Traditionalist theology is a Islamic scholarly
movement, originating in the late 8th century
CE, who reject rationalistic Islamic theology
(kalam) in favor of strict textualism in interpreting
the Quran and hadith. The name derives from
"tradition" in its technical sense as translation
of the Arabic word hadith. It is also sometimes
referred to by several other names.
Adherents of traditionalist theology believe
the zahir (literal, apparent) meaning of the
Qur'an and the hadith are the sole authorities
in matters of belief and law; and that the
use of rational disputation is forbidden even
verifying the truth. They engage in a literal
reading of the Qur'an, as opposed to one engaged
in ta'wil (metaphorical interpretation). They
do not attempt to conceptualize the meanings
of the Qur'an rationally, and believe that
their realities should be consigned to God
alone (tafwid). In essence, the text of the
Qur'an and Hadith is accepted without asking
"how" or "Bi-la kaifa".
Traditionalist theology emerged among hadith
scholars who eventually coalesced into a movement
called ahl al-hadith under the leadership
of Ahmad ibn Hanbal (b. 780–d. 855). In
matters of faith, they were pitted against
Mu'tazilites and other theological currents,
condemning many points of their doctrine as
well as the rationalistic methods they used
in defending them. In the tenth century al-Ash'ari
and al-Maturidi found a middle ground between
Mu'tazilite rationalism and Hanbalite literalism,
using the rationalistic methods championed
by Mu'tazilites to defend most tenets of the
traditionalist doctrine. Although the mainly
Hanbali scholars who rejected this synthesis
were in the minority, their emotive, narrative-based
approach to faith remained influential among
the urban masses in some areas, particularly
in Abbasid Baghdad.While Ash'arism and Maturidism
are often called the Sunni "orthodoxy", traditionalist
theology has thrived alongside it, laying
rival claims to be the orthodox Sunni faith.
In the modern era it has had a disproportionate
impact on Islamic theology, having been appropriated
by Wahhabi and other traditionalist Salafi
currents and spread well beyond the confines
of the Hanbali school of law.
== Terminology ==
Several terms are used to refer to traditionalist
theology. They are used inconsistently and
some of them have been subject to criticism.
The term traditionalist theology is derived
from the word "tradition" in its technical
meaning as translation of the Arabic term
hadith. This term is found in a number of
reference works. It has been criticized by
Marshall Hodgson (who preferred the term Hadith
folk) for its potential for confusion between
the technical and common meanings of the word
"tradition". Oliver Leaman also cautions against
misinterpreting the terms "traditionalists"
and "rationalists" as implying that the former
favored irrationality or that the latter did
not use hadith. Some authors reject the use
of these terms as labels for groups of scholars
and prefer to speak of "traditionalist" and
"rationalist" tendencies instead. Racha el
Omari has used "traditionalist theology" in
a way that includes Ash'arism and Maturidism.The
term traditionism has also been used in the
same sense, although Binyamin Abrahamov reserves
the term "traditionists" for scholars of hadith,
distinguishing it from traditionalism as a
theological current.Since the overwhelming
majority of the Hanbali school of jurisprudence
has adhered to traditionalist theology, some
sources refer to it as Hanbali theology. However,
others note that some Shafi'i scholars also
belonged to this theological movement, while
some Hanbalites adopted a more rationalist
theology.Athari (from the Arabic word athar,
meaning "remnant" or "narrative") is another
term that has been used for traditionalist
theology.The term ahl al-hadith (people of
hadith) theology is used by some authors in
the same sense as athari, while others restrict
it to the early stages of this movement, or
use it in a broader sense to denote particular
enthusiasm towards hadith.Some authors refer
to traditionalist theology as classical Salafism
or classic Salafiya (from salaf, meaning "(pious)
ancestors"). Henri Lauzière has argued that,
while the majority Hanbali creed was sometimes
identified as "salafi" in classical-era sources,
using the corresponding nouns in this context
is anachronistic.
== History ==
Traditionalist theology emerged toward the
end of the 8th century CE among scholars of
hadith who held the Quran and authentic hadith
to be the only acceptable sources of law and
creed. At first these scholars formed minorities
within existing religious study circles, but
by the early ninth century they coalesced
into a separate traditionalist movement (commonly
called ahl al-hadith) under the leadership
of Ahmad ibn Hanbal. In legal matters, these
traditionalists criticized the use of personal
opinion (ra'y) common among the Hanafi jurists
of Iraq as well as the reliance on living
local traditions by Malikite jurists of Medina.
They also rejected the use of qiyas (analogical
deduction) and other methods of jurisprudence
not based on literal reading of scripture.
In matters of faith, traditionalists were
pitted against Mu'tazilites and other theological
currents, condemning many points of their
doctrines as well as the rationalistic methods
they used in defending them.Traditionalists
were also characterized by their avoidance
of all state patronage and by their social
activism. They attempted to follow the injunction
of "commanding good and forbidding evil" by
preaching asceticism and launching vigilante
attacks to break wine bottles, musical instruments
and chessboards. In 833 the caliph al-Ma'mun
tried to impose Mu'tazilite theology on all
religious scholars and instituted an inquisition
(mihna) which required them to accept the
Mu'tazilite doctrine that the Qur'an was a
created object, which implicitly made it subject
to interpretation by caliphs and scholars.
Ibn Hanbal led traditionalist resistance to
this policy, affirming under torture that
the Quran was uncreated and hence coeternal
with God. Although Mu'tazilism remained state
doctrine until 851, the efforts to impose
it only served to politicize and harden the
theological controversy.The next two centuries
saw an emergence of broad compromises in both
law and creed within Sunni Islam. In jurisprudence,
Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali madhhabs
all gradually came to accept both the traditionalist
reliance on the Quran and hadith and the use
of controlled reasoning in the form of qiyas.
In theology, Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari (874-936)
found a middle ground between Mu'tazilite
rationalism and Hanbalite literalism, using
the rationalistic methods championed by Mu'tazilites
to defend most tenets of the traditionalist
doctrine. A rival compromise between rationalism
and traditionalism emerged from the work of
al-Maturidi (d. c. 944), and one of these
two schools of theology was accepted by members
of all Sunni madhhabs, with the exception
of most Hanbalite and some Shafi'i scholars,
who ostensibly persisted in their rejection
of kalam, although they often resorted to
rationalistic arguments themselves, even while
claiming to rely on the literal text of scripture.Although
the scholars who rejected the Ash'ari/Maturidi
synthesis were in the minority, their emotive,
narrative-based approach to faith remained
influential among the urban masses in some
areas, particularly in Baghdad. Its popularity
manifested itself repeatedly from late ninth
to eleventh centuries, when crowds shouted
down preachers who publicly expounded rationalistic
theology. After caliph al-Mutawakkil suspended
the rationalist inquisition, Abbasid caliphs
came to rely on an alliance with traditionalists
to buttress popular support. In the early
11th century the caliph al-Qadir made a series
of proclamations that sought to prevent public
preaching of rationalistic theology. In turn,
the Seljuq vizier Nizam al-Mulk in the late
11th century encouraged Ash'ari theologians
in order to counterbalance caliphal traditionalism,
inviting a number of them to preach in Baghdad
over the years. One such occasion led to five
months of rioting in the city in 1077.While
Ash'arism and Maturidism are often called
the Sunni "orthodoxy", traditionalist theology
has thrived alongside it, laying rival claims
to be the orthodox Sunni faith. In the modern
era it has had a disproportionate impact on
Islamic theology, having been appropriated
by Wahhabi and other traditionalist Salafi
currents and spread well beyond the confines
of the Hanbali school of law.
== Beliefs ==
=== 
On the Qur'an ===
The Atharis believe that every part of the
Qur'an is uncreated (ghayr makhluq). It is
reported that Ahmad Ibn Hanbal said, "The
Qur'an is God's Speech, which He expressed;
it is uncreated. He who claims the opposite
is a Jahmite, an infidel. And he who says,
'The Qur'an is God's Speech,' and stops there
without adding 'uncreated,' speaks even more
abominably than the former".
=== On Kalam and human reason ===
For Atharis, the validity of human reason
is severely limited, and rational proofs cannot
be trusted nor relied upon in matters of belief,
thus making kalam a blameworthy innovation.
Rational proofs, unless they are Qur'anic
in origin, are considered nonexistent and
wholly invalid. However, this was not always
the case as a number of Atharis delved into
kalam, whether or not they described it as
such.Examples of Atharis who wrote books against
the use of kalam and human reason include
the Hanbali Sufi, Khwaja Abdullah Ansari,
and the Hanbali jurist Ibn Qudama. Ibn Qudama
harshly rebuked theology as one of the worst
of all heresies. He characterized its partisans,
its theologians, as innovators and heretics
who had betrayed and deviated from the simple
and pious faith of the early Muslims. He writes:
"The theologians are intensely hated in this
world, and they will be tortured in the next.
None among them will prosper, nor will he
succeed in following the right direction...".
=== 
On the Attributes of God ===
The Atharis staunchly affirm the existence
of the attributes of God and consider all
of them to be equally eternal. They accept
the relevant verses of the Qur'an and hadith
as they are, without subjecting them to rational
analysis or elaboration. According to Atharis,
the real meanings of the attributes of God
should be consigned to God alone (tafwid).
According to this method, one should adhere
to the sacred text of the Qur'an and believe
that it is the truth, without trying to explain
it through figurative explanation.Ahmed Ibn
Hanbal reportedly stated, "His Attributes
proceed from Him and are His own, we do not
go beyond the Qur'an and the traditions of
the Prophet and his Companions; nor do we
know the how of these, save by the acknowledgement
of the Apostle and the confirmation of the
Qur'an".Ibn Qudamah al-Maqdisi stated: "For
we have no need to know the meaning which
Allah intended by His attributes; no course
of action is intended by them, nor is there
any obligation attached to them. It is possible
to believe in them without the knowledge of
their intended sense".Anthropomorphism was
commonly alleged against Athari scholars by
their critics, including the Hanbalite scholar
and theologian Ibn al-Jawzi. In some cases,
Athari scholars espoused extreme anthropomorphic
views, but they do not generally represent
the Athari movement as a whole.
=== On Iman (faith) ===
The Atharis hold that Iman (faith) increases
and decreases in correlation with the performance
of prescribed rituals and duties, such as
the five daily prayers. They believe that
Iman resides in the heart, in the utterance
of the tongue and in the action of the limbs.
=== On division of tawhid ===
Some scholars of the Athari school of divinity
supported the division of tawhid into three
categories; tawhid al-rububiyyah ("the oneness
of lordship", referring to belief in God as
the creator and sustainer of the world) and
tawhid al-uluhiyyah ("the oneness of divinity",
referring to worshipping God as the only deity)
and tawhid al-asma wa-l-sifat ("the oneness
of names and attributes", which asserts that
God has only one set of attributes and they
do not contradict each other). Ibn Taymiyyah
seems to have been the first to introduce
this distinction.
== Criticism ==
Sixteenth-century Sunni scholar Ibn Hajar
al-Haytami denounced Athari views associated
with Ibn Taymiyyah.
The dogmatic and anti-rationalistic positions
of traditionalist theology was also related
to the source on which Islamism thoughts are
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