Fakhr al-Din al-Razi is a famous and well known Muslim theologian and philosopher. His proper name is Abu `Abdallah Muhammad bin `Umar al-Razi (d. 606/1209). He was born in the Shafi'ite and Ash`arite family in 1149-50 A.D. / 543 or 544 at after Hegira. His father was Diya al-Din `Umar who taught him Islamic religious sciences before he went to study with other Muslim savants. Al-Razi travelled to many places such as Bukhara, Khawarazm and Transoxiana and held discussions with the local savants. Al-Razi was a prolific and encyclopedic writer and scholar based on his many works, more than sixty complete works. He was a philosopher, historian, mathematician, astronomer, physician, theologian and exegesist . He had the exponents and opponents. His opponents were the Hanbalites who opposed philosophy, Kalam and mysticism, and the Batinites including the Qarmatians whom al-Razi criticized and refuted their teachings.

Al-Razi's works on theology and Kalam are many and two of them are Al-Arba`in fi usul al-din and Al-mas'il al-khamsun fi usul al-din. In his Al-Arba`in fi usul al-din, Al-Razi presented forty issues in the principles of religion. They include cosmology, theology, ethics, prophethood , eschatology and imamate. In his Al-masa'il al-khamsun fi usul al-din, Al-Razi presented almost the same themes or topics contained in Al-Arba`in fi usul al-din but his discussions are very brief in comparison with his discussions in Al-Arba`in fi usul al-din.

External links

• Fakhr al-Din al-Razi