We have understood that the majority of Muslims worldwide follow Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari (﵀) and Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (﵀) in matters of belief, and that Imam Ash'ari (﵀) did not introduce any new opinions in matters of belief. Rather, he only logically and authoritatively presented what the Salaf al-Salihin (righteous predecessors) understood in the light of the Holy Quran and the noble Hadith. That is why most of the scholars who gifted the Islamic world with invaluable books in various branches of knowledge were those who accepted the opinion of Imam Ash'ari (﵀).
Imam Ash'ari (﵀) and Imam Razi (﵀) as Mujaddids (Reformers)
Imam Subki (﵀) says:
يقول الامام السبكي:
وكان شيخنا الذهبى يقول الذى أعتقده فى حديث يبعث الله من يجدد أن من للجمع لا للمفرد ويقول مثلا على رأس الثلاثمائة ابن سريج فى الفقه والأشعرى فى أصول الدين والنسائى فى الحديث وعلى الستمائة مثلا الحافظ عبد الغنى فى الحديث والإمام فخر الدين فى الكلام (طبقات الشافعية٣/٢٦)
"My teacher, Imam Dhahabi, used to say: Regarding the Hadith which states that Allah will send leaders at the beginning of every century to revive this religion, I believe that the word 'man' (who) refers to more than one person, not just a single individual. For example, at the beginning of the third century Hijri, Ibn Surayj in jurisprudence, Imam Nasa'i (﵀) in Hadith, and Imam Ash'ari (﵀) in matters of belief. At the beginning of the sixth century, Abdul Ghani in Hadith, and Imam Razi (﵀) in Ilm al-Kalam (scholastic theology) – all of them are leaders of reformation." (Tabaqat al-Shafi'iyyah 3/26)
Now let's see what Ibn Taymiyyah, the ideological source of the Wahhabis, says about the Ash'aris:
يقول ابن تيمية الحراني
فإنهم أقرب طوائف أهل الكلام إلى السنة والجماعة والحديث وهم يعدون من أهل السنة والجماعة عند النظر إلى مثل المعتزلة والرافضة ونحوهم بل هم أهل السنة والجماعة في البلاد التي يكون أهل البدع فيها المعتزلة والرافضة ونحوهم (بيان تلبيس الجهمية ٣/٥٣٩)
"Mutakallimun (scholastic theologians) like Abdullah ibn Sa'id ibn Kullab are the closest to Hadith and Ahlus Sunnah, and compared to the Mu'tazila and Rafida sects, they are considered part of Ahlus Sunnah. Moreover, in lands where there are innovators (Bid'ah) like the aforementioned sects, they alone are Ahlus Sunnah." (Bayan Talbis al-Jahmiyyah 3/539).
Ibn Taymiyyah, who severely criticized Ilm al-Kalam and Ash'arism and authored books on it, nevertheless does not exclude the Ash'aris from Ahlus Sunnah. However, for some in our country who are learning Wahhabism and Taymiyyanism, Imam Ash'ari (﵀) and Imam Razi (﵀) are rationalists and innovators who have deviated from Ahlus Sunnah.
