Author: nursischool

The following hadith of Prophet Muhammad shows all of us how sweet, comprehensive and beautiful are his teachings about living in perfect harmony in a multi-cultural society:

One day, the Prophet’s wife Sophia (RA) came to him crying. She said, “Hafsah (RA) called me the daughter of a Jew.” (This was true because Sophia’s father, Hubayy b. Akhtab, was in fact a Jew who had died without ever accepting Islam. Still, such a comment was meant as a take on Sophia’s person, which was only more hurtful as it was coming from her co-wife. So when she heard what Hafsah had said, she started to cry.)

The Prophet (peace be upon him) replied:  “Verily, you are the daughter of a Prophet, your Uncle was also a Prophet, and you are the wife of a Prophet, so what does she have over you to boast about?” He then turned to Hafsah and said: “Fear Allah, O Hafsah!”

In an alternate narration, the Prophet is reported to have turned to Sophia and said: “Why didn’t you say, ‘So how can you be better than me? Muhammad is my husband, Aaron is my father, and Moses is my Uncle.’ ”

Source: Mishkat al-Masabih, Vol 2, #367, by Al-Tibrizi (English translation)

Dr. Osman Birgeoglu

Nine salient points make Bediuzzaman’s birth year of 1873 a crystal-clear definitive truth, a reality ‘carved in stone’. Truth cannot and must not be argued, to do so is minimally most foolish, as well as misguided, disrespectful and dangerous. Today’s researchers on Bediuzzaman’s life come across six different birth years. However, the year 1873 is the accurate birth year. The following nine points illuminate this truth:

1. Bediuzzaman himself proofread his own Autobiography published as the first edition in 1958, two years before his death. Bediuzzaman had dictated to his students what to write and then instructed his students to read aloud three separate times (which Mehmet Firinci Agabey, still living, witnessed) as he listened to what his students had written. The opening first line was thus read aloud which Bediuzzaman heard on three separate occasions. This first sentence clearly states the double-dated year of his birth as 1873M-1290H.

2. Bediuzzaman is widely accepted without question as a Master. His students acknowledge this fact. Mastery itself necessitates truth, it does not involve gross mistakes, especially regarding the Master’s knowledge of his own life. To doubt the Master does not change his mastery, rather it reflects the weakness, arrogance, disrespect and/or falseness of the one doubting. A Master speaks or writes with clear intention, not with dubious words. Bediuzzaman was highly aware of whatever he said or wrote.

3. The fact that Bediuzzaman intentionally orally dictated a double-dated birth year, namely Lunar calendar corresponding with the Solar calendar, carves this truth into stone.

4. A general yet vital principle in any undertaking is the notion that the first step sets the stage, establishes the path, directs the true course of that which follows. Bediuzzaman, as a Master, was obviously aware of this crucial element which is reflected in his first sentence of his Autobiography being the double-dated birth year of 1873. The very first line on the first page of the first chapter of the book opens the door of the entire Risale-i Nur, and as the grand opener, it can not be, should not be and is not wrong. This first sentence clearly illustrates this widely accepted principle which all of us need to contemplate deeply.

5. Any different birth year other than 1873 is a grave and dangerous mistake. It weakens all subsequent works and hurts the truth of the Risale-i Nur in the eyes of the readers without them even realizing it.

6. The early students instructed to write and read Bediuzzaman’s Autobiography had ample opportunity at the time of publication (which included their reading and writing of the book) to question the truth and validity of Bediuzzaman’s birth year. If there was a mistake, they would have corrected it. We may thus conclude there was no mistake in the original book.

7. For thirty years after Bediuzzaman’s death, nobody questioned his birth year of 1873. All of Bediuzzamans early students respected this original autobiography.

8. Much like organic chemistry, everything connects to everything else in the Risale-i Nur in proper and precise order and amount. The Risale-i Nur has an unbroken order and  harmony. Anything other than 1873 breaks this chain.

9. Praising his autobiography, Bediuzzaman stated (which was later included in the book),  “This book has the value of twenty of my other books.”  The extreme worth of this original autobiography is obvious and Bediuzzaman would not, could not and actually did not allow any mistake in it.

Osman Birgeoglu, Ph.D.

Bediuzzaman (1873-1960) and Two Stories

World renowned scholar, Bediuzzaman Said Nursi (1873-1960 per Official Autobiography, First Edition, 1958), was and continues to be one of the most phenomenal spiritual Masters of all time, and indeed, certainly the most extraordinary luminary of this millennium. His one-of-a-kind Masterpiece, The Risale-i Nur Collection, which translates into English as The Treatise of Light, consists of over 130 books and has been time tested for accuracy and trust by multiple disciplines. Translated into over 60 languages, Bediuzzaman’s Risale-i Nur continues to positively influence and benefit millions of people of all walks of life around the world and remains a growing phenomenon globally. His name, “Bediuzzaman” means “Wonder of the Age”. At the remarkable young age 15, he demonstrated publicly his unprecedented ability of winning all debates against multiple groups of the most eminent scholars in his region. Additionally, Bediuzzaman accomplished the academic excellence in only three months’ time, educating himself extensively and thoroughly in all the traditional religious sciences as well as most of the modern sciences. These are but a few of Bediuzzaman’s many exceptional abilities. His brilliance and superior genius, according to some, is likened to that of Albert Einstein.

Bediuzzaman Said Nursi devoted his entire life to helping and guiding people understand and obtain genuine belief in God. He was actively involved in public life teaching students, debating scholars, etc. This time is referred to as the “Old Said”. Bediuzzaman transitioned into the “New Said” shortly after WWI and withdrew altogether from public life and politics, concentrating instead on study and prayer. The New Said was a man of deep thought, contemplation and reflection. In 1925, he was unjustly exiled for life, though he committed no crime or misdemeanor. During his exile, he often suffered imprisonment and isolation. However, it was during these reflective years that he wrote his Masterpiece, The Risale-i Nur Collection. Bediuzzaman understood that the essential cause of the decline of religion was due to the weakening of the very foundations of belief. This weakening, along with the attacks on those foundations in the 19th and 20th centuries carried out by materialists, atheists and others in the name of science and progress led him to realize that the most urgent and overriding need was to strengthen, even to save, belief. What was needed was to expend all efforts to reconstruct the edifice of religion from its foundations of belief and to answer at the level of those attacks through peaceful dialogue or ‘war of the word’.

Serving the Risale-i Nur is a huge honor for all of us. According to one important student of Risale-i Nur who stated last year: “Mankind has been waiting for more than a thousand years for this amazing work to appear. And now it is here. [We must appreciate this.]” His name is Nusret Hoca, now 93 years old, from Agri, Eastern Turkey. As a Sheikh, he was teaching classical Islam to his hundred-plus students before knowing Ustad Bediuzzaman. After meeting Bediuzzaman, he saw the powerful cure of the Risale-i Nur and immediately started teaching it to all of his students.

Another Sheikh from Mecca-i Mukarrama, Saudi Arabia, stated two years ago when he was in Ankara: “Do you know why I am coming to Turkey? Because you have the Risale-i Nur and Bediuzzaman in this country. I have 50-60 students in Mecca and I am teaching the Risale-i Nur to them. The reason? The Qur’an says, ‘Do this!’, but it doesn’t say when, why, how or where. Bediuzzaman has these answers.” His name is Sheikh Al-Mas, the leader of the organization of the Descendants of the Prophet Muhammed in Mecca.

I just wanted to share these two important stories about the Risale-i Nur with our readers, fans and friends. Our hope is that the medicine of Bediuzzaman’s Masterpiece reaches the hearts and minds of all humanity.

Osman Birgeoglu, Ph.D.,

Director of Risale-i Nur Institute of America, Nur Publishers and Nursi School of Theology

Our new January-March, 2013 Nur-the Light Magazine is here! This particular issue contains very important material and we are thus a little late printing it as we needed more time to prepare crucial documents. This magazine issue presents evidences from the history and original works of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi. We share an excerpt here including some of the photocopied documents of Bediuzzaman’s original works published in 1958 when Bediuzzaman himself was alive and managing his own publishing, including proofreading and approving his photographs. You may purchase the magazine through us at our website at Nur Publishers to read the complete article and discover all the rest of the evidences presented. On December 29, 2011, we submitted the entire paper printed in this January-March, 2013 magazine issue to the Library of Congress to serve as authentic resource material for future generations (Registration Number TXu 1-793-770). Special Note: For our Turkish-speaking friends, and especially the Abiler in Turkey, we’ve printed in Turkish a very short summary of these important evidences documenting Bediuzzaman’s birth year as 1873 which can be read on page 11.

We also share here our sadness and respect at the death of Mustafa Sungur Agabey, a very close and beloved student to Bediuzzaman Said Nursi. I, Osman Birgeoglu, visited Sungur Abi when he was admitted to the hospital at Kartal, Istanbul on Saturday, September 29, 2012. Interestingly, according to his son Muhammed Sungur whom I spoke with, that particular day was Mustafa Sungur Abi’s birthday. Sadly, this was going to be my last opportunity to visit this important and unique student of the Risale-i Nur. He truly was enlightening for all of us and we will miss him greatly.

[I must document here with all my humbleness a surprising dream I had on July 9th, 2012 just four months prior to his death. In my dream, Sungur Abi appeared to me and asked me to come to Istanbul, from Arizona, USA, to visit him. I was able to fulfill his request and visited him in Istanbul at the end of September, 2012.]

–Osman Birgeoglu, Ph.D., Director and Founder, The Risale-i Nur Institute of America

Our Nur-the Light Magazine September/December 2012 issue has arrived, full of enriched treasures from the Risale-i Nur Collection. This is a special edition of Nur-the Light Magazine covering an entire season of the next four months. We are entering the new season of autumn, full of beauty with its many vibrant colors as the leaves on the trees change at being relieved of their duties in this world.  In order to read all 16 pages, we encourage our readers to subscribe to our magazine here (click on the magazine). Below are a few tastes of what this issue contains:

Our July-August, 2012 issue of Nur-the Light Magazine is now available. On the cover is a partial picture of the mighty Milky Way Galaxy. The Utterance of the Stars by Bediuzzaman Said Nursi is an exemplary meditation of how the stars speak to us as signs of God’s Power:

Our stamp is one; our seal is one; we are mastered by our Sustainer;

We glorify Him through our subjugation;

We recite His Names; we are each of us in ecstasy, a member of the

mighty circle of the Milky Way.

We wish our readers a blessed Ramadan as we approach the end in these last ten days, and a fruitful Layla-tul Qadr. Enjoy the Eid Festival on Sunday, August 19, 2012 ̶ according to the Directorate of Religious Affairs of the Turkish Republic.

In closing, we would like to encourage all of our readers to support our services by subscribing to Nur-the Light Magazine. Even better, help spread the word of the phenomenal Risale-i Nur Collection and subscribe your friends and family members too! The cost for residents of the United States is only $20 annually. Simply visit this link and click on the magazine cover to subscribe: Nur-the Light Magazine.

–Editor

the Risale-i Nur Collection: “Mankind has not seen such a [magnificent] work in the last 1,000 years.” For example, some of the jewels of this Collection are: The Supreme Sign, a 237-page book; The Resurrection and the Hereafter, a 245-page book; The Miracles of the Prophet, a 281-page book; and The Highway of the Practices of the Prophet,  a 245-page book.
Osman Birgeoglu, Ph.D.

The Risale-i Nur in Russia On January 13 of this year, the radio MORAL FM of Istanbul, broadcast a live interview with Imam Resul Cemalof, the imam of Baltic countries. The host, Ihsan Atasoy asked the imam about recent religious activities in Russia. Imam Resul told the host that some prisons were impacted by the Risale-i Nur lectures and requested some recorded copies so that they can reach more inmates more often. They needed a studio to record the readings. They were told that Petersburg Radio Station was the place. They went there, paid the fee and were sent to the third floor. Sofia Valentine, a famous radio personality who had retired from Moscow was in charge of the studio. Resul says: “We recorded a 30 minute CD on each of the first two days. When we arrived the third day, we did not see Ms. Valentine whose help we needed to continue. We were told that she was hospitalized earlier. The two of us bought flowers and rushed to the hospital to visit her. She was very surprised to see us and said: ‘Even my son did not come, yet here are two strangers who care about me.’ Besides the flowers, we gave her a few books of Bediuzzaman including Message for the Sick.” Resul said that the next day when they went to the studio, it was their turn to be surprised. Ms. Valentine was there sitting on her desk. “How did it happen?” they asked. She said to them: “Remember the small book you gave me?” referring to Message for the Sick, “I read it six times and I felt fine.” Resul continued: “After finishing our CD’s she suggested we broadcast these messages once a week. We chose a name for the weekly program: “THE DROPS OF LIGHT” and read the 23rd Word, 20th Letter, 2nd Flash, and others for the next 3 months on her watch. Three months later she suddenly passed away. Her will included the following quote: ‘I am a Muslim, and please write on my gravestone: This world is transient; surely the next life is forever.’ So we did.” The Risale-i Nur in Argentina,  “where the sun sets” On February 21, 2012 we got a letter regarding the Nur service in Argentina. The following is a summary: A few months ago, one of the brothers delivered some Risale-i Nur books to the prison of Rosario. He then started weekly lectures for the inmates. Soon, other prisons requested their services. They even went to Lima, Peru where they visited the Directorate of Prisons. They told the officials: “We came from Turkey and we have a project to help rehabilitate prisoners.” They answered: “Our prisons are overfilled. We definitely need help.” They said they needed one week to check the books. After checking, they said, “come and start your lectures in seven of our prisons.” They met many inmates, and the meetings were very much welcomed. In the meantime, the Director General of Prisons of Argentina, Dr. Juan Natelo, read their petition to lecture on Fruits of Light and wanted to meet them in person. The interview was a success and Dr. Natelo ordered special I.D’s for them to be able to visit three of the prisons freely. “Our regular lectures from The Risale-i Nur affected many inmates’ lives for the better. Some were even crying.” Here, the brothers made an important point; “Let’s compare the prisons in the 1940s in Turkey and the prisons in Argentina in 2012. The author of The Risale-i Nur was imprisoned in the 40’s for writing these books we use here today in Argentina. The prison officials are even offering their vehicles to carry us from home to prisons. Why? They say: ‘Our inmates need your lectures as much as they need bread and water.’ Look at God’s wisdom and destiny: even Christians are supporting the Risale-i Nur for their inmates! We would like to mention here that our first visit to prisons started with Head Priest Pancho Martinez who was passionately recommending our books to everyone he encountered, from wardens to directors, even the driver of the vehicle that was provided for us…” This letter was signed, “Your brothers in Argentina: Ahmed Hasan, Abdullah, Fatih, Huseyin.” A Gas Station Attendant, an Amazing Person One of the Risale-i Nur students living in the Los Angeles area, called us with the following story: “Recently, I gave a few books, including A Guide for Women to a gas station attendant in my neighborhood to read. [This was a 122 page book of Bediuzzaman Said Nursi which includes many life-saving lectures for women, published by nurpublishers.com.] A few days later, I was filling up my car, he came out and said the following amazing words: ‘This man found the Truth! He’s had a tough life. He carries the whole world on his shoulders.’ I was really amazed at the level of his insight and benefit from this book. And that’s not all. Now, whenever I stop by, he comes out waving his pink book, A Guide for Women, meaning he still enjoys reading the book very much. What a lucky person and I am happy for him. I just wanted to share this with you.”
SPECIAL STORY: A presentation on Islam in a high school
A world history teacher in a small town in USA called our editor to invite him to give a talk on Islam to his 11th grade students in early March of this year. The editor writes the following: “The teacher told me that most of his students never talked to a Muslim face to face. ‘Their only source of Islam is the media, so naturally they are biased. They might give you a hard time.’ We decided I would talk for 10 minutes on religion and let them ask questions for the rest of the period. I started with the definition of Islam and said that it also means “religion” which takes you to God. I explained: Any true religion is Islam (see, Ilmihal, Omer Nasuhi Bilmen, pg. 8). Any path which takes you to God is a true path, a true religion. Islam and terrorism are total opposites. A Muslim cannot be a terrorist; a terrorist cannot be a Muslim. A hadith of Prophet Muhammed says that a person is not a believer if his/her neighbor is not safe from him. This clearly prohibits all terrorism. All children until the age of puberty are believers, after which they have a choice. Childrens’ acts are saintly actions; they are pure and innocent. Saints are real and true. In this matter, Santa Claus is real. He may be called by different names in different countries, but he remains the same. The Qur’an calls him Hidr (peace be upon him) who has a long story with the prophet Moses. He helps people in dire need anywhere. In addition to him, there are many saints all around the world who reach out to those in great need. As you see, we are not without help. Almighty God very often sends special help to His people. Then I talked about the Qur’an and its four goals:

• 1) Oneness of God
• 2) the Divine Messengers
• 3) the Afterlife
• 4) the practice of Justice and Worship

(see Bediuzzaman’s book, Signs of Miraculousness, pg. 19).
Then I answered many curious questions of the students. They were quite satisfied talking to a Muslim. I repeated this talk for  students of 3 other classes. Around 11:30 a.m. students had lunch break while I stayed in the class room. Three students remained in the class to ask more questions, missing their lunch. At the end of the day, the teacher was very impressed and said, ‘Wow! They all walked out different people.’ One little note: when I was leaving, the teacher handed me a check. I told him that I could not accept it: this was for God. The teacher was further impressed. Amazed, he shook his head and said ‘this is huge!’ Hearing that made my day…”
Osman Birgeoglu, Ph.D.