Al-Ash‘arī diverged from them on these matters even more sharply than the Dirāriyyah did, to the point of inclining toward Jahm’s position. Yet he identified with the Sunnah, hadith, and the imams of the Sunnah, such as Imam Ahmad and others, and championed their manifest teachings to an extent not found among those other groups.

For this reason, he and others like him were counted among the speculative theologians affiliated with the people of hadith. They were the best of these groups and the closest to the Quran and Sunnah. His knowledge of hadith and the Sunnah, however, was general, whereas his knowledge of speculative theology was detailed. Thus, remnants of Mu‘tazilī principles remained with him. Various groups affiliated with the Sunnah and hadith joined him in retaining these remnants and other positions, including followers of the imams Mālik, Abū Hanīfah, al-Shāfi‘ī, and Ahmad.

Most of these people hold contradictory positions: they state a position but do not accept its implications.

One reason for this is that they uphold positions transmitted from the Companions and the early generations, consistent with the Quran, the Sunnah, and clear reason, yet in refuting certain disbelievers or proponents of innovation, they follow an approach adopted by the Mu‘tazilah and others like them. That approach does not accord with the principles of Ahl al-Sunnah. They are therefore obliged both to accept the implications of that Mu‘tazilī approach and to affirm