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Heartstrings May 20, 2013
The Time of Corruption and the Nucleus of Society
The key to hearts
is tender-heartedness
tender words,
and attitudes with gentleness and good manners.
It is a fact that people perceive Islam through our words,
and through what we actually tell them.
If we comprehended it deeply
and exhibited the sincere sound of our conscience,
you would see signs of ardent longing
in the people of the Muslim world who jam-pack mosques.
I always feel troubled about whether we are being misrepresentative.
Are we misleading other people by our misrepresentation
which they interpret as being a Muslim?
What if we never spoke but kept silent
and let the wisdom of silence take over?
Would it be more helpful?
These were the thoughts keeping me busy just before I came to the room.
I faced a dilemma of whether to come here or not.
Both considerations weighed equally,
or as they say in English, “fifty-fifty.”
I am not perfectly sure about what I should feel,
but I came reluctantly.
My reluctance is not against you or the place where Prayers are performed,
or against the talk.
In fact, if the words and actions of such a tactless person as myself,
mislead others to perceive Islam as a shallow religion,
or to the decline of religious longing and desire,
I feel it is better to not talk at all.
Even now, I am thinking about
putting the microphone off,
going to my room and shutting myself away.
I remember when I stepped down
from the mosque pulpit with this consideration.
This is not how a Muslim should be.
When he starts performing Prayer he should brush everything else aside from his mind.
Not doing so when you are supposed to be with God
comes to mean crossing Him out unwittingly.
If you have not nullified your soul
when quoting from the Pride of Humanity,
?O Prophet! May the peace, mercy,
and blessings of God be upon you?
and if you are still conscious of your existence,
it means you have crossed out his existence,
and caused him to appear dull, and yourself polished.
Therefore, your worship becomes dull,
and so does your servanthood.
You are neither instigators,
or are educational institutes.
It is in fact, people like myself who invade mosque pulpits, mihrabs, and podiums;
and that what they speak of
does not originate from the depths of their hearts
strongly enough to drop dead;
or as strongly as a volcano erupting.
It is failing to imbue the virtues with proper and heroic representation.
That's right.
That's what it should be, but
I have neither tender nature, nor tender words,
nor tender attitude or anything else that is tender...
Mehmed Akif says: “Let alone being Muslim,
we can hardly be called human.
Let us make no pretense; we cannot fool anyone.
All the true Muslims I knew are already in their graves.
The real Islam is I guess, nowhere else but in heavens.”
These verses are about his time.
He articulates these on behalf of his society
to voice his concerns about its inner wretchedness
while it has not drifted entirely away
from the roots of family, and spirituality and meaning.
Had he seen our times,
without having gotten used to them,
I believe he would die of heart attack,
as he was man of zeal and enthusiasm.
He would say ‘a Muslim should not be this numb.'
That's right.
We need to challenge ourselves,
and face our own reality.
Those who fail to do so
always get challenged by others
and can never get rid of their own lack of shame.
Those who do challenge themselves, on the other hand,
those who blame themselves for any adversity,
say “Shame on me!”
Like Oscar Wilde says,
Of all the things that were done to me,
I have done the most harm to myself.
That is the right way to think
and through which
we should re-examine our attitudes and actions.
This way, we can see our flaws better.
Instead of sleuthing others' faults
and focusing on their mistakes,
we should inspect ourselves and fix our errors.
Therefore, as we fix our own errors,
we help correct the errors
of the people who have seen, known, and turned to us.
The more errors we fix the better,
by the way, the “we” I use is the impersonal “we.”
If we can revise
our thoughts and feelings a few times daily
through repentance, turning to God and penitence,
those who see us constantly purify ourselves, will do the same themselves.
Hence, the society becomes completely pure.
Otherwise, especially in this era of corruption,
in some Books of Tradition,
the Book of Corruption and Calamity has been inserted as the final chapter.
The Book of Corruption and the Book of Calamity and Misfortune.
Since it is the End Times, what occurs are of Signs of the Last Day.
It is only the form that is visible in the Signs that occur.
Our beloved Prophet says: “They recite the Qur'an, but it is only the sounds they pronounce.”
So would be the case with Prayers,
or with fasting.
The Era of Corruption and Calamity is
when corruption is dominant.
In such an era,
at least a group of people should remain decent.
Was the interview in the evening?
It was asked
in the last evening's interview,
whether I believed that the Hizmet could
bring about any positive changes
in the world of thoughts and feelings of people.
As a matter of fact, only God would know about it, we would not.
We are not capable of realizing it.
If hearts are turned to the worldly pleasures, we cannot turn them to God.
If they are filled with worldly desires, we cannot redirect them to our noble Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him.
I wish we could do what needs to be done,
I wish
there was a group
of people to serve as role models.
A group of people whose personal lives could be analyzed by others.
Just like they say
about the Respected Companions,
“Qaimun bi'l-layl, fursanun bi'n-nahar”
meaning “They spend the nights
in worship until their feet swell up.
During the daytime, they work vigorously on exalting the word of God and guiding others.”
In the past it was
on the backs of horses, mules
or camels.
At present, it should be together with the people of the world
with the diamond principles and the disciplines of the Qur'an.
The Respected Companions were praised like this.
I wish they could see similar things
if they were to analyze our personal lives.
I wish also when they examined our family lives
they would see harmony as if it were the home of the beloved Prophet.
I wish they could see true integrity, profound belief, unblemished Muslimness,
transcendent ikhlas (sincerity)
exalted ihsan (God-consciousness),
amazing marifah (knowledge of God),
and such a love of God and zeal and ecstasy
that it would blow one's mind.
I wish they could see that in our families.
Then, when they analyzed various factions of the society,
I wish they could see awesomeness at its every level.
If this comes to pass,
you will see similar formations in the world, at various magnitudes.
You will see individuals, families and factions
paralleling your example, at various magnitudes.
They will admire
that you have solved the problem of mankind
as the Earth has been introduced to problems by mankind,
who is the leading instigator of problems.
He would produce problems no matter what,
even though there are no partners present.
This was the case even in the household of Prophet Adam
where revelations were pouring down to him,
but still Cain committed Abel's ***,
at a time when there was no notion of ***,
and at a time when no one knew
how covetousness could lead one astray.
That is how the Earth was introduced to problems of
man killing man,
and the word “man” coming to mean wild beast!
That is why, unless you solve the problem of mankind,
you cannot solve the problems regarding the family, education, the house of worship,
politics, the government, or the like.
The problem should be solved within man.
Man should be cleansed of problems
and turned into paragons of angelic qualities
in such a way that would make angels
yearn for him to honor them
by joining them some day.
This reminds me of Rumi's saying:
“There are times when
angels covet the man,
and his purity, courtesy, and elegance.
There are, however, also times
when even Satan feels repugnance towards man's unpleasant actions,
saying “What bizarre creatures these are!”
I rephrased this from Rumi.
One aspect indicates the lowest of the low;
where the other indicates the highest rank of humanity.
One indicates the highest station of the noble Spirit of the Master of Humankind
while the other the lowest rank of Satan.
It is important to have even a small community, of a hundred people,
who show no interest in the world and its material pleasures,
people who associate everything with God,
who associate everything with the noble Spirit of the Master of Humankind,
who show a meticulous distinction between the lawful and unlawful,
who seek no personal benefit whatsoever,
who only take their due,
and who refuse to take any undue.
We need such a community and family,
that would present a snapshot or a picture of the Age of Happiness when investigated at any angle.
Once established,
these role models,
these beautiful examples,
who are worthy of imitation,
will be modeled in other parts of the world immediately.
On the other hand, if we arouse repugnance ,
if we, in Tevfik Fikret's words, bolt down the unpermitted,
and have no distinction between the lawful and the unlawful,
violate Public Rights,
do not lead chaste lives,
do not keep our actions, words, and thoughts away from what God has proscribed,
other people will conclude that we are not any different.
What would others take from us then?
We need to have such qualities
to which others should be attracted to.
Just like butterflies are attracted to light.
They should not be able to avoid your light.
You should annihilate your soul
in favor of God and His Prophet, so that they do the same
alongside you.
Unless you manage to achieve this,
to get people to accept that this is the right time, the right era and the right society,
any worldwide change is out of the question.
Change should firstly be in the direction of God the Almighty,
of the Ultimate Truth and straightforwardness,
as in “Pursue, then, what is exactly right (in every matter of the Religion), as you are commanded (by God)” (Hud 11:112).
You will be coveted if you exhibit such qualities,
and they will annihilate their selves in you.
This is like the annihilation in the sheik, a principle of the Sufis,
which means
annihilation in the guide.
That is, to follow exactly
whatever the guide says
as a lifestyle
and without the slightest deviation.
Then, to grow by receiving an education from the beloved Prophet,
and to annihilate your soul in the noble Prophet.
And finally, building on what you have learned from the beloved Prophet,
reaching out to the levels of Messengership and Prophethood,
and following the guidance of the noble Prophet in respect and admiration
to annihilate your soul in the existence of God.
To annihilate all of your wishes and desires in favor of the Divine will.
Mehmed Fuzuli says: “What curiosity are the world and its worldly things worth?”
That is right.
Another quote from him:
“You would not manifest, while I am visible,
for you to manifest yourself must I annihilate my soul.”
That means, “If I keep making mention of myself,
if it is myself that I can observe,
if I associate everything with myself,
that is if I act egotistically
or egocentrically,
you, O God, would not manifest.
As for you to manifest yourself,
I must annihilate my ego.”
There can be only one act on one stage.
If my act takes the stage while the stage is yours,
this would be disrespectful to you,
in which case you would not manifest yourself.
I should annihilate my soul even at the level of the neuron.
It should take fifty years to locate me in my cortex.
One may have achieved a number of things; e.g. conquered Istanbul,
entered Belgrade,
locked people to continental Europe,
threatened them by taking over Vienna,
or penetrated inside Rome from the south of the Italian Peninsula;
nonetheless, when you are told about these, you should eliminate your soul and say, “I think
I have seen some people do such things, but I do not recall myself doing it.”
You should leave behind that you won a war on national independence,
that you fought like a hero in ?anakkale.
Of course, I do not mean to leave aside those who did; they should be remembered fondly,
and always be marked a good remembrance.
However, if it is you who was involved,
you should leave aside your soul, what you have done,
and all of the good deeds you have done.
Moreover, if you committed a puny sin,
even seventy years ago,
when you remember it after seventy years,
you should moan and cry
so that you can be called human, and a perfected soul.
Even remembering the puniest sin,
being able to cry after seventy years,
and sigh over it with regret, is crucial.
You should feel regret about sins like peeking at forbidden things,
Backstabbing, even it happened only once,
reproaching and blaming someone,
taking heed of someone as they came up with sinful arguments,
focus on unlawful things by imagining
and thinking about them.
Even if you committed a one-off sin,
when you remember it years and years later,
you should feel the same distress,
and suffer as badly as if you murdered your father,
or as if you took the life of your mother.
That is heroic.
Suffering about even the puniest of wrongdoings,
and leaving aside the greatest of good deeds,
even if they are as great as Mt. Everest,
and not being able to remember any of that deed,
is heroic.
The world needs a body of people
comprised of such heroes.
Of course I do not mean any -isms, -ists, or the like.
Because all of these associations are rejected terms in my understanding.
Anyway, when the people who gathered together around this understanding,
struggling in blood, sweat, and tears, with a cause to present to the whole world,
form a nucleus,
just like the universe was created from a nucleus,
of which essence is the ontological truth of Prophet Muhammad as Ahmad.
If the universe is regarded as a tree,
as in Bediüzzaman's metaphors,
the Light of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him,
would be the seed of that tree.
Bediüzzaman also says, “If you see the universe as a great book,
you will see the light of Muhammad
as the pen's ink with which that book was written.”
The universe was created from a nucleus.
A nucleus from which other nucleuses were created.
Did we read about it in our Qur'anic Commentary classes?
Like I said, nucleuses led to other nucleuses.
Anyhow, when you form such a nucleus in society,
and if they can inspire admiration in others,
its vicinity will turn into Eram Garden pretty quickly.
A society of people who show acceptance to everyone,
who mention people with admiration,
who do not assume fault but good deeds,
who on no account will backbite or slander,
who are monuments of chastity and virtuousness...
They will be like the Companion of the Prophet,
who was asked in by a woman with indecent intentions,
who pretended to be calling for help.
Although he was on his way to the Prophet's Mosque,
as a Companion of the Prophet,
he assumed the responsibility to help out.
He entered her house to help
and she made an indecent proposal.
That's right.
At that moment, he suddenly realized
that something strange was happening, just like some of you may have experienced.
He is reciting the verse “Inna'llathina't-taqaw
itha massahum taifun min'ashshaytani tathakkaru
fa itha hum mubsirun” (al-Araf 7:201)
He was reciting it unconsciously.
“As soon as ‘a suggestion' from Satan
(which you can alternatively refer to as a beam, or a sparkle from Hell)
touches them
they are traumatized by it,
they are alert and remember God.”
Oh, the All-Living and Self-Subsistent, who has never abandoned me
or denied me Your treasury of Mercy, I seek assistance.
Please do amend all my states, and do not leave me alone with my carnal soul,
for so long as a blink?or even shorter!
Thousands of praise and glorification be to He
who has not left me alone for even as long as a blink.
As soon as the Companion realized this, he immediately dropped dead.
This happened as soon as he noticed that the verse had been in his constant recitation.
We need such great strength in belief.
This is the way to be the perfected soul, to act
as the nucleus of a real prototypal society.
That Companion had never skipped the congregational Prayer in Caliph Umar's imamate.
Umar was like some teachers I have known, who would tell who was absent from class
by just looking over their classes without having to take the register.
Umar also knew all of his congregation very well;
probably so well as to know where they stood.
Due to the delicacy
of his story, the others preferred not to inform Umar of his death.
But since he failed to show for a couple of times, Umar, the caliph of the Earth, inquired about him.
That is how a real caliph should be.
He should have such a caring heart to know when even the least important
member of his community has a problem.
Anyway, they eventually informed him that the Companion had died in a woman's house
and they had buried him without informing Umar. He told them to take him to his grave.
He stood by his grave,
saluted him,
and recited the verse “Wa liman khafa maqama Rabbihi jannatan” (ar-Rahman 55:46).
It means “But for him who lives in awe of his Lord and of the standing before his Lord (in the Hereafter)
there will be two Gardens.”
Suddenly they heard a voice that shook the graveyard:
“Oh, Chief of Believers,
I have been given twice of what was promised.”
We need characters of such monumental chastity.
Like I said, when you can form a nucleus within society,
for whom chastity means everything,
for whom the distinction of the lawful and unlawful means everything,
who are determined to ensure justice and security,
it will serve as such a role model
that people will race to follow its lead.
That's right.
At the time of trials and fierce battles,
humanity is in need of
such a distinguished society.
Yesterday, an acquaintance of ours
called from a western country, which I will not disclose,
as I do not want you to find it out.
He reported that the administrators of that country say
“We were released from prison,
and are now candidates for governance.”
This is very similar to Prophet Joseph',
except that he was a Prophet.
God would corroborate him and not leave him unguided,
hence He would not let him make a mistake. We are not like that.
We do not have such corroboration or guidance.
But you have...
a wealth of experience.
Please do not leave us alone.
We would like to learn from your experience
of starting from scratch
and to carry that experience further.
I am so happy some of us have managed to exhibit such humanly qualities.
I can say, in absentia,
what I said to another acquaintance,
“For me, going to Paradise is out of the question unless the noble Prophet intercedes with God.”
“But,” I said,
considering his selflessness,
“If I am granted entry to Paradise,
I would beg God for the company of that friend of mine
who backed me up when I had been totally abandoned.”
If there are others who have formed such a nucleus,
please bear witness that I applaud them by kissing them on their foreheads.
Please bear witness
if I am,
hypothetically, granted entry to the Paradise,
I would enter only if they were sent with me.
In this time of corruption
being a Muslim straight as an arrow is demanding;
however, those who manage to be like that
are heroes who can overcome any other difficulty in life.
May God make you one of them.
If I may be excused now. �