Athari

Traditionalist theology is a movement of Islamic scholars who reject rationalistic Islamic theology (kalam) in favor of strict textualism in interpreting the Quran and sunnah. 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 Quran 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 Quran, as opposed to one engaged in tawil (metaphorical interpretation). They do not attempt to conceptualize the meanings of the Quran rationally, and believe that their realities should be consigned to God alone (tafwid). In essence, the text of the Quran 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. In matters of faith, they were pitted against Mutazilites 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-Ashari and al-Maturidi found a middle ground between Mutazilite rationalism and Hanbalite literalism, using the rationalistic methods championed by Mutazilites 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 Asharism 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.

Bio from Wikipedia - See more on en.wikipedia.org Text under CC-BY-SA license