Salafi Islamism

The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generations of Muslims, who are believed to exemplify the pure form of Islam. Those generations include the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his companions, whom he himself taught (the ); their successors (the ); and the successors of the successors (the ). In practice, Salafis maintain that Muslims ought to rely on the Qur'an, the and the (consensus) of the , giving these writings precedence over later religious interpretations. The Salafi movement aimed to achieve a renewal of Muslim life and had a major influence on many Muslim thinkers and movements across the Islamic world. Since its inception, Salafism has been evolving through the efforts of numerous Islamic reformers, whose interpretations have spread within various regions.

The Salafist doctrine is based on looking back to the early years of the religion to understand how contemporary Muslims should practice their faith. Salafi Muslims reject religious innovation or and support the implementation of (Islamic law). In its approach to politics, the Salafi movement is sometimes divided by Western academics and journalists into three categories: the largest group being the purists (or quietists), who avoid politics; the second largest group being the activists, who maintain regular involvement in politics; and the third group being the jihadists, who form a minority and advocate armed struggle to restore the early Islamic movement. In legal matters, Salafi Muslims are divided between those who, in the name of independent legal judgement (), reject strict adherence () to the four Sunni schools of law () and those who remain faithful to them, namely, the Saudi scholars, who do not follow any specific ''madhhab''.

In the contemporary era, Salafism refers to a cluster of different Sunni renewal and reform movements inspired by the teachings of classical theologians like Taqi al-Din ibn Taymiyya (1263–1328 CE/661–728 AH). The contemporary formed as a revivalist movement across the Muslim world during the late 19th century in the context of European imperialism and has remained a significant trend in Islamic thought for more than a century.

Syrian Islamic scholar Muhammad Rashid Rida (d. 1865- 1935) is widely regarded as the most influential scholar who championed conservative Salafi themes in the early twentieth century. Rida's religious orientation was shaped by his association with Syrian Hanbali and Salafi scholars who preserved the tradition of Ibn Taymiyya; these ideas would be popularised by Rida and his disciples, immensely influencing numerous Salafi organisations in the Arab world. Some Orientalist scholars of the early 20th century also described rationalist scholars of non-Salafi orientation such as Muhammad 'Abduh and Jamal al-Din Afghani as part of ''Salafiyya'', but this usage has become obsolete today, mainly because the rationalist scholars did not themselves adopt Salafi identity or its doctrines. Some of the major Salafi reform movements in the Islamic world today include the ''Ahl-i Hadith'' movement, inspired by the teachings of Shah Waliullah Dehlvi and galvanized through the South Asian jihad of Sayyid Ahmad Shahid; the Wahhabi movement of the Arabia; the Padri movement of Indonesia; Algerian Salafism, spearheaded by 'Abd al-Hamid Bin Badis; and others.

Etymology

Salafis consider the hadith that quotes Muhammad saying, "The best of my community are my generation, the ones who follow them and the ones who follow them." as a call to Muslims to follow the example of those first three generations, known collectively as the , or "pious Predecessors" ( ar, السلف الصالح, as-Salaf as-Ṣāliḥ). The salaf are believed to include Muhammad himself, the "Companions" (), the "Followers" (), and the "Followers of the Followers" (). Historically, the term ''Salafi'' as a proper noun and adjective had been used during the classical era to refer to the early theological school of .

Tenets

According to Bernard Haykel, "temporal proximity to the Prophet Muhammad is associated with the truest form of Islam" among many Sunni Muslims.

Salafis are first and foremost religious and social reformers engaged in creating and reproducing particular forms of authority and identity, both personal and communal. They define heirreformist project first and foremost through creedal tenets (i.e., a theology). Also important in its ''Manhaj'' (Arabic: منهج i.e. Methodology) are certain legal teachings as well as forms of sociability and politics.

The Salafi ''da'wa'' is a methodology, but it is not a ''madhhab'' (school) in ''fiqh'' (jurisprudence) as is commonly misunderstood. Salafis can come from the Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali, Hanafi or Zahirite law schools of Sunni ''Fiqh''. In theology, Salafis are highly influenced by Hanbali doctrines.GlobalSecurity.or
"Salafi Islam"
Global Security website The followers of Salafi school identify themselves as '' Ahlul Sunna wal Jama'ah'' and are also known as ''Ahl al-Hadith''. The ''Salafiyya'' movement champions this early Sunni school of thought, also known as traditionalist theology.

Salafis place great emphasis on practicing actions in accordance with the known ''sunnah,'' not only in prayer but in every activity in daily life. For instance, many are careful always to use three fingers when eating, to drink water in three pauses, and to hold it with the right hand while sitting.

Views on ''Taqlid'' (adherence to legal precedent)

The Salafi thought seeks the re-orientation of ''Fiqh'' (Islamic Jurisprudence) away from ''Taqlid'' (adherence to the legal precedent of a particular ''Madhhab'') and directly back to the Prophet, his Companions and the ''Salaf''. This preferred return to the pure way of the Prophet is termed "''Ittiba''" (following the Prophet by directly referring to the Scriptures). In legal approach, Salafis are divided between those who, in the name of independent legal judgement (''ijtihad''), reject strict adherence (''taqlid'') to the four schools of law (''madhahib'') and others who remain faithful to these.

Although Muhammad Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab (d. 1792 C.E/ 1206 A.H) had personally rejected the practice of ''Taqlid'', Wahhabi scholars favoured following the Hanbali ''madhhab'' and generally permit ''Taqlid'' in following ''Fatwas'' (juristic legal opinions) and encourages following the ''madhhabs''. While they doctrinally condemned ''Taqlid'' and advocated ''Ijtihad'', historically the Wahhabi legal practice was grounded mostly within the confines of Hanbali school, until recently. The doctrinal rejection of ''Taqlid'' by Wahhabis would lead to subsequent emergence of prominent Wahhabi ''ulema'' such as Sa'd ibn 'Atiq, Abd Ar-rahman Ibn Nasar As Sa'adi, Ibn 'Uthaymin, Ibn Baz, etc.; who would depart significantly from Hanbali law.

Other Salafi movements, however, believe that ''taqlid'' is unlawful and challenge the authority of the legal schools. In their perspective, since the ''madhhabs'' emerged after the era of '' Salaf al-Salih'' (pious predecessors); those Muslims who follow a ''madhhab'' without directly searching for Scriptural evidences would get deviated. These include the scholars of ''Ahl-i Hadith'' movement, Muhammad Nasir Al-Din al-Albani (d. 2000), Muḥammad Ḥayāt al-Sindhī (d. 1163)
Ibn 'Amir al-Ṣanʿānī
(d. 1182), al-Shawkānī (d. 1250), etc.; who completely condemn ''taqlid'' (imitation), rejecting the authority of the legal schools, and oblige Muslims to seek religious rulings (''fatwa'') issued by scholars exclusively based on the ''Qur’an'' and ''Hadith''; with no intermediary involved."From there he lbanilearned to oppose taqlid in a madhab." Bennett, ''The Bloomsbury Companion to Islamic Studies'', p. 174. "Al-Albani had denounced Wahhabi attachment to the Hanbali school." Stephane Lacroix, George Holoch, ''Awakening Islam,'' p. 85 The ''Ahl-i Hadith'' ''ulema'' would distinguish themselves from the Wahhabis who followed the Hanbali school while they considered themselves as following no particular school. In contemporary era, Albani and his disciples, in particular, would directly criticise Wahhabis on the issue of ''Taqlid'' due to their affinity towards the Hanbali school and called for a re-generated Wahhabism purified of elements contrary to doctrines of the Salaf.

Other Salafi scholars like Sayyid Rashid Rida (d. 1935) follow a middle course, allowing the layperson to do ''Taqlid'' only when necessary, obliging him to do ''Ittiba'' when the Scriptural evidences become known to him. Their legal methodology rejects partisanship to the treatises of any particular schools of law, and refer to the books of all ''madhhabs''. Following Ibn Taymiyya and Ibn Qayyim, these scholars accept the rich literary heritage of Sunni ''Fiqh'' and consider the literature of the four Sunni law-schools as beneficial resources to issue rulings for the contemporary era. At the far end of the spectrum, some Salafis hold that adhering to ''taqlid'' is an act of '' shirk'' (polytheism).

Contemporary Salafis generally discard the practice of adhering to the established rulings of any particular ''Madhhab'', condemning the principle of ''Taqlid'' (blind imitation) as a ''bid'ah'' (innovation) and are significantly influenced by the legal principles of the Zahirite school, historically associated with anti-''madhhab'' doctrines that opposed the canonization of legal schools. Early Zahirite scholar Ibn Hazm's condemnation of ''Taqlid'' and calls to break free from the interpretive system of the canonized schools by espousing a ''Fiqh'' directly grounded on ''Qura'n'' and ''Hadith''; have conferred a major impact on the ''Salafiyya'' movement. Salafi legalism is most often marked by its departure from the established rulings (''mu'tamad'') of the four Sunni ''madhahib'', as well as frequently aligning with Zahirite views mentioned by Ibn Hazm in his legal compendium ''Al-Muhalla''.

Scholarly Hierarchy

Bernard Haykel notes that due to the peculiarity of its methodology, Salafis enjoy a relatively less rigid scholarly hierarchy of authorities ( ''ulema''). Most Salafis unlike other traditional and pre-modern Muslims do not subscribe to a hierarchy that rigorously "constrains and regulates... the output of opinions". As an interpretive community, Salafi tradition, "in contrast to other Muslim traditions of learning", is "relatively open, even democratic".

Differences from Kalam Theology

Modern-day proponents of the Athari school of theology largely come from the Salafi movement; they uphold the ''Athari'' works of Ibn Taymiyyah. Halverson, ''Theology and Creed in Sunni Islam,'' 2010: 38–48 Ibn Taimiyya himself, a disputed and partly rejected scholar during his lifetime, became a major scholar among followers of the Salafi movement credited with the title '' Shaikh al-Islam''. Other important figures include major scholars important in Islamic history, such as Ahmad ibn Hanbal.Michael Cook, ''On the Origins of Wahhābism'', Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, Third Series, Vol. 2, No. 2 (July, 1992), p. 198

Followers of the Salafi movement regard the primary sources ''Qur'an'' and ''Sunnah'' as self-explanatory, disregarding the use of interpretation and human reasoning. Salafis favor practical implementation as opposed to disputes with regards to meanings, meaning may be considered either clear or something beyond human understanding. They believe that to engage in speculative theology (''kalam)'', even if one arrives at the truth, is absolutely forbidden. Halverson, ''Theology and Creed in Sunni Islam,'' 2010: 36 "For the Atharis, the “clear” (i.e., zahir, apparent, or literal) meaning of the Qur’an and especially the prophetic traditions (ahadith) have sole authority in matters of belief, as well as law, and to engage in rational disputation (jadal), even if one arrives at the truth, is absolutely forbidden. A strictly literal, or perhaps amodal, reading of the Qur’an, as opposed to one engaged in ta’wil (metaphorical interpretation), or an attempt to rationally conceptualize its meanings, cannot be questioned and the “real” meanings should be consigned to God." Atharis engage in strictly literal and amodal reading of the ''Qur'an'' and ''hadith'' (prophetic traditions) and only their clear or apparent meanings have the sole authority in creedal affairs. As opposed to one engaged in ''Ta'wil'' (metaphorical interpretation), they do not attempt to conceptualize the meanings of the ''Qur'an'' rationally; and believe that the real meanings should be consigned to God alone (''tafwid''). Halverson, ''Theology and Creed in Sunni Islam,'' 2010: 36–7 "For the Atharis, the “clear” (i.e., zahir, apparent, or literal) meaning of the Qur’an and especially the prophetic traditions (ahadith) have sole authority in matters of belief, as well as law, and to engage in rational disputation (jadal), even if one arrives at the truth, is absolutely forbidden. A strictly literal, or perhaps amodal, reading of the Qur’an, as opposed to one engaged in ta’wil (metaphorical interpretation), or an attempt to rationally conceptualize its meanings, cannot be questioned and the “real” meanings should be consigned to God." Following the Salafi hermeneutic approach, Salafis differ from that of non-Salafis in some regards of permissibility.

Many folk rituals related to the spiritual world practised by Muslims in some localites and regions, are considered '' shirk'' by followers of Salafism. Followers of the Salafi movement regard a number of practises related to jinn or spirits of ''Awliya'' (saints) as ''bid'ah'' and ''shirk''. The wide range of beliefs about spirits and angels commonly accepted in Classical Islam is reduced to a limited scope of quotes from ''Qur'an'' and ''hadith'', without further exegetical material and missing any reference to anecdotal experiences.

Teachings of Ibn Taymiyya

The followers of the ''Salafiyya'' school look to the medieval jurist Ibn Taymiyyah as the most significant classical scholarly authority in theology and spirituality. Ibn Taymiyya's theological treatises form the core doctrinal texts of Wahhabi, Ahl-i Hadith and various other Salafi movements. According to the monotheistic doctrine of Ibn Taymiyya, ''Tawhid'' is categorised into two types: ''Al-tawḥīd al-rubūbiyya'' (Oneness in Lordship) and ''Al-tawḥīd al-ulūhiyya'' (Oneness in Worship). Ibn Taymiyya's interpretation of the ''Shahada'' (Islamic testimony) as the testimony to worship God alone "only by means of what He has legislated", without partners, is adopted by the Salafis as the foundation of their faith. In the contemporary era, Ibn Taymiyya's writings on theology and innovated practices have inspired Salafi movements of diverse kinds. The increased prominence of these movements in the twentieth century has led to a resurgence in interest of the writings of Ibn Taymiyya far beyond traditional Salafi circles. Salafis commonly refer to Ibn Taymiyya by the title ''Shaykh al-Islām''. Alongside Ibn Taymiyya, his disciples Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya, Ibn Kathir, Al-Dhahabi, etc. constitute the most referenced classical scholarship in Salafi circles.

The scholarly works of Ibn Taymiyya, which advocate Traditionalist Creedal positions and intensely critique other theological schools, embody the theology of the ''Salafiyya'' school. Ibn Taymiyya also cited a scholarly consensus (''Ijma''), calling on his acolytes to declare themselves as followers of the Salaf, stating:

"There is no shame in declaring oneself to be a follower of the salaf, belonging to it and feeling proud of it; rather that must be accepted from him, according to scholarly consensus. The madhhab of the salaf cannot be anything but true. If a person adheres to it inwardly and outwardly, then he is like the believer who is following truth inwardly and outwardly."

History

Historians and academics date the emergence of ''Salafiyya'' movement to the late 19th-century Arab world, an era when European colonial powers were dominant. Notable leaders of the movement included Jamal al-Din Qasimi (1866-1914), 'Abd al-Razzaq al Bitar (1837-1917), Tahir al-Jazai'iri (1852-1920) and Muhammad Rashid Rida (1865-1935). Until the First World War, religious missions of the Salafi call in the Arab East had operated secretively. Following the First World War, the Salafi ideas were spread and established among the intelligentsia. Politically oriented scholars like Rashid Rida had also emphasized the necessity to establish an Islamic state that implements ''Sharia'' (Islamic law) and thus laid the intellectual foundations for a more conservative strand of ''Salafiyya'', which would also influence the ideologues of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.

Salafis believe that the label "''Salafiyya''" existed from the first few generations of Islam and that it is not a modern movement. To justify this view, Salafis rely on a handful of quotes from medieval times where the term "Salafi" is used. One of the quotes used as evidence and widely posted on Salafi websites is from the genealogical dictionary of al-Sam'ani (d. 1166), who wrote a short entry about the surname "al-Salafi" (the Salafi): "According to what I heard, this urname indicates one'sascription to the pious ancestors and ne'sadoption of their doctrine adhhabihim" The scholar Henri Lauzière from Northwestern University comments that, "al-Sam'ani could only list two individuals—a father and his son—who were known by it. Plus, the entry contains blank spaces in lieu of their full names, presumably because al-Sam'ani had forgotten them or did not know them."
Further, he states that "al-Sam'ani's dictionary suggests that the surname was marginal at best, and the lone quotation taken from Al-Dhahabi, who wrote 200 years later, does little to prove Salafi claims."

Origins

The Salafi movement emphasizes looking up to the era of the '' Salaf al-Salih''; who were the early three generations of Muslims that succeeded Prophet Muhammad. They consider the faith and practices of ''salaf al-salih'' as virtuous and exemplary. By seeking to capture values of the Salaf in their own lives, Salafis attempt to recreate a ‘golden age’, and revive a pristine version of Islam, stripped of all later accretions, including the four schools of law as well as popular Sufism. The emergence of Salafism coincided with the rise of Western colonialism across many parts of the Islamic world. Between the eighteenth and the twentieth centuries, these reformist movements called for a direct return to the Scriptures, institutional standardisations and ''jihad'' against colonial powers.

The movement developed across various regions of the Islamic World in the late 19th century as a response to European imperialism. The Salafi revivalists were inspired by the creedal doctrines of the medieval Syrian Hanbali theologian Ibn Taymiyya, who had strongly condemned philosophy and various features of Sufism as heretical. Ibn Taymiyya's radical reform programme called for Muslims to return to the pristine Islam of the ''Salaf al-Salih'' (pious ancestors); through a direct understanding of Scriptures. Further influences of the early Salafiyya movement included various 18th-century Islamic reform movements such as the Wahhabi movement in the Arabian Peninsula, subcontinental reform movements spearheaded by Shah Waliullah Dehlawi, Shah Ismail Dehlawi and Sayyid Ahmad Shaheed as well as the Yemeni ''islah'' movement led by Al-San'aani and Al-Shawkani.

These movements had advocated the belief that the ''Qur'an'' and ''Sunnah'' are the primary sources of ''sharia'' and the legal status quo should be scrutinized based on ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadith.'' Far from being novel, this idea was a traditionist thesis kept alive within the Hanbali school of law. The Wahhabi movement, under the leadership of Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab, forcefully revived Hanbali traditionism in 18th century Arabia. Influenced by the Hanbali scholars Ahmad ibn Taymiyyah (d. 728/1328) and Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya (d. 751/1350); the teachings of Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab were also closely linked to the formulation of proto-Hanbalism expounded by early Hanbali writers 'Abd Allah ibn Ahmad (d. 290/903), Abu Bakr al-Khallal (d. 311/923) as well as non-Hanbali scholars like Ibn Hazm, whom he cited frequently. Indian Hadith specialist Shah Waliullah Dehlawi, while rejecting ''Taqlid'', also emphasised on involving the '' Fuqaha'' (jurisconsultants) in the study of ''hadith'', their interpretations and rationalisation. Thus, he was accommodative towards classical structures of ''Fiqh''. In Yemen, influential scholar Muhammad ibn Ali Al-Shawkani (1759-1834) condemned ''Taqlid'' far more fiercely, and his movement advocated radical rejection of classical ''Fiqh'' structures. The promotion of ''Ijtihad'' of these movements was also accompanied by an emphasis on strict adherence to ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadith''.

Evolution

During the mid-nineteenth century British India, the ''Ahl-i Hadith'' movement revived the teachings of Shah Waliullah and Al-Shawkani; advocating rejection of ''Taqlid'' and study of hadith. They departed from Shah Waliullah's school with a literalist approach to ''hadith'', and rejected classical legal structures; inclining towards the ''Zahirite'' school. In the 19th century, Hanbali traditionism would be revived in Iraq by the influential Alusi family. Three generations of Alusis, Mahmud al-Alusi (d. 1853), Nu'man al-Alusi (d. 1899) and Mahmud Shukri al-Alusi (1857-1924); were instrumental in spreading the doctrines of Ibn Taymiyya and the Wahhabi movement in the Arab world. Mahmud Shukri Al-Alusi, a defender and historian of the Wahhabi movement, was also a leader of the ''Salafiyya'' movement. All these reformist tendencies merged into the early ''Salafiyya'' movement, a theological faction prevalent across the Arab world during the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries, which was closely associated with the works of Sayyid Rashid Rida (1865-1935).

Late nineteenth-century

The first phase of the ''Salafiyya'' movement emerged amidst the reform-minded ''ulema'' of the Arab provinces of the Ottoman Empire during the late nineteenth century. The movement relied primarily upon the works of Hanbali theologian Ahmad Ibn Taymiyya, whose call to follow the path of ''Salaf'', inspired their name. The early phase of this tradition sought a middle-way that synthesised between '' 'ilm'' and ''Tasawwuf''. Damascus, a major centre of Hanbali scholarship in the Muslim World, played a major role in the emergence and dissemination of the ideas of this early trend of the ''Salafiyya''. Some scholars in this phase like Amir 'Abd al-Qadir al-Jaza'iri, re-interpreted Ibn 'Arabi's mystical beliefs and reconciled them with the opposing theological doctrines of Ibn Taymiyya to address new challenges. Other major figures in the movement include
'Abd al-Razzaq Al-Bitar
Jamal al-Din al-Qasimi, Tahir al-Jazairi, etc. 'Abd al-Razzaq Al-Bitar (the grandfather of Muhammad Bahjat al Bitar, a disciple of Rashid Rida) was the leader of the more traditional branch of the reform trend, which would become the ''Salafiyya'' of Damascus. Years later, Rashid Rida would describe him as the "''mujaddid madhhab al-salaf fil-Sham''" (the reviver of the ancestral doctrine in Syria). While these reformers were critical of various aspects of popular Sufism, they didn't deny Sufism completely. The Cairene school of Muhammad Abduh emerged as a separate trend in 1880s, and would be influenced by the Damascene ''Salafiyya'', as well as Mu'tazilite philosophy. Abduh's movement sought a rationalist approach to adapt to the increasing pace of modernisation. While 'Abduh was critical of certain Sufi practices, his writings had Sufi inclinations and he retained love for "true Sufism" as formulated by Al-Ghazali.

The Damascene ''Salafiyya'' was also influenced by their reformist counterparts in Baghdad, especially the scholars of th
Alusi family
Abu Thana' Shihab al-Din al-Alusi (1802-1854) was the first of the Alusi family of ''ulama'' to promote reformist ideas, influenced by Wahhabism through his teacher 'Ali al-Suwaydi. He also combined the theological ideas of Sufis and ''Mutakallimun'' (dialecticians) like Razi in his reformist works. Shihab al-Din's son, Nu'man Khayr al-Din al-Alusi, was also heavily influenced by the treatises of Siddiq Hasan Khan, an early leader of the '' Ah-i Hadith'' movement. He regularly corresponded with him and received an '' Ijazat'' (license to teach) from Siddiq Hasan Khan, and became the leader of the Salafi trend in Iraq. Later he would also send his son 'Ala' al-Din (1860-1921) to study under Hasan Khan. Khayr al-Din Alusi would write lengthy polemics and treatises advocating the teachings of Ibn Taymiyya. The Iraqi reformers rejected the validity of ''Taqlid'' in jurisprudence, calling for ''Ijtihad'' and condemned ritual innovations like tomb-visitations for the purpose of worship.

''Salafiyya'' tradtion had become dominant in Syria by the 1880s, due to its popularity amongst the reformist ''ulema'' in Damascus. Furthermore; most of the medieval treatises of the classical Syrian theologian Ibn Taymiyya were preserved in various Damascene mosques. Salafi scholars gathered these works and indexed them in the archives of the Zahiriyya Library (''Maktabat Zahiriyya''), one of the most prominent Islamic libraries of the 19th century. Most influential Salafi scholars during this period were Tahir al-Jazai'ri, 'Abd al-Razzaq al-Bitar and Jamal al-Din Qasimi. These scholars took precedent from the 18th-century reformers influenced by Ibn Taymiyya, such as Al-Shawkani, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab, Shah Waliullah etc. and called for a return to the purity of the early era of the '' Salaf al-Salih'' (righteous forbears). Like Ibn Taymiyya during the 13th century; they viewed themselves as determined preachers calling to defend ''Tawhid'' (Islamic monotheism), attacking ''bid'ah'' (religious innovations), criticising the Ottoman monarchy and its clerical establishment as well as relentlessly condemning Western ideas such as nationalism. According to historian Itzchak Weismann:

"The Salafi trend of Damascus constituted a religious response to the political alliance forged between the Ottoman State under the modernizing autocracy of Sultan Abdül Hamid II and orthodox sufi shaykhs and ''ulama'' who were willing to mobilize the masses in his support."

Post-WW1 Era

By the 1900s, the reformers had already become commonly known as "Salafis", which in-part was also used to deflect accusations from their opponents; to emphasize that they were different from the Wahhabis of Najd. The Salafi turn against Ibn 'Arabi and Sufism would materialize a decade later, after the First World War, under the leadership of Rashid Rida. This second-stage of ''Salafiyya'' was championed by Rashid Rida and his disciples across the Islamic World, advocating a literalist understanding of the Scriptures. They were also characterised by a militant hostility to Western imperialism and culture. In addition to condemnations of tomb visits, popular Sufi practices, brotherhoods, miracles and mystical orders; Rida's criticism of Sufism extended to all of it and beyond the critiques of his fellow Salafi comrades. He questioned the ''murid''-''murshid'' relationship in mysticism, as well as the ''Silsilas'' (chains of transmission) upon which ''Tariqah'' structures were built. In particular, Rida fiercely rebuked political quietism and pacifist doctrines of various Sufi orders. The ''Salafiyya'' of Rida and his disciples held onto an ideal of the complete return to the religious and political ways of the ''salaf''. In calling for a return to the ''Salaf'', Rashid Rida emphasised the path of the first four Rightly-Guided Caliphs ('' Khulafa Rashidin'') and the revival of their principles. Rida's revivalist efforts contributed to the construction of a collective imagined Salafi community operating globally, transcending national borders. For this reason, he is regarded as one of the founding pioneers of the ''Salafiyya'' movement and his ideas inspired many Islamic revivalist movements.

Rashid Rida's religious approach was rooted in reviving Ibn Taymiyya's theology as the solution to rectify the decline and disintegration of the Islamic World. ''Salafiyya'' movement took a much more conservative turn under Rida's mantle and became vehemently critical of the clerical establishment. Rida's doctrines deeply impacted Islamist ideologues of the Muslim Brotherhood such as Hasan al-Banna (d. 1949) and Sayyid Qutb (d. 1966) who advocated a holistic conception of Islamic state and society; similar to the Wahhabi movement. Muslim Brotherhood’s Syrian leaders like Mustapha al-Siba‘i and ‘Isam al-‘Attar were also influential in the movement and their ideas influenced numerous Jordanian students. The Damascene ''Salafiyya'' consisted of major scholarly figures like Muhammad Bahjat al-Bitar al-Athari, ‘Ali al-Tantawi, Nasir al-Din al-Albani, ‘Abd al-Fattah al-Imam, Mazhar al-‘Azma, al-Bashir al-Ibrahimi, Taqiy al-Din al-Hilali, Muhiy al-Din al-Qulaybi, ‘Abd Allah al-Qalqayli, etc. Numerous books of the movement were printed and published through the Islamic Bookstore in Lebanon owned by Zuhayr Shawish.

The early leaders of ''Salafiyya'' like Sayyid Rashid Rida (d. 1935), Jamal al-Din Qasimi (d. 1914), etc. had considered traditionalist theology as central to their comprehensive socio-political reform programme. Rashid Rida, for instance, argued that Athari theology represented Sunni orthodoxy, was less divisive and provided a more reliable basis of faith than Ash'arism. According to Rida, Salafi creed was easier to understand than ''Kalam'' (speculative theology) and hence granted a stronger bulwark against the dangers posed by atheism and other heresies. Salafi reformers also hailed the medieval theologian Ibn Taymiyyah as a paragon of Sunni orthodoxy and emphasized that his strict conception of ''Tawhid'' was an important part of the doctrine of the forefathers (''madhhab al-salaf''). Despite this, the Salafi reformers during this era were more concerned with pan-Islamic unity and hence refrained from accusing the majority of their co-religionists of being heretics; professing their creedal arguments with moderation. Jamal al-Din Qasimi decried sectarianism and bitter polemics between Atharis and followers of other creedal schools, despite considering them unorthodox. For Rashid Rida, intra-Sunni divisions between Atharis and Ash'arites, were an evil that weakened the strength of the ''Ummah'' (Muslim community) and enabled foreigners to gain control over Muslim lands. Hence, Rida held back from adopting an exclusivist attitude against Asharis during the first two decades of the 20th century.

Beginning from the mid-1920s, this leniency gradually disappeared from Salafi activists and scholars to give way to a more partisan stance. Mahmud Shukri al-Alusi, for example, was more uncompromising in his defense of Salafi theology than Rida and Qasimi. The hardening of Salafi stance was best represented by Rashid Rida's disciple Muhammad Bahjat al Bitar (1894-1976 C.E) who made robust criticisms of speculative theology, by compiling treatises that revived the creedal polemics of Ibn Taymiyya. One such treatise titled "''Al-Kawthari wa-ta'liqatuhu''" published in 1938 strongly admonishes the Ottoman Maturidite scholar Muhammad Zahid al-Kawthari (1879–1952 C.E); accusing him of heresy. In the treatise, Bitar vigorously advocates Ibn Taymiyya's literalist approach to the theological question of the Divine attributes (''Al- Asma wa-l-Sifat'') and seemingly anthropomorphic expressions in the ''Qur'an''. At the height of his career, Bitar enjoyed the respect of Syrian ''ulema'' and laypersons of all groups. For his student Nasir al-Din Albani (1914-1999 C.E/ 1332-1420 A.H) and his purist Salafi followers, Bitar was a master of theology and ''hadith.'' For the Islamist Muslim Brothers, Bitar's studies of Islam and the Arabic language were an asset for Islamic Renaissance.

Contemporary era

Syrian ''Salafiyya'' tradition that emerged in late nineteenth century consisted of two divergent tendencies: an apolitical Quietist trend and a "Salafi-Islamist hybrid". The early ''Salafiyya'' led by Rashid Rida was dominated by revolutionary Pan-Islamists who had socio-political goals and advocated for the restoration of an Islamic Caliphate through military struggle against European colonial powers. However, contemporary ''Salafiyya'' are dominated by Purists who eschew politics and advocate Islamic Political Quietism. Contemporary Purist Salafism, widely known as "the ''Salafi Manhaj''" emerged from the 1960s as an intellectual hybrid of three similar, yet distinct, religious reform traditions: the Wahhabi movement in Arabia, ''Ahl-i Hadith'' movement in India and ''Salafiyya'' movement in the Arab world of the late-19th and early 20th centuries. The person most responsible for this transformation was the Albanian Islamic hadith scholar Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani, a protege of Rashid Rida, who is generally considered as the "spiritual father" of the Purist Salafi current and respected by all contemporary Salafis as "the greatest hadith scholar of his generation".

As of 2017, journalist Graeme Wood estimated that Salafi "probably" make up "fewer than 10%" of Muslims globally, but by the 21st century, Salafi teachings and ideas had become so mainstreamised that many modern Muslims, even those who do not self-identify as Salafi, have adopted various aspects of Salafism.

At times, Salafism has also been deemed a hybrid of Wahhabism and other post-1960s movements.Stephane Lacroix
"Al-Albani's Revolutionary Approach to Hadith"
. ''Leiden University's ISIM Review,'' Spring 2008, #21. Academics and historians have used the term "Salafism" to denote "a school of thought which surfaced in the second half of the 19th century as a reaction to the spread of European ideas" across the Islamic World and "sought to expose the roots of modernity within Muslim civilization".For example: "Salafism originated in the mid to late 19th-century as an intellectual movement at al-Azhar University, led by Muhammad Abduh (1849–1905), Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (1839–1897) and Rashid Rida (1865–1935)." fro
Understanding the Origins of Wahhabism and Salafism
, by Trevor Stanley. ''Terrorism Monitor'' Volume 3, Issue 14. 15 July 2005 Starting from the French scholar Louis Massignon, Western scholarship for much of the 20th-century considered the Islamic Modernist movement of 19th-century figures Muhammad Abduh and Jamal al-Din al-Afghani (who were Ash'ari rationalists) to be part of the wider ''Salafiyya'' movement. However, contemporary Salafis follow a literalist approach with a "heavy reliance on hadith", looking up to Ibn Taymiyyah and his disciples like Ibn Kathir, Ibn Qayyim, etc. whom they regard as important classical religious authorities. Major contemporary figures in the movement include Muhammad Nasir al-Din al-Albani, Taqi al-Din al-Hilali, ibn 'Uthaymin, Ibn Baz, Ehsan Elahi Zahir, Muhammad ibn Ibrahim, Rashid Rida, Thanā Allāh Amritsari, Abd al-Hamid Bin Badis, Zubair Ali Zaee, Ahmad Shakir, Saleh Al-Fawzan, Zakir Naik, Abdul-Ghaffar Hasan, Sayyid Sabiq, Salih al-Munajjid, Abd al-Rahman Abd al-Khaliq
Muhammad al-Gondalwi
etc.

In the modern era, some Salafis tend to take the surname "Al-Salafi" and refer to the label "''Salafiyya''" in various circumstances to evoke a specific understanding of Islam that is supposed to differ from that of other Sunnis in terms of '' 'Aqidah'' (creed) and approach to ''Fiqh'' (legal tradition).

Political trends within Salafism

Some Western analysts who have observed the prevalent trends in the attitudes of Salafi Muslims towards politics, have divided the movement into three groups – purists, activists, and Jihadis.Anatomy of the Salafi Movement
by Quintan Wiktorowicz, Washington, D.C. Purists focus on education and missionary work to solidify the ''Tawhid''; activists focus on political reform and re-establishing a Caliphate through the means of political activities, but not violence (sometimes called Salafist activism); and jihadists share similar political goals as the politicians, but engage in violent Jihad (sometimes called Salafi jihadism and/or Qutbism).

Purists

"Purists" are Salafists who focus on non-violent ''da'wah'' (preaching of Islam), education, and "purification of religious beliefs and practices". They dismiss politics as "a diversion or even innovation that leads people away from Islam".Whatever Happened to the Islamists?
edited by Olivier Roy and Amel Boubekeur, Columbia University Press, 2012 Also known as conservative Salafism, its adherents seek to distance themselves from politics. This strand focuses its attention on the study of Islamic ''sharia'', educating the masses and preaching to the society. This methodology is seen as attracting a significant section of pious Muslims who seek to be driven solely by religious objectives but not political objectives. Conservative Salafis are disinterested in getting entangled in the problems and consequences that accompany political activism. According to them, a prolonged movement of "purification and education" of Muslims is essential for Islamic revival through reaping a "pure, uncontaminated Islamic society" and thereby establish an Islamic state.

Some of them never oppose rulers. Madkhalism, as an example, is a strain of Salafists viewed as supportive of authoritarian regimes in the Middle East.Richard Gauvain, ''Salafi Ritual Purity: In the Presence of God'', p. 41. New York: Routledge, 2013.Roel Meijer, ''Global Salafism: Islam's New Religious Movement'', p. 49. New York: Columbia University Press, 2009.George Joffé, ''Islamist Radicalisation in Europe and the Middle East: Reassessing the Causes of Terrorism'', p. 317. London: I.B. Tauris, 2013. Taking its name from the controversial Saudi Arabian cleric Rabee al-Madkhali, the movement lost its support in Saudi Arabia proper when several members of the Permanent Committee (the country's clerical body) denounced Madkhali personally.''The Transmission and Dynamics of the Textual Sources of Islam: Essays in Honour of Harald Motzki'', eds. Nicolet Boekhoff-van der Voort, Kees Versteegh and Joas Wagemakers, p. 382. Leiden: Brill Publishers, 2011. Influence of both the movement and its figureheads have waned so much within the Muslim world that analysts have declared it to be a largely European phenomenon.

Salafi activists

Further along the spectrum are the Salafi-Activists who advocate the transformation of societies through political action. They include Islamist organizations such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Egyptian '' Hizb al-Nour'' (Party of Light), and the ''ulema'' affiliated to the movement known as ''Al-Sahwa al-Islamiyya'' (Islamic Awakening). Committed to advancing "the Islamic solution" for all socio-political problems; Salafi-Activists are vehemently hostile to secularism, Israel, and the West. Their strategy involves working within the established order, to achieve the ultimate objective of replacing that order with an Islamic state. Activists are different from the Salafi-jihadists in that they eschew violence and differ from Salafi purists in that they engage in modern political processes.Meijer, p. 48. Salafi-Activists have a long tradition of political activism in major Arab Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood and its various branches and affiliates.

Islamist movements like the Muslim Brotherhood, Jamaat-e Islami, etc are heavily influenced by the Activist Salafi thought. The movement is very popular amongst the followers of the Salafiyya school, and is often referred to as "mainstream Salafism". The activist Salafis condemn violence, yet engage actively in the political processes of their societies to advocate for ''shari'a''. However, the movement is fiercely attacked by the followers of the Madkhalist strand of Quietist Salafism; who totally withdraw themselves from politics. The Activist trend, who some call "politicos", see politics as "yet another field in which the Salafi creed has to be applied" in order to safeguard justice and "guarantee that the political rule is based upon the Shari'a". Al–Sahwa Al-Islamiyya (Islamic Awakening), as example, has been involved in peaceful political reform. Safar Al-Hawali, Salman al-Ouda, Abu Qatada, Zakir Naik, etc. are representatives of this trend. Because of being active on social media, they have earned some support among youth.

Salafi jihadists

"Salafi Jihadism" was a term invented by Gilles Kepel to describe those self-claiming Salafi groups who began developing an interest in (armed) jihad during the mid-1990s. Practitioners are often referred to as "Salafi jihadis" or "Salafi jihadists". Journalist Bruce Livesey estimates that Salafi jihadists constitute less than 1.0 percent of the world's 1.2 billion Muslims (i.e., less than 10 million).

Another definition of Salafi jihadism, offered by Mohammed M. Hafez, is an "extreme form of Sunni Islamism that rejects democracy and Shia rule". Hafez distinguished them from apolitical and conservative Salafi scholars (such as Muhammad Nasiruddin al-Albani, Muhammad ibn al Uthaymeen, Abd al-Aziz ibn Abd Allah ibn Baaz and Abdul-Azeez ibn Abdullaah Aal ash-Shaikh), but also from the ''sahwa movement associated with Salman al-Ouda or Safar Al-Hawali.'' Abdullah Azzam, Usama Bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Abubakr al-Baghdadi, etc. are the major contemporary figures in this movement. Jihadi Salafi groups include Al-Qaeda, ISIS, Boko Haram, and the Al-Shabaab.

All Salafi-Jihadists agree on the revolutionary overthrow of existing ruling order through armed Jihad; and its replacement with a Global Caliphate. They believe that Jihad is essential to Islamic piety and belief, an individual obligation ('' fard 'al-Ayn'') on all Muslims; which the Palestinian Jihadist scholar 'Abdallah ‘Azzam (1941–89) asserted as "the most excellent form of worship". Salafi-Jihadists regard themselves as the heirs of Sayyid Qutb, an influential Islamist scholar who led the radical wing of the Muslim Brotherhood during the 1960s. Inspired by their reading of Ibn Taymiyya, they are strong advocates of ''takfir (''excommunication) and the principles of '' Al-Wala' wa'l- Bara'''. Like Qutb, they also made the belief in the exclusive sovereignty (''Hakimiyya'') of Allah central to ''Tawhid'', and condemn all other political doctrines as ''Jahiliyya''. Sayyid Qutb's '' Al-Ma‘alim Fi'l-tariq'' (The Milestones), a short tract which outlined his militant strategy of destroying ''Jahiliyya'' and replacing it with Islam, would become an influential treatise in the Salafi-Jihadi intellectual circles.

An analysis of the Caucasus Emirate, a Salafi jihadist group, was made in 2014 by Darion Rhodes.Darion Rhodes
Salafist-Takfiri Jihadism: the Ideology of the Caucasus Emirate
, International Institute for Counter-terrorism, March 2014 It analyzes the group's strict observance of tawhid and its rejection of '' shirk'', ''taqlid'' and ''bid‘ah'', while believing that Jihad ( holy war) is the only way to advance the cause of Allah on the Earth. The purist and Activist Salafis often strongly disapprove of the Jihadists and rejects its Islamic character. Although rooted in certain fringe interpretations of the ''Qur’an'' and ''Hadith'', scholars point out that Salafi-Jihadi views are not representative of the broader Islamic tradition. Scholars, thinkers and intellectuals from across the Islamic spectrum – Sunni, Shi‘a, Salafi, Sufi, Wahhabi, modernists and Islamic neo-traditionalists – have come out strongly against various Salafi-jihadi groups and their doctrines; regarding them as "a perversion" of Islamic teachings.

Regional groups and movements

Saudi Arabia

Modern Salafists consider the 18th-century scholar Muhammed bin 'Abd al-Wahhab and many of his students to have been Salafis. He started a reform movement in the remote, sparsely populated region of Najd. He invited people to ''Tawhid'' (monotheism) and advocated purging of practices such as shrine and tomb visitation, which were widespread among Muslims. Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab considered such practices as aspects of idolatry, representative of impurities and inappropriate innovations in Islam which contradicted ''Tawhid''. While Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab stressed on the importance of obedience to ''sharia'', he also obliged Muslims to uphold ''sharia'' by reading and following the Scriptures. Like their paragon scholar Ibn Taymiyya, Wahhabis did not believe in blind-adherence (''Taqlid'') and advocated engaging with the ''Qur'an'' and ''Hadith'' through ''Ijtihad'' (legal reasoning), emphasizing simplicity in religious rituals and practices. Thus, classical-era legal works by '' Fuqaha'' were not considered as authoritative as the Scriptures themselves, since the former were human interpretations while the ''Qur'an'' is the Universal, Eternal Word of God.

The Salafi movement in Saudi Arabia is the result of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab's reform movement. Unlike other reform movements, Ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab and his disciples were also able to secure a religio-political pact with Muhammad Ibn Saud and his House; which enabled them to engage in military expansionism and establish an Islamic state in the Arabian Peninsula. While the mainstream constituency believed in Islamic revival through education and welfare reforms, the militant elements of the movement advocated armed campaigns to eradicate local practices considered as innovation and demolished numerous shrines and tombs of saints (''awliya''). It is believed that the Wahhabism is a more strict, Saudi form of Salafism, according to Mark Durie, who states that Saudi leaders "are active and diligent" using their considerable financial resources "in funding and promoting Salafism all around the world". Ahmad Moussalli tends to agree with the view that Wahhabism is a subset of Salafism, saying "As a rule, all Wahhabis are salafists, but not all salafists are Wahhabis".

However, many scholars and critics distinguish between the old form of Saudi Salafism (termed as Wahhabism) and the new Salafism in Saudi Arabia. Stéphane Lacroix, a fellow and lecturer at Sciences Po in Paris, also affirmed a distinction between the two: "As opposed to Wahhabism, Salafism refers ��to all the hybridations that have taken place since the 1960s between the teachings of Muhammad bin ‘Abd al-Wahhab and other Islamic schools of thought". Hamid Algar and Khaled Abou El Fadl believe, during the 1960s and 70s, Wahhabism rebranded itself as Salafism knowing it could not "spread in the modern Muslim world" as Wahhabism.

Its largesse funded an estimated "90% of the expenses of the entire faith", throughout the Muslim World, according to journalist Dawood al-Shirian.Dawood al-Shirian, 'What Is Saudi Arabia Going to Do?' ''Al-Hayat'', 19 May 2003 It extended to young and old, from children's madrasas to high-level scholarship. "Books, scholarships, fellowships, mosques" (for example, "more than 1,500 mosques were built from Saudi public funds over the last 50 years") were paid for. It rewarded journalists and academics, who followed it and built satellite campuses around Egypt for Al Azhar, the oldest and most influential Islamic university.Murphy, Caryle, ''Passion for Islam – Shaping the Modern Middle East: the Egyptian Experience'', Simon & Schuster, 2002 p. 32 Yahya Birt counts spending on "1,500 mosques, 210 Islamic centres and dozens of Muslim academies and schools" at a cost of around $2–3bn annually since 1975. To put the number into perspective, the propaganda budget of the Soviet Union was about $1bn per annum.

This spending has done much to overwhelm less strict local interpretations of Islam, according to observers like Dawood al-Shirian and Lee Kuan Yew, and has caused the Saudi interpretation (sometimes called "petro-Islam") to be perceived as the correct interpretation – or the "gold standard" of Islam – in many Muslims' minds.

Salafis are often called Wahhabis, which they consider a derogatory term.

Indian subcontinent

In Indian subcontinent, a number of Salafi streams exist including Ahl i Hadith and Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen.
''Ahl-i Hadith'' is a religious movement that emerged in Northern India in the mid-nineteenth century. Adherents of Ahl-i-Hadith regard the Quran, sunnah, and hadith as the sole sources of religious authority and oppose everything introduced in Islam after the earliest times. In particular, they reject ''taqlid'' (following legal precedent) and favor ''ijtihad'' (independent legal reasoning) based on the scriptures. The movement's followers call themselves Salafi, while others refer to them as Wahhabi, or consider them a variation on the Wahhabi movement. In recent decades the movement has expanded its presence in Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan.

Shah Waliullah Dehlawi (1703-1762) is considered as the intellectual forefather of the movement and its followers regard him as '' Shaykh al-Islam''. Waliullah 's rejection of ''Taqlid'' would be emphasized by his son Shah Abdul Aziz (1746-1824) and later successors like Shah Ismail (1779-1831) in a puritanical manner; stripping it of their eclectic and rational aspects. This tendency culminated in the Jihad movement of Sayyid Ahmad Barelvi (1786-1831). This iconoclastic movement expanded Shah Waliullah's rejection of ''Taqlid'' as a fundamental creedal doctrine. They focused on waging physical Jihad against non-Muslims and banishing syncretic rituals prevalent amongst Muslims. Although the Indian ''Mujahidin'' movement led by Sayyid Ahmad shared close parallels with the Arabian Wahhabi movement and hence labelled as "Wahhabi" by the British; both movements mostly evolved independently. After the death of Sayyid Ahmad in 1831; his successors Wilayat ali, Inayat Ali, Muhammad Hussain, and Farhat Hussain continued Jihad activities of the "Wahhabi" movement throughout British India; spreading across Chittagong to Peshawar and from Madras to Kashmir. They played an important role in the Rebellion of 1857 and their anti-British Jihad has been described as "the most strident challenge" faced by the British during the 1850s. After the defeat of the revolt, the British would fully crush the ''Mujahidin'' through a series of expeditions, "Wahhabi" trials and sedition laws. By 1883, the movement was fully suppressed and no longer posed any political threat. Many adherents of the movement abandoned physical Jihad and opted for political quietism. The Ahl-i-Hadith movement emerged from these circles of religious activists.

In 19th century British India, the revivalist Ahl-i Hadith movement had descended as a direct outgrowth and quietist manifestation of the Indian ''Mujahidin''. The early leaders of the movement were the influential hadith scholars Sayyid Nazir Hussein Dehlawi (1805-1902) and Siddiq Hasan Khan of Bhopal (1832-1890) who had direct tutelage under the lineage of Shah Waliullah and the Indian ''Mujahidin'' movement. Syed Nazeer Hussein was a student of Shah Muhammad Ishaq, the grandson of Shah Waliullah, and held the title ''''Miyan Sahib'''', which was strongly associated with the spiritual heirs of Shah Waliullah. Siddiq Hasan Khan was a student of Sadar al-Din Khan (1789-1868) who inturn, had studied under Shah 'Abd al-Azeez and Shah 'Abd al-Qadir, the sons of Shah Waliullah. His father was also a direct disciple of Shah 'Abd al Aziz. Yemeni scholars were also active in the Bhopal court of Siddiq Hasan Khan and he became a student of Muhaddith 'Abd al-Haqq of Benarus, who was a disciple of Shawkani in Yemen. He became profoundly influenced by the works Al-Shawkani; claiming frequent contacts with him via visions and in this way, an ''ijaza'' (permission) to transmit his works. Thus, the Ahl-i Hadith movement drew directly from the teachings of Shah Waliullah and Al-Shawkani; advocating rejection of ''Taqlid'' and revival of hadith. However, they departed from Shah Waliullah's conciliatory approach to classical legal theory; aligning themselves with ''Zahirite'' (literalist) school and adopted a literalist hadith approach. They also rejected the authority of the four legal schools and restrict ''Ijma'' (consensus) to the companions. Their ideal was to lead a pious and ethical life in conformity to the Prophetic example in every aspect of life.

Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen (KNM) was founded in 1950 in Kerala as a popular reform movement by the Kerala Jamiyat al Ulama (KJU). It traces its root to Kerala Aikya Sangam established in 1922 by Vakkom Moulavi. KNM witnessed a number of splits since 2002 and all existing fractions maintain a good connection with Arab Salafi groups especially in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Folk Islam and Sufism, popular amongst the poor and working classes in the region, are anathema to Ahl-i Hadith beliefs and practices. This attitude towards Sufism has brought the movement into conflict with the rival Barelvi movement even more so than the Barelvis' rivals, the Deobandis.Arthur F Buehler
Sufi Heirs of the Prophet: the Indian Naqshbandiyya and the Rise of the Mediating Sufi Shaykh
p. 179. Part of the ''Studies in Comparative Religion'' series. Columbia: University of South Carolina Press, 1998. Ahl-i Hadith followers identify with the Zahiri madhhab. The movement draws both inspiration and financial support from Saudi Arabia. Jamia Salafia is their largest institution in India.

Egypt

The Egyptian Salafi movement is one of the most influential branches of the Salafi movement which profoundly impacted religious currents across the Arab world, including the scholars of Saudi Arabia. Salafis in Egypt are not united under a single banner or unified leadership. The main Salafi trends in Egypt are Al-Sunna Al-Muhammadeyya Society, The Salafist Calling, al-Madkhaliyya Salafism, Activist Salafism, and al-Gam’eyya Al-Shar’eyya. Salafi-Wahhabi doctrines were introduced in Egypt by the Syrian scholar Rashid Rida starting from the 1920s. Rashid Rida opposed the Westernising cultural trends adopted by Egyptian liberal elite and denounced nationalist ideas as a plot to undermine Islamic unity. Rida and his disciples campaigned for the establishment of an Islamic state based on Salafi principles; thus becoming the biggest adversary of the Egyptian secularists and nationalists.

''Al-Sunna Al-Muhammadeyya'' Society, also known as ''Ansar Al-Sunna'', was founded in 1926 by Sheikh Mohamed Hamed El-Fiqi, a 1916 graduate of Al-Azhar and a student of the famed Muslim reformer
Muhammed Abduh. It is considered the main Salafi group in Egypt. El-Fiqi's ideas were resentful of Sufism. But unlike Muhammed Abduh, Ansar Al-Sunna follows the ''Tawhid'' as preached by Ibn Taymiyyah. Many Saudi scholars became disciples of prominent ''ulema'' of ''Ansar al Sunna'' like ʿAbd al-Razzaq ʿAfifi and Muhammad Khalil Harras.

Majority of Egyptian Salafis are affiliated to ''Ansar al-Sunna al-Muhammadiyya''. Established by Muhammad Hamid al-Fiqqi (a student of Salafi scholar Rashid Rida) to defend traditionalist Salafism, the movement shares a warm relationship with Arabian Wahhabi scholars and was a major benefactor of Salafi resurgence since the 1970s. The movement traces its initial Wahhabi contacts to Rashid Rida. Al-Azhar shares a close relation with Ansar al-Sunna. Most of the early leaders of ''Ansar al-Sunna'' were Azhari graduates and many of its contemporary scholars studied under Al-Azhar. Prominent scholars in the movement include Rashid Rida, Muhammad Hamid al-Fiqqi, Abd al-Razzaq ‘Afifi, Sayyid Sabiq, Muhammad Khalil Harass, etc.

Salafist Call (''al-daʿwa al-salafiyya'') is another influential Salafist organisation. It is the outcome of student activism during the 1970s. While many of the activists joined the Muslim Brotherhood, a faction led by Mohammad Ismail al-Muqaddim, influenced by Salafists of Saudi Arabia established the Salafist Calling between 1972 and 1977. Salafist call is the most popular and localised of the Salafi organisations in Egypt. Due to it being an indigenous mass movement with strong political stances on various issues, it doesn't enjoy good relationship with Saudi Arabia. Emphasising its Egyptian heritage more robustly than ''Ansar al-Sunna'', ''Da'wa Salafiyya'' traces its history through the persecution and imprisonment of Ibn Taymiyya in Egypt, to the trials faced by the '' Muwahhidun'' movement in Arabia and then finally to scholars like Sayyid Rashid Rida, Muhibb al-Din al-Khatib, etc. who popularised Ibn Taymiyya's thought during the early twentieth century Egypt. Unlike ''Ansar al-Sunna'' which preaches political quietism, Salafist call is a politically activist movement.

Salafist Call created the Al-Nour Party after the 2011 Egyptian Revolution. It has an ultra-conservative Islamist ideology, which believes in implementing strict Sharia law. In the 2011–12 Egypt parliamentary elections, the Islamist Bloc led by Al‑Nour party received 7,534,266 votes out of a total 27,065,135 correct votes (28%). The Islamist Bloc gained 127 of the 498 parliamentary seats contested,Salafis and Sufis in Egypt
Jonathan Brown, Carnegie Paper, December 2011. second-place after the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party. Al‑Nour Party itself won 111 of the 127 seats. From January 2013 onward, the party gradually distanced itself from Mohamed Morsi

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