Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari

Abū al -Hasan al - Ash ʿ arī (Arabic أبو الحسن علي بن إسماعيل الأشعري, DMG Abū ʾ l - Ḥasan ʿ Alī b Ismā ʿ īl al - Aš ʿ arī, * against 873-874 in Basra. † 935 in Baghdad ) was an Islamic theologian. On him the ash ʿ aritische theology school is returned.

Abū al -Hasan came in the ninth generation of the Prophet's companions Abu Musa al - Ash ʿ from arī. In his youth he studied Islamic jurisprudence Shafi ʿ itischer and hanafitischer embossing. Both law schools designate him as their followers. At first he belonged to the school of rational theology Mutazila of Basra, however, turned against 912-913 of this from and written works to refute the Mutacilitic school. He justified his later named after him theology school.

Minted has it his study of Christianity, coupled with his critique of Christian doctrine.

Works

Ibn ʿ Asaakir leads in his book "Understanding the lies of the slanderer about what one has the Imam Abū l -Hasan al - Ash ʿ arī accused " ( Tabyīn kaḏib al - muftarī fī - mā nusiba ILA ʾ l - Imām Abī ʾ l - Ḥasan al - aš ʿ arī ) on a list of 105 works of al - Ash ʿ aris. Most of these works are lost. Among those who have survived, the following have received a lot of attention:

• The "Book of the highlights " ( Kitāb al - Luma ʿ ) with a short preface and ten chapters. Richard J. McCarthy has translated the book into English. In Chapter 1, which deals with the Existenzu God and his attributes, al- Ash ʿ turns arī against anthropomorphic conceptions of God and defends the necessity of philosophical contemplation ( Nazar ) to the knowledge of truth. In the latter, he refers to the example of Abraham, who, as the Qur'an says in Sura 6:76 f, have realized the only way the unity of God. Chapter 2 deals with the Qur'an and the divine will ( Irada ), Chapter 3 is devoted to the proof that the divine will includes all created things in time ( muḥdaṯāt ). Chapter 4 deals with al - ʿ Aš arī the vision ( ru ʾ ya) God, in Chapter 5 the concept of Qadar and in Chapter 6, the capacity to act ( istiṭā ʿ a) of man. Here he sets based on the doctrine of the " acquisition " ( iktisāb ) the actions by humans. Chapter 7 deals with al - Ash ʿ arī the for- disabled - holding and for- Unjust - keeping God, in Chapter 8, the position of the sinner, in chapter 9 he affirms the doctrine that no Muslim believers will for all eternity in hell, and in chapter 10 he treats the Imamate.

• " The dogmatic teachings of the followers of Islam and the dissent of those praying " ( Maqālāt al - islāmīyīn wa - al - ḫtilāf muṣallīn ), a doxographisches work in which the doctrines of the then Islamic sects are represented. Al- Ash ʿ arī has incorporated therein earlier works with the same thematic focus, such as the Kitāb al - Mu ʿ Maqālāt of taziliten Zurqān (d. 891/2 ). Al- Ash ʿ aris work was edited by Hellmut Ritter.

• The "Book of the exposition of the fundamentals of religion" ( Kitāb al - ʿ Ibana to Usul al- Diyana ). The book was written by W. C. Post under the title The Elucidation of Islam 's foundation (New York 1940) translated into English. It is by its orientation significantly more traditionalist than the Kitāb al - Luma ʿ. Therefore McCarthy expresses doubts as to the authenticity of the work.

• The " Epistle on the advocacy of employment with the Kalam - science" ( Risalat al - Istiḥsān Haud fī ʿ ilm al - kalam ). The authenticity of this work has however been called into question.

Creed

Al- Ash ʿ arī was anchored in the Sunni tradition and apparently belonged to a group of theologians, whom he repeatedly called as " our ( like-minded ) friends" ( aṣḥābunā ) in his writings. In his work Maqālāt al - al - Ash'ari islāmiyyīn summarizes the creed aqida / عقيدة / ʿ Aqida /, creed, Creed ' the theological teaching of this group so successful together:

" The Broad view of tradition and faithful Sunnatreuen are as follows:

• They profess to Allah, His angels, His ( Holy ) scriptures, His Prophet, what has come from Allah ( the revelation ) and what reliable ( informants ) who narrated from the Prophet ...
• You acknowledge that Allah a single, eternal God is ... that Muhammad is His servant and prophet, that the Paradise is truth, Hell is truth and ...
• They profess that Allah sits on his throne, as he said it: " The Rahman sits on the throne " ...
• They claim that there is nothing on earth good and not bad except what Allah wants, and that things happen by the will of Allah ...
• You further affirm that there is no creator other than Allah, that Allah creates the bad deeds of men that Allah () creates the actions of men and that men are not able to create anything ...
• They claim that the Qor'ān is the word of Allah and uncreated ...
• They claim that Allah is seen at the last day through the eyes of ...
• You further affirm that faith consists of words and deeds and increase and may decrease and they claim neither that he is still that it is created uncreated ...
• You mean that one should pray at the festival on Friday and in community behind any Imam, he is pious or sinful ...; they recognize their obligation to Ǧihād against the infidels, since Allah sent His prophets until the last band that fights against the Daǧǧāl, and ( still) ... "

The combined teachings herein have great similarities with the creed of Ahmad ibn Hanbal, shown in his aqeedah.

The ash ʿ aritische school

( see main article Asch'ariyya )

Al - ʿ arī Asch was after his work on the eponym of a theological school. The most famous followers were al - Bāqillānī, Imam al -Haramain al - Dschuwainī (1028-1085) and Al -Ghazali. From Sunnis he is appreciated to the present day mainly because of its position against the Mutazila and the Shiites.