Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, whose full name was
Abū ʿAbd Allāh Muḥammad ibn ʿUmar ibn al-Ḥusayn bin Ali al-Razi al-Tabaristani (), was born in 1149 or 1150 CE (543 or 544
AH) in
Ray (close to modern
Tehran), whence his Nisba (onomastics)| al-Razi. Either his great-grandfather or his grandfather migrated from Mecca to
Tabaristan (a mountainous region located on the
Caspian coast of northern
Iran) in the 11th century, and some time after that the family settled in Ray. However, it is not known whether his ancestors resided continuously in the Hijaz since the early days of Islam, or which specific ancestor migrated from Mecca to Tabaristan. Shihadeh notes that the poet Ibn ʿUnayn (died 1233) praised him as a descendant of the second caliph Umar ibn al-Khattab, but considers this to be a confusion on the poet’s part. Furthermore, the ‘‘Diwan’s’’ commentary notes that the verse was intended to praise al-Razi’s Arab Qurashi origins, despite his ancestors settling in non-Arab lands. Fakhr al-Din first studied with his father,
Ḍiyāʾ al-Dīn al-Makkī, himself a scholar of some repute whose
magnum opus in
kalam has recently been rediscovered in part, and later at
Merv and
Maragheh, where he was one of the pupils of Majd al-Din al-Jili, who in turn had been a disciple of
al-Ghazali. He was a leading proponent of the
Ash'ari school of theology. His commentary on the
Quran was the most-varied and many-sided of all extant works of the kind, comprising most of the material of importance that had previously appeared. He devoted himself to a wide range of studies and is said to have expended a large fortune on experiments in
alchemy. He taught at Ray (Central Iran) and
Ghazni (eastern
Afghanistan), and became head of the university founded by Mohammed ibn Tukush at Herat (western Afghanistan). In Khwārazm, debates with Muʿtazilī scholars led to unrest, forcing him to return to Rey. Later, he traveled through Transoxiana, where his works such as
al-Mabāḥith al-Mashriqiyya and
Sharḥ al-Ishārāt were taught. In Sarakhs, he befriended the famous physician ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. ʿAbd al-Karīm and wrote a commentary on Ibn Sīnā's
al-Qānūn for him. He married his two sons to the physician's daughters. In Bukhara, he debated prominent Ḥanafī scholars and theologians, earning great admiration. His debates with the Bāṭinīs and Karrāmīs also drew widespread attention. He later settled in Herat in 600 AH (1203 CE). Although some sources claim he traveled to Baghdad and then Egypt, there is no reliable confirmation of this. He spent the remainder of his life in Herat, authoring works and teaching more than 300 students. Though poor in his early years, he later became wealthy, partly due to gifts from rulers and inheritance from his in-laws. He was also renowned as an influential preacher and public speaker. According to later biographical reports, he delivered sermons in both Arabic and Persian and was often overcome with emotion while preaching, sometimes weeping. His gatherings in Herat attracted followers from different schools and sects, who attended in order to question him and engage in theological debate. It is reported that through his preaching and disputations, many members of the Karrāmiyya and others returned to Sunni doctrine. Because of his influence in Herat, he was known there by the title “Shaykh al-Islām.” Some later sources also preserve anecdotes illustrating his rhetorical ability. One report states that during a sermon he addressed Sultan Shihāb al-Dīn with a reminder of the transient nature of worldly power, which reportedly moved the ruler to tears. In addition to his written works, he trained many prominent students whose influence spread his intellectual legacy. Among those associated with his scholarly circle were Athīr al-Dīn al-Abharī, Tāj al-Dīn al-Urmawī, Sirāj al-Dīn al-Urmawī and Shams al-Dīn Ḥusrawshāhī, as well as later scholars among his descendants. ==
The Great Commentary==