Ashari, Athari, Maturidi, Mutazzilites

 All these three creed are considered are acceptable in the Sunni doctrine.

Athari is more literalist doctrin (as followed by Salafi and Hanbali School of though).

All other thought groups either follow Ashari or Maturidi creed. Ashari- Maturidi is basically the same Creed, with difference in very small details, and often used interchangeably.

The main difference to my knowledge between Ashari and Maturidi is, Ashari derived their logic on contemporary reasoning (philosophy) while Maturidi claims to stick to the reasoning followed by early Scholars of Reasoning (like Imam Abu Hanifa).

Mu’tazilites

The Mu’tazilites were a group that was most active in the 8th and 10th centuries AD. Their ideas have lasted and have had a particular impact on 

Shi’a

 theology. The Mu’tazilites argued that:

Humans must have total free will as God, who is perfectly wise and good, cannot cause evil, yet evil exists.

God allows human suffering in order to test people’s faith, which is evidence of complete freedom of action.

Moral actions are either good or evil, and humans should use their reason to work out which is which.

God must stand by his promise to reward the righteous with Paradise and punish the wicked with Hell.

The reward or punishment that God gives out can only be just if it is given to creatures who truly have free will.

Although the 

Qur’an

 teaches that God guides and leads astray whoever he wants to (Surah 14:4), for Mu’tazilite Muslims this does not mean that people are subject to 

predestination

. Rather, Mu’tazilites believe that such passages in the Qur’an refer to what will happen after death, at judgement, when the righteous will be guided to Paradise and the wicked will be caused to stray far from it.

Asharites

Asharism is the main theological school of 

Sunni

 Islam. It was founded by the theologian Abu al-Hasan al-Ash’ari early in the 10th century when he broke away from the Mu’tazilite thinkers who had been his teachers and companions. Followers of these teachings are known as Asharites. Asharites reject the Mu’tazilites’ views about free will. Instead, they argue:

Humans have some freedom of action and total freedom of thought, but only God has the power to create actions – humans do not have this power.

Humans cannot truly understand ideas about freedom and justice, which are the domain of God alone.

God may send a person to Hell or Heaven even though it seems unfair to human beings. Ultimately, everything God does is fair, but much of it is beyond human understanding.

God may forgive the sins of the people in Hell.