Reconciliation of Divine omnipotence with human responsibility seems impossible for many. The aim of this paper is to investigate whether this is really the case by analyzing how concept of kasb was understood in a major “orthodox”...
moreReconciliation of Divine omnipotence with human responsibility seems impossible for many. The aim of this paper is to investigate whether this is really the case by analyzing how concept of kasb was understood in a major “orthodox” school of thought in Islam, the Ash‘arite School. I will examine whether the concept can provide a meaningful reconciliation of God’s all encompassing power with human free will. The approach of the paper will be systematic in that I will analyze the issue in terms of internal consistency and logical validity. In what follows I will first give a historical background on the issue of human freewill since the Ash‘arite concept of kasb was formulated within this background. Next, I will analyze the Ash‘arite concept of kasb organizing it under three main critical questions. First question is on the need for the notion of kasb or acquisition: why does Ash‘arite school insist that human being is “acquirer” of the act? Second, we will analyze whether the notion of kasb can accommodate a genuine human free will. Lastly, we need to pay attention to a more specific question that is related to theodicy, can this “orthodox” notion of kasb avoid imputing evil onto God, a concern so dear –justifiably so- to the opponents of kasb?
