3 From the Risale-i Nur Collection 4

THE RAYS

Collection
Bediuzzaman SAID NURSI

4 Translated from the Turkish ular by kran Vahide Copyright 1998, 2001, 2002, 2007 by Szler Neriyat A..

For information, address: Szler Neriyat A.S., Nuruosmaniye Cad., Sorkun Han, No: 28/2, Caalo lu, Istanbul, Turkey. Tel: 0212 527 10 10 Fax: 0212 520 82 31 Internet: www.sozler.com.tr e-mail: info@sozler.com.tr

Contents
THE SECOND RAY: This forms the seventh Point about the Six Greatest Names and is about the Greatest Name of God, the One. It contains three Stations and a Conclusion 13 First Station: Three fruits of the affirmation of Divine unity 15 First Fruit: In Divine unity and the affirmation of it, Divine beauty and dominical perfection become apparent 15 Second Fruit: The perfections of the universe are realized through Divine unity, and the elevated duties of beings are understood 19 Third Fruit: All mans perfections and his lofty aims are tied to Divine unity 23 Second Station: Three matters necessitating Divine unity 27 The First: The limitless, absolute attributes and Names, the works of which are to be observed in the universe 27 The Second: The ease in unity and difficulties and impossibilities in associating partners with God 31 The Third: One who creates any single being must be the one who creates the whole universe 35 Third Station: Three universal signs of the affirmation of Divine unity 37 First Sign and Proof: He is One: in everything is a unity and unity points to one 37 Second Sign: He has no partners: in everything is a faultless order and balance, and these can occur only through unity, for interference causes confusion 38 What do you say to the ugliness, tribulations and death found among the beauty and good? 39 Why does the Absolutely Compassionate One inflict evil? 40

6 Third Sign: The innumerable stamps of Divine unity alluded to by the phrase: His is the dominion and His is the praise 41 Conclusion 44 A question related to the resurrection of the dead 45 A Supplication about Divine Unity 48 THE THIRD RAY: A Supplication which expounds the verse: Behold! In the creation of the heavens and the earth [to the end of the verse] 50 THE FOURTH RAY: A subtle point about the verse: For us God suffices and He is the Best Disposer of Affairs, in six Degrees 70 The First Degree: The true pleasure of immortality lies in the immortality of the Enduring One of Perfection, and in affirming Him and believing in Him 71 The Second Degree: Through the relation resulting from belief, with his impotence and poverty, man may rely on the infinite power and strength of the Munificent Provider 74 The Third Degree: The disposals of creative power and mans importance, despite his apparent insignificance 75 The Fourth Degree: The relations and existences belief gains for man 78 The Fifth Degree: Life from the point of view of the Ever-Living and SelfSubsistent One, in four Matters 80 First Matter: The essence and reality of life 81 Second Matter: The true rights of life 81 Third Matter: The innate duties of life, in three Ways 81 Fourth Matter: The true pleasure and happiness of life 82 The Sixth Degree: Three proofs that all the instances of beauty displayed by these transient beings are the signs, flashes, and manifestations of an eternal, sacred Beauty 83 First Proof: The beauty of a finely crafted object points to the beauty of the craftsman 84 Second Proof contains five Points: First Point: The beauties in beings are the shadows of a sacred, hidden Beauty85 Second Point: The successive transitory beings display an unchanging beauty 85 Third Point: The bestowal of beauty is from the beautiful 85

7 Fourth Point: Each of the Divine Names possesses a sacred beauty a single manifestation of which makes beautiful the vast world 85 Fifth Point: The universe was made an exhibition of wonders in order to display the beauties of its Maker 88 Third Proof consists of three Points 88 First Point: Creatures are intentionally adorned and made beautiful in order to make known their Maker and to make Him loved 88 Second Point: Mankinds genuine love of God points to a peerless Beauty 89 Third Point: Existence is pure good, and non-existence, pure evil 89 The Fifth Chapter (of the Twenty-Ninth Flash): Five Points on the degrees of For us God suffices, and He is the Best Disposer of Affairs! The original is in Arabic 91 THE FIFTH RAY: (On the Signs of the End of Time) Introduction, consisting of five Points 98 103 114 Second Station, consisting of twenty Matters Three Brief Matters complementing the above 97

THE SIXTH RAY: The answers to two questions about the formulas recited during the tashahhud section of the ritual prayers (salat) 118 First Question: What is the reason for the blessed phrases of the tashahhud being recited during the prayers? 118 Second Question: About the comparison at the end of the tashahhud about Muhammad (PBUH) and Abraham (PUH). The answer contains three Aspects 120 THE SEVENTH RAY: The Supreme Sign 123 123 An Important Warning and Statement of Purpose

Introduction: Two abysses that shake certainty of faith this age, and the means of salvation from them 125 The First Chapter: Concerning proofs of the Divine existence The testimony of the heavens and all they contain 131 The testimony of the atmosphere 131 The testimony of the earth and its pages 135 The testimony of the seas and rivers 136 The testimony of the mountains and plains 138 130

8 The testimony of the trees and plants, including three truths 139 The testimony of the animal and bird realms, including three comprehensive truths 140 The testimony of the realm of humanity: the prophets and their unanimity 141 The testimony of the exacting scholars and their accord 142 The testimony of the spiritual guides and their agreement 143 The testimony of the angels and spirit beings and their concurrence 144 The testimony of upright intellects and sound hearts 145 The testimony of Divine revelation, which proclaims five truths 146 Two differences between revelation and inspiration 148 The testimony and nature of inspiration in four lights 149 The testimony of Muhammad the Arabian Prophet (PBUH) 150 Nine evidences of the veracity of his messengership 151 Three forms of infallible consensus confirming him 155 The testimony of the Quran, and six Points showing its greatness 156 The testimony of the cosmos, through two vast truths 163 First Truth: Createdness and contingency 163 Second Truth: Universal co-operation 165 The testimony of the station of direct address to God in His presence, in two Truths 167 First Truth: The continuous, wise, and imperious activity in the universe 167 Second Truth: Divine discourse 170 Second Chapter: Concerning proofs of Divine unity 172 The First Stopping-Place, four sacred truths prevailing over the cosmos 172 First Truth: Absolute Divinity 172 Second Truth: Absolute Dominicality 173 Third Truth: Perfections 173 Fourth Truth: Sovereignty 174 The Stopping-Place of Gods deeds, the world of creation and origination, five comprehensive truths 176 First Truth: That of Grandeur and Sublimity 176 Second Truth: The absoluteness of the dominical deeds 177 Third Truth: The ease, speed, and order of creation 179

9 Fourth Truth: The points of unity and convergence in beings 183 Fifth Truth: The perfect order and regularity of the cosmos 185 The Third Stopping-Place, illumined by four truths 189 First Truth: The Truth of Opening 189 Second Truth: The Truth of Mercifulness 190 Third Truth: The Truth of Disposing and Administering 192 Fourth Truth: The Truth of Compassionateness and Bestowal of Provision On the Purpose of the Risale-i Nur 200

194

THE NINTH RAY: The first part of the Addendum to the Tenth Word, Resurrection and the Hereafter 201 Introduction, consisting of two Points 203 First Point: Four proofs demonstrating that belief in the hereafter is fundamental to the life of society and mans personal life 203 Second Point: The testimony to the truth of resurrection of the other pillars of belief 205 THE ELEVENTH RAY: The Fruits of Belief The First Topic: One hour for God 214 213

A Summary of the Second Topic: How to be saved from the gallows of death 216 The Third Topic: An instructive incident 219 The Fourth Topic: The most pressing question The Fifth Topic: Youth will depart 225 The Sixth Topic: All the sciences speak of God and make known the Creator 226 The Seventh Topic: Teach us also about the hereafter, comprising the answers of the Divine Names, the angels, the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and the Quran 230 A Summary of the Eighth Topic: A number of benefits of believing in the hereafter which look to mans social and personal life 242 Proofs of bodily resurrection 247 Two Points about Hell 249 About the phrase: God is Most Great! 253 The Ninth Topic: The pillars and truths of Islam are an indivisible whole, in three Points 256 223

10 The Tenth Topic: A Flower of Emirda. An extremely powerful reply to objections raised about repetitions in the Quran 262 Conclusion, consisting of two Additions 272 The Eleventh Topic: The fruits tasted in this world of belief in the angels 277 Conclusion 286 A Supplement to the Addendum of the Eleventh Topic 289 THE TWELFTH RAY: Part of Bediuzzaman Said Nursis defence speeches given in Denizli Court 297 THE THIRTEENTH RAY: The light-scattering letters Bediuzzaman Said Nursi sent his students while in Denizli Prison, which illustrate in brilliant fashion the great exertions of the Risale-i Nur 318 THE FOURTEENTH RAY: Comprising part of Bediuzzamans defence during his trial in Afyon Court, letters which he wrote to his fellow-prisoner students, and parts of his students defence speeches 370 Bediuzzamans defence speeches and the petitions he sent to the Appeal Court and to the Government in Ankara 370 The Sixteenth Letter: Included by Bediuzzaman in the Fourteenth Ray because of its relevance to his defence 457 Letters written by Bediuzzaman to his students while in Afyon Prison in order to console, enlighten, and guide them 474 Parts of the defence speeches given by some of the Risale-i Nur students during their trials in Afyon Court 534 THE FIFTEENTH RAY, The Shining Proof 569 First Station: Consisting of three Parts 569 Part One: A concise summary of the Twentieth Letter which in eleven phrases about Divine Unity offers eleven proofs of the truths of belief 570 Part Two: A brief summary of Sura al-Fatiha. Allusions to the truths of belief and their proofs from the treasury of this sura, in nine Phrases 580 Part Three: A brilliant explanation with proofs of the second part of the profession of faith: Muhammad is the Messenger of God, in three Indications 591 Second Station 604 Three of the worlds the traveller through the universe visited,

11 which illustrate the comparison of the people of belief and of misguidance, in three Examples 604 Seeking knowledge of the Creator of the universe through three of His seven attributes, knowledge, will, and power 608 The attribute of knowledge as indicated by the words of the tashahhud in the five daily prayers, together with eleven Evidences 609 The attribute of will; one universal proof of this 620 The attribute of power; utterly convincing, irrefutable proofs in nine Steps 622 Introduction to the Turkish Translation of The Damascus Sermon 639 THE SECOND CHAPTER OF THE TWENTY-NINTH FLASH, On the phrase All praise be to God! 648 Note on the Turkish Alphabet 676

A Brief Look at Bediuzzaman Said Nursis Life, the Risale-i Nur, and The Rays Collection 677