Maturidiyyah

Doctrines		Maturidiyyah, along with Ash'ariyyah, forms the basis of orthodox Sunni theology. Maturidi theology can best be understood in comparison with that of Mu'tazilah and Ash'ariyyah. One of the principal theological questions with which each of these schools engaged concerned the role of human reason in the development of religious faith. Unlike the school of al-Ash 'ari which claimed that knowledge of God derives from revelation through the prophets, Maturidiyyah argues that knowledge of God's existence can be derived through reason alone. Another major issue that concerned all three schools was the relationship between human freedom and divine omnipotence. Maturidiyyah claims that although humanity has a free will God is still all-powerful and in control of history. It is humanity's ability to distinguish between good and evil that means that humanity is responsible for whatever good or evil actions are performed. The third major issue concerned God's attributes. Ash'ariyyah teaches that what the Qur'an says about God's attributes must be accepted as correct even though we do not properly understand the meaning of many of the statements about God.
History		Maturidiyyah is a Sunni theological school named after its founder Abu Mansur al-Maturidi (d.944). In the Mamluk age the school came to be widely recognised as the second orthodox Sunni theological school beside Ash'ariyyah. Resident in Samarqand in Central Asia, al-Maturidi had little impact on mainstream Islamic intellectual life during his lifetime. Maturidiyyah only came to be important as a result of its acceptance by the Turkish tribes of Central Asia. The Maturidi school of theology gradually came to prevail among the Hanafite communities everywhere. Because the Turks were mostly Hanafite the Turkish expansion through the Ottoman empire enabled the Hanafite and Maturidite schools to spread throughout western Persia, Iraq, Anatolia, and Syria.
Symbols		As a school of law Malikiyyah has no symbols.
Adherents		Today nearly 53% of Sunni Muslims are Hanafites, and the majority of Hanafites are Maturidites. Maturidiyyah is now present in Turkey, the Balkans, Central Asia, China, India, Pakistan and Eritrea.
Headquarters/ Main Centre		The school has no headquarters or main centre.