Fakhr al-Din al-Razi on Divine Transcendence and Anthropomorphism - Hardcover

Author: Mohd. Farid Mohd. Shahran

Publisher: Islamic and Strategic Studies Institute(ISSI), Kalam Research Media (KRM) & Ta'dib International

ISBN: 9789671131275
Price: RM88.00
Pages: 242pp
Weight: 0.540kg

As a religion which upholds divine transcendence as its fundamental element in arriving at divine knowledge, Islam is against any attempt to liken God with the characteristics of others particularly humans. The strong disavowal of anthropomorphism shown by Muslim theologians (the mutakallimūn) especially that against anthropomorphism brought by certain marginal schismatic sects throughout the history of Islamic thought has proved this uncompromising stance. This work analyses the refutations of one of the important later Ash‘arite mutakallimūn, Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī (1149-1209) against the literal views of the anthropomorphism who invested God with various anthropomorphic qualities. Since anthropomorphism also springs from the false understanding of the ambiguous verses of the Qur’ān (mutashābihāt), this work examines al-Rāzī’s views of muḥkamāt and mutashābihāt and the role of ta’wīl (allegorical interpretation) as the appropriate device in understanding the meaning of those ambiguous verses.