The Historical Background of Authorship of the Book of Light Corpus - Notes 1
THE FIRST WORD
Historical Background
Before commencing the study of The First Word, it would be beneficial to present the following chronology regarding the authorship process of the Risale-i Nur Corpus and the turning points in the life of its author, Imam Bediuzzaman Said Nursi also known as Ustad Bediuzzaman:
1907 - Istanbul: Imam Bediuzzaman arrives in the capital, Istanbul, to share his university project "Medresetu'z-Zehra" with Sultan Abdulhamid Khan.
1909 - Exile and Return: Following the dethronement of Sultan Abdulhamid after the March 31st Incident, he returns to Eastern Anatolia. He travels among the tribes and pens his work Münazarat (The Discussions).
1911 - University Project: He meets with Sultan Rashad and secures the allocation of the budget intended for a university in the Balkans to the Medresetü'z-Zehra instead. Due to the Balkan War, the project is cancelled and its funds are transferred to the command of the Van Governorship.
1914 - World War I: He serves as a Volunteer Regimental Commander against the Russians. He is wounded during the defense of Bitlis, taken prisoner, and held in Kostroma, Russia, for two years.
1918-1920 - Istanbul: He shows resistance against the British occupation by publishing the work Hutuvat-ı Sitte (The Six Steps). Following this success, he is invited to Ankara by the government.
1922-1923 - Ankara: He is welcomed at the Grand National Assembly but publishes a declaration after observing the laxity of the deputies regarding prayer. Following disagreements with Mustafa Kemal, he leaves politics and withdraws to Van.
1925-1926 - Barla and the "New Said": Following the Sheikh Said rebellion (another scholar named Said in Eastern Anatolia), he is exiled to Burdur and then to Barla (Isparta) by administrative decree. This period ends the period called “Old Said” and marks the beginning of the "New Said" era where he abandons politics and directs his attention solely to the truths of faith and the start of the authorship of the Risale-i Nur.
VIDEO TRANSCRIPT
0:03 I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan. In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate. All praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, and blessings and peace be upon our Messenger Muhammad, and upon his family and companions. InshaAllah (Allah-willing), with this lesson, we are starting to study the book called “Sözler” (The Words). If the Almighty grants us life, we hope to continue to the end.
0:35 The First Word
(See the original Ottoman Turkish Manuscript | See the English translation)
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّح۪يمِ * وَ بِه۪ نَسْتَع۪ينُ
اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّٰهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَم۪ينَ
وَ الصَّلَاةُ وَ السَّلَامُ عَلٰي سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَ عَلٰٓي اٰلِه۪ وَ صَحْبِه۪ٓ اَجْمَع۪ينَ
In the name of Allāh, the Merciful, the Compassionate, (1)
From Him alone do we seek help.
All praise and thanks be to Allāh, the Lord of the worlds,
Blessings and peace be upon our Master Muḥammad,
and upon his family, and all of his companions.
"In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate, and in Him we seek help. All praise be to Allah... O brother! You asked me for a few words of advice. Since you are a soldier, listen to a few truths along with my own soul, through eight short allegorical stories using military metaphors. For I consider my soul more in need of advice than anyone else. At one time, I spoke at some length to my soul regarding those ‘Eight Words' derived from eight verses of the Qur'an..."
—which we call the Shorter Words or Short Words...
"...now I shall speak to my soul briefly and in the language of ordinary people. Whoever wishes may listen along with me."
1:30 Sözler (The Words) is, so to speak, the core work and primary structure of the Risale-i Nur Corpus.
BRIEF HISTORICAL CONTEXT:
1:41 To summarise briefly: Ustad Bediuzzaman came to the capital, Istanbul, in 1907 in his 30s. He intended to share his project for an educational breakthrough with Sultan Abdulhamid Khan. Following the 31st of March incident after the declaration of the Constitutional Monarchy in 1909, due to a plot by the Ittihad and Terakki Party (Committee of Union and Progress, the Hareket Ordusu "the Action Army" from Thessaloniki), Sultan Abdulhamid Khan was dethroned. Bediuzzaman returned to Eastern Anatolia in late 1909 and travelled among the tribes who are in conflict and in need.
In the summer of 1910, during what he calls his "summer journey," he authored the epistle called Münazarat or the Discussions in a Q&A format to answer the tribes' questions.
3:00 During the period spanning the winter of 1910 to the spring of 1911, he went to As-Sham, Damascus and delivered the famous Damascus Sermon (Hutbe-i Şâmiye / Al-Khutbah ash-Shamiyah) in the Umayyad Mosque.
3:18 Around the spring of 1911, Sultan Rashad, who was in power after Abdulhamid Khan, invited Bediuzzaman to a Rumelia (Balkan) journey as a representative of Eastern Anatolia. Bediuzzaman, who by a twist of fate could not present his project to the former Sultan, explained the Medresetü'z-Zehra project to Sultan Rashad, who concurred with the idea. There was a previous plan to establish a university in the Balkans. However, when the Balkan War broke out and the region fell into turmoil, the project that was supposed to be executed in Kosovo was abandoned. At Bediuzzaman’s request, the budget allocated for it was transferred to the Van Governorship to be used for the Medresetü'z-Zehra. Consequently, Ustad moved to Van in 1912 to personally oversee the construction.
4:25 Tahsin Pasha was the Governor of Van; they laid the foundation together. Meanwhile, the Madrasa Khor Khor, which had been the Ustad’s seminary school previously, was assigned to him. It was located right below the Khor Khor Horhor cave on the shores of Lake Van.
4:53 While he was occupied with these for a year or two, 1914 arrived, and World War I began. Bediuzzaman participated in the war as a Volunteer Regimental Commander alongside his students and fought the Russians at Pasinler. He was wounded and captured during the defense of Bitlis. He was taken to Kostroma. After two years of captivity in the heart of Russia, through divine providence, he returned to Istanbul via Warsaw and the Balkans.
5:40 Bedîüzzaman declined Enver Pasha's offer of a high military rank. However, through his mediation, he took a post in 1918 as a member of the Darü’l-Hikmeti’l-İslamiye (an institution similar to today’s High Board of Religious Affairs).
6:06 But look: in 1920, the British occupied the capital. For 2-3 years, the Ustad encouraged the defense of Anatolia. By publishing a work titled Hutuvat-ı Sitte (The Six Steps) against the fatwas that hindered the national defense, he dealt a severe blow to British policy. Because the British issued a death warrant for him, the Ankara government invited him to Ankara via a coded message.
6:50 He went to Ankara in late 1922/early 1923. He was welcomed with a ceremony at the Grand National Assembly; this is in the parliamentary records. However, when his arrival created a spiritual atmosphere in the assembly, Mustafa Kemal became uncomfortable. He accused the Ustad, saying: "We called you here to give us strength and support, but you came and sowed discord among us."
7:52 At that moment, the Ustad showed the same fearless, upright stance he displayed before the Russian general. He is a man who lived his entire life with that courage.
8:21 He told Mustafa Kemal: "He who does not pray is a traitor, and the judgment of a traitor is rejected." Realising he could not reconcile with the Ankara government, he returned to Van. Seeing the signs of the "Fifth Ray" (prophecies regarding the end times) manifesting in certain individuals, he concluded that these figures could not be combated through politics. He withdrew to a cave on Mount Erek and continued educating students.
9:09 In 1924, the Sheikh Said rebellion began. The Ankara government, uneasy with his presence in the East, sent him into exile by administrative decree (without a court trial)—first to Trabzon, then to Istanbul, Antalya, and Burdur.
9:42 It was 1925. While he was in seclusion on Mount Erek, he was deemed "dangerous" and exiled. After spending a year around Burdur and Isparta, he was sent to Barla.
10:16 The year was 1926. The authorship of the Sözler (The Words), and the Risale-i Nur collection at large, began with a small introductory work, a key to the world of Light.
10:40 The main authorship of the collection began in 1926 in Barla, in the mountains, the vineyards, atop the plane tree, and among the cedar trees.
11:00 Master Bedîüzzaman chose to abandon political service and instead spread the truths of faith directly in the field. We call this the transition from the "Old Said" to the "New Said."
11:18 Following the successive writing of Mektubat (The Letters), Lem'alar (The Flashes), and Şu'alar (The Rays), he revised his "Old Said" works from the perspective of the "New Said" and published them in 1951.
11:47 Finally, he returned his soul to his Creator in 1960.
11:56 Notice that he begins with: "You asked me for a few words of advice." He addressed a handful of people in Barla. Like all great figures, they did not rely on crowds; they set out trusting in Allah's mercy and providence, and Allah granted them success.
12:12 "Since you are a soldier, listen to a few truths along with my own soul, through eight small stories using military metaphors." When the Ustad said this, Hulusi Yahyagil (Colonel Hulusi) was not yet a student of the Nur. He was nearby, but not yet part of the circle.
12:40 There is a letter in the Barla Addendum (Barla Lahikası). I want to read it because, as you might recall from our Mektubat recordings on YouTube, that volume was shaped by Hulusi Bey's letters. But The Words is different; even before Hulusi Bey appeared, the Master wrote "Since you are a soldier." Look at the letter he later wrote to Hulusi Bey regarding this:
13:17 "(269) (Addressed to Hulusi Bey) In His Name, be He glorified. And there is nothing but that it glorifies Him with praise. My dear brother, you are included in my morning and evening prayers. Include me in yours as well. In this world, the greatest help a believer can give another is through prayer."
14:41 "If a man is certain that his friend will not fall into pride... there is no harm in mentioning some Divine favours (tahdis-i nimet) pertaining to him to encourage gratitude."
15:28 "Since I know you to be without pride, I reveal this secret to you: While writing The Words, most of the metaphors emerged involuntarily in a military style. I wondered why I was writing this way and could not find the reason."
15:50 As we said, the Short Words consist of nine parts; the first eight are written in simpler language. The Ninth Word is more academic and profound, and the Tenth Word (The Resurrection) is a masterpiece of sehl-i mümteni (art that appears easy but is impossible to replicate).
16:24 Ustad Bediuzzaman later realised: "Then it occurred to me that perhaps in the future, the most important students who will truly understand these 'Words,' embrace them, and protect them as their very lives will come from the military. That is why I was compelled to write this way; I was waiting for those heroic soldiers."
17:22 At the time, Major Asım or Hulusi Bey weren't there yet, but later the Ustad considered all Nur students as soldiers or commanders. He looked at each of them as spiritual officers.
17:52 "So, do not be proud, but be grateful. You are one of those fortunate soldiers who arrived first." You are the first student of the Light... "Your writing of twenty-four 'Words' amidst worldly occupations confirmed my good opinion of you. But those that remain are very important. Especially the Miraculousness of the Qur'an (The 25th Word) and the Word on Divine Determining (The 26th Word)...” each is like an atomic bomb.
18:39 Those who do not realise the importance of serving with the pen today should take a lesson from this. He tells Hulusi Bey: "Inshallah, the Divine providence that enabled you to write these will enable you to write the rest."
19:10 Yes, this was a section from the Barla Addendum. Having briefly touched upon the years of authorship, let us now begin The First Word...
19:20 In the name of Allah, the Merciful, the Compassionate...
THE FIRST WORD
"Bismillah" (In the name of Allah) is the start of all good. We, too, shall start with it. Know, O my soul! Just as this blessed word is a mark of Islam, so too is it the constant prayer of all beings through the tongue of their disposition.
Q&A Regarding Risale-i Nur and the Concise Chronology of Ustad Said Nursi
Q: What is the general characteristic of the Sözler (The Words) within the Risale-i Nur? A: It is the primary work and the core structure of the Risale-i Nur.
Q: In which year did Said Nursi come to Istanbul to share his educational project with Sultan Abdulhamid Khan? A: 1907.
Q: What is the name of the army that moved from Thessaloniki to Istanbul following the March 31st Incident in 1909? A: The Action Army (Hareket Ordusu).
Q: Where did Said Nursi go after leaving Istanbul in late 1909? A: Eastern Anatolia.
Q: What is the name of the work authored in the summer of 1910 as an answer to the questions of the tribes? A: Münazarat (The Discussions).
Q: What is the writing style of the epistle called Münazarat? A: It is in a question-and-answer format.
Q: In which location did Said Nursi deliver the famous Hutbe-i Şâmiye (The Damascus Sermon) in Damascus in the winter of 1910? A: The Umayyad Mosque of Damascus.
Q: Which Sultan accompanied Said Nursi on the Rumelia journey in 1911, where he represented Eastern Anatolia? A: Sultan Rashad.
Q: What is the name of the university project that Said Nursi presented to Sultan Reşad? A: Medresetüzzehra.
Q: Which historical event caused the university project planned for Rumelia to remain inconclusive? A: The Balkan War.
Q: After the Balkan War, to which provincial governor's command was the budget originally allocated for the Kosovo project transferred? A: The Governorship of Van.
Q: What is the name of the madrasah whose foundation Said Nursi laid in Van in 1912? A: Medresetüzzehra.
Q: What is the name of Said Nursi's old madrasah on the shores of Lake Van? A: Madrasah Khorkhor.
Q: In what capacity did Said Nursi participate in the First World War? A: As a Volunteer Regimental Commander.
Q: Where did Said Nursi and his students fight against the Russians during the First World War? A: Pasinler.
Q: During the defence of which city was Said Nursi wounded and taken prisoner during the First World War? A: Bitlis.
Q: In which city was Said Nursi held during his captivity in Russia? A: Kostroma.
Q: Approximately how long did Said Nursi's captivity in Russia last? A: Two years.
Q: Upon returning from captivity, in which religious institution did Said Nursi serve as a member in 1918? A: Darül Hikmeti’l-İslamiye (The Academy of Islamic Wisdom).
Q: What is the name of the work written in 1920 to counter the policies of the British who occupied Istanbul? A: Hutuvat-ı Sitte (The Six Steps).
Q: Between which years did Said Nursi go to the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) upon the invitation of the Ankara government? A: Late 1922 – Early 1923.
Q: With what stern expression did Said Nursi respond to Mustafa Kemal's accusations in Ankara? A: "One who does not perform the daily prayers (salat) is a traitor, and the verdict for a traitor is rejection."
Q: What is the name of the treatise in which Said Nursi observed the signs regarding the tribulations of the end times? A: The Fifth Ray (Beşinci Şua).
Q: What is the name of the mountain in Van where Said Nursi withdrew into seclusion after leaving Ankara? A: Mount Erek.
Q: After which event in 1924 was Said Nursi exiled by the Ankara government? A: The Sheikh Said Rebellion.
Q: To which cities was Said Nursi sent respectively during the exile process in 1925? A: Trabzon, Istanbul, Antalya, and Burdur.
Q: In which year and where did the actual authorship process of the Risale-i Nur corpus begin? A: In 1926, in Barla.
Q: What is the period called when Said Nursi left politics and turned directly towards the truths of faith? A: The Period of the "New Said."
Q: In which year were the works of the "Old Said" period revised and authored from the perspective of the "New Said"? A: 1951.
Q: On what date did Said Nursi pass away? A: 1960.
Q: How many epistles make up the work referred to as Küçük Sözler (The Short Words)? A: Eight (the ninth is scholarly, the tenth is the Epistle on Resurrection).
Q: What is the fundamental characteristic of the language Said Nursi used while writing the "Short Words"? A: Plain language (Avam lisanı – simple and understandable).
Q: According to Ustad Said Nursi, what is the greatest help a believer can offer to another believer? A: Prayer (Dua).
Q: In religious literature, what is a prayer made for someone in their absence called? A: Bi-zahril-ghayb.
Q: According to Ustad, what is it called to describe God’s blessings to someone (provided it does not cause pride)? A: Tahdis-i nimet (Mentioning Allah's bounties with gratitude).
Q: Why did Said Nursi state that he constantly used military metaphors while writing Sözler? A: Because his important future students would be raised from within the military.
Q: Did the appearance of military metaphors in Sözler happen by Said Nursi's own will? A: It happened "involuntarily" (ihtiyarsız).
Q: Who is the individual, a military officer, accepted as the first student of Risale-i Nur? A: Hulusi Yahyagil (Colonel Hulusi Bey).
Q: Which part of the Risale-i Nur corpus was shaped by the letters of Hulusi Bey? A: Mektubat (The Letters).
Q: What is the fundamental subject of the Tenth Word? A: The Resurrection (Haşir – rising after death).
Q: In literature, what is the term for a style that appears easy but is difficult to replicate? A: Sahl-i mumtani.
Q: Where were Said Nursi's first places of authorship in Barla? A: Mountains, orchards, and atop plane and cedar trees.
Q: What is the fundamental subject of the Twenty-Fifth Word? A: I’jaz-ı Qur’an (The Inimitable Miraculousness of the Qur’an).
Q: What subject does the Twenty-Sixth Word address? A: Divine Determining (Kader / Destiny).
Q: How was Said Nursi summoned to Ankara in 1922? A: He was summoned via an encrypted telegram.
Q: Which modern institution is the equivalent of Darül Hikmeti’l-İslamiye? A: The High Board of Religious Affairs.
Q: Was Hulusi (Yahyagil) already a student when the Sözler was being written? A: No, he had not yet appeared when the book called the Words was being written; he joined later.
Q: What was the route of Said Nursi's return from Kostroma to Istanbul? A: Via Warsaw and the Balkans.
Q: What is an important activity of Hulusi Bey in the service of Risale-i Nur? A: Writing The Words with his own pen using the Qur'anic script.
Q: What is the sermon delivered by Said Nursi in Damascus called? A: Hutbe-i Şamiye (The Damascus Sermon).
Q: Which party became influential in the government after Sultan Abdulhamid Han was dethroned? A: The Committee of Union and Progress (İttihat ve Terakki).
Q: Why does Said Nursi use the expression "listen along with my own soul (nafs)" in his works? A: Because he considers his own soul to be in need of advice more than anyone else.
Q: In which year did Said Nursi personally engage in the construction of the madrasah he founded in Van? A: 1912.
Q: What was Hulusi Bey's rank in the army? A: Colonel.
Q: Which term is used to describe Said Nursi’s escape from captivity and his arrival in Istanbul via the Balkans? A: Divine Providence (Inayet-i ilahi).
Q: Which treatise encompasses the 8 short stories at the beginning of the Sözler corpus? A: Küçük Sözler (The Short Words).
Q: In which province was Said Nursi wounded and taken prisoner during the First World War? A: Bitlis.
Q: How did Said Nursi interpret Hulusi Bey’s entry into the Risale-i Nur circle? A: As a confirmation of his feeling that military students would come in the future.
Q: In which city did Said Nursi encourage the defence of Anatolia against the British occupation in the 1920s? A: Istanbul (The Capital).
Q: Who was the Sultan who supported the Medresetüzzehra project and went on the Rumelia journey? A: Sultan Rashad.
Q: In which season was the Münazarat epistle authored? A: Summer (Rıhlet-i sayfiye).
Q: In which year did Said Nursi lay the foundation of a project together with the Governor of Van and what was the name of the project? A: 1912 - The Medresetüzzehra university project.
Q: Who was the Governor of Van who laid the foundation of Medresetüzzehra with Said Nursi? A: Tahsin Pasha.
Q: What was the fundamental characteristic of Said Nursi’s stance against the Russian general? A: A fearless and upright stance stemming from the dignity (izzet) of being an Islamic scholar.
Q: On which mountain was the cave where Said Nursi engaged in training students in Van? A: Mount Erek.
Q: What expression is used in the letter written to Hulusi Bey regarding the checking of what Hulusi Bey wrote of "The Words"? A: To correct, to edit (Tashih etmek) by his Ustad.
Q: What are the main parts that follow The Words in the Risale-i Nur corpus? A: Mektubat (The Letters), Lem'alar (The Flashes), Şualar (The Rays).
Q: In which work is the letter addressed to Hulusi Bey, where Said Nursi mentions "mentioning Allah's bounties" (tahdis-i nimet), found? A: Barla Lahikası (The Barla Addendum - 269th Letter).
Q: Why does Said Nursi describe soldiers as "spiritual officers" in his works? A: Due to his compliment to them, his foresight of their future services, and the value he placed on them.
Q: From how many verses were the stories in Short Words - Küçük Sözler drawn? A: Eight verses.
Q: What was the primary reason for Said Nursi's decision to leave Ankara and go to Van in 1923? A: Realising that he could not reconcile with the Ankara government and that the struggle could not be carried out through politics.
Q: How did the wisdom behind Said Nursi's use of military metaphors and alegorical stories align with Hulusi Bey's rank? A: By Hulusi Bey being a soldier in Eğirdir and becoming the first significant student to enter the "Nur" circle.
Q: To which period do the works that serve as the "seed" and "nursery" of the Risale-i Nur belong? A: The Period of the "Old Said."
Q: Which work did Said Nursi write in Istanbul against the British, causing them great harm? A: Hutuvat-ı Sitte (The Six Steps).
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