The Eighth Letter
In His Name!And there is nothing but it glorifies Him with praise.(17:44)
There are numerous instances of wisdom in the names of Most Merciful and Compassionate being included in “In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate” and at the start of all good things. Postponing the explanation of these to another time, I shall for now recount a feeling of mine:
My brother, to me the names of Merciful and Compassionate appear as a light so vast it embraces the whole universe and satisfies all the eternal needs of all spirits, and so luminous and powerful it secures a person against all his innumerable enemies. The most important means I have found for attaining to these names, these two vast lights, are poverty and thanks, impotence and compassion. That is, worship and realizing one’s neediness.
What comes to mind in this connection and I say contrary to the great mystics and religious scholars, and even to Imam-i Rabbani, one of my masters, is this:
the intense and brilliant emotion the Prophet Jacob (Upon whom be peace) felt for Joseph (Upon whom be peace) was not love or passion, but compassion. For compassion is much more acute and brilliant and elevated than passionate love, and purer and more worthy of the rank of prophethood. Intense love and passion for worldly (mecazî) beloveds and creatures are not fitting for the elevated rank of prophethood. This means Jacob’s feelings, which the All-Wise Qur’an describes with brilliant eloquence, and were a way of attaining to the name of All-Compassionate, were a high degree of compassion.
As for passionate love, which is a way of attaining to the name of All-Loving, it is more like Zulaikha’s love for Joseph (Upon whom be peace). That is to say, however much higher the Qur’an of Miraculous Exposition shows Jacob’s (Upon whom be peace) emotions to be than Zulaikha’s, compassion is higher than passionate love to the same degree.
My master, Imam-i Rabbani, did not consider worldly love to be altogether fitting for the rank of prophethood and therefore said: “Joseph’s virtues pertained to the hereafter, so love for him was not of a worldly kind that it should have been defective.”(*[1])
But I say: “Master! That is an artificial interpretation, the truth of the matter must be this: Jacob’s was not love but a degree of compassion a hundred times more brilliant, more extensive, and more elevated than love.”
Yes, in all its varieties, compassion is subtle and pure, while many sorts of love and passion may not be condescended to.
Hem şefkat pek geniştir. Bir zat, şefkat ettiği evladı münasebetiyle bütün yavrulara, hattâ zîruhlara şefkatini ihata eder ve Rahîm isminin ihatasına bir nevi âyinedarlık gösterir. Halbuki aşk, mahbubuna hasr-ı nazar edip her şeyi mahbubuna feda eder; yahut mahbubunu i’lâ ve sena etmek için başkalarını tenzil ve manen zemmeder ve hürmetlerini kırar. Mesela, biri demiş: “Güneş mahbubumun hüsnünü görüp utanıyor, görmemek için bulut perdesini başına çekiyor.” Hey âşık efendi! Ne hakkın var, sekiz ism-i a’zamın bir sahife-i nuranisi olan güneşi böyle utandırıyorsun?
Hem şefkat hâlistir, mukabele istemiyor; safi ve ivazsızdır. Hattâ en âdi mertebede olan hayvanatın yavrularına karşı fedakârane ivazsız şefkatleri buna delildir. Halbuki aşk ücret ister ve mukabele talep eder. Aşkın ağlamaları, bir nevi taleptir, bir ücret istemektir.
Demek, suver-i Kur’aniyenin en parlağı olan Sure-i Yusuf’un en parlak nuru olan Hazret-i Yakub’un (as) şefkati, ism-i Rahman ve Rahîm’i gösterir ve şefkat yolu, rahmet yolu olduğunu bildirir ve o elem-i şefkate deva olarak da فَاللّٰهُ خَي۟رٌ حَافِظًا وَهُوَ اَر۟حَمُ الرَّاحِمٖينَ dedirir.
اَل۟بَاقٖى هُوَ ال۟بَاقٖى
Said Nursî
- ↑ *Imam Rabbani, al-Maktubat, iii, 134 (no: 100).