Comparative Study of Salafism in the Arabian Peninsula and Indian Subcontinent

The term “Salafi” has been mentioned for the first time in the manuscripts of the second and third century AH authors. But the use of the term Salafism as an independent doctrine was formed for the first time in the eighth century AH by influencing from Ibn Taymiyyah's thoughts, and the proponents of this thought were called Salafi. This movement continued after the Ibn Taymiyyah in an incomplete way until in the twelfth century, which was once again influenced by the thoughts of people such as Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab and Shah Waliullah Dehlawi. In this paper, the background and relation of the Salafists of the Arabian Peninsula and the Indian subcontinent, as well as the commonalities and differences between these two trends, from the perspective of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab and Shah Waliullah Dehlawi, in the field of intellectual foundations, including how to deal with the Shiites and Sufis, and their opinions about the idol worshipers or the infidelities of Shiites and other sects were studied. The main research question; Comparing and contrasting the intellectual principles and approach of Muhammad and Shah Wali Allah in dealing with the opposition. The results of the study indicate that the attitude of these two personalities in dealing with categories such as Sufism, ijtihad, polytheism and Shiites has been different and even despite their opposition to Shiism; Shah Waliullah refuses to disrespect the Shiite Imams, while in the opinion of Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, the complete transgression of the Shiite Imams was normal. Due to the importance of the subject, this research is done through the descriptive-analytical method and using library resources.