How did our senior sheikhs and scholars of the Ummah praise the Ash'ari scholars, while it is said that the Ash'aris are not from Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah and are misguided?

The Ash'ari school of thought in creed is based on the views of Imam Abu al-Hasan al-Ash'ari during the period when he agreed with Ibn Kullab, after which al-Ash'ari recanted many of his views. Much of what the Ash'aris hold today contradicts the Qur'an, the Sunnah, and the sayings of the Salaf (pious predecessors). Many later jurists fell into this school of thought. Some Shafi'is, like Imam al-Nawawi, are not Ash'aris, and his discourse on faith and predestination aligns with the people of Hadith, even though he made some errors in interpreting the divine attributes. One should not disparage the scholars who adopted the Ash'ari creed through imitation, or who were influenced by the prevalent culture of their era, as the dominant factor is what is generally right, not the mistakes. Sheikh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah said: "The Ash'aris are the closest of the mutakallimun (speculative theologians) to the madhhab (school) of the People of the Sunnah and Hadith. They have commendable efforts in refuting atheism and innovations, but they became entangled with a principle derived from the Mu'tazilah, which consequently led them to adopt views that were rejected by the people of knowledge." Al-Dhahabi said: "If we were to disregard and declare as innovators everyone who erred in their ijtihad (independent reasoning), few of the imams would be safe."