The Fakhr al-Din al-Razi affair at Herat, 595 AH

فتنة فخر الدين الرازي بهراة سنة 595

c. 1199 CE · 595 AH

In 595 came the riot of Fakhr al-Din al-Razi the author: he had reached Herat and won great honour from the state, which galled the Karramiyya. One day he sat with the ascetic Majd al-Din Ibn al-Qudwa and lorded over him, reviling and humiliating him; next day Ibn al-Qudwa's cousin preached — 'People, we say only what is sound from God's messenger; as for the saying of Arasilus, the unbelief of Ibn Sina and Farabi's philosophy, we know them not — yesterday someone reviled a shaykh of Islam who defends God's religion' — and wept, and made the people weep. The Karramiyya clamoured, rose on every side, and it became a fitna; the sultan sent troops to calm them and ordered al-Razi out of Herat 1.

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Era
The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks
Region
Persia & Central Asia
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In time

119012001210 c.
The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks

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Summary

In 595 AH a dispute involving the author Fakhr al-Din al-Razi broke out in Herat. He came to Herat and received great honour from the ruling state, which angered the Karramiyya. One day he met the ascetic Majd al-Din Ibn al-Qudwa and spoke to him harshly and insulted him. The next day the cousin of Majd al-Din sat to preach to the people, saying: "We say only what is authentically reported from the Messenger of God ﷺ. As for the sayings of 'Arasalu, the heresies of Ibn Sina, and the philosophy of al-Farabi, we know nothing of them." He implied that yesterday an elder of the Islamic scholars who defends God's religion had been insulted. He wept and made the people weep, the Karramiyya cried out, and the strife spread from every side. The sultan sent troops to calm them, and ordered al-Razi to leave Herat 1.

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Had participant
فخر الدين الرازي

People and things also explored

The Firuzkuh fitna (595 AH)· Killing of Shihab al-Din al-Ghuri· Shams al-Din al-Khasruwshahi· Ibn al-Qadwa· فخر الدين الرازي

Sources

  1. Shadharat al-Dhahab — Ibn al-Imad al-Hanbali , p. 798-799
Cite this page

islam.museum contributors. “The Fakhr al-Din al-Razi affair at Herat, 595 AH”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/fakhr-razi-herat-595/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Last updated 2026-10-22.

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Related

The Firuzkuh fitna (595 AH)

595 AH: Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, newly honoured at the Ghurid court with a madrasa beside the Herat jami', debated the Karrami shaykh Ibn al-Qadwa before Sultan Ghiyath al-Din at Firuzkuh; after al-Razi insulted the standing sultan, Ibn al-Qadwa preached the next day disavowing the philosophers, the crowd wept and the town filled for riot until the sultan quieted it by sending al-Razi back to Herat — a window on Karrami strength in the Ghurid realm.