Much has been written on the relation of Ghazali (al-Ghaz®l¬) to Ash‘arism1 that, among other things, indicate his criticisms of the kal®m.2 Underlying his criticisms is a primary thesis, namely that the main function of kal®m is the protection of traditional Islamic belief (‘aq¬da), rooted in the Qur’®n and guided by the customary practice of the prophet, the sunna, against heretical innovatio...