A Comparative Analysis of Determinism and Free Will from Imam Khomeini and Fakhr Razi's Viewpoints

Imam Khomeini and Fakhr Razi are two thinkers who dealt with determinism and free will and each one adopted a special approach and different theological principles, and displayed different views.Adopting an Aharite theological approach, Fakhr Razi, who enjoyed a considerable expertise in theology, showed marked tendency towards determinism and relied more on proofs from transmitted science than intellectual ones. On the other hand, due to the special attention given by Imam Khomeini to this subject he tried, as a Shiah theologian, delve into the different aspects of this question and explore its philosophical and theological origins. Imam Khomeini provides through transmitted and intellectual evidence a more balanced view on determinism and free will, represented in the idea of intermediate position, between determinism and free will, which corresponds to his principles of faith and mystical foundations. This paper is a kind of developmental research in which a documentary–descriptive method is used and content analysis is given.