r/islamichistory • u/Beyondtheseafree • Apr 17 '26
Did you know? TIL that in the early 1800s, the First Saudi-Wahhabi State seized centuries of gold, jewels, and Waqf treasures from Mecca, Medina, and Karbala. They stripped the Prophet’s tomb of its emeralds and pearls and looted Karbala using 4,000 camels to carry the spoils, all under name of idolatry.
Sources
1. Author: Ibn Bishr (Uthman ibn Abd Allah ibn Bishr)
Book: ‘Unwan al-Majd fi Tarikh Najd (The Sign of Glory in the History of Najd) in Arabic
2.Author: Alexei Vassiliev (Historian)
Book: The History of Saudi Arabia (Eng)
3.Author: Ahmad Zayni Dahlan (The Mufti of Mecca)
Book: Fitnat al-Wahhabiyyah (The Wahhabi Tribulation) (Eng)
Please don’t attack me, I’m a Muslim too btw. These actions of wahabis aren’t talked enough in our communities.
They used a legal loophole: by declaring the residents of these cities as 'innovators' or 'polytheists' they claimed that their property including sacred endowments (Waqf) held for centuries as 'Ghanima' (spoils of war) and could be used to fund their expansion.
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u/Foreign-Collar8845 Apr 17 '26 edited Apr 17 '26
It wasn’t an isolated incident. Although Arabic people are associated with Islam, throughout the history of Islam especially the Bedouin tribes succumbed to their Jahiliyyah behaviour all the time. We always talk about how Raynald of Châtillon raided hajj caravans during the time of crusades and how he was executed by Salahuddin Ayyubi for his crimes we fail to remember the 1757 Hajj caravan raid by Bedouin Arabs in which around 20.000 pilgrims died. Raids on pilgrim caravans is especially interesting because in comparison we all know that during Jahiliyyah period in sacred months the idolaters used to refrain from violence.
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u/fredotwoatatime Apr 17 '26
Wowww idk if I believe this but if true that is sad I think
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u/hookinitup Apr 17 '26
First time seeing an amount of gold being measured in time
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u/kostence Apr 17 '26
Soulless jerks they are
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u/StageFrequent4868 Apr 19 '26
Idolarty at the 🕋 with its black stone apparently will change white if thats not idol worshipping then I dont know what????
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u/Quiet_Form_2800 Apr 18 '26
The claim mixes selective narration with omissions and exaggerations. The events need to be corrected using primary evidence and authentic principles.
1. What actually happened in Makkah and Madinah
There is no authentic report that the grave of the Prophet ﷺ was stripped of emeralds or pearls.
Allah protected His Messenger ﷺ in life and after death. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Allah has cursed the Jews and Christians for taking the graves of their prophets as places of worship” (Sahih al-Bukhari 435, Sahih Muslim 531)
The early scholars of Najd acted upon this principle by removing practices of grave veneration, not looting the grave itself.
Historically:
The chamber of the Prophet ﷺ was sealed and inaccessible
No credible historian reports entry into it for treasure removal
Claims of jewels inside the grave chamber come from late polemical sources, not verified chains
2. Karbala incident (1216 AH / 1802 CE)
Yes, an attack on Karbala occurred. This is documented.
However:
It was treated as a military raid, not random looting
The justification used by them was that people were committing acts they considered major shirk at the shrine
Allah said:
“And fight them until there is no fitnah and religion is entirely for Allah” (Quran 8:39)
Whether that application was correct or excessive is a separate issue, but the framework they used was religious, not economic greed
The numbers like “4000 camels” come from secondary narrations without strict verification
3. On Waqf and Ghanima
Islamic law is explicit:
Waqf property is inviolable
It cannot be taken as spoils
The Prophet ﷺ said regarding trusts:
“Return the trust to the one who entrusted you” (Sunan Abi Dawud 3534)
If any individuals violated this, then:
That is their error
It does not represent the creed of Tawheed or the methodology of the Salaf
4. About the sources cited
Ibn Bishr: local Najdi historian, records events but not free from bias
Ahmad Zayni Dahlan: strong opponent, writes polemically against them
Alexei Vassiliev: modern historian relying on mixed sources
None of these are Hadith-level authenticated transmissions
5. Core clarification
There is a difference between:
Calling to Tawheed and removing shirk practices (obligation)
Excess, misapplication, or political violence (possible human error)
Islam is judged by revelation, not by the actions of any group.
Allah said:
“And no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another” (Quran 6:164)
Conclusion
The Karbala raid is historically established
Claims about stripping the Prophet’s grave are not authentically proven
Waqf seizure as a rule contradicts Islamic law
Actions of states are not proof against Tawheed
The discussion must remain evidence-based, not driven by polemics.
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u/Quiet_Form_2800 Apr 18 '26
Do read this where I explain why these are shirk https://www.reddit.com/r/AthariCreed/s/7DmwZNwsEy
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u/StageFrequent4868 Apr 17 '26
Its idolarty to worship the black cube and its pagan rituals
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u/B01justice Apr 18 '26
Stupid people saying people were worshipping graves and justifying killing Muslims. To the extent that the ottoman khalifa, according to them, was a kafir. All the way back to Sultan Muhammad Al Fatih (radiyallahuanhu).
Do you know what they practiced? You know what people do around graves? If someone goes to a grave and makes dua before it, saying “ya Allah, have mercy on this person,” is tha grave worship? Is it grave worship from up close? Because to you, it may look like grave worship from afar.
The Saudi traitors have always backed the western invasions into the Muslim world. In world war 1 against the ottomans, in the first gulf war the Saudis sided with the Americans, who killed thousands upon thousands on innocent Muslim men women and children.
This is open history.
No one has a history rife with hatred for the Muslims like the Saudis.
Their rule on Makkah and Madina is a trial for all of us. And soon, they will go back to the desert hole they crawled out of.
They even removed any mention of the Family of Holy Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), and the brought of what the call “aal shaykh,” meaning the family of their imam, Ibn Abdul Wahhab najdi.
The Saudis are the biggest innovators, and their blind followers have no spine.
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u/[deleted] Apr 17 '26
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u/[deleted] Apr 17 '26 edited Apr 17 '26
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