‬ َ ‫فان ْظُُروْا‬
ّ ‫ع‬ َ ‫ن‬ َ ْ ‫عل‬
ٌ ْ ‫م ِدي‬ ِ ْ ‫ذا ال‬
َ ‫ه‬
َ ‫ن‬
ّ ِ‫إ‬
This means: ‘This knowledge is religion, so look thoroughly into the one from whom you take your
religion’.
This pamphlet has been compiled principally to expose misinterpretations of the Qur`aan and
deceptions of people who claim to be Muslims of this ummah. It is not permissible for one to remain
silent against those who are trying to deceive the nation of Prophet Muhammad sallallahu ^alayhi wa
sallam. This is why the great Imaam ^Aliyy Abu Daqqaaq said, “the one who does not (while able)
voice the truth is (like) a mute devil”.

We ask Allaah to make this pamphlet of a widespread benefit.

May Allaah grant us a sincere intention and a good ending.
Let it be known that Allaah exists without place or direction. Allaah is not in one place and is not in
every place - and the question “where?” does not apply to Allaah. If anyone had a belief contrary to
what has been stated, then let them repent and immediately utter the Testifications of Faith
(shahaadatayn). Let them thank Allaah that they learnt the truth before they died. Moreover, remember
that Allaah does not need our worship and is not harmed by our disobedience.
We believe in every aayah of the Qur`aan just as it was revealed. However, we object to the
mistranslations produced by many individuals under the pretence of teaching people about Islaam. An
ignorant person may intend to do good, but often just do wrong as a result of his ignorance.
Take note that the distribution of so-called translations of the Qur`aan is not how Islaam was spread in
the past. Moreover, the Prophet sallallahu ^alayhi wa sallam did not just order for parts of the Qur`aan
or for the whole of the honourable Qur`aan to be distributed amongst the Arabs - even though the
Qur`aan was revealed in their language. Rather the Muslims taught the non-Muslims about Islaam and
as a result many thousands embraced this beautiful religion. Likewise the millions who embraced
Islaam in countries like Indonesia and Malaysia did not embrace Islaam simply as a result of a
translation of the Qur`aan being distributed amongst them in their language. Rather they embraced
Islaam after observing the good practices of the knowledgeable Muslim traders who visited those
places.
We accept that Allaah is attributed with Arabic terms like Wajh and Yad, but we do not accept that it is
correct to translate these terms as “a Face” and “a Hand”. Likewise we do not accept that it is
permissible to attribute Allaah with laughing, descent, a foot, fingers or legs, all of which are specific
attributes of the creation and not the Creator. To attribute Allaah with attributes such as laughing is
kufr. Despite this, these kufr statements are evident in a widespread so-called translation of the Qur`aan
produced by the Wahhaabies [see attachment]. Ibn Baaz, one of the leaders of this organisation, even
explicitly claimed: “Allaah has a limit, but that only Allaah knows His own limit” – and this is explicit
blasphemy (kufr), because it is like saying, “Allaah has a defect, but only Allaah knows His defect”.
Likewise it is blasphemy to say that “Allaah has legs, but not like our legs” or to say, “Allaah has a son
who is not like our sons”. Note that the previous statements are not the same as saying “Allaah has
knowledge that is not like our knowledge”. One can say “Allaah has knowledge” and stop at that.
However, one cannot say “Allaah has a son” or “Allaah has a Leg” – and subsequently just say, “but
not like our sons or our legs”. This latter statement does not clear them of their blasphemy because the
terms “son” and “a leg” are inherently non-befitting to be attributed to Allaah, while this is not true of
the term “knowledge”.
In summary, the Wahhaabies, who claim to be Muslims, hold kufr beliefs about Allaah and these are
clearly manifested in their so-called translations that appear in the English language. For the sake of
unity within our communities, it is not acceptable to neglect warning against these people. If someone
was deceiving one’s father in what pertains to the worldly matters, it would not be acceptable for one to
remain quiet. It is even more unacceptable to remain quiet about those who are deceiving and
misguiding others in relation to their religion. The unity that is encouraged in the religion is not
achieved by being unified in contradicting the fundamentals of belief, but by being unified in adhering
to the rules of the religion.
It is not an obligation upon every Muslim to know the meaning of every aayah and every hadeeth.
Thus if one is asked about a text that is claimed to have a meaning that likens Allaah to the creation,
then one must tell them that their interpretation is not valid. This is even if one does not know the
correct interpretation of the verse. It is not always the case that if one does not know the correct
detailed interpretation of a particular verse that one is blameworthy.
If a person has even one incorrect belief about Allaah, such as thinking that Allaah is physically
everywhere or that Allaah has legs, then that person is a kaafir. The Wahhaabies attribute Allaah with
many human attributes and thus they are not considered as Muslims. Their widely distributed so-called
translations illustrate this very clearly. For example, in the interpretation of Surah Al-Baqarah (S2)
Verse 115, the Wahhaabies add comments to delude people into thinking that Allaah is above the
throne (see attachment). Moreover, the so-called translation of the Wahhaabies reflects insincerity and
misguidance on their part. For example, they firstly invent a rule that one must interpret literally all
Qur`anic verses pertaining to God’s attributes, i.e., without any ta`weel (“figurative interpretation”).
They then selectively apply this false rule to all verses which if taken literally might make a person
think that God is in the sky and that God has the shape of a man. On the other hand, when it comes to
verses that they consider to suggest that God is everywhere, they correctly give them a figurative
interpretation. In other words, they interpret figuratively those verses that they think imply that God is
not in the sky, (see their interpretation of Surah Al-Hadeed (S57) Verse 4, where they interpret the
literal statement, “He is with you wherever you are” as “with His knowledge”) and interpret literally
those verses that they consider to support their anthropomorphist views, (e.g. their interpretation of
Surah Al-Qalam (S68) Verse 42 where they claim that Allaah will lay bare His Shin – see attachment).
Another example of their deception in relation to the religious texts is their failure to translate a
narration in Saheeh Al-Bukhaariyy which goes against their ill creed. If someone were to understand
aayah 88 of Surat Al-Qasas (S28) according to one of its apparent literal meanings, he might say, “It
means everything vanishes except for the Face of God”. Clearly this is not an acceptable interpretation.
Al-Bukhaariyy interpreted it by saying that Wajh in the verse does not mean face, but means dominion
(control). However, the Wahhaabies in their so-called translation state that it means “Face” claiming
that these are the words of Imaam Al-Bukhaariyy. Their deliberate failure to translate the actual words
of Al-Bukhaariyy in this case is a clear deception on their part and an illustration of the danger of
relying upon these so-called translations.
Finally, if one were to imagine a person who literally translates English idioms like: “Give me a hand”
or “He is pulling your leg,” into other languages, there would be obvious errors in communication and
a conveyance of wrong meanings. Many people ignore such basic considerations when translating
religious texts into the English language. Hence, one needs to take great care when acquiring the
religious knowledge.
May Allaah protect us from being misguided and misguiding others.
Below are scans from a famous so-called translation of the Qur`aan. These existent examples
illustrate the dangers of not learning properly and relying upon such texts. Note that the red text
in the scans has been added.
Note: The above text makes a claim that the authors are sincere in their efforts. However, sincerity
alone is not enough. Consider that an idol worshipper does not think he is committing kufr whilst
worshipping his own handmade idol. Hence, not every sincere endeavour is rewardable – rather what is
rewardable and acceptable is what complies with the rules of the religion.
Below are scans from this very widely distributed so-called translation which attributes to Allaah
human qualities such as “laughing” and parts such as “Legs”!

Below is aayah 115 of Surat Al-Baqarah. If taken literally, this would erroneously be interpreted as
“Wherever you direct yourself, God is there”, or as “The face of God is there”! However, God is
neither in every place, nor in one place. God existed prior to creating the place and after creating the
place God still exists without a place. Moreover, Imaam At-Tabariyy narrated that Imaam Mujaahid,
the student of ibn ^Abbaas radiyallaahu ^anhu, said that wajhullaah in this aayah means qiblatullaah;
thus when you are riding an animal and want to pray the nafl (optional) prayer, then the qiblah
(direction of prayer) is the direction in which this animal is moving. Hence, almost a literal and a more
accurate translation would be, “Whichever direction you face in such a situation is owned by Allaah.”

In relation to the verse below, the scholars said istawaa can have 15 different meanings. But the
Wahhaabies only choose meanings like ‘sitting’ or ‘rising above’ etc, whilst ignoring the other possible
meanings. The correct meaning of the term istawaa in this verse is “qahara” (to subdue) or al-isteelaa`
(to subjugate) as was mentioned by Hafidh ibn Rajab Al-Hambaliyy. Hence, the meaning of this verse
is: the ^arsh is subjugated to Allaah. Also, there is a part of the same verse that if taken literally would
mean, ‘God is with you wherever you are’. However, the Wahhaabies do not take it literally and
correctly suggest that it means, ‘God knows about you wherever you are’. However, this highlights
their insincerity: they first claim that we should take all verses literally, but when the literal
interpretation goes against their ill creed, they make exceptions to their own principle.

Moreover, Shaykh Fakhr-ud-deen Ar-Raaziy, who lived over 800 years ago, mentioned in his Tafseer
about this verse that God is not physically with us wherever we are and that the ijmaa^ (unanimous
agreement of the top scholars) has been established upon the fact that Allaah is not with us in terms of
place, direction or occupancy.
The above text illustrates a mistranslation of a hadeeth and of aayah 42 of Surat Al-Qalam that refer to
a day of severe hardship. In this aayah the term saaq is used and this has been confirmed by the
companion ibn ^Abbas radiyallaahu ^anhu to mean ‘severity’ [shiddah]. This was narrated by Al-
Bayhaqiyy in Al-Asmaa` Was-Sifaat (pg 345). Despite this fact, the Wahhaabies claim that saaq in this
aayah does not mean severity, but that it means the Shin of Allaah!!
What follows are further examples of mistranslations that are transmitted under the illusion of sincere
scholarship. For example their claim that aayah 88 of Surat Al-Qasas shows that Allaah has a Face.
The Wahhaabies are fixated upon seeking out any verse that they believe will support their belief that
God has Hands, a Face and Legs etc. However, there are numerous proofs against their ill creed.
Amongst them is the clarification of the meaning of aayah 88 of Surat Al-Qasas (S28). Imaam Al-
Bukhaariyy clearly explains that the meaning of the Arabic term Wajh in this verse is not ‘face’.
However, the Wahhaabies attempt to hide this from the Muslims so as to give weight to their ill creed
of likening Allaah to a man. Below is a scan from their so-called translation of Al-Bukhaariyy:

In his ‘Saheeh’, Imaam Al-Bukhaariyy gave an interpretation of aayah 88 of Surat Al-Qasas (S28):

This literally means, “Everything will be destroyed, except for His Wajh”. However, Al-Bukhaariyy in
his chapter pertaining to the interpretation of Surat Al-Qasas interpreted Wajh to mean Mulk, i.e.
dominion (control) and it can also mean that which is done for the sake of earning reward from Allaah.
However, the Wahhaabies insist that this verse means, “Everything will perish except for the
Face/countenance of God”. The deceiving so-called ‘Salafies’ and so-called ‘Ahlul Hadeeth’, who are
part of the Wahhaabi movement, often attempt to misguide the Muslims in the issues of belief. A clear
proof of one of their deceptions can be obtained by viewing their so-called English translation of
Saheeh Al-Bukhaariyy. In this book they failed to reference this verse in the contents page and
furthermore they deceptively did not translate the saying of Bukhaariyy: illaa mulkah. One might ask,
“Why don’t they translate this?” The reason is that they claim that Wajh in this verse means the ‘face of
God’, and Imaam Al-Bukhaariyy says it does not mean this, but rather it means Mulk, i.e. dominion
(control). Moreover, they delude the English reader for whom this translation was prepared into
thinking that they are reading the translation of the Arabic text on the opposite side of the page.
However, the Wahhaabies simply mistranslate the verse and then neglect to mention the actual
narration of Al-Bukhaariyy. Above is a scan from volume 6, pg 278 of a so-called translation of
‘Saheeh Al-Bukhaariyy’ published in 1979. In some editions they write “His countenance”, which
means facial expression, and in some of their translations they write “Face of God” [See previous
page]. However, if one reads the Arabic one can clearly see that Imaam Al-Bukhaariyy interpreted
“except His Wajh” as meaning “except His dominion” and also “what is done for the sake of earning
reward from Allaah”, i.e. the reward of the good deeds done sincerely for the sake of Allaah will
always remain. The Wahhaabies, deceptively, did not translate any of this!
Once again, for whom are such English translations produced? They are generally produced for people
who cannot understand Arabic. Such people would read the English on the left side of the page and
erroneously think that this is the meaning of the Arabic on the right, whereas in the above example this
is clearly not the case. These people are tricking the Muslims in the matters of the religion and in
particular in the issues of belief. If they were truly Ahlul Hadeeth, then they would not ‘hide’ the
hadeeth. The reality is that the ahadeeth are a proof against them. Subhaan-Allaah, the deception of
these people is so great that in some recent editions of this book, they have removed both the Arabic
and the English! In conclusion, it is very clear that not only are the Wahhaabies misguided, but that
they are not even sincere in what they do. Sadly some people find it difficult to accept the fact that
these blasphemous (kufr) statements have been uttered by some famous personalities. However, one
should put all such concerns aside and focus upon the issues at hand. ^Aliyy radiyallaahu ^anhu said:
‘The people are known by the truth; the truth is not known because of who the people are’ - ‘know the
truth and you will know the people of truth’. Also note that this endeavour is not motivated by a
wish to cause fitnah in the community. The purpose is to protect it from fitnah and to `inshaa` Allaah
educate the people so as to enable them to judge the right from the wrong. If the bad things are left
without warning against them then they spread. And Allaah Knows Best.
‘Let there rise amongst you a
people who invite to the good
and forbid the evil’

Ramadaan 1429/September 2008

For further details email: info@knowthetruth.org.uk