Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī’s Critique of Avicennian Psychology and the Transcendental Individuation of Human Souls

Abstract

This article examines the psychological doctrines of the Ashʿarite theologian and polymath Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī (d. 606/1210). The starting point of the discussion is his critical reception of Avicenna’s (d. ca. 428/1037) psychological theories. I focus on al-Rāzī’s early works on philosophy, in particular al-Mabāḥith al-mashriqiyya and his famous commentary on Avicenna’s al-Ishārāt wa-l-tanbīhāt. I show that Rāzī affirms a theory of the human soul that is heavily influenced by his predecessor. However, I also show that offers a distinct perspective on fundamental issues. I offer a detailed discussion of two Rāzian psychological doctrines: that human souls are heterogenous, rather than constituting a single species “rational animal” pace Avicenna; and that they are caused by celestial entities called Perfect Natures, a theory that is adopted from the practitioners of talismanic magic. The resulting cosmological theory can be referred to as the transcendental individuation of human souls