Kant's and Allameh Tabatabai's Views on Social Freedom

This paper aims to conduct a comparative study of the views held by Allameh Tabatabai and Kant on the social freedom. Their views are introduced in the first two parts and compared and contrasted in the last part. Allameh Tabatabai believes the true freedom to be freedom from all restraints but the submission to God. Kant, however, deems true freedom to be freedom of the will. They both believe that the mankind first resists the establishment of social life but finally accepts it and enacts the law to secure the society and enjoy the social freedom. In Allameh Tabatabai's belief, the law should be based on monotheism, resurrection, ethics, and reason, while for Kant, freedom of the will and the self constitute the basis for the law. They, however, share the belief that the law by itself could not help the mankind to establish the social freedom. Allameh Tabatabai declares monotheism and ethical faith as the basis of the law, and Kant deems ethical rules based on pure reason its prerequisite.