The writings of Fakhr al-Din Razi...

The writings of Fakhr al-Din Razi, of which nearly a hundred are known deal almost with every aspect of Muslim intellectual life and include all the sciences of his time.[^10] Some of these, like the commentary upon the al-Isharat w-al-Tanbihat of ibn Sina and upon his ‘Uyun al-Hikmah and the Mabahith al-Mashriqiyyah , are written as criticisms of Muslim philosophers, especially ibn Sina, and on general problems of philosophy.[^11] Others deal with the many branches of the intellectual sciences including logic, mathematics, metaphysics and the natural and esoteric sciences.

Still another set of books deals with theology, of which the most famous are the Kitab al-Arba~in fi Usul al-Din, Laudami’ al-Bayyinat , and the Mubassal , a classic among writings of the Kalam .

Fakhr al-Din also wrote a large number of works on particular sciences, like the commentary upon the syntax of Zamkhshari, Kitab al-Sirr al-Maktum on astrology and astronomy, Manaqib al-shifi‘i on history, the commentary upon the Qanun or Canon of ibn Sina, and many other treatises dealing with medicine, geometry, physiognomy, agriculture, theurgy, etc.

Besides these writings, Imam Fakhr composed a large number of works on the purely Islamic sciences of exegesis and jurisprudence, of which the most famous are the Mafatih al-Ghaib , the voluminous commentary upon the Qur’an and al-Ma‘alim fi Usul al-Figh on the principles of jurisprudence. Throughout these writings, the character of Imam Fakhr as a critic and “doubter” is evident.

He criticizes not only the philosophers, but also theologians like Ash‘ari and historians like Shahrastani, when he accuses of plagiarizing Baghdadi’s al-Farq bain al Firaq in his al-Milal wa-al-Nibal .[^12] Imam Fakhr’s particular genius for analysis and criticism is evident in whatever field he turns his attention to, so that in the annals of Muslim thought he has quite justly become famous as one who is a master in posing a problem but not in solving it, in entering into a debate but not in concluding it.

B. Theology (Kalam) Muslim theology, known as Kalam , began as a reaction against the rationalistic school of the Mu‘tazilites, and only gradually developed into a complete science. In the earlier centuries the theologians, following the lead of Abu al-Hassan al-Ash‘ari, tried to use logic, the instrument of their enemies, in order to defend the truths of revelation.