Yirminci Lem'a/en: Revizyonlar arasındaki fark

    Risale-i Nur Tercümeleri sitesinden
    ("'''The Answer:''' We will set forth seven of the extremely numerous causes of this painful, disgraceful and awesome situation, one that causes the zealous to weep." içeriğiyle yeni sayfa oluşturdu)
     
    Değişiklik özeti yok
     
    (Aynı kullanıcının aradaki diğer 8 değişikliği gösterilmiyor)
    26. satır: 26. satır:
      those engaged in politics, and those who have received a secular education, and thus the functions of the various groups, societies, and communities have been defined and become distinguished from one another. Similarly, the material reward they are to receive for their functions in order to  maintain a livelihood, as well as the moral reward  that  consists in the attention they receive from men for the sake of their ambition and pride – this too is established and specified.(*<ref>*Be aware that the attention of men cannot be demanded, but only given. If it is given, one should not delight in it. If one delights in it, sincerity is lost and hypocrisy takes its place. The attention of men, if accompanied by the desire for honour and fame, is not a reward and a prize, but a reproach and chastisement for lack of sincerity. Such attention of men, such honour and fame, harm sincerity, the source of vitality for all good deeds, and even though they yield a slight pleasure as far as the gate of the tomb, on the other side of that gate they take on the form of torment. One should not therefore desire the attention of men, but flee and shy away from it. Be warned, all you who worship fame and run after honour and rank!</ref>)There is therefore nothing held in common to the degree that it might produce conflict, dissension and rivalry. However evil be the path that they tread, they will be able to preserve unity and agreement.
      those engaged in politics, and those who have received a secular education, and thus the functions of the various groups, societies, and communities have been defined and become distinguished from one another. Similarly, the material reward they are to receive for their functions in order to  maintain a livelihood, as well as the moral reward  that  consists in the attention they receive from men for the sake of their ambition and pride – this too is established and specified.(*<ref>*Be aware that the attention of men cannot be demanded, but only given. If it is given, one should not delight in it. If one delights in it, sincerity is lost and hypocrisy takes its place. The attention of men, if accompanied by the desire for honour and fame, is not a reward and a prize, but a reproach and chastisement for lack of sincerity. Such attention of men, such honour and fame, harm sincerity, the source of vitality for all good deeds, and even though they yield a slight pleasure as far as the gate of the tomb, on the other side of that gate they take on the form of torment. One should not therefore desire the attention of men, but flee and shy away from it. Be warned, all you who worship fame and run after honour and rank!</ref>)There is therefore nothing held in common to the degree that it might produce conflict, dissension and rivalry. However evil be the path that they tread, they will be able to preserve unity and agreement.


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    But as for the people of religion, the scholars, and those who follow the path, the duty of each is concerned with all men; their material reward is not set and specified; and their share in social esteem and acceptance and public attention is not predetermined. Many may be candidates for the same position; many hands may stretch out for each moral and material reward that is offered. Hence it is that conflict and rivalry arise; concord is changed into discord, and agreement into dispute.
    Amma ehl-i din ve ashab-ı ilim ve erbab-ı tarîkat ise bunların her birisinin vazifesi umuma baktığı gibi muaccel ücretleri de taayyün ve tahassus etmediği ve her birinin makam-ı içtimaîde ve teveccüh-ü nâsta ve hüsn-ü kabuldeki hissesi tahassus etmiyor. Bir makama çoklar namzet olur. Maddî ve manevî her bir ücrete çok eller uzanabilir. O noktadan müzahame ve rekabet tevellüd edip vifakı nifaka, ittifakı ihtilafa tebdil eder.
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    Now the cure and remedy for this appalling disease is sincerity.
    İşte bu müthiş marazın merhemi, ilacı ihlastır.
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    Sincerity may be attained  by preferring the worship  of God to the worship of one’s own soul, by causing God’s  pleasure to vanquish the pleasure of the soul and the ego, and thus manifesting the meaning of the verse:Verily my reward is from God alone;(11:29)
    Yani hakperestliği nefis-perestliğe tercih etmekle ve hakkın hatırı, nefsin ve enaniyetin hatırına galip gelmekle اِن۟ اَج۟رِىَ اِلَّا عَلَى اللّٰهِ sırrına mazhar olup, nâstan gelen maddî ve manevî ücretten istiğna etmekle '''(Hâşiye<ref>'''Hâşiye:''' Sahâbelerin senâ-i Kur'âniyeye mazhar olan "îsâr" hasletini kendine rehber etmek, yani, hediye ve sadakanın kabûlünde başkasını kendine tercih etmek ve hizmet-i diniyenin mukâbilinde gelen menfaat-i maddiyeyi istemeden ve kalben taleb etmeden, sırf bir ihsân-ı ilâhî bilerek, nâstan minnet almayarak ve hizmet-i diniyenin mukâbilinde de almamaktır.  
    by renouncing the material and moral reward  to  be had from men(*<ref>*One should also take as one’s guide the quality of preferring others to oneself, the same quality of the Companions that is praised in the Qur’an. For example, when giving a present or performing an act of charity, one should always prefer the recipient to oneself, and without demanding or inwardly desiring any material reward for religious service, know one’s act to be purely God’s grace and not impose a sense of obligation on men. Nothing worldly should be sought in return for religious service, for otherwise sincerity will be lost. Men have many rights and claims, and may even deserve zakat. But it cannot be demanded. When one receives something, it cannot be said: “This is the reward for my service.” Rather in perfect contentment one should always prefer to oneself others who are more deserving. Thus manifesting the meaning of “They prefer others to themselves, though poverty be their lot” (Qur’an, 59:9), one may be saved from this terrible danger and gain sincerity.</ref>)and thus manifesting the meaning of the verse:Naught is incumbent on the Messenger but conveying the message;(5:99) and by knowing that such matters as goodly acceptance, and making a favourable impression, and gaining the attention of men are God’s concern and a favour from Him, and that they play no part in conveying the message, which is one’s own duty, nor are they necessary for it, nor is one charged with gaining them – by knowing this a person will be successful in gaining sincerity, otherwise it will vanish.
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    Çünkü, hizmet-i diniyenin mukâbilinde dünyada bir şey istenilmemeli ki, ihlâs kaçmasın. Çendan hakları var ki, ümmet onların maîşetlerini te'min etsin. Hem zekâta da müstehaktırlar. Fakat bu istenilmez, belki verilir. Verildiği vakit de "Hizmetimin ücretidir" denilmez. Mümkün olduğu kadar kanâatkârâne, başka ehil ve daha müstehak olanların nefsini kendi nefsine tercih etmek, ﴾وَ يُؤْثِرُونَ عَلٰى اَنْفُسِهِمْ وَلَوْ كَانَ بِهِمْ خَصَاصَةٌ ﴿ sırrına mazhariyetle, bu müdhiş tehlikeden kurtulup ihlâsı kazanabilir.</ref>)''' وَمَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ اِلَّا ال۟بَلَاغُ sırrına mazhar olup; hüsn-ü kabul ve hüsn-ü tesir ve teveccüh-ü nâsı kazanmak noktalarının Cenab-ı Hakk’ın vazifesi ve ihsanı olduğunu ve kendi vazifesi olan tebliğde dâhil olmadığını ve lâzım da olmadığını ve onunla mükellef olmadığını bilmekle ihlasa muvaffak olur. Yoksa ihlası kaçırır.
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    === İkinci Sebep ===
    ===SECOND CAUSE===
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    The  agreement  among  the  poeple  of  misguidance  is  on  account  of  their abasement, and the dispute among the people of guidance  is on account of their dignity.
    Ehl-i dalaletin zilletindendir ittifakları, ehl-i hidayetin izzetindendir ihtilafları.
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    That is to say that the people of neglect – those misguided ones sunk in worldly concerns – are weak and abased because they do not rely on truth and reality. On account of their abasement, they need to augment their strength, and because of this need they  wholeheartedly embrace  the  aid  and  co-operation  of others. Even though the path they follow is misguidance, they preserve  their  agreement. It is  as if  they were  making  their godlessness into a form of worship of the truth, their misguidance into a form of sincerity, their irreligion into a form of solidarity, and their hypocrisy into concord, and thus attaining success. For genuine sincerity, even for the sake of evil, cannot fail to yield results, and whatever man seeks with sincerity, God will grant him it.(*<ref>*Yes, “Whoever seeks earnestly shall find” is a rule of truth. Its scope is comprehensive and includes the matter under discussion.</ref>)
    Yani ehl-i gaflet olan ehl-i dünya ve ehl-i dalalet, hak ve hakikate istinad etmedikleri için zayıf ve zelildirler. Tezellül için kuvvet almaya muhtaçtırlar. Bu ihtiyaçtan, başkasının muavenet ve ittifakına samimi yapışırlar. Hattâ meslekleri dalalet ise de yine ittifakı muhafaza ederler. Âdeta o haksızlıkta bir hakperestlik, o dalalette bir ihlas, o dinsizlikte dinsizdarane bir taassup ve o nifakta bir vifak yaparlar, muvaffak olurlar. Çünkü samimi bir ihlas, şerde dahi olsa neticesiz kalmaz. '''Evet, ihlas ile kim ne isterse Allah verir. (Hâşiye<ref>'''Hâşiye:''' Evet, مَنْ طَلَبَ وَ جَدَّ وَجَدَ bir düstur-u hakikattir. Külliyeti geniş ve genişliği mesleğimize de şâmil olabilir.</ref>)'''
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    But as for the people of guidance and religion, the religious scholars and those who follow the Sufi path, since they rely upon truth and reality, and each of them on the road of  truth thinks only of his Sustainer and trusts in His succour, they derive dignity from their  belief. When they feel weakness, they turn not toward men, but toward God and seek help from Him. On account of difference in outlook, they feel no real need for the aid of the one whose outlook apparently opposes their own, and see no need for agreement and unity. Indeed, if obstinacy and egoism are present, one will imagine himself to be right and the other to be wrong; discord and rivalry take the  place  of  concord  and  love. Thus  sincerity  is  chased  away  and  its  function disrupted.
    Amma ehl-i hidayet ve diyanet ve ehl-i ilim ve tarîkat, hak ve hakikate istinad ettikleri için ve her biri bizzat tarîk-i hakta yalnız Rabb’isini düşünüp, tevfikine itimat ederek gittiklerinden, manen o mes­lekten gelen izzetleri var. Zaaf hissettiği vakit; insanların yerine Rabb’isine müracaat eder, meded ondan ister. Meşreplerin ihtilafıyla, zâhir meşrebine muhalif olana karşı muavenet ihtiyacını tam hissetmiyor, ittifaka ihtiyacını göremiyor. Belki hodgâmlık ve enaniyet varsa kendini haklı ve muhalifini haksız tevehhüm ederek ittifak ve muhabbet yerine, ihtilaf ve rekabet ortaya girer. İhlası kaçırır, vazifesi zîr ü zeber olur.
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    Now the only remedy for the critical consequences of this awesome state consists of nine commands:
    İşte bu müthiş sebebin verdiği vahim neticeleri görmemenin yegâne çaresi “Dokuz emirdir.”
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    1. To act positively, that is, out of love for one’s own outlook, avoiding enmity for other outlooks, not criticizing them, interfering in their beliefs and sciences, or in any way concerning oneself with them.
    1 - Müsbet hareket etmektir ki yani kendi mesleğinin muhabbetiyle hareket etmek. Başka mesleklerin adâveti ve başkalarının tenkisi, onun fikrine ve ilmine müdahale etmesin; onlarla meşgul olmasın.
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    2. To unite within the fold of Islam, irrespective of  particular  outlook, remembering those numerous ties of unity that evoke love, brotherhood and concord.
    2 - Belki daire-i İslâmiyet içinde hangi meşrepte olursa olsun, medar-ı muhabbet ve uhuvvet ve ittifak olacak çok rabıta-i vahdet bulunduğunu düşünüp ittifak ederek…
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    3. To adopt the just rule of conduct that the follower of any right outlook has the right to say, “My outlook is true, or the best,” but not that “My outlook alone is true,or that “My outlook alone is good,thus implying the falsity or repugnance of all other outlooks.
    3 - Ve haklı her meslek sahibinin, başkasının mesleğine ilişmemek cihetinde hakkı ise: “Mesleğim haktır yahut daha güzeldir.diyebilir. Yoksa başkasının mesleğinin haksızlığını veya çirkinliğini îma eden “Hak yalnız benim mesleğimdir.veyahut “Güzel benim meşrebimdir.diyemez olan insaf düsturunu rehber etmek.
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    4. To consider that union with the people of truth is a cause of divine succour and the high dignity of religion.
    4 - Ve ehl-i hakla ittifak, tevfik-i İlahînin bir sebebi ve diyanetteki izzetin bir medarı olduğunu düşünmekle…
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    5. To realize that the individual resistance of the most powerful person against the attacks through its  genius of the mighty collective force of the people of misguidance and falsehood, which arises from their  solidarity, will inevitably be defeated, and through the union of the people of truth, to create a joint and collective force also, in order to preserve justice and right in the face of that fearsome collective force of misguidance.
    5 - Hem ehl-i dalalet ve haksızlık –tesanüd sebebiyle– cemaat suretindeki kuvvetli bir şahs-ı manevînin dehasıyla hücumu zamanında; o şahs-ı manevîye karşı, en kuvvetli ferdî olan mukavemetin mağlup düştüğünü anlayıp ehl-i hak tarafındaki ittifak ile bir şahs-ı manevî çıkarıp o müthiş şahs-ı manevî-i dalalete karşı, hakkaniyeti muhafaza ettirmek.
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    6. In order to preserve truth from the assaults of falsehood,
    6 - Ve hakkı, bâtılın savletinden kurtarmak için…
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    7. To abandon the self and its egoism,
    7 - Nefsini ve enaniyetini
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    8. And give up the mistaken concept of self-pride,
    8 - Ve yanlış düşündüğü izzetini
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    9. And cease from all insignificant feelings aroused by rivalry. If this ninefold rule is adhered to, sincerity will be preserved and its function perfectly performed.(*<ref>*It is even recorded in authentic traditions  of the Prophet that at the end of time  the truly pious among the Christians will unite with the People of the Qur’an and fight their common enemy, irreligion. And at this time, too, the people of religion and truth need to unite sincerely not only with their own brothers and fellow believers, but also with the truly pious and spiritual ones among the Christians, temporarily refraining from the discussion and debate of points of difference in order to combat their joint enemy – aggressive atheism.</ref>)
    9 - Ve ehemmiyetsiz, rekabetkârane hissiyatını terk etmekle ihlası kazanır, vazifesini hakkıyla îfa eder. ('''Hâşiye)<ref>'''Hâşiye:''' Hattâ, hadîs-i sahîhle, âhir zamanda İsevîlerin hakîki dindarları ehl-i Kur'ân ile ittifak edip, müşterek düşmanları olan zındıkaya karşı dayanacakları gibi; şu zamanda dahi ehl-i diyânet ve ehl-i hakikat, değil yalnız dindaşı, meslektaşı, kardeşi olanlarla samîmî ittifak etmek, belki Hıristiyanların hakîki dindar rûhânileri ile dahi, medâr-ı ihtilâf noktaları muvakkaten medâr-ı münâkaşa ve nizâ' etmeyerek, müşterek düşmanları olan mütecâviz dinsizlere karşı ittifaka muhtaçtırlar.</ref>'''
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    === Üçüncü Sebep ===
    ===THIRD CAUSE===
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    Disagreement among the people of truth does not arise from lack of zeal and aspiration, nor does union among the people of misguidance arise from loftiness of aspiration.
    Ehl-i hakkın ihtilafı, himmetsizlikten ve aşağılıktan ve ehl-i dalaletin ittifakı, ulüvv-ü himmetten değildir.
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    That which impels the people of guidance to  the misuse of their high aspiration and hence to disagreement and rivalry is the desire for heavenly reward that is counted as a praiseworthy quality in respect of the hereafter, and extreme eagerness with respect to duties pertaining to the hereafter. Thinking to oneself, “Let me gain this reward, let me guide these people, let them listen to me,” he takes up a position of rivalry towards the true brother who  faces him and who stands in real need of his love, assistance, brotherhood and aid. Saying to oneself, “Why are my pupils going to him? Why don’t I have as many pupils as him?” he falls prey to egoism, inclines to the chronic disease of ambition, loses all sincerity, and opens the door to hypocrisy.
    Belki ehl-i hidayetin ihtilafı, ulüvv-ü himmetin sû-i istimalinden ve ehl-i dalaletin ittifakı, himmetsizlikten gelen zaaf ve aczdendir. Ehl-i hidayeti, ulüvv-ü himmetten sû-i istimale ve dolayısıyla ihtilafa ve rekabete sevk eden, âhiret nokta-i nazarında bir haslet-i memduha sayılan hırs-ı sevap ve vazife-i uhreviyede kanaatsizlik cihetinden ileri geliyor. Yani “Bu sevabı ben kazanayım, bu insanları ben irşad edeyim, benim sözümü dinlesinler.diye karşısındaki hakiki kardeşi ve cidden muhabbet ve muavenetine ve uhuvvetine ve yardımına muhtaç bir zata karşı rekabetkârane vaziyet alır. “Şakirdlerim ne için onun yanına gidiyorlar? Ne için onun kadar şakirdlerim bulunmuyor?” diye enaniyeti oradan fırsat bulup mezmum bir haslet olan hubb-u câha temayül ettirir, ihlası kaçırır, riya kapısını açar.
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    The cure for this error, this wound, this awesome sickness of the spirit, is the principle that “God’s pleasure is won by sincerity alone,” and not by a large following or great success. For these latter are  a function of God’s will;  they cannot be demanded, although they are sometimes given. Sometimes a single word will result in someone’s salvation and hence the pleasure of God. Quantity should not receive too much attention, for sometimes to guide one man to the truth may be as pleasing to God as guiding a thousand.
    İşte bu hatanın ve bu yaranın ve bu müthiş maraz-ı ruhanînin ilacı şudur ki: '''Cenab-ı Hakk’ın rızası ihlas ile kazanılır. Kesret-i etba ile ve fazla muvaffakiyet ile değildir.''' Çünkü onlar vazife-i İlahiyeye ait olduğu için istenilmez, belki bazen verilir. Evet, bazen bir tek kelime sebeb-i necat ve medar-ı rıza olur. Kemiyetin ehemmiyeti o kadar medar-ı nazar olmamalı. Çünkü bazen bir tek adamın irşadı, bin adamın irşadı kadar rıza-yı İlahîye medar olur.
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    Moreover sincerity and adherence to the truth require that one should desire the Muslims to benefit from anyone and at any place they can. To think “Let them take lessons from me so that I gain the reward” is a trick of the soul and the ego.
    Hem ihlas ve hakperestlik ise Müslümanların nereden ve kimden olursa olsun, istifadelerine taraftar olmaktır. Yoksa “Benden ders alıp sevap kazandırsınlar.” düşüncesi, nefsin ve enaniyetin bir hilesidir.
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    O man greedy for reward in the hereafter and the performance of deeds entitling you to that reward! There have been certain prophets who had only a limited following but received the infinite reward of the sacred duty of prophethood. The true achievement lies, then, not in gaining a vast following, but in gaining God’s pleasure. What do you imagine  yourself to be, that saying, “Let everyone listen to me,” you forget  your  function, and interfere in what is  strictly  God’s  concern? To gain acceptance for you and to have people gather round you is God’s concern. So look to your own duty and concern, and do not meddle with God’s concerns.
    Ey sevaba hırslı ve a’mal-i uhreviyeye kanaatsiz insan! Bazı peygamberler gelmişler ki mahdud birkaç kişiden başka ittiba edenler olmadığı halde, yine o peygamberlik vazife-i kudsiyesinin hadsiz ücretini almışlar. Demek hüner, kesret-i etba ile değildir. Belki hüner, rıza-yı İlahîyi kazanmakladır. Sen neci oluyorsun ki böyle hırs ile “Herkes beni dinlesin.diye vazifeni unutup vazife-i İlahiyeye karışıyorsun? Kabul ettirmek, senin etrafına halkı toplamak Cenab-ı Hakk’ın vazifesidir. Vazifeni yap, Allah’ın vazifesine karışma.
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    Moreover, it is not only men who earn reward for those who hear and speak the truth. The sentient and spiritual beings of God and His angels have filled the universe and  adorned  its  every part. If  you  want  plentiful  reward, take  sincerity as  your foundation and think only of God’s pleasure. Then every syllable of the blessed words that issue forth from your mouth will be brought to life by your sincerity and truthful intention, and going to the  ears of innumerable sentient beings, they will illumine them and earn you reward. For when, for example, you say, “Praise and thanks be to God,” millions of these words, great and small, are written on the page of the air by God’s  leave. Since  the  All-Wise  Inscriber did  nothing  prodigally  or  in  vain,  He created innumerable ears, as many as were needed to hear those  multiple blessed words.
    Hem hak ve hakikati dinleyen ve söyleyene sevap kazandıranlar, yalnız insanlar değildir. Cenab-ı Hakk’ın zîşuur mahlukları ve ruhanîleri ve melâikeleri kâinatı doldurmuş, her tarafı şenlendirmişler. Madem çok sevap istersin, ihlası esas tut ve yalnız rıza-yı İlahîyi düşün. Tâ ki senin ağzından çıkan mübarek kelimelerin havadaki efradları; ihlas ile ve niyet-i sadıka ile hayatlansın, canlansın, hadsiz zîşuurun kulaklarına gidip onları nurlandırsın, sana da sevap kazandırsın. Çünkü mesela, sen “Elhamdülillah” dedin; bu kelâm, milyonlarla büyük küçük “Elhamdülillah” kelimeleri, havada izn-i İlahî ile yazılır. Nakkaş-ı Hakîm abes ve israf yapmadığı için o kesretli mübarek kelimeleri dinleyecek kadar hadsiz kulakları halk etmiş.
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    If those words are brought to life in the air by sincerity and truthful intent, they will enter the ears of the spirit beings like some tasty fruit in the mouth.
    Eğer ihlas ile niyet-i sadıka ile o havadaki kelimeler hayatlansalar lezzetli birer meyve gibi ruhanîlerin kulaklarına girer.
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    But if God’s pleasure and sincerity do not bring those words to life, they will not be heard, and reward  will  be had only for the single utterance made by the  mouth. Pay good attention to this, you Qur’an reciters who  are  sad  that  your voices are not  more beautiful and that more people do not listen to you!
    Eğer rıza-yı İlahî ve ihlas o havadaki kelimelere hayat vermezse dinlenilmez, sevap da yalnız ağızdaki kelimeye münhasır kalır. Seslerinin ziyade güzel olmadığından, dinleyenlerin azlığından sıkılan hâfızların kulakları çınlasın!
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    <span id="Dördüncü_Sebep"></span>
    === Dördüncü Sebep ===
    ===FOURTH CAUSE===
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    In just the same way that rivalry and disagreement among the people of guidance do not  arise from failure to foresee consequences or from shortsightedness, so too wholehearted  agreement  among  the  people  of  misguidance  does  not  result  from farsightedness or  loftiness  of vision.
    Ehl-i hidayetin rekabetkârane ihtilafı, âkıbeti düşünmemekten ve kasr-ı nazardan olmadığı gibi ehl-i dalaletin samimane ittifakları, âkıbet-endişlikten ve yüksek nazardan değildir.
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    Rather the people of guidance, through the influence of truth and reality, do not succumb to the blind emotions of the soul, and follow instead the farsighted  inclinations of the heart and  the intellect. Since, however, they fail to preserve their  sense  of direction and their sincerity, they are unable to maintain their high station and fall into dispute.
    Belki ehl-i hidayet; hak ve hakikatin tesiriyle, nefsin kör hissiyatına kapılmayarak kalbin ve aklın dûr-endişane temayülatına tabi olmakla beraber, istikameti ve ihlası muhafaza edemediklerinden, o yüksek makamı muhafaza edemeyip ihtilafa düşüyorlar.
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    As for the people of misguidance, under the influence of the soul and caprice, and the  dominance of sense-perception, which is blind to all consequences and always prefers an ounce of immediate pleasure to a ton of future pleasure, they come together in eager concord for the sake of instant benefit and immediate pleasure. Indeed, lowly and heartless worshippers of the ego are bound to congregate around worldly and immediate pleasures and benefits.
    Ehl-i dalalet ise nefsin ve hevanın tesiriyle, kör ve âkıbeti görmeyen ve bir dirhem hazır lezzeti bir batman ilerideki lezzete tercih eden hissiyatın mukteziyatıyla, birbirine samimi olarak muaccel bir menfaat ve hazır bir lezzet için şiddetli ittifak ediyorlar. Evet, dünyevî ve hazır lezzet ve menfaat etrafında aşağı, kalpsiz nefis-perestler samimi ittifak ve ittihat ediyorlar.
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    It is true that the people of guidance have set their faces to  the  rewards of the hereafter and its perfections, in accordance with the lofty instructions of the heart and the intellect, but even though a proper sense of direction, a complete sincerity and self-sacrificing union and concord are possible, because they have failed to rid themselves of egoism, and on account of deficiency and excess, they lose their union, that lofty source of power, and permit their sincerity to be shattered. Their duty in regard to the hereafter is also harmed. God’s pleasure is not had easily.
    Ehl-i hidayet, âhirete ait ve ileriye müteallik semerat-ı uhreviyeye ve kemalâta, kalp ve aklın yüksek düsturlarıyla müteveccih oldukları için esaslı bir istikamet ve tam bir ihlas ve gayet fedakârane bir ittihat ve ittifak olabilirken; enaniyetten tecerrüd edemedikleri için ifrat ve tefrit yüzünden, ulvi bir menba-ı kuvvet olan ittifakı kaybedip ihlas da kırılır ve vazife-i uhreviye de zedelenir. Kolayca rıza-yı İlahî de elde edilmez.
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    The cure and remedy for this serious disease is to be proud of the company of all those travelling the path of truth, in accordance with the principle of love for God’s sake; to follow them and defer leadership to them; and to consider whoever is walking on God’s path  to be probably better  than oneself, thereby breaking the ego  and regaining sincerity. Salvation is also to be had from that disease by knowing that an ounce of deeds performed in sincerity is preferable to a ton performed without sincerity, and by preferring the status of a follower  to that of a leader, with all the danger and responsibility that it involves. Thus sincerity is to be had, and one’s duties of preparation for the hereafter may be correctly performed.
    Bu mühim marazın merhemi ve ilacı اَل۟حُبُّ فِى اللّٰهِ sırrıyla, tarîk-i hakta gidenlere refakatle iftihar etmek ve arkalarından gitmek ve imamlık şerefini onlara bırakmak ve o Hak yolunda kim olursa olsun kendinden daha iyi olduğunun ihtimaliyle enaniyetinden vazgeçip ihlası kazanmak ve ihlas ile bir dirhem amel, ihlassız batmanlar ile amellere râcih olduğunu bilmekle ve tabiiyeti dahi sebeb-i mes’uliyet ve hatarlı olan metbuiyete tercih etmekle o marazdan kurtulur ve ihlası kazanır, vazife-i uhreviyesini hakkıyla yapabilir.
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    <span id="Beşinci_Sebep"></span>
    === Beşinci Sebep ===
    ===FIFTH CAUSE===
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    Dispute and disagreement among the people of guidance are not the result of weakness, and the powerful union of the people of misguidance is not the result of strength.
    Ehl-i hidayetin ihtilafı ve adem-i ittifakı zaaflarından olmadığı gibi ehl-i dalaletin kuvvetli ittifakı da kuvvetlerinden değildir.
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    Rather the lack of union of the people of guidance comes from the power that results from the support provided by perfect belief, and the union of the people of neglect and misguidance comes from the weakness and impotence they experience as a result of their lack of any inward support. The weak form powerful unions precisely because of their need for union.(*<ref>*Among the most powerful and effective organizations in the West is the American Organization for Women’s Rights and Liberty, even though women are called the fair sex, and are weak and delicate. Similarly, the organization of the Armenians, despite their weakness and small numbers when compared to other peoples, with its strong, self-sacrificing behaviour, provides another proof of our observation.</ref>)Since the strong do not feel a similar need, their unions are weak. Lions do not need union like foxes and therefore live as individuals, whereas wild goats form a herd to protect themselves against wolves.
    Belki ehl-i hidayetin ittifaksızlığı, iman-ı kâmilden gelen nokta-i istinad ve nokta-i istinaddan neş’et eden kuvvetten ileri geldiği gibi; ehl-i gaflet ve ehl-i dalaletin ittifakları, kalben nokta-i istinad bulmadıkları itibarıyla zaaf ve aczlerinden ileri gelmiştir. Çünkü zayıflar ittifaka muhtaç oldukları için kuvvetli ittifak ederler. Kavîler ihtiyacı tam hissetmediklerinden, ittifakları zayıftır. Arslanlar, tilkiler gibi ittifaka muhtaç olmadıkları için ferdî yaşıyorlar. Yabani keçiler, kurtlardan muhafaza için bir sürü teşkil ederler.
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    The communit y and  collective personality of the weak is strong, and the community and collective personality of the strong is weak. There is  a  subtle  allusion to  this  in  the Qur’an  in  the words,  “And  women  in  the city said,(12:30) the verb  “said” being in the masculine form, although it  should be feminine  for two reasons [women is a feminine noun, and also a plural – so-called “broken” plurals in Arabic are always regarded as feminine].
    Demek, zayıfların cemiyeti ve şahs-ı manevîsi kavî olduğu gibi '''(Hâşiye<ref>'''Hâşiye:''' Avrupa komiteleri içinde en şiddetlisi ve en tesirlisi ve bir cihette en kuvvetlisi, cins-i latîf ve zayıf ve nazik olan kadınların Amerika’daki Hukuk ve Hürriyet-i Nisvan Komitesi olduğu; hem milletler içinde az ve zayıf olan Ermenilerin komitesi, gösterdikleri kuvvetli fedakârane vaziyetle bu müddeamızı teyid ediyor.</ref>)''' kavîlerin cemiyeti ve şahs-ı manevîsi ise zayıftır. Bu sırra bir işaret-i latîfe ve zarif bir nükte-i Kur’aniyedir ki ferman etmiş:
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    But by contrast see the words, “the desert Arabs said,”(49:14) the verb said in this case being in the feminine, even though its subject designates a community of men.
    وَ قَالَ نِس۟وَةٌ فِى ال۟مَدٖينَةِ Müenneslerin cemaatine, iki katlı müennes olduğu halde, müzekker fiili olan قَالَ buyurması hem قَالَتِ ال۟اَع۟رَابُ buyurmakla müzekkerlerin cemaatine, müennes fiili olan قَالَت۟ tabiriyle, latîfane işaret ediyor ki:
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    Herein lies an indication, that an association of weak, meek and soft  women gains strength, toughness and force, and even acquires a certain kind of virility. The use of the masculine form of the verb is  therefore  most  appropriate. Strong  men,  by  contrast,  and  in  particular  Beduin Arabs, trust in their own strength; therefore their  associations are weak, for they assume a stance of softness and caution and take on a kind of femininity, for which the use of the feminine form of the verb is most suitable.
    Zayıf ve halîm ve yumuşak kadınların cemiyeti kuvvetleşir, sertlik ve şiddet kesbedip bir nevi reculiyet kazanır. Müzekker fiilini iktiza ettiğinden وَ قَالَ نِس۟وَةٌ tabiriyle, gayet güzel düşmüş. Kavî erkekler ise hususan bedevî A’rab olsa kuvvetlerine güvendikleri için cemiyetleri zayıf olup hem ihtiyatkârlık hem yumuşaklık vaziyetini aldığından, bir nevi kadınlık hâsiyeti takındıkları için müennes fiilini iktiza ettiğinden قَالَتِ ال۟اَع۟رَابُ müennes fiiliyle tabiri tam yerindedir.
    </div>


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    Similarly the people of truth submit to and place their reliance in the firm source of support that is belief in God; hence they do not present their needs to others or request aid and assistance from them.
    Evet, ehl-i hak gayet kuvvetli bir nokta-i istinad olan iman-ı billahtan gelen tevekkül ve teslim ile başkalara arz-ı ihtiyaç edip muavenet ve yardımlarını istemez. İstese de gayet fedakârane yapışmaz.
    </div>


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    If they do sometimes make the request, they will not adhere to the persons concerned at all cost. But the worldly ignore in their worldly affairs the true source of support; they fall  into weakness and impotence, and experiencing an acute need of assistance, come together sacrificing themselves wholeheartedly.
    Ehl-i dünya, dünya işlerinde hakiki nokta-i istinadlarından gaflet ettiklerinden, zaaf ve acze düşüp şiddetli bir surette yardımcılara ihtiyacını hisseder; samimane, belki fedakârane ittifak ederler.
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    The people of truth do not recognize and seek the true strength that is to be found in union;  hence they fall into dispute, as an evil and harmful consequence of this failure.
    İşte ehl-i hak, ittifaktaki hak kuvvetini düşünmediklerinden ve aramadıklarından, haksız ve muzır bir netice olan ihtilafa düşerler.
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    By contrast, the people of misguidance and falsehood perceive the strength to be found in union, by virtue of their very weakness, and thus acquire union, that most important means for the attainment of all goals.
    Haksız ehl-i dalalet ise ittifaktaki kuvveti, aczleri vasıtasıyla hissettiklerinden, gayet mühim bir vesile-i makasıd olan ittifakı elde etmişler.
    </div>


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    The cure and remedy for this disease of discord among the people of truth is to make one’s rule of conduct the divine prohibition contained in this verse:Do not fall into dispute, lest you lose heart and your power depart,(8:46)and the wise divine command for social life contained in this verse:Work together for the sake of virtue and piety.(5:3)One must further realize how harmful to Islam dispute is, and how it helps the people of misguidance to triumph over the people of truth, and then, wholeheartedly and self- sacrificingly, join the caravan of the people of truth, with a sense of his own utter weakness and impotence. Finally, one must  forget his own person, abandon hypocrisy and pretension, and lay hold of sincerity.
    İşte ehl-i hakkın bu haksız ihtilaf marazının merhemi ve ilacı وَلَا تَنَازَعُوا فَتَف۟شَلُوا وَتَذ۟هَبَ رٖيحُكُم۟ âyetindeki şiddetli nehy-i İlahî وَتَعَاوَنُوا عَلَى ال۟بِرِّ وَالتَّق۟وٰى âyetinde hayat-ı içtimaiyece gayet hikmetli emr-i İlahîyi düstur-u hareket etmek ve ihtilafın İslâmiyet’e ne derece zararlı olduğunu ve ehl-i dalaletin ehl-i hakka galebesini ne derece teshil ettiğini düşünüp, kemal-i zaaf ve acz ile o ehl-i hakkın kafilesine fedakârane, samimane iltihak etmektir; şahsiyetini unutmakla riya ve tasannudan kurtulup ihlası elde etmektir.
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    <span id="Altıncı_Sebep"></span>
    === Altıncı Sebep ===
    ===SIXTH CAUSE===
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    Discord among the people of truth does not arise from lack of manliness, aspiration and zeal; similarly, the  wholehearted union among the misguided, neglectful  and worldly with respect to their  worldly affairs does not  result from manliness, aspiration and zeal.
    Ehl-i hakkın ihtilafı nâmertliklerinden, himmetsizliklerinden, hamiyetsizliklerinden olmadığı gibi; gafletli ehl-i dünyanın ve ehl-i dalaletin, hayat-ı dünyeviyeye ait işlerde samimane ittifakları dahi mertlikten, hamiyetten, himmetten değildir.
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    It is rather tha the people of truth are generally concerned with benefits to be had in the hereafter and hence direct their zeal, aspiration and manliness to those important and numerous matters. Since they do not devote time – the true capital of man – to a single concern, their union with their fellows can never become firm. Their concerns are numerous and of a wide scope.
    Belki ehl-i hakkın ekseriyetle âhirete ait olan faydaları düşünmekle, o ehemmiyetli ve kesretli meselelere hamiyeti, himmeti, mertliği inkısam eder. Hakiki sermaye olan vaktini bir meseleye sarf etmediği için meslektaşlarıyla ittifakı muhkemleşmiyor. Çünkü meseleler çok, daire dahi geniştir.
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    As for the neglectful and worldly, they think  only  of the life of this world, and they firmly embrace the concerns of the life of this world with all their senses, their spirit and heart, and cling firmly to  whoever aids them in those  concerns. Like a mad diamond merchant who gives an exorbitant price for a piece of glass worth virtually nothing, they devote time, which is of the highest value, to matters which in reality and in the view of the people of truth are worth nothing. Paying such a high price and offering  oneself  with  the  devotion of all the senses will  naturally  result  in a wholehearted sincerity that yields success in the matter at hand, so that the people of truth are defeated. As a result of this defeat, the people of truth decline into a state of abasement, humiliation, hypocrisy and  ostentation, and  sincerity is  lost.  Thus the people of truth are obliged to flatter and cringe before a handful of vile and lowly men of the world.
    Gafletli ehl-i dünya ise yalnız hayat-ı dünyeviyeyi düşündüklerinden, bütün hissiyatıyla ve ruh ve kalbiyle şiddetli bir surette hayat-ı dünyeviyeye ait meselelere sarılır. Ve o meselede ona yardım edene kuvvetli yapışır. Ve hakikat nokta-i nazarında beş paraya değmeyen ve ehl-i hak ona on para kıymet vermeyen meselelere, divane olmuş elmasçı bir Yahudi’nin beş paralık cam parçasına beş lira fiyat verdiği gibi beş yüz lira kıymetindeki vaktini o meseleye hasreder. Elbette bu kadar fiyat verip ve şiddetli hissiyat ile sarılmak, bâtıl yolunda dahi olsa samimi bir ihlas olduğundan, o meselede muvaffak olur ve ehl-i hakka galebe eder. Bu galebe neticesinde ehl-i hak zillete ve mahkûmiyete ve tasannua ve riyaya düşüp ihlası kaybeder. O nâmert, himmetsiz, hamiyetsiz bir kısım ehl-i dünyaya dalkavukluk etmeye mecbur olur.
    </div>


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    O people of truth! O people of the law, people of reality and people of the path, all worshipping God! Confronted by this awesome disease of discord, overlook each other’s faults, close your eyes to each other’s shortcomings!
    Ey ehl-i hak! Ey hakperest ehl-i şeriat ve ehl-i hakikat ve ehl-i tarîkat! Bu müthiş maraz-ı ihtilafa karşı birbirinizin kusurunu görmeyerek, yekdiğerinizin ayıbına karşı gözünüzü yumunuz!
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    Behave according to the rule of courtesy established by the criterion that is the Qur’an in the verse: When they pass by error, they pass by it with honourable avoidance.(25:72) Regard it as your primary duty – one on which your state in the hereafter depends – to abandon internal dissension when attacked by an enemy from the outside, and thereby to deliver the people of truth from their abasement and  humiliation! Practise  the brotherhood, love  and  co-operation  insistently  enjoined  by hundreds  of  Qur’anic verses  and traditions of the Prophet (UWBP)! Establish with all of your powers a union with your fellows and brothers in religion that is stronger than the union of the worldly! Do not fall into dispute!
    وَاِذَا مَرُّوا بِاللَّغ۟وِ مَرُّوا كِرَامًا edeb-i Furkanî ile edepleniniz! Ve haricî düşmanın hücumunda dâhilî münakaşatı terk etmek ve ehl-i hakkı sukuttan ve zilletten kurtarmayı en birinci ve en mühim bir vazife-i uhreviye telakki edip, yüzer âyât ve ehadîs-i Nebeviyenin şiddetle emrettikleri uhuvvet, muhabbet ve teavünü yapıp bütün hissiyatınızla ehl-i dünyadan daha şiddetli bir surette meslektaşlarınızla ve dindaşlarınızla ittifak ediniz yani ihtilafa düşmeyiniz.
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    Do not say to yourself, “Instead of spending my valuable time on such petty matters, let me spend it on more valuable things such as the invocation of God and meditation;” then withdrawing and weakening unity. For precisely what you imagine to be a matter of slight importance in this moral jihad may in fact be very great. In just the same way that under certain special and unusual conditions the watch kept for one hour by a soldier may be equal to a whole year’s worship, in this age when the people of truth have been defeated, the precious day that  you spend on some apparently minor matter concerning the moral struggle may be worth a thousand days, just like the hour of that soldier.
    Böyle küçük meseleler için kıymettar vaktimi sarf etmekten ise o çok kıymetli vaktimi zikir ve fikir gibi kıymettar şeylere sarf edeceğim deyip çekilerek, ittifakı zayıflaştırmayınız. Çünkü bu manevî cihadda küçük mesele zannettiğiniz, çok büyük olabilir. Bir neferin, bir saatte mühim ve hususi şerait dâhilindeki nöbeti bir sene ibadet hükmüne bazen geçmesi gibi; bu ehl-i hakkın mağlubiyeti zamanında, manevî mücahede mesailinde, küçük bir meseleye sarf olunan senin kıymettar bir günün, o neferin o saati gibi bin derece kıymet alabilir, bir günün bin gün olabilir.
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    Whatever is undertaken for the sake of God cannot be divided into small and great, valuable and valueless. An atom expended in sincerity and for the sake of God’s pleasure becomes like a star. What is important is not the nature of the means employed, but the result that it yields. As long as the result is God’s pleasure and the substance employed is sincerity, any means to which recourse is had will be great, not small.
    '''Madem livechillahtır; o işin küçüğüne büyüğüne, kıymetli ve kıymetsizliğine bakılmaz. İhlas ve rıza-yı İlahî yolunda zerre, yıldız gibi olur. Vesilenin mahiyetine bakılmaz, neticesine bakılır. Madem neticesi rıza-yı İlahîdir ve mâyesi ihlastır; o küçük değildir, büyüktür.'''
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    <span id="Yedinci_Sebep"></span>
    === Yedinci Sebep ===
    ===SEVENTH CAUSE===
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    Dispute and rivalry among the people of truth do not arise from jealousy and greed for the world, and conversely union among the worldly and neglectful does not arise from generosity and magnanimity.
    Ehl-i hak ve hakikatin ihtilaf ve rekabetleri, kıskançlıktan ve hırs-ı dünyadan gelmediği gibi; ehl-i dünyanın ve ehl-i gafletin ittifakları dahi civanmertlikten ve ulüvv-ü cenabdan değildir.
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    It is rather that the people of truth are unable to preserve fully the magnanimity and high aspiration that proceed from the truth, or the laudable form of  competition  that exists on  God’s path. Infiltrated  by  the unworthy, they partially misuse that laudable form of competition and fall into rivalry and dispute, causing grave harm both to themselves and to the Islamic community.
    Belki ehl-i hakikat, hakikatten gelen ulüvv-ü cenab ve ulüvv-ü himmet ve tarîk-i hakta memduh olan müsabakayı tam muhafaza edemediklerinden ve nâ-ehillerin girmesi yüzünden bir derece sû-i istimal ettiklerinden; rekabetkârane ihtilafa düşüp hem kendine hem cemaat-i İslâmiyeye ehemmiyetli zarar olmuş.
    </div>


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    As for the people of neglect and misguidance, in order not to lose the benefits with which they are infatuated and not to offend the leaders and companions they worship for the sake of benefit, in their utter humiliation,  abasement and  lack of manliness, they practise union at all costs with their companions, however  abominable, treacherous and harmful they be, and wholeheartedly agree with their partners in whatever form may be dictated by their common interest. As a result of this wholeheartedness, they indeed attain the benefits desired.
    Ehl-i gaflet ve ehl-i dalalet ise meftun oldukları menfaatlerini kaçırmamak ve menfaat için perestiş ettikleri reislerini ve arkadaşlarını küstürmemek için zilletlerinden ve nâmertliklerinden, hamiyetsizliklerinden; mutlak arkadaşlarıyla, hattâ denî ve hain ve muzır olsalar dahi hâlisane ittihat hem menfaat etrafında toplanan ne şekilde olursa olsun şerikleriyle samimane ittifak ederler. Samimiyet neticesi olarak istifade ederler.
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    So O people of truth given to dispute and afflicted with disaster! It is through your loss of sincerity and your failure to make God’s pleasure your sole aim in this age of disaster that  you have caused the people of truth to undergo this humiliation and defeat. In matters relating to religion and the hereafter there should be no rivalry, envy or jealousy; indeed there can be none of these in truth.
    İşte ey musibetzede ve ihtilafa düşmüş ehl-i hak ve ashab-ı hakikat! Bu musibet zamanında ihlası kaçırdığınızdan ve rıza-yı İlahîyi münhasıran gaye-i maksat yapmadığınızdan, ehl-i hakkın bu zillet ve mağlubiyetine sebebiyet verdiniz.
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    The reason for envy and jealousy is that when several hands reach out after a single object, when several eyes are fixed on a single position, when several stomachs  hunger for a single loaf of bread, first envy arises as a result of conflict, dispute and  rivalry,  and then jealousy. Since many people desire the same thing in the world, and because the world, narrow and transitory as it is, cannot satisfy the limitless desires of man, people  become rivals of each other.
    Umûr-u diniye ve uhreviyede rekabet, gıpta, hased ve kıskançlık olmamalı ve hakikat nokta-i nazarında olamaz. Çünkü kıskançlık ve hasedin sebebi; bir tek şeye çok eller uzanmasından ve bir tek makama çok gözler dikilmesinden ve bir tek ekmeği çok mideler istemesinden müzahame, münakaşa, müsabaka sebebiyle gıptaya, sonra kıskançlığa düşerler. Dünyada bir şey-i vâhide çoklar talip olduğundan ve dünya dar ve muvakkat olması sebebiyle insanın hadsiz arzularını tatmin edemediği için rekabete düşüyorlar.
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    However, in the hereafter a five-hundred-year paradise will be given to a single individual; seventy thousand palaces and houris will be granted to him; and  every one of the people of Paradise will be perfectly satisfied with his share.(*<ref>*An important question raised by a significant person: According to tradition a five-hundred-year paradise will be given to everyone in Paradise. How can worldly intelligence comprehend this truth? Answer: In this world everyone has his private and temporally limited world as broad as the world, the pillar of which is his life. He makes use of his world through his inner and outer senses. He says to himself, “The sun is my lamp, the stars are my candles.” The existence of other creatures and animate beings in no way negates his ownership of these; on the contrary, they brighten and illumine his world. In the same way, although on an infinitely higher plane, in addition to the garden of each believer that contains thousands of palaces and houris, there is a private five-hundred-year paradise for everyone, apart from the general Paradise. He will benefit from this paradise and eternity through his senses and feelings, according to the degree of development they have reached. The fact that others share in the general Paradise in no way harms his ownership or benefit, but on the contrary strengthens these, and adorns that vast Paradise. Man in this world benefits from a garden lasting an hour, a spectacle lasting a day, a country lasting a month and a journey lasting a year, with his mouth, his ear, his eye, his taste and all his other senses. So too, in that realm of eternity, his sense of smell and touch, which in this transient world barely profit from a garden lasting an hour, will benefit as if from a
    Fakat âhirette tek bir adama beş yüz sene '''(Hâşiye<ref>'''Hâşiye:''' '''Mühim bir taraftan ehemmiyetli bir suâl:''' Rivâyette gelmiş ki, Cennette bir adama beş yüz senelik bir Cennet verilir. Bu hakikat akl-ı dünyevînin havsalasında nasıl yerleşir?
    garden lasting a year. The sense of sight and hearing which here barely profit from an excursion lasting a year, will there be able to benefit from a five-hundred-year excursion in a manner fitting that realm, adorned from end to end. Every believer will benefit there according to his spiritual rank, and gain delight and pleasure through his senses that will expand and develop in relation to the reward he has earned in this world and the good deeds he has performed.</ref>)It is thus clear that there is no cause for rivalry in the hereafter, nor can there be rivalry. In that case, neither should there be any rivalry with respect to those good deeds that entail  reward in the hereafter; there is no room for jealousy here.
    <br />
    '''Elcevab:''' Nasıl ki, bu dünyada herkesin dünya kadar hususî ve muvakkat bir dünyası var. Ve o dünyanın direği onun hayatıdır. Ve zâhirî ve bâtınî duygularıyla o dünyasından istifade eder. "Güneş bir lambam, yıldızlar mumlarımdır" der. Başka mahlûkat ve zîrûhlar bulunmaları, o adamın mâlikiyetine mâni olmadıkları gibi, bil'akis, onun hususî dünyasını şenlendiriyorlar, zînetlendiriyorlar.  
    <br />
    Aynen öyle de, (fakat binler derece yüksek) herbir mü'min için binler kasır ve hûrileri ihtiva eden hàs bahçesinden başka, umumî Cennetten beş yüz sene genişliğinde birer hususî Cenneti vardır. Derecesi nisbetinde inkişaf eden hissiyatıyla, duygularıyla, Cennete ve ebediyete lâyık bir sûrette istifade eder. Başkaların iştirâki, onun mâlikiyetine ve istifadesine noksan vermedikleri gibi, kuvvet verirler. Ve hususî ve geniş Cennetini zînetlendiriyorlar.
    <br />
    Evet, bu dünyada bir adam, bir saatlik bir bahçeden ve bir günlük bir seyrangâhtan ve bir aylık bir memleketten ve bir senelik bir mesîregâhta seyahatinden ağzıyla, kulağıyla, gözüyle, zevkiyle, zâikasıyla, sâir duygularıyla istifade ettiği gibi; aynen öyle de, fakat bir saatlik bir bahçeden ancak istifade eden bu fânî memleketteki kuvve-i şâmme ve kuvve-i zâika, o bâkî memlekette bir senelik bahçeden aynı istifadeyi eder. Ve burada bir senelik mesîregâhtan ancak istifade edebilen bir kuvve-i bâsıra ve kuvve-i sâmia, orada beş yüz senelik mesîregâhındaki seyahatten, o haşmetli, baştan başa zînetli memlekete lâyık bir tarzda istifade eder.  
    <br />
    Her mü'min derecesine ve dünyada kazandığı sevâblar, haseneler nisbetinde inbisat ve inkişaf eden duygularıyla zevk alır, telezzüz eder, müstefîd olur.</ref>)''' mesafelik bir cennet ihsan edilmesi ve yetmiş bin kasır ve huriler verilmesi ve ehl-i cennetten herkes kendi hissesinden kemal-i rıza ile memnun olması işaretiyle gösteriliyor ki âhirette medar-ı rekabet bir şey yoktur ve rekabet de olamaz. Öyle ise âhirete ait olan a’mal-i salihada dahi rekabet olamaz, kıskançlık yeri değildir.
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    The one jealous here is either a hypocrite, seeking worldly result through the performance of good deeds, or a sincere but ignorant devotee, not knowing  the  true  purpose of good deeds and not comprehending  that  sincerity is the spirit and  foundation of  all  good  deeds. By cultivating a kind of rivalry and hostility toward God’s saints, he is in fact placing in doubt the breadth of God’s compassion.
    Kıskançlık eden ya riyakârdır, a’mal-i saliha suretiyle dünyevî neticeleri arıyor veyahut sadık cahildir ki a’mal-i saliha nereye baktığını bilmiyor ve a’mal-i salihanın ruhu, esası ihlas olduğunu derk etmiyor. Rekabet suretiyle evliyaullaha karşı bir nevi adâvet taşımakla, vüs’at-i rahmet-i İlahiyeyi ittiham ediyor. Bu hakikati teyid eden bir vakıa:
    An  instance  supporting  this  truth:
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    One of my former companions nurtured hostility to someone. His enemy’s good deeds and sanctity were once favourably described in his presence. He was not jealous or upset.
    Eski arkadaşlarımızdan bir adamın, bir adama karşı adâveti vardı. O adamın yanında senakârane onun düşmanı amel-i salihle, hattâ velayetle tavsif edildi. O adam kıskanmadı, sıkılmadı.
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    Then someone said, “That enemy of yours is courageous and strong.” We saw a strong vein of jealousy and rivalry suddenly appearing in that man.
    Sonra birisi dedi: “Senin o düşmanın cesurdur, kuvvetlidir.” Baktık ki o adamda şiddetli bir kıskançlık ve bir rekabet damarı uyandı.
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    We said to him: “Sanctity and  righteousness  bestow a strength  and  exaltation like  a  jewel of eternal life, yet you were not jealous of them. Now worldly strength is to be found in oxen, and courage in wild beasts; in comparison with sanctity and righteousness they are like a piece of glass compared to a diamond.”
    Ona dedik: “Velayet ve salahat hadsiz bir hayat-ı ebediyenin pırlantası gibi bir kuvvet ve bir yüksekliktir. Sen buna bu cihette kıskanmadın. Dünyevî kuvvet öküzde ve cesaret canavarda dahi bulunmakla beraber, velayet ve salahate nisbeten; bir âdi cam parçasının elmasa nisbeti gibidir.”
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    The man replied: “We have both fixed our eyes in this world on a single object. The steps that lead to it are provided by things such as courage and strength. It is for this reason that I was jealous of  him. The objects and stations of the hereafter are without number. Although he is my enemy here, there he can be my beloved and intimate brother.”
    O adam dedi ki: “Bir noktaya, bir makama ikimiz bu dünyada gözümüzü dikmişiz. Oraya çıkmak için basamaklarımız da kuvvet ve cesaret gibi şeylerdir. Onun için kıskandım. Âhiret makamatı hadsizdir. O burada benim düşmanım iken, orada benim samimi ve sevgili kardeşim olabilir.”
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    O people of the truth and the path! The service of the truth is like carrying and preserving a great and weighty treasure. Those who carry that trust on their shoulders will be happy and grateful whenever powerful hands rush to their aid. Far from being jealous, one should proudly applaud the superior strength, effectiveness and capacity of those who in upright love come forward to offer their help. Why then look on true brothers and  self-sacrificing helpers in a spirit of rivalry, thus losing sincerity? You will be exposed to  fearsome accusations in the eyes of the people of misguidance, such as pursuing worldly  interest through religion, even though it is something a hundred times lower than you and  your belief, earning your livelihood through the knowledge of truth and rivalling others in greed and acquisitiveness.
    Ey ehl-i hakikat ve tarîkat! Hakka hizmet, büyük ve ağır bir defineyi taşımak ve muhafaza etmek gibidir. O defineyi omuzunda taşıyanlara ne kadar kuvvetli eller yardıma koşsalar daha ziyade sevinir, memnun olurlar. Kıskanmak şöyle dursun, gayet samimi bir muhabbetle o gelenlerin kendilerinden daha ziyade olan kuvvetlerini ve daha ziyade tesirlerini ve yardımlarını müftehirane alkışlamak lâzım gelirken, nedendir ki rekabetkârane o hakiki kardeşlere ve fedakâr yardımcılara bakılıyor ve o hal ile ihlas kaçıyor. Vazifenizde müttehem olup ehl-i dalaletin nazarında, sizden ve sizin mesleğinizden yüz derece aşağı olan, din ile dünyayı kazanmak ve ilm-i hakikatle maişeti temin etmek, tama’ ve hırs yolunda rekabet etmek gibi müthiş ittihamlara maruz kalıyorsunuz.
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    The sole remedy for this disease is to accuse your own soul before others raise these charges, and always to take the side of your fellow, not your own soul. The rule of truth and equity established by the scholars of the art of debate is this: “Whoever desires,  in debate on  any subject,  that his own  word  should turn out  to be true, whoever is happy that he turns out  to be  right and his enemy to be wrong and mistaken – such a person has acted unjustly.” Not only that, such a person loses, for when he emerges the victor in such a debate, he has not learned anything previously unknown to him, and his probable pride will cause him loss.But if his adversary turns out  to be right, he will  have  learned  something previously  unknown to  him  and thereby gained something without any loss, as well as being saved  from pride.
    '''Bu marazın çare-i yegânesi:''' Nefsini ittiham etmek ve nefsine değil, daima karşısındaki meslektaşına taraftar olmak. Fenn-i âdab ve ilm-i münazaranın uleması mabeynindeki hakperestlik ve insaf düsturu olan şu: “Eğer bir meselenin münazarasında kendi sözünün haklı çıktığına taraftar olup ve kendi haklı çıktığına sevinse ve hasmının haksız ve yanlış olduğuna memnun olsa insafsızdır.” Hem zarar eder. Çünkü haklı çıktığı vakit o münazarada bilmediği bir şeyi öğrenmiyor, belki gurur ihtimaliyle zarar edebilir. Eğer hak hasmının elinde çıksa zararsız, bilmediği bir meseleyi öğrenip menfaattar olur, nefsin gururundan kurtulur.
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    In other words, one fair in his dealings and enamoured of the truth will subject the desire of his own soul to the demands of the truth. If he sees his adversary to be right, he will accept it willingly and support it happily.
    Demek insaflı hakperest, hakkın hatırı için nefsin hatırını kırıyor. Hasmının elinde hakkı görse yine rıza ile kabul edip taraftar çıkar, memnun olur.
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    If then the people of religion, the people of truth, the people of the path, and the people of learning take this principle as their guide, they will attain sincerity, and be successful in those duties that prepare them for the hereafter. Through God’s mercy, they will be delivered  from this appalling wretchedness and misfortune from which they presently suffer.
    İşte bu düsturu ehl-i din, ehl-i hakikat, ehl-i tarîkat, ehl-i ilim kendilerine rehber ittihaz etseler ihlası kazanırlar. Ve vazife-i uhreviyelerinde muvaffak olurlar. Ve bu feci sukut ve musibet-i hazıradan rahmet-i İlahiye ile kurtulurlar.
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    Glory be unto You! We have no knowledge save that which You have taught us; indeed You are All-Knowing, All Wise.(2:32)
    سُب۟حَانَكَ لَا عِل۟مَ لَنَٓا اِلَّا مَا عَلَّم۟تَنَٓا اِنَّكَ اَن۟تَ ال۟عَلٖيمُ ال۟حَكٖيمُ
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    <center> [[On Dokuzuncu Lem'a]] ⇐ [[Lem'alar]] | ⇒ [[Yirmi Birinci Lem'a]] </center>
    <center> [[On Dokuzuncu Lem'a/en|The Nineteenth Flash]] ⇐ | [[Lem'alar/en|The Flashes]] | ⇒ [[Yirmi Birinci Lem'a/en|The Twenty-First Flash]] </center>
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    22.34, 16 Eylül 2024 itibarı ile sayfanın şu anki hâli

    On Sincerity

    [While being the first of the five Points which form the Second of the seven Matters of the Seventeenth Flash, this became the Twentieth Flash because of its importance.]

    In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.

    The verse:Verily We sent the Book down to you in truth, so worship God in sincerity, for God’s is sincerely practised religion,(39:2) and the noble saying of the Prophet (UWBP):“All men will perish, except the scholars, and all scholars will perish except those who act in accordance with their knowledge, and all of them will perish except the sincere, and even the sincere are in great danger,”(*[1])demonstrate together how important a principle of Islam is sincerity. From among the innumerable points concerning sincerity, we will briefly expound only five.

    Note: An auspicious sign of blessed Isparta which causes one to offer thanks is that compared with other places, there is no visible rivalry and dispute between the pious, those who follow the Sufi path, and the religious scholars. Even if the required true love and union is not present, comparatively speaking, there is no harmful rivalry and conflict.

    First Point

    An Important and Awesome Question: Why is it that while the worldly and the neglectful, and even the misguided and hypocrites, co-operate without rivalry, the people of religion, the religious scholars, and those who follow the Sufi path, oppose each other in rivalry, although they are the people of truth and concord? Agreement belongs in reality to the people of concord and dispute to the hypocrites; how is it that these two have changed places?

    The Answer: We will set forth seven of the extremely numerous causes of this painful, disgraceful and awesome situation, one that causes the zealous to weep.

    THE FIRST

    Just as dispute among the people of the truth does not arise from lack of the truth, so too the agreement prevailing among the people of neglect does not arise from any possession of truth.

    Rather it is that a specific duty and particular function has been assigned to the classes in society, like ‘the worldly,’(*[2])

    those engaged in politics, and those who have received a secular education, and thus the functions of the various groups, societies, and communities have been defined and become distinguished from one another. Similarly, the material reward they are to receive for their functions in order to  maintain a livelihood, as well as the moral reward  that  consists in the attention they receive from men for the sake of their ambition and pride – this too is established and specified.(*[3])There is therefore nothing held in common to the degree that it might produce conflict, dissension and rivalry. However evil be the path that they tread, they will be able to preserve unity and agreement.
    

    But as for the people of religion, the scholars, and those who follow the path, the duty of each is concerned with all men; their material reward is not set and specified; and their share in social esteem and acceptance and public attention is not predetermined. Many may be candidates for the same position; many hands may stretch out for each moral and material reward that is offered. Hence it is that conflict and rivalry arise; concord is changed into discord, and agreement into dispute.

    Now the cure and remedy for this appalling disease is sincerity.

    Sincerity may be attained by preferring the worship of God to the worship of one’s own soul, by causing God’s pleasure to vanquish the pleasure of the soul and the ego, and thus manifesting the meaning of the verse:Verily my reward is from God alone;(11:29) by renouncing the material and moral reward to be had from men(*[4])and thus manifesting the meaning of the verse:Naught is incumbent on the Messenger but conveying the message;(5:99) and by knowing that such matters as goodly acceptance, and making a favourable impression, and gaining the attention of men are God’s concern and a favour from Him, and that they play no part in conveying the message, which is one’s own duty, nor are they necessary for it, nor is one charged with gaining them – by knowing this a person will be successful in gaining sincerity, otherwise it will vanish.

    SECOND CAUSE

    The agreement among the poeple of misguidance is on account of their abasement, and the dispute among the people of guidance is on account of their dignity.

    That is to say that the people of neglect – those misguided ones sunk in worldly concerns – are weak and abased because they do not rely on truth and reality. On account of their abasement, they need to augment their strength, and because of this need they wholeheartedly embrace the aid and co-operation of others. Even though the path they follow is misguidance, they preserve their agreement. It is as if they were making their godlessness into a form of worship of the truth, their misguidance into a form of sincerity, their irreligion into a form of solidarity, and their hypocrisy into concord, and thus attaining success. For genuine sincerity, even for the sake of evil, cannot fail to yield results, and whatever man seeks with sincerity, God will grant him it.(*[5])

    But as for the people of guidance and religion, the religious scholars and those who follow the Sufi path, since they rely upon truth and reality, and each of them on the road of truth thinks only of his Sustainer and trusts in His succour, they derive dignity from their belief. When they feel weakness, they turn not toward men, but toward God and seek help from Him. On account of difference in outlook, they feel no real need for the aid of the one whose outlook apparently opposes their own, and see no need for agreement and unity. Indeed, if obstinacy and egoism are present, one will imagine himself to be right and the other to be wrong; discord and rivalry take the place of concord and love. Thus sincerity is chased away and its function disrupted.

    Now the only remedy for the critical consequences of this awesome state consists of nine commands:

    1. To act positively, that is, out of love for one’s own outlook, avoiding enmity for other outlooks, not criticizing them, interfering in their beliefs and sciences, or in any way concerning oneself with them.

    2. To unite within the fold of Islam, irrespective of particular outlook, remembering those numerous ties of unity that evoke love, brotherhood and concord.

    3. To adopt the just rule of conduct that the follower of any right outlook has the right to say, “My outlook is true, or the best,” but not that “My outlook alone is true,” or that “My outlook alone is good,” thus implying the falsity or repugnance of all other outlooks.

    4. To consider that union with the people of truth is a cause of divine succour and the high dignity of religion.

    5. To realize that the individual resistance of the most powerful person against the attacks through its genius of the mighty collective force of the people of misguidance and falsehood, which arises from their solidarity, will inevitably be defeated, and through the union of the people of truth, to create a joint and collective force also, in order to preserve justice and right in the face of that fearsome collective force of misguidance.

    6. In order to preserve truth from the assaults of falsehood,

    7. To abandon the self and its egoism,

    8. And give up the mistaken concept of self-pride,

    9. And cease from all insignificant feelings aroused by rivalry. If this ninefold rule is adhered to, sincerity will be preserved and its function perfectly performed.(*[6])

    THIRD CAUSE

    Disagreement among the people of truth does not arise from lack of zeal and aspiration, nor does union among the people of misguidance arise from loftiness of aspiration.

    That which impels the people of guidance to the misuse of their high aspiration and hence to disagreement and rivalry is the desire for heavenly reward that is counted as a praiseworthy quality in respect of the hereafter, and extreme eagerness with respect to duties pertaining to the hereafter. Thinking to oneself, “Let me gain this reward, let me guide these people, let them listen to me,” he takes up a position of rivalry towards the true brother who faces him and who stands in real need of his love, assistance, brotherhood and aid. Saying to oneself, “Why are my pupils going to him? Why don’t I have as many pupils as him?” he falls prey to egoism, inclines to the chronic disease of ambition, loses all sincerity, and opens the door to hypocrisy.

    The cure for this error, this wound, this awesome sickness of the spirit, is the principle that “God’s pleasure is won by sincerity alone,” and not by a large following or great success. For these latter are a function of God’s will; they cannot be demanded, although they are sometimes given. Sometimes a single word will result in someone’s salvation and hence the pleasure of God. Quantity should not receive too much attention, for sometimes to guide one man to the truth may be as pleasing to God as guiding a thousand.

    Moreover sincerity and adherence to the truth require that one should desire the Muslims to benefit from anyone and at any place they can. To think “Let them take lessons from me so that I gain the reward” is a trick of the soul and the ego.

    O man greedy for reward in the hereafter and the performance of deeds entitling you to that reward! There have been certain prophets who had only a limited following but received the infinite reward of the sacred duty of prophethood. The true achievement lies, then, not in gaining a vast following, but in gaining God’s pleasure. What do you imagine yourself to be, that saying, “Let everyone listen to me,” you forget your function, and interfere in what is strictly God’s concern? To gain acceptance for you and to have people gather round you is God’s concern. So look to your own duty and concern, and do not meddle with God’s concerns.

    Moreover, it is not only men who earn reward for those who hear and speak the truth. The sentient and spiritual beings of God and His angels have filled the universe and adorned its every part. If you want plentiful reward, take sincerity as your foundation and think only of God’s pleasure. Then every syllable of the blessed words that issue forth from your mouth will be brought to life by your sincerity and truthful intention, and going to the ears of innumerable sentient beings, they will illumine them and earn you reward. For when, for example, you say, “Praise and thanks be to God,” millions of these words, great and small, are written on the page of the air by God’s leave. Since the All-Wise Inscriber did nothing prodigally or in vain, He created innumerable ears, as many as were needed to hear those multiple blessed words.

    If those words are brought to life in the air by sincerity and truthful intent, they will enter the ears of the spirit beings like some tasty fruit in the mouth.

    But if God’s pleasure and sincerity do not bring those words to life, they will not be heard, and reward will be had only for the single utterance made by the mouth. Pay good attention to this, you Qur’an reciters who are sad that your voices are not more beautiful and that more people do not listen to you!

    FOURTH CAUSE

    In just the same way that rivalry and disagreement among the people of guidance do not arise from failure to foresee consequences or from shortsightedness, so too wholehearted agreement among the people of misguidance does not result from farsightedness or loftiness of vision.

    Rather the people of guidance, through the influence of truth and reality, do not succumb to the blind emotions of the soul, and follow instead the farsighted inclinations of the heart and the intellect. Since, however, they fail to preserve their sense of direction and their sincerity, they are unable to maintain their high station and fall into dispute.

    As for the people of misguidance, under the influence of the soul and caprice, and the dominance of sense-perception, which is blind to all consequences and always prefers an ounce of immediate pleasure to a ton of future pleasure, they come together in eager concord for the sake of instant benefit and immediate pleasure. Indeed, lowly and heartless worshippers of the ego are bound to congregate around worldly and immediate pleasures and benefits.

    It is true that the people of guidance have set their faces to the rewards of the hereafter and its perfections, in accordance with the lofty instructions of the heart and the intellect, but even though a proper sense of direction, a complete sincerity and self-sacrificing union and concord are possible, because they have failed to rid themselves of egoism, and on account of deficiency and excess, they lose their union, that lofty source of power, and permit their sincerity to be shattered. Their duty in regard to the hereafter is also harmed. God’s pleasure is not had easily.

    The cure and remedy for this serious disease is to be proud of the company of all those travelling the path of truth, in accordance with the principle of love for God’s sake; to follow them and defer leadership to them; and to consider whoever is walking on God’s path to be probably better than oneself, thereby breaking the ego and regaining sincerity. Salvation is also to be had from that disease by knowing that an ounce of deeds performed in sincerity is preferable to a ton performed without sincerity, and by preferring the status of a follower to that of a leader, with all the danger and responsibility that it involves. Thus sincerity is to be had, and one’s duties of preparation for the hereafter may be correctly performed.

    FIFTH CAUSE

    Dispute and disagreement among the people of guidance are not the result of weakness, and the powerful union of the people of misguidance is not the result of strength.

    Rather the lack of union of the people of guidance comes from the power that results from the support provided by perfect belief, and the union of the people of neglect and misguidance comes from the weakness and impotence they experience as a result of their lack of any inward support. The weak form powerful unions precisely because of their need for union.(*[7])Since the strong do not feel a similar need, their unions are weak. Lions do not need union like foxes and therefore live as individuals, whereas wild goats form a herd to protect themselves against wolves.

    The communit y and collective personality of the weak is strong, and the community and collective personality of the strong is weak. There is a subtle allusion to this in the Qur’an in the words, “And women in the city said,”(12:30) the verb “said” being in the masculine form, although it should be feminine for two reasons [women is a feminine noun, and also a plural – so-called “broken” plurals in Arabic are always regarded as feminine].

    But by contrast see the words, “the desert Arabs said,”(49:14) the verb said in this case being in the feminine, even though its subject designates a community of men.

    Herein lies an indication, that an association of weak, meek and soft women gains strength, toughness and force, and even acquires a certain kind of virility. The use of the masculine form of the verb is therefore most appropriate. Strong men, by contrast, and in particular Beduin Arabs, trust in their own strength; therefore their associations are weak, for they assume a stance of softness and caution and take on a kind of femininity, for which the use of the feminine form of the verb is most suitable.

    Similarly the people of truth submit to and place their reliance in the firm source of support that is belief in God; hence they do not present their needs to others or request aid and assistance from them.

    If they do sometimes make the request, they will not adhere to the persons concerned at all cost. But the worldly ignore in their worldly affairs the true source of support; they fall into weakness and impotence, and experiencing an acute need of assistance, come together sacrificing themselves wholeheartedly.

    The people of truth do not recognize and seek the true strength that is to be found in union; hence they fall into dispute, as an evil and harmful consequence of this failure.

    By contrast, the people of misguidance and falsehood perceive the strength to be found in union, by virtue of their very weakness, and thus acquire union, that most important means for the attainment of all goals.

    The cure and remedy for this disease of discord among the people of truth is to make one’s rule of conduct the divine prohibition contained in this verse:Do not fall into dispute, lest you lose heart and your power depart,(8:46)and the wise divine command for social life contained in this verse:Work together for the sake of virtue and piety.(5:3)One must further realize how harmful to Islam dispute is, and how it helps the people of misguidance to triumph over the people of truth, and then, wholeheartedly and self- sacrificingly, join the caravan of the people of truth, with a sense of his own utter weakness and impotence. Finally, one must forget his own person, abandon hypocrisy and pretension, and lay hold of sincerity.

    SIXTH CAUSE

    Discord among the people of truth does not arise from lack of manliness, aspiration and zeal; similarly, the wholehearted union among the misguided, neglectful and worldly with respect to their worldly affairs does not result from manliness, aspiration and zeal.

    It is rather tha the people of truth are generally concerned with benefits to be had in the hereafter and hence direct their zeal, aspiration and manliness to those important and numerous matters. Since they do not devote time – the true capital of man – to a single concern, their union with their fellows can never become firm. Their concerns are numerous and of a wide scope.

    As for the neglectful and worldly, they think only of the life of this world, and they firmly embrace the concerns of the life of this world with all their senses, their spirit and heart, and cling firmly to whoever aids them in those concerns. Like a mad diamond merchant who gives an exorbitant price for a piece of glass worth virtually nothing, they devote time, which is of the highest value, to matters which in reality and in the view of the people of truth are worth nothing. Paying such a high price and offering oneself with the devotion of all the senses will naturally result in a wholehearted sincerity that yields success in the matter at hand, so that the people of truth are defeated. As a result of this defeat, the people of truth decline into a state of abasement, humiliation, hypocrisy and ostentation, and sincerity is lost. Thus the people of truth are obliged to flatter and cringe before a handful of vile and lowly men of the world.

    O people of truth! O people of the law, people of reality and people of the path, all worshipping God! Confronted by this awesome disease of discord, overlook each other’s faults, close your eyes to each other’s shortcomings!

    Behave according to the rule of courtesy established by the criterion that is the Qur’an in the verse: When they pass by error, they pass by it with honourable avoidance.(25:72) Regard it as your primary duty – one on which your state in the hereafter depends – to abandon internal dissension when attacked by an enemy from the outside, and thereby to deliver the people of truth from their abasement and humiliation! Practise the brotherhood, love and co-operation insistently enjoined by hundreds of Qur’anic verses and traditions of the Prophet (UWBP)! Establish with all of your powers a union with your fellows and brothers in religion that is stronger than the union of the worldly! Do not fall into dispute!

    Do not say to yourself, “Instead of spending my valuable time on such petty matters, let me spend it on more valuable things such as the invocation of God and meditation;” then withdrawing and weakening unity. For precisely what you imagine to be a matter of slight importance in this moral jihad may in fact be very great. In just the same way that under certain special and unusual conditions the watch kept for one hour by a soldier may be equal to a whole year’s worship, in this age when the people of truth have been defeated, the precious day that you spend on some apparently minor matter concerning the moral struggle may be worth a thousand days, just like the hour of that soldier.

    Whatever is undertaken for the sake of God cannot be divided into small and great, valuable and valueless. An atom expended in sincerity and for the sake of God’s pleasure becomes like a star. What is important is not the nature of the means employed, but the result that it yields. As long as the result is God’s pleasure and the substance employed is sincerity, any means to which recourse is had will be great, not small.

    SEVENTH CAUSE

    Dispute and rivalry among the people of truth do not arise from jealousy and greed for the world, and conversely union among the worldly and neglectful does not arise from generosity and magnanimity.

    It is rather that the people of truth are unable to preserve fully the magnanimity and high aspiration that proceed from the truth, or the laudable form of competition that exists on God’s path. Infiltrated by the unworthy, they partially misuse that laudable form of competition and fall into rivalry and dispute, causing grave harm both to themselves and to the Islamic community.

    As for the people of neglect and misguidance, in order not to lose the benefits with which they are infatuated and not to offend the leaders and companions they worship for the sake of benefit, in their utter humiliation, abasement and lack of manliness, they practise union at all costs with their companions, however abominable, treacherous and harmful they be, and wholeheartedly agree with their partners in whatever form may be dictated by their common interest. As a result of this wholeheartedness, they indeed attain the benefits desired.

    So O people of truth given to dispute and afflicted with disaster! It is through your loss of sincerity and your failure to make God’s pleasure your sole aim in this age of disaster that you have caused the people of truth to undergo this humiliation and defeat. In matters relating to religion and the hereafter there should be no rivalry, envy or jealousy; indeed there can be none of these in truth.

    The reason for envy and jealousy is that when several hands reach out after a single object, when several eyes are fixed on a single position, when several stomachs hunger for a single loaf of bread, first envy arises as a result of conflict, dispute and rivalry, and then jealousy. Since many people desire the same thing in the world, and because the world, narrow and transitory as it is, cannot satisfy the limitless desires of man, people become rivals of each other.

    However, in the hereafter a five-hundred-year paradise will be given to a single individual; seventy thousand palaces and houris will be granted to him; and every one of the people of Paradise will be perfectly satisfied with his share.(*[8])It is thus clear that there is no cause for rivalry in the hereafter, nor can there be rivalry. In that case, neither should there be any rivalry with respect to those good deeds that entail reward in the hereafter; there is no room for jealousy here.

    The one jealous here is either a hypocrite, seeking worldly result through the performance of good deeds, or a sincere but ignorant devotee, not knowing the true purpose of good deeds and not comprehending that sincerity is the spirit and foundation of all good deeds. By cultivating a kind of rivalry and hostility toward God’s saints, he is in fact placing in doubt the breadth of God’s compassion. An instance supporting this truth:

    One of my former companions nurtured hostility to someone. His enemy’s good deeds and sanctity were once favourably described in his presence. He was not jealous or upset.

    Then someone said, “That enemy of yours is courageous and strong.” We saw a strong vein of jealousy and rivalry suddenly appearing in that man.

    We said to him: “Sanctity and righteousness bestow a strength and exaltation like a jewel of eternal life, yet you were not jealous of them. Now worldly strength is to be found in oxen, and courage in wild beasts; in comparison with sanctity and righteousness they are like a piece of glass compared to a diamond.”

    The man replied: “We have both fixed our eyes in this world on a single object. The steps that lead to it are provided by things such as courage and strength. It is for this reason that I was jealous of him. The objects and stations of the hereafter are without number. Although he is my enemy here, there he can be my beloved and intimate brother.”

    O people of the truth and the path! The service of the truth is like carrying and preserving a great and weighty treasure. Those who carry that trust on their shoulders will be happy and grateful whenever powerful hands rush to their aid. Far from being jealous, one should proudly applaud the superior strength, effectiveness and capacity of those who in upright love come forward to offer their help. Why then look on true brothers and self-sacrificing helpers in a spirit of rivalry, thus losing sincerity? You will be exposed to fearsome accusations in the eyes of the people of misguidance, such as pursuing worldly interest through religion, even though it is something a hundred times lower than you and your belief, earning your livelihood through the knowledge of truth and rivalling others in greed and acquisitiveness.

    The sole remedy for this disease is to accuse your own soul before others raise these charges, and always to take the side of your fellow, not your own soul. The rule of truth and equity established by the scholars of the art of debate is this: “Whoever desires, in debate on any subject, that his own word should turn out to be true, whoever is happy that he turns out to be right and his enemy to be wrong and mistaken – such a person has acted unjustly.” Not only that, such a person loses, for when he emerges the victor in such a debate, he has not learned anything previously unknown to him, and his probable pride will cause him loss.But if his adversary turns out to be right, he will have learned something previously unknown to him and thereby gained something without any loss, as well as being saved from pride.

    In other words, one fair in his dealings and enamoured of the truth will subject the desire of his own soul to the demands of the truth. If he sees his adversary to be right, he will accept it willingly and support it happily.

    If then the people of religion, the people of truth, the people of the path, and the people of learning take this principle as their guide, they will attain sincerity, and be successful in those duties that prepare them for the hereafter. Through God’s mercy, they will be delivered from this appalling wretchedness and misfortune from which they presently suffer.

    Glory be unto You! We have no knowledge save that which You have taught us; indeed You are All-Knowing, All Wise.(2:32)



    The Nineteenth Flash ⇐ | The Flashes | ⇒ The Twenty-First Flash

    1. *See, al-‘Ajluni, Kashf al-Khafa’, ii, 415; al-Ghazali, Ihya ‘Ulum al-Din, iii, 414.
    2. *‘The worldly’ (ehl-i dünya): those people whose view is restricted to the life of this world and who disregard the hereafter, or those who sell religion for this world. (Tr.)
    3. *Be aware that the attention of men cannot be demanded, but only given. If it is given, one should not delight in it. If one delights in it, sincerity is lost and hypocrisy takes its place. The attention of men, if accompanied by the desire for honour and fame, is not a reward and a prize, but a reproach and chastisement for lack of sincerity. Such attention of men, such honour and fame, harm sincerity, the source of vitality for all good deeds, and even though they yield a slight pleasure as far as the gate of the tomb, on the other side of that gate they take on the form of torment. One should not therefore desire the attention of men, but flee and shy away from it. Be warned, all you who worship fame and run after honour and rank!
    4. *One should also take as one’s guide the quality of preferring others to oneself, the same quality of the Companions that is praised in the Qur’an. For example, when giving a present or performing an act of charity, one should always prefer the recipient to oneself, and without demanding or inwardly desiring any material reward for religious service, know one’s act to be purely God’s grace and not impose a sense of obligation on men. Nothing worldly should be sought in return for religious service, for otherwise sincerity will be lost. Men have many rights and claims, and may even deserve zakat. But it cannot be demanded. When one receives something, it cannot be said: “This is the reward for my service.” Rather in perfect contentment one should always prefer to oneself others who are more deserving. Thus manifesting the meaning of “They prefer others to themselves, though poverty be their lot” (Qur’an, 59:9), one may be saved from this terrible danger and gain sincerity.
    5. *Yes, “Whoever seeks earnestly shall find” is a rule of truth. Its scope is comprehensive and includes the matter under discussion.
    6. *It is even recorded in authentic traditions of the Prophet that at the end of time the truly pious among the Christians will unite with the People of the Qur’an and fight their common enemy, irreligion. And at this time, too, the people of religion and truth need to unite sincerely not only with their own brothers and fellow believers, but also with the truly pious and spiritual ones among the Christians, temporarily refraining from the discussion and debate of points of difference in order to combat their joint enemy – aggressive atheism.
    7. *Among the most powerful and effective organizations in the West is the American Organization for Women’s Rights and Liberty, even though women are called the fair sex, and are weak and delicate. Similarly, the organization of the Armenians, despite their weakness and small numbers when compared to other peoples, with its strong, self-sacrificing behaviour, provides another proof of our observation.
    8. *An important question raised by a significant person: According to tradition a five-hundred-year paradise will be given to everyone in Paradise. How can worldly intelligence comprehend this truth? Answer: In this world everyone has his private and temporally limited world as broad as the world, the pillar of which is his life. He makes use of his world through his inner and outer senses. He says to himself, “The sun is my lamp, the stars are my candles.” The existence of other creatures and animate beings in no way negates his ownership of these; on the contrary, they brighten and illumine his world. In the same way, although on an infinitely higher plane, in addition to the garden of each believer that contains thousands of palaces and houris, there is a private five-hundred-year paradise for everyone, apart from the general Paradise. He will benefit from this paradise and eternity through his senses and feelings, according to the degree of development they have reached. The fact that others share in the general Paradise in no way harms his ownership or benefit, but on the contrary strengthens these, and adorns that vast Paradise. Man in this world benefits from a garden lasting an hour, a spectacle lasting a day, a country lasting a month and a journey lasting a year, with his mouth, his ear, his eye, his taste and all his other senses. So too, in that realm of eternity, his sense of smell and touch, which in this transient world barely profit from a garden lasting an hour, will benefit as if from a garden lasting a year. The sense of sight and hearing which here barely profit from an excursion lasting a year, will there be able to benefit from a five-hundred-year excursion in a manner fitting that realm, adorned from end to end. Every believer will benefit there according to his spiritual rank, and gain delight and pleasure through his senses that will expand and develop in relation to the reward he has earned in this world and the good deeds he has performed.