Al-Ashari 874 – 936
Abu al-Hasan Ali al-Ashari was an Arab Sunni theologian and the founder of the Ashari school of kalam, the dominant theological tradition of medieval Sunni Islam. After early adherence to the rationalist Mu'tazilite school, he had a famous public conversion and devoted the rest of his life to the defense of orthodox doctrine against both Mu'tazilite rationalism and the more literalist trends of his day. His Maqalat al-Islamiyyin, the Statements of the Muslims, is the earliest detailed systematic account of Islamic doctrinal differences. His school shaped the work of al-Ghazali and Fakhr al-Din al-Razi.
Key facts
- Nationality
- Arab
- Era
- Medieval
- Movements
- Islamic, Medieval
Selected quotes
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Attributed to Al-Ashari:
“All actions are created by God and acquired by human beings.”
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Attributed to Al-Ashari:
“The truths of religion are rooted in tradition but defended by reason.”
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Attributed to Al-Ashari:
“Faith and works together constitute true religion.”
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Attributed to Al-Ashari:
“What God wills is good because he wills it.”
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Attributed to Al-Ashari:
“We affirm of God only what he has revealed of himself.”