A Comparative Study of Hassan Lahiji's Viewpoint in Mesbah Al-Hedayeh and Imam Khomeini's Philosophy Lectures

The relationship between Haades (Originated) and Ghadim (Eternal) has always been a challenging issue in philosophy, particularly for the monotheists with strong belief in non-changeability of the nature of the Necessary Being. Various schools of philosophy have explored many ways to find an answer to the problem. Imam Khomeini in his Taqrirat-e Falsafeh (Philosophical Statements) has reviewed solutions of various schools of philosophy. Hassan bin Abd al-Razaq Lahiji was a 12th century AH renowned scholar and the author of Misbah al-Derayah fi Sharha al-Hidayah (Light of Prudence in Explanation of Guidance). The book, available in manuscript, offers an exclusive solution. In this paper, we have reviewed viewpoints by Imam Khomeini and Mirza Hassan Lahiji, and while pointing to Imam Khomeini’s solution, we have investigated Lahiji’s solution. Restating Lahiji’s solution, the authors of the paper do not evaluate it as a perfect solution.