Investigation and Criticism of the Positivist View of Auguste Comte about the Origin of Religion Based on the Fitrà Theory of Shahid Motahhari

One of the important issues that is raised today in the philosophy of religion and the new theology is the question of the origin of religion and how it came into existence. Religion is a phenomenon that mankind has been dealing with for a long time, and no era can be found in which religion does not exist. The origin of this important issue has always involved the minds of many sages and different views have been formed around this issue. Auguste Comte, the famous French sociologist, considers the origin of religion to be human ignorance and believes that the age of religion is over. On the other hand, Shahid Motahhari, who is one of the most prominent contemporary Islamic thinkers, has expressed detailed discussions about religion and its origin in his various works. Shahid Motahhari believes that the origin of religion is human nature, that man has a natural inclination towards religion and belief in the One God, and human factors cannot be the origin of religion. In this article, with the descriptive-analytical method, while explaining Comte's point of view, it is criticized based on Shahid Motahhari's Fitrà theory. Comte`s simplistic view of religion and reaching a paradox that he himself admitted to cannot be resolved with his evolutionary and functional equivalence theories and invalidates his view.