Biography of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi

 

By The Light Magazine

 

INTRODUCTION

Al-Ustad Bediuzzaman Said Nursi of Turkey lived during the period 1873-1960. Throughout his eighty-seven years he struggled continuously for the cause of Islam. His aim was to strengthen the faith of his fellow countrymen. During his time the faith of the Turkish people was deteriorating due to pressures from the opponents of Islam. At this critical time the Muslims needed someone like Said Nursi who had a strong Islamic personality, possessed unshakable faith, and was highly learned in Islamic principles. He was the ideal scholar for this task.

Allah had gifted him with knowledge of the Qur'an and Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). He began cultivating the then idle minds of Muslims through his one-hundred-and-thirty books, known as the Risale-i Nur collection , which is a reflection on the Holy Qur’an written in Turkish, Arabic and Persian. This collection contains healing for today’s social ills and problems.

Many earlier Muslim scholars did not attempt to formulate logical proof of certain Islamic principles. However, due to necessity Bediuzzaman proved these principles for today's modern but sick man. For example, Ibn Sina said: "To believe in the resurrection in the hereafter is an article of faith, yet the mind cannot comprehend it." Nonetheless, Said Nursi proved that the mind can comprehend the resurrection.

Because of Said Nursi's dedication to the cause of Allah, his opponents fabricated charges against him which led to imprisonment, torment and exile, yet these obstacles could not stop him from his Islamic work. His students have grown into millions and their ultimate aim is to strengthen the belief of Muslims in Allah and the Holy Qur'an.

This book gives a short biography of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi and shows his struggles through certain periods of his life. We pray to Almighty Allah that this small contribution will be followed by other significant publications concerning his valuable work. We believe that these publications will be extremely beneficial to mankind.

If it is ordained by Allah as a necessity of His rules of wisdom that great religious scholars must appear from time to time to work for the revival of Islam, to awaken the Muslims and to revive their consciousness of the necessity of righteous struggle, then assuredly Bediuzzaman Said Nursi was presented by Allah to the Muslims during the reign of evil of the past fifty years.

It would require numerous volumes to present the whole of this eminent scholar's works and his life-long struggle; therefore we will deem it sufficient here to give a brief summary. It is not an easy task to present all his great efforts for the cause of Allah, the Glorious Qur'an and Islamic ethics and knowledge. Thus, we leave this information to the Risale-i Nur collection and to those readers who were taught by Bediuzzaman himself and knew him well.

A large number of followers of Said Nursi have become very well-known within a short period of time, his books are in great demand, and the students of his work include many officials. In spite of many cruel and open persecutions, these disciplined followers have acted positively within Turkey, working for a peaceful revival of Islam by publishing and publicizing the books of Ustad Bediuzzaman everywhere. Their continuing struggle and patience under such difficult conditions and their opponents bear beneficial results. They fulfill the eternal needs of the human heart by declaring and demonstrating faith in the unity of Allah and other fundamentals of Islam, and by persuading and satisfying spirits which are stupefied under the domination of an atheistic philosophy, faithlessness and corruption.

The coup d’état of May 27, 1960, occurred only two months after Said Nursi departed from this life. The regime which followed ordered the repression of all Risale-i-Nur students. Several were arrested while others were put on trial. During these trials, the students of Risale-i Nur testified that through studying the Risale-i Nur collection they had become useful and beneficial to the nation. The court ordered various commissions, including the Consultation Council of the Department of Religious Affairs of Turkey, to examine the Risale-i Nur collection which had been defended so courageously by its students. In spite of the hostile and prejudicial words of anti-Islamic leftists and other anti-religious forces as well as the misinformed, the experts ultimately sanctioned and praised the collection.

In the courts, religious-minded lawyers also defended the zealous students in their Islamic firmness and sincerity. In spite of prejudicial reports by biased and unscholarly persons, the Turkish judges served them justice in eight-hundred-and thirty-five acquittals. In this way an established judicial ruling (qadiya-i muhkamah) came into existence, worded as follows:

"Risale-i Nur is a light of the Qur'an. It is written to save the nation, homeland, youth and the next generations from the calamities of faithlessness, corruption and communism. These books are beneficial for all humanity."

In addition, several of these acquittals were approved by military courts as well. However, it should be noted that in spite of all the courts' sanctions, the enemies of the religion did not give up their anti-Islamic activities against the Risale-i Nur. During the Senate elections of 1966, Ismet Inönü, leader of the Republican People's Party (the governing party of Turkey in the past) was eager to issue false statements such as the following:

"The books of Said Nursi and Nurism have spread into Anatolia, and very fearful days are ahead."

He also maligned the followers of Said Nursi and described them in terms totally at variance with their good character. However, through close observation, investigation and control of many individuals, administrators and the courts, it was made clear that students of Nur (Talaba an-Nur) are on the path of Islam, having the highest character which is required by Islam, faith and ideal humanity."

Thus, the very serious calumnies of Inonu, the leader of the opposition, in contrast to the truth concerning the Talaba-an-Nur, could not affect public opinion. He and his partisans, the atheists, and many anti-religious people formed a bond; nonetheless, they were in an awkward position because they had fabricated charges against the Risale-i Nur and the Talaba an-Nur without having read the Risale-i Nur and without adequate knowledge concerning the followers of Said Nursi. As a result, disagreements broke out in the Republican People's Party.

Assuredly the most sincere wish of Muslims is that the atheists may see the truth of the Qur'an, which is the way of eternal happiness, salvation and peace. The baseless accusations and false statements of even a high-ranking official could not find a foothold before the truth of the Qur'an and its light, the Risale-i Nur collection. These books have demonstrated to everyone the un-righteousness and foolishness of those people who try to extinguish the sun by bowing at it.