The theory of istihqaq in the Mu'tazila (To deserve a reward and punishment)

Merit (to deserve) is by its meaning and content one of the privileged topics that distinguishes Mu'tazila from other sects and schools. Merit, in thought of Mu'tazila school, is discussed both as a legal and a moral issue around the principle of el-va'd ve'l-vaîd. Merit in the theology of Mu'tazila is a theory in which principles and responsibilities are taken as the basis of God and man's rights and law. The most obvious example of this is Mu'tazila school's attempt to base merit from experience and on the human-human relationship. People deserve praise and goodwill with their actions in the world. It is known by experience that it is not arbitrary and depends on certain criteria. Indeed, 'justification' requires the existence of objective measures between action, value and judgment. Merit is the relevance relationship between two phenomenons that are experienced one and value or the is and the ought. Indeed, the praise of good action and the deserving of condemnation of evil action correspond to such a relation. In the present case, merit is a moral conseqence that comes together with a conscious act. In this sense, the praise, condemnation, reward, punishement or cost which may be response to the existing values should be compulsory, necessary and appropriate about the subject. Therefore, merit is a concept related to the existing. It is multidimensional in the sense that it is about all human beings, all living and inanimate beings. For this reason, the merit is to talk about the entity in terms of the beginning and the future. The fact that human beings have been created is the most essential factor that makes merit necessary. With creation, human beings became responsible and at the same time became a worthy being. The rightfulness of deserving is attributed to the ability of the people's doing with a free will (temkîn). In this case, the most basic quality of merit is man's free actions, that is, the value of actions. These values consist of religious-moral forms such as good, evil, altruism, sin, reward, punishment and harm. As long as the offer continues, the final decision is the person's right to receive the reward and punishment. For this reason, the amnesty, intercession and repentance report that humane judgements can be changed.