Rustom/Sourcebook, 39. Abū Bakr al-Rāzī: The Philosophical Way of Life

The Philosophical Way of Life is a short text by Abū Bakr al-Rāzī, a doctor and philosopher who lived in Persia and Iraq and died in 925 CE. In this work al-Rāzī responds to unnamed opponents who criticized him for failing to live up to the example of his role model, Socrates. Al-Rāzī responds to his critics by putting forth a hypothesis to reconcile conflicting reports about Socrates: he started out as an uncompromising ascetic but adopted a more moderate lifestyle as he matured. This more moderate lifestyle is the one al-Rāzī adopts for himself. He goes on to provide a theoretical justification for this way of life, and in the process makes interesting remarks on the ethical treatment of animals, members of other religions, and his own literary achievements.