COMPILER: NURSEZA PARLAKOGLU

The Only Mujahid of Recent History

Cemil Meriç:

“Said Nursi was a man of struggle. A strong and rugged will, a character that never compromised… Our recent history has known only one true mujahid, and that is Said Nursi… For 60 years he struggled, enduring every hardship and suffering—a unique man devoted to his cause.”

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He Offered Solutions to the Problems of the Age

Sociologist Prof. Şerif Mardin:

“My choice of Bediuzzaman as a subject of biography was due not only to the broad dimensions of his Islamic thought, but also because he understood the problems of the modern world earlier than others.”

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He Had a Very Brave and Courageous Character

Dr. Nureddin Topçu:

“He had a very brave and courageous character. Both friends and enemies admired him. His courage and spiritual gifts were countless. His intellectual discoveries were extraordinary. He accepted calamities with patience… He had devoted himself entirely to God… Indeed, his works are the product of those spiritual states.”

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His Words Give Spiritual Delight

Syrian Islamic scholar Muhammad Said Ramadan al-Buti:

“When you read a sentence of Bediuzzaman, you feel that the words attract you. I will explain the reason clearly. We have knowledge; our libraries are full of Islamic and religious books, and we have many thinkers. Yet their words do not give spiritual taste. But when you read Bediuzzaman’s words, you see that they pass from the ears into hearts and consciences and have a deep effect.”

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Risale-i Nur Is a “Prescription for Salvation”

Deputy Head of Religious Affairs of Syria and Mufti of Hasakah, Ibrahim Naqshbandi:

“The Risale-i Nur is a prescription for salvation for the entire Islamic world. In my sermons I proclaimed: ‘The guide to follow today is Bediuzzaman.’ Just as the Messenger of Allah placed stones on his stomach because of hunger, Bediuzzaman was the one who followed the Prophet most completely. I have said and I continue to say: ‘Follow him.’”

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The Ummah Failed to Understand Bediuzzaman

President of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, Prof. Dr. Ali Muhyiddin al-Qaradaghi:

“Bediuzzaman Said Nursi delivered a sermon in the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus in which he diagnosed six major diseases of the Islamic world and presented their remedies. If the Muslim ummah had treated those diseases with the remedies he proposed in the Damascus Sermon, it would not have fallen into the miserable condition it faces today.”

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He Taught Me How to Discover the Treasures of the Qur’an

Scholar and thinker Cevdet Said:

“Said Nursi, unlike other scholars, knew the history of humanity and the world very well. One who does not know human history well cannot understand Islam properly. His statement ‘Europe is pregnant with an Islamic state’ is proof of his deep knowledge of human history. Said Nursi taught me how to discover the treasures of the Qur’an. For that reason he is a very important scholar for me.”

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His Language Carries Sincerity

Former Rector of Al-Azhar and Head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Religious Affairs, Ahmad Omar Hashim:

“Bediuzzaman is the finest example of the reformers (mujaddids) who appear every century. The secret behind the spread of the Risale-i Nur throughout the world is its language: tolerant, gentle, and sincere. Calling people to Islam can only succeed when it comes from a sincere heart.”

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A Possessor of Unshakable Faith

Iraqi academic Prof. Dr. Muhsin Abdulhamid:

“The foundation of his cause is pure faith. The framework of this faith is drawn by the clear divine revelation found in the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger. This faith is like a strong spiritual fortress built upon unshakeable proofs.”

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Muslims Should Benefit from It

Indian scholar Abu’l Hasan al-Nadwi:

“Bediuzzaman is one of the greatest Islamic scholars of our century. I constantly read his works, especially the Arabic ones, and benefit from them. All Muslims should benefit from Bediuzzaman’s works.”

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Undoubtedly the Renewer of the Age

Pakistani thinker Abu’l A‘la al-Maududi:

“The Risale-i Nur is one of the greatest works of the era, and its students are sincere fighters devoted entirely to the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Bediuzzaman himself is undoubtedly the renewer (mujaddid) of this age. There is no other community in the world as sincere as the students of the Risale-i Nur.”

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He Never Lost Hope

Moroccan scholar Muhammad Sunusi:

“Bediuzzaman lived in the weakest and most oppressive period, yet he never lost his direction, hope, or patience. His heart was firm and strong because of his faith in his Lord.”

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Bediuzzaman Made a Revolution in the World of Thought

Moroccan philosopher Prof. Dr. Taha Abdurrahman:

“Just as Copernicus overturned the old belief that the sun revolves around the earth and proved that the earth rotates both on its axis and around the sun, Bediuzzaman carried out a similar revolution in the world of thought through the Risale-i Nur. He explained that human thought cannot remain static; it must revolve both around its own axis and around the sun of revelation.”

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He Is the Mevlana of His Age

Orientalist and admirer of Mevlana, Prof. Dr. Annemarie Schimmel:

“Said Nursi’s works are extraordinary. They will enlighten Europe. He is the Mevlana and the renewer of his age.”

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He Defeated Materialism

American historian Carter V. Findley:

“Said Nursi defeated Western materialism. He told Muslims that ‘the universe is a great book and we read the traces of God in this book.’ This is one of the most important responses given to the secularists of the twentieth century.”

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His Observations Are Still Valid Today

Canadian researcher, journalist, and writer Fred A. Reed:

“When I came to know Said Nursi, my life changed. I was a completely secular European and an atheist. After reading and researching the Risale-i Nur, I became a Muslim. Said Nursi is still a symbol for believers today. I greatly admire him, and today we can see his insights even more clearly.”

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He Offers Remedies for Spiritual Diseases

Prof. Dr. Colin Turner:

“I believe the Risale-i Nur is the only Islamic work that presents the universe as it truly is, interprets the Qur’an as the Prophet intended, and offers remedies for the most dangerous spiritual illnesses afflicting modern humanity.”

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Christians Also Need It

American Jesuit theologian Prof. Dr. Thomas Michel:

“The Damascus Sermon addresses the seemingly unsolvable problems of the 21st century. Said Nursi’s analysis also offers solutions to the problems of contemporary Christians. The concept of consultation (meşveret) mentioned in the sermon is something that should be considered not only by Muslims but by all who believe in God.”

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Bediuzzaman Also Addresses Modern Humanity

University of Paderborn lecturer Wolf D. Ahmed Aries:

“Bediuzzaman encourages people to worship and reminds them of devotion to God. By doing so he lives like the Prophet and fulfills his teachings. In this way he influences not only the people of his own time but also modern humanity.”

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I Admire His Knowledge

Ali Fuad Başgil:

“I admire the knowledge of the Master. The knowledge we acquired through education cannot be compared with his knowledge. God granted him a knowledge like an ocean—expanding as one goes deeper.”

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He Broke the Backbone of Atheism

Researcher and writer İhsan Şenocak:

“If you want to see answers to atheism, read the works of Said Nursi. When you read the Risale-i Nur, you will see that the claims of atheism are nothing but fairy tales destined for the dustbin of history.”

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Said Nursi Is a Great Scholar

9th President of Turkey Süleyman Demirel:

“I say that Said Nursi is a scholar. He is one of the most valuable commentators of the Qur’an.”

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The World Needs the Model of Said Nursi

Democrat Party leader Gültekin Uysal:

“The principles laid down by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi are important for all of us. Today Turkey needs the model of Said Nursi.”

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He Established Harmony Between Science and Religion

Former Secretary-General of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, Prof. Dr. Ekmeleddin İhsanoğlu:

“Neither does Islam reject science, nor does science contradict Islam. Said Nursi established a harmony between the two.”

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A Remarkable Intelligence

Zülfü Livaneli:

“Said Nursi was extremely intelligent and impressive. He wrote the Risale-i Nur to help humanity during a time of great crisis.”

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Listen to Said Nursi

Ertuğrul Özkök:

“To understand Bediuzzaman today, even secular readers like myself must read him. When we do so, we may find common ground that can unite different parts of Turkish society.”

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He Prevented Religion from Being Forgotten

Prof. Dr. Nilüfer Göle:

“I see Bediuzzaman as perhaps the most important project of remembrance and preservation against attempts to make religion forgotten in Turkey.”

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Bediuzzaman Opposed Racism

Former Minister of Education and Culture Prof. Dr. Hüseyin Çelik:

“Bediuzzaman stood firmly against every form of racism. The Risale-i Nur contains the remedies for it.”