I don't get "Salafis" = who and what?!?

In short, Salafiyyah is Islaam. It is following Islaam based upon the understanding of the Salaf-us-Salih (the Righteous Predecessors, i.e. the Prophet, peace be upon him, the Companions, the first generations of Muslims, and all the scholars throughout Islamic History who followed this Straight Path).

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"A Brief Introduction to the Salafi Da'wah"

The Salafi Da'wah (da'wah literally means "call", and in this sense it refers to calling to the truth, preaching and propagation) is that of the Qur'an and the Sunnah (i.e. the Religion of Islam - pure and free from any and all additions, deletions and alterations). It means adherence to the Path of the Messenger, may the peace of Allah upon him, and the Faithful Believers, namely the Salaf as-Saalih and all those who follow in their footsteps in belief, actions and morals.

Allah has said: "And whoever contends with and contradicts the Messenger after guidance has been clearly conveyed to him and chooses a path other than that of the Faithful Believers, We shall leave him in the Path he has chosen and land him in Hell, what an evil refuge!" [Surah al-Nisaa' 4:115]

Shaikh-ul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah commented on this verse: "All who contradict and oppose the Messenger after the right path has been clearly shown to them, have followed other than the Path of the Believers; and all who follow other than the Path of the Believers have contradicted and opposed the Messenger after the right Path has been shown to them. If one thinks that he is following the Path of the Faithful Believers and is mistaken, he is in the same position as one who thinks he is following the Messenger and is mistaken."

-Who are the Salaf and who are the Salafis?-

The Salaf as-Saalih are the Companions of the Prophet, peace be upon him, their Followers (the Taabi'een and the Taabi Taabi'een (i.e. the first three generations of Muslims) and the Scholars of the Ahl-us-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah after them who followed their way in belief and deed. Among them are :

Imam Abu Hanifah (150 AH), Al-Awzai (157 AH), Ath-Thawri (161AH), Al Laith ibn Saad (175 AH), Imam Malik (179 AH), Abdullah ibn al-Mubarak (181 AH), Sufyan ibn Uyainah (198 AH), Imam Ash-Shafi'i (204 AH), Ishaq (238 AH), Imam Ahmed bin Hanbal (241 AH), Al-Bukhari (256 AH), Muslim (261 AH), Abu Dawood (275 AH) and others.

Ibn Taymiyyah (728 AH), and his students: Adh-Dhahabi (748 AH), Ibn al-Qayyim (751 AH), Ibn Katheer (774 AH) and others.

Muhammed bin 'Abd al-Wahhab (1206 AH) and many of his students.

And in our time: Abdul Aziz bin Baz, Muhammed bin Saalih Uthaimeen, Muhammed Naasir-ud-Deen al-Albaani.

The Salafis are the Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jamaa'ah. They are the Taaifatul- Mansoorah (the Aided, Victorious Group) and the Firqatun-Naajiyyah (the Saved Sect) which have been mentioned in the following statements of the Messenger, peace be upon him:

"There shall not cease to remain a single group from my community upon the Truth, victorious; they are unharmed by those who abandon them and those who oppose them. They will remain (in my community and in such a state) until they fight the liar (i.e. the Anti-Christ (Dajjal)." [Reported in Sahih Muslim]

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For the rest of the article, please see the link:

http://www.spubs.com/sps/sp.cfm?subsecID=SLF02&art...

And to answer your other questions:

Q) I thought "very strict" meant Wahhabi?

A) The term "Wahhabi" was a term invented by deviant cults and disbelievers to slander Muslims who adhere to the Qur'an and Sunnah upon the understanding of the Salaf-us-Salih. "Wahhabi", was particularly used by the Sufi grave worshipers in the time of Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abdul-Wahhaab, may Allaah have mercy on him, as they took offense to their shrines of shirk being demolished in accordance with the Sunnah. See http://www.thewahhabimyth.com/ .

Q) "They follow the Qur'an, Sunnah and the example of the Sahabah etc... pious predessors."...that means every Muslim...?"

A) No it does not. Many Muslims claim to follow the understanding of the Sahabah, but it is an empty claim. For example, the Sufis claim to follow the Qur'an and the Sunnah, but they perform and call to acts of worship that were never taught by the Prophet, peace be upon him. The Shia claim the same, but they have taken their Imams as intermediaries with Allah. Terrorists claim to be following the Sunnah, yet they kill innocent people all over the world and cause widespread corruption. All of these groups have fallen into severe error because they interpret the Qur'an and the Sunnah in a way that opposes the actual, authentic, and contextual teachings of the Prophet, peace be upon him, and the scholars throughout Islamic History.

Q) Difference between Salafi/Sunni?

A) The terms are interchangeable to an extent. They are terms used when needed to clarify the difference between true Islam and deviant ideologies that claim to be Islamic. The term "Sunni" came about to clarify to the general Muslims that the "Islam" claimed by the Shia is not true Islam. Later on in Islamic history, the scholars of the religion, used the term "Atharee" (means: a follower of the authentic narrations) to clarify to the general Muslim that a true Muslim is one who accepts and follows the authentic narrations from the sunnah (because in that time, people who rejected hadeeth would still call themselves "Sunni" so the general layman would be confused about the difference between truth and falsehood.) Likewise the term "Salafi" is used when necessary to clarify that true Islam entails following the understanding of the Salaf-us-Salih in actuality (because there exists Muslims who claim to be Sunni but who practice Islam with a corrupt methodology). These terms are not "sectarian" terms, rather they are used so the person seeking to worship Allaah correctly will not be confused by all the parties that claim Islam.

I hope that helps. May Allaah bless you!

And the top of the Morning to you too lassie! A fine day here in Cali! The only thing I have researched that I would try a holistic approach to is TMJ prior to any surgical procedure. Only because I have heard some people are not thrilled with the outcome of the surgery! But yes sometimes I want to throw my hands up in the air and go holistic because I feel which ever dog at the time is under vet care is on too much medication. But I have not really had much more experience with it than that. Oh and I probably should mention none of my dogs have TMJ (thank you Jesus) I just researched when a friend of mines dog was diagnosed with it. She opted for the surgery! Not a happy camper after surgery!*;*

Los "salafis" are a group of Sunni Muslims. The founder is Sheikh Ibn Taymiyyah, who was a Muslim scholar.

Today, most of those who claim to be "salafis" are actually "wahhabis" - followers of Muhammad bin Abdul Wahhab who appeared in the 18th century and founded an extremist group. He made an alliance with the Al Saud Family: To give them religious credibility, while they gave him all the support to spread his ideology.

The Wahhabis participated in the first Saudi revolt against the Ottoman caliphate, but they lost and were almost totally destroyed. Later in the early 20th century, they started another rebellion against the Caliphate, supported by the English who gave them armament and money, so that they could participate in the destruction of the Ottoman caliphate. This time they succeeded and formed what is called today "the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."

The "salafis" CLAIM to follow the Quran, the Sunnah, and the method of the first generations (the salaf), but in reality, it is a false claim.

Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, had said repeatedly that the truth is with the majority of the Muslims. The majority of the Muslims have always been followers of the 4 traditional Sunni schools, whose creed is Ashari, and who respect the authentic sufism that follows the Quran and the Sunnah. Even Ibn Taymiyyah's writings denote a huge respect for authentic sufism. Today the wahhabis make themselves different from the rest of the Muslims (which is enough to show that they are a deviant sect). They reject the Ashari creed which is adopted by the majority of the Muslims, and in its place, they have a primitive creed that believes that God has REAL eyes, hands, and feet. They also reject everything Sufi and even have falsified Ibn Taymiyyah's books, removing all positive references to it.

The Wahhabis/Salafis have been the most radical and extremist sect among Sunnis in the modern times. When they were forming their Saudi state, they committed massacres in many places, including Mecca and Medina, against other Muslims who were not Wahhabis. They also included in their educational curriculum a huge charge of hate against all non-Muslims, and also against the non-wahabi Muslims. They claim to follow authentic Islam, but in reality, they follow their close-minded mentality and reject everything that is not them.

Hope this had made things clear.

Peace/salaam

Salafi follow the way of the salaf (dead) or the Muslims that came before us. the predecessors.They follow the Quran and Sunnah in a strict and literal way. Some are considered to twist the meanings to suit their own desires(which is the case with any). They live in a manner that has been considered to be pure sunni Islam. They are very against Biddah(innovations) but don't seem to agree on exactly what they are.Most would say that dhiker beads are haram but date seeds are not. Some say car insurance is haram but not cars. things like this are common differences. Not all are particularly knowledgeable, but have memorized particular pieces of Islam that relate to everyday society and life. I find that while most are sincere, some corrupt the hadith and use it to justify things that don't seem right to me. For example, some say it is ok to see women naked before deciding to marry them as long as you spy on them. Some say it is ok to take women as slaves etc. I would like to note that this is not the case with most but it is common place. Most are good righteous people who use Hadith and Quran to live their lives in a positive way.

Bottom line is Salafi follow the ways of the Salaf our righteous predecessors. They are Sunni Muslims that follow a strict course of Islam.

Really strict following Muslims.

Like..they'll condemn "fancy technology" and they'll use a "fancy computer" at the same time.

---The Salafis I know are verrry pious, and follow religion to the word. They go by the term "The Righteous Predecessors" of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

The crazy one Y!A is a bit too radical.

They follow the Qur'an, Sunnah and the example of the Sahabah etcc... pious predessors.

Salaf or as-Salaf aṣ-Ṣāliḥ (Arabic: السلف الصالح‎) can be variously translated as "(righteous) predecessors" or "(righteous) ancestors." In Islamic terminology, it is generally used to refer to the first three generations of Muslims:

Ṣaḥāba: (Arabic: الصحابه, "The Companions") The companions of Muhammad, who had met or had seen him while in a state of īmān, and then died on that state

Tābi‘īn: (Arabic: التابعين, "The Successors") Those who had met or had seen the ṣaḥāba while in a state of īmān (belief), and then died on that state.

Tāba‘ at-Tābi‘īn: (Arabic: تابع التابعين, "The Successors of the Successors") Those who had met or had seen the tābi`īn while in a state of īmān, and then died on that state.

I know two Salafis, both of whom are knowledgable in different aspects of Islam Mash'Allah, but they're not as strict as everyone claims them to be,, they're pretty much stricter versions of Sunnis!

►► Salaafi and Wahaabi are the same.

►► Other Muslims criticize them for a lame excuse: "They are too strict."

►► They follow the Qur'aan and Sunnah.

►► They follow the religion, many I have met who are in the 'Ulemaa.

◘◘◘◘ I do not see why they have a different label. This is why people say Wahaabism does not exist.

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Salaafi & Wahaabi are the same.

Sunni are less strict. Wahaabis are the ones that say music is haraam, etc.

OMFG! Im on my Ipod and I wrote u a very good answer that I'm sure would have cleared up your mind. It took me forever typing it all here, but my iPod just shut down for some reason and it was all deleted before I submitted! If none of these answers help u, I'll rewrite my answer to u and email it, bc I used to be sooo confused about it like u, but I studied about it for a while, so I know what it is. Just tell me if u really want me to email u the answer.

salafis are just peopl who follow the Quran and sunnah and study Islam strongly.

I don't see a reason why them or Tabliki brothers exist.. We are all Muslims and we all she try our best to follow the Quran and sunnah as much as we can. We don't need another group to further implement Quran and sunnah. I had no negative opinion about them, until after one time I was doing Ishaa prayer in the mosque, and I kind of just wanted to speak, you know, like say "hi", to some brothers..so I shaked the hand of the person to the right of me..and to the left of me was a Salafi brother, I shaked his hand, and he gave me like a really serious look....then afterwords he pullled me to the side and gave me this looooonnngggg lecture about how shaking hands after in Islam is innovation. I thought it was very weird, but I just listened patiently. Then he wanted me to join them, but I declined.