Physicists study on the biggest and smallest physical measures, on the strongest and weakest forces, and they have calculated the ratio between some of them and attained results close to 1040 several times. For example, it has been proven that “strong nuclear force,” which keeps protons and neutrons in the atomic nucleus together, is 1040 times stronger than the force of gravity. Although some consider this situation a result of coincidence, there are also some people who have shown the courage to question the accuracy of this result and open it to discussion. Since then, obtaining the same number several times has inevitably led to the belief that the number was determined and calculated before. This situation resembles the situation of a chess player who hears somebody telling him the opponent’s next move, or the situation of a composer who hears a melody from upstairs that perfectly fits his lyrics while he is trying to write the melody for his lyrics. Is it not amazing when somebody says what is going to be especially at a time when you least expect such a vision? Questions emerge: Have all actions and incidents in the universe and the values corresponding to them been determined in advance? Is there a certain logic behind the behavior of materials without intellect or consciousness?

Perhaps when Comte de Buffon (1707–1788) started to do research into probability calculations concerning falling matches and needles three centuries ago, he did not think that he would make such an astonishing discovery. According to his calculations, the probability of dropped needles hitting a pair of parallel lines that are drawn a certain distance apart is proportional to the number pi (π) (Figure 1–2). When the distance between the parallel lines are drawn the length of a match, this probability becomes exactly 2/π. This was a theoretical result that was calculated on paper, but trying it out would raise interesting results. In other words, when a certain number of tests were conducted, it could be expected that a number of matches equal to the number that was found through the theoretical calculations would hit the lines; and, indeed, that was what happened. In addition, mathematicians found another way to calculate pi by using this method since the ratio of the number of matches or needles that hits the lines to the total number of matches or needles should give a pi-proportioned number. In 1901, Mario Lazzarini threw one needle 3,408 times and, as a result, got the ratio 355/133 or 3.1415929; the difference between this value and the real value is only 0.0000003.

The experimental proof of this fact is not difficult. When the experiment, which has been conducted thousands of times up to today, was first tried by a group of mathematicians dropping 3,000 needles, the number of the needles that touched the lines was close to 1,900, which was the desired result, and the result was amazingly found to be proportionate to pi.

Although the real relation is like the equation given in Figure 3, when the length of the needles and the distance between the lines are equalized, the desired ratio becomes 2/π. What does this mean? Does the number pi, which was created with the universe and which we meet in different fields, play a role in showing the manifestation of the Majestic Will about where an object will fall-through having a result that can not be explained by coincidence? Is falling not an ordinary incident?

While this reality makes even falling an extraordinary incident, it opens a perspective on understanding the reality behind the verse: “…it was not you (O Messenger) who threw but God threw,” which was revealed about the Battle of Badr in the Qur’an. Actually, it is impossible even for a leaf to fall without the knowledge and the calculation of Our Lord, who is closer to us than our jugular vein.

Let us think about a group of creatures that lives with different physical laws in a different universe. Assume that they live on a flat, circular world (Figure 4) and their steps get longer when they come close to the center. For this kind of creature, the shortest distance between two points is not a straight line as it is for us (A–B). Since their steps get longer as they get closer to the center, they travel close to the center. Yet, since they make the way a little longer in this way, the shortest distance would be an oblique line that takes these two variables into account and that passes by partially approaching the center. So, what would we think if we saw these creatures walking in this way all the time? Or if we knew that the creatures acting in this way were inanimate beings? In these circumstances, we might wonder whether these beings are very intelligent or whether One who knows and sees everything, and is present in every place at every time, directs them.

For a soccer forward to find the best time to attack when he is facing the goal keeper or for a tennis player to choose the best timing and position to hit the ball requires a fine calculation. In tennis, the player sometimes approaches very close to the net to meet the ball. In this way, the player gains great advantage since, by his or her positioning, the player reduces the area into which the ball can fall to the minimum, and increases his or her own chances of returning the ball (Figure 5). Nevertheless, since the ball reaches the player faster and harder, there is also a raised probability of the player’s failing to return the ball. Therefore, advancing right up to the net may not always be advantageous. Thus, the best position for the player may lie at any point between the net and the baseline when area and speed variables are considered. Similarly, the most advantageous point for the goal keeper lies between the attacking forward and the goal line, at a point which depends upon the variables of the speed of the ball and the area.

Naturally, we do not find tennis and soccer players’ positionings as described above strange since we expect them, as reasonable people, to play in this way. Yet, how would we interpret and explain it if we saw inanimate things acting in the same way? There is a phenomenon that applies this logic consciously but itself does not have consciousness. A phenomenon that astonishes people: light.

Let us think of a rectangular racetrack with points A, B, C, D. While the shortest distance for a horse that will run from one end of this racetrack to the other is the AC diagonal when the ground is homogenous, there will be a reroute if the ground is not homogenous. Assume the length of the racetrack is 80 meters and its width is 60 meters. Half of it is grass and the other half is sand (Figure 6). Also, assume the horse’s speed on the sand is half of its speed on the grass (it runs 10 meters in 1 unit of time on the grass). Under these circumstances, the horse will run the AC diagonal in 15 units of time while it will run AEC route in 14.5 units of time. The ABC route is much longer. Thus, any route which passes between these two routes will be shorter than these two. The point O, which the shortest route (AOC) passes, will be between the points M and E. When we look carefully, we understand that this is the route light follows as it enters environments of different densities; for example, the route it follows when passing from air to water (see a spoon’s broken image in a water-filled glass). As you see, light finds that specific mysterious point and follows that particular path. In other words, while entering different environments of varying densities, it finds the shortest way and follows it in an amazing way.

All these detailed calculations and functioning with great wisdom show that even inanimate beings and atoms are in the hands of a Majestic Will.

Every atom contains two truthful testimonies to the Necessarily Existent Being’s Existence and Unity. Despite being powerless and insentient, it bears decisive witness to the Necessarily Existent Being’s Existence by carrying out important duties and functions as though it were conscious. It also testifies to the Unity of the same Being, Who owns all material and immaterial dominions, by conforming to the universal order in general, and to the rules of each place it enters in particular. It settles in every place as if it were its homeland. All of this shows that the One Who owns the atom owns all the places it enters. By carrying out very heavy duties incompatible with its size and weakness, the atom shows that it acts at the command and in the name of One with absolute power. (The Thirtieth Word, Second Point, Risale-i Nur Collection)

Notes

1. See Al-Anfal 8:17.
2. “… And He knows whatever is on land and in the sea; and not a leaf falls but He knows it” (Al-An’am 6:59).

Every part of creation is a mirror displaying various names and attributes of God in unique combinations and degrees. The human being is merely the brightest mirror reflecting God’s divine names and beauty even more gracefully than the whole universe. What separates us from Him is our minds, hearts, and egos that claim to have a separate existence. For those who see pointers to Him in every being, it is not possible to be far from Him. They do not expect Him to “come down to establish a loving relationship with His creation” as He is never away from His creation. We can feel that proximity only through losing our partial existence in the Whole. When the “self” disappears in God’s all-encompassing presence, then all existence besides God quickly loses significance.

The mainstream theological school of Islam distinguishes between two categories of existence. The first is the necessarily existent (wajib al-wujud), which defines the existence of God the Most High. God the Most High exists independently through Himself and His existence is necessary for the existence of all other things. None of His creation shares in His existence. The second category is contingent existence (mumkin-il wujud). This defines the existence of created things that may or may not exist. Created things have no independent being and their existence is not necessary.

God the Most High brought them into being through His will, power and knowledge, and if He willed they would have no existence. Creation only exists through Him giving it being, so in this sense it exists through Him, but doesn’t share in His independent, necessary being. The core concept of the spiritual tradition of Islam is ihsan, that is living in the constant consciousness of God’s presence. This concept is described in a famous and authentic prophetic tradition narrated by Abu Dawud where the archangel Gabriel appears in a meeting of Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, as a traveler, sits down close to the Prophet and asks him three questions: [The stranger] said, “Tell me about iman (faith).” [The Prophet] said: “It is that you affirm God, His angels, His books, His messengers, and the Last Day….” [The stranger] said, “Muhammad, tell me about Islam (submission to God).

”The Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace, said, “Islam is that you bear witness, testifying that there is no object of worship aside from God, and that Muhammad is the Messenger of God; and you establish the ritual prayer; and you give the prescribed alms; and you fast in the month of Ramadan; and you perform the pilgrimage to the House if you are able to find a way to do so.

”Finally, he said, “Tell me about ihsan.” [The Prophet] said, “It is … that you worship God as though you see Him, for though you do not see Him, truly He sees You.” The ultimate goal in some Sufi schools is to achieve a state where one is so immersed in the presence of God that he or she regards the creation as nothing but a collection of pointers to Him. Wherever such a seeker looks, (s)he sees nothing but reflections of God’s Names. In a sense, the seeker “annihilates” his self in the presence of God. God’s transcendence If the Whole is likened to the Ocean, and the part to a drop, the Sufi says that witnessing the Ocean with the eye of a drop is impossible. However, when the drop becomes immersed in the Ocean, it sees the Ocean with the eye of the Ocean. It is true that God is transcendent and His Essence is a mystery to us. He exists in His unique way which is impossible to grasp for the human mind. However, God has chosen human beings, the most glorious of creation (ashraf al-mahluq), to get to know Him. He wanted to be known by us and granted us vehicles to understand His names and attributes. This vehicle is the “ego.” This vehicle is given to humankind to understand the Lordship of God and to feel our Oneness with the God. Ironically, human beings use this vehicle to distance themselves from God, and to question God’s closeness to them.

Ego: Both the remedy and the venom

Human beings can only know God with the help of their ego, which constitutes a hypothetical bounding line (wahid- i qiyasi) to understand God’s immenseness. It is the key that can open the secret treasures of God’s names and the enigmatic meaning of the universe. How? The great Islamic scholar Nursi answers this question as follows: “An absolute and all-encompassing entity has no limits or terms, and therefore cannot be shaped or formed, and cannot be determined in such a way that its essential nature can be comprehended. For example, light undetermined by darkness cannot be known or perceived.

However, light can be determined if a real or hypothetical bounding line of darkness is drawn. In the same way, the Divine Attributes and Names (e.g., Knowledge, Power, Wisdom, and Compassion) cannot be determined, for they are all-encompassing and have no limits or like. Thus what they essentially are cannot be known or perceived. A hypothetical boundary is needed for them to become known. In our case, this hypothetical boundary is our ego. Ego imagines within itself a fictitious lordship, power, and knowledge, and so posits a bounding line, hypothesizes a limit to the all-encompassing Attributes, and says: ‘This is mine, and the rest is His.’ Ego thus makes a division. By means of the miniature measure it contains, ego slowly comes to understand the true nature of the Divine Attributes and Names. Through this imagined lordship, ego can understand the Lordship of the Creator of the universe. By means of its own apparent ownership, it can understand the real Ownership of its Creator, saying: ‘As I am the owner of this house, the Creator is the Owner of this creation.

Through its partial knowledge, ego comes to understand His Absolute Knowledge. Through its defective, acquired art, it can intuit the Exalted Fashioner’s primary, originative art.

“Our Creator knows that we need a God that is close to us. He knows that when we feel that He is not close to us we won’t be satisfied. That is why he has chosen us and furnished us with the necessary tools to know Him. He granted us a magical key to unlock the mysteries of His Essence and His Creation. Yet, while the key is meant to be the remedy, it also has a potential to turn into a poison that blurs our consciousness and detaches us from the Essence. An illusory individuation, a deceptive wisdom and knowledge covers our sight and conceals the truth; the truth that “There is no existent but He.”

Counterargument to: “Islam is about man trying to please God by obeying His will”

“And I have not created the Jinn and the men except that they should serve Me.” (Dhariyat 51:56) “And that you should serve Me; this is the right way.” (Ya Sin 36:61) According to the Islamic view, serving God, obeying His will and worshipping are the human being’s fundamental obligations. However, the purpose of worshipping is to grow in faith, knowledge and love of God and to feel His proximity. Seeking God’s pleasure in one’s worship, conduct and life in general is seen as a necessary outcome of one’s growing love of God. Worshipping God to attract God’s reward or to avoid punishment is seen as an inferior level of faith. If we accept that the main purpose of worshipping God is to get close to Him, or more accurately to “be aware of our closeness to Him,” then the main purpose of human beings in this world emerges as removing obstacles that we put up between ourselves and God who is always close, and attaining His consent by doing that. Anything that brings about this proximity or guides in that direction is praiseworthy and it is considered as worship. One of the means to help man in his journey towards God is knowledge; accordingly, a prophetic saying (hadith) reveals that gaining knowledge is considered as worship: “God can be worshipped and served by means of knowledge; bliss in this world and hereafter comes through knowledge; and adversity of this world and hereafter lies in ignorance.

”The purpose of God’s commandments and all the obligatory worship is to seek proximity to God. And it is only God’s mercy that He shows us the way that will lead us to Him. Through prayer, contemplation, fasting, and purification of the soul by begging His forgiveness, the “ego” abandons his vice and arrogance. The ego realizes the Truth and becomes aware of his proximity to God which was concealed from him by claiming a separate existence.

The basis of attaining closeness and proximity to God is through seeking (talab) Him, and this seeking is manifested in the form of practice and actions that allows one’s level of closeness to increase. By sending us down to this worldly realm and making us in our bodily forms, God placed within us a capacity to perform actions through which the doors of the levels of proximity were fully opened.

It is us who should attain a proximity to God, because He already is close to us. Such an awareness and appreciation are what makes people “friends to God” (wali). One way of attaining this awareness is through being an “abd” to God which means acknowledging your position as a servant. However, attaining proximity to God is an endless journey. There are levels of proximity (qurb) that awaits us, without boundaries. This is why even the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, whose proximity to God is unimaginable and unattainable by the rest of the creation, was commanded to supplicate with “Oh God, increase my knowledge.” The connection between knowledge and proximity is clear in that the former increases the latter.

Yet, since knowledge is infinite, so is proximity, thus reaching a “finish line” is impossible. It is mentioned in an authentic prophetic tradition that God Most High said: “When the servant draws close to Me a hand’s span, I will draw close to him an arm’s length. And when he draws near to Me an arm’s length, I will draw near to him a fathom’s length. And when he comes to Me walking, I will go to him running.”2 God the Most Merciful tells us that our intention to seek Him is what He is expecting from us and the levels of closeness will be ascended quickly if we are eager to feel the proximity. Since He is already close to us, it is our choices and intentions that will either allow us feel the “oneness of being” or keep us away from Him as a result of our unwillingness to get rid of the illusory wisdom and arrogance. The spiritual life in Islam begins with the inner struggle with the ego. It is the fist stage in the journey that will make us aware of our position in front of God, to know God, love God and be a drop in the Ocean of oneness. Distracted and polluted by worldliness, the lower self has a tendency to drag the human creature down into arrogance and vice. Only by a genuine effort of will can the sincere seeker of Truth achieve the purity of soul which enables him to reach total “awareness” of God’s closeness.

Sophia Gallant is a sociologist in Houston, Texas. Yuksel A. Aslandogan is the Vice President of Institute of Interfaith Dialog, Houston, Texas.

Notes

1. Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, The Words, Thirtieth Word, The Light, Inc., NJ:2005, pp.552-3.
2. Bukhari from Abu Hurayra and Anas. Also narrated by Muslim, Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah.

In our daily lives, we come into contact with several different people. We trade or work together with some of these people, while with others we just exchange greetings or a few words. There are also some people with whom we share our troubles, worries, or joys. Life becomes sweeter and more meaningful with these people. People to whom we can open up our inner worlds tell us their sincere opinions about our good or bad sides. We realize our dreams and wishes; namely, we realize ourselves through them. And we can really be ourselves when we are with them. We experience friendship, brotherhood (or sisterhood), and we share our secrets with them. Real friendships are built over years as people get to know and try out one another, building up mutual trust. It is very difficult to maintain such good relationships through a lifetime without shaking the trust of the other person. When trust is shaken, the relationship collapses and shatters like glass, since the feeling of security is like a glue that adheres people together and improves relationships. Nothing can go right when there is no trust between spouses, children and parents, an employer and employees, directors and those who are directed, the state and its citizens, or between institutions. In such cases, people cannot fulfill their potential, they cannot present their positive feelings, cannot work efficiently, cannot try new things; relations become mechanical and life becomes robotic, blocking the ways that lead to both material and spiritual gain. Imagine a family with no feeling of trust between its members. Which member of that family can share their thoughts, joys, grief, or troubles with the rest? Such a family can only produce children deprived of love, and spouses weary of defending their interests.

On the other hand, a family which is made up of members who trust the others in opening up their ideals, ambitions, and their strong and weak sides will be the complete opposite, for the members of that family will feel confident that they will not be let down in return. Love, tolerance, and compassion prevail there. Sorrows, joys, and worries are all shared; everyone tries to realize their dreams and hopes.

How is a feeling of security maintained? Who do people trust? To whom can people entrust their property or life peacefully? Why isn’t everybody trustworthy? Are they not aware of the significance of trust in the family, in society, and in the business world; or do they choose not to be trustworthy? Or, perhaps, they don’t know how to be trustworthy.

Many things have been said about the importance of feelings of trust. Prophet Muhammad also stressed this fact, saying “The real believer is the person whom people are secure concerning their property and lives.” Then he underlined the six virtues of a trustworthy person as follows: “if you can make me promises concerning six things, I can assure Paradise to you. When you speak, speak the truth, fulfill what you have promised, be trustworthy with what has been entrusted to you, be chaste, protect your eyes from the unlawful, and keep your hands from harming others.” When we think about this on the whole, we are able to see that the people who have these qualities are trustworthy people. If a person has noble qualities, such as modesty, loyalty, tolerance, righteousness, courage, patience, vigor, and frankness, that person inspires trust in those around them. However, it is not enough to have such a character if a person is to establish a good dialogue with others. If we are to express ourselves confidently and overcome the difficulties we face in life, we need to have the ability to develop dialogue and good relations with other people.

Open Communication Leads to Trust

People need to feel secure in opening up their feelings and thoughts to others, so that they are able to establish a good relationship. Expressing ourselves freely, opening up to somebody else, is in direct proportion with the degree of sincerity and trust between that person and ourselves. Undoubtedly, we cannot simply open up to everyone we meet. Opening up means finding somebody we can trust. It takes time for one person to trust another. The person who is able to open up inspires trust in the other and receives the message “I trust you” in return. The trusted person opens up further and this leads to a deeper and closer relationship. When a person is reserved, on the other hand, then they initiate a vicious circle which makes the other party suppress their feelings. Surely, open communication is not possible at all times. There are also risks in open communication, but it is not healthy to be totally introverted all the time. If a person becomes too introverted, then they will suffer terrible loneliness. Open communication should not be expected from the other person at all times, and it should not be dependent on the initiation of open communication by the other party. One must take a risk in order to be open; almost all achievements in life are based on taking risks, to a lesser or greater degree. If we are open with the person with whom we are communicating, if we can trust and appreciate them, then they will also respond in the same manner, be open to us, and appreciate us. The steps we take in order to learn the truth, to improve ourselves, and to realize our thoughts are dependent on accepting the risk of being open.

Open communication is not only important in family relationships or friendships; it has a fundamental role in working relationships in both the private and public sectors in order to build up trust. A good leader knows that a small group cannot find the right solution to everything. They keep in mind that not only the executive board, but other employees may also have valuable knowledge, and that these “lesser beings” are no less intelligent than their “superiors.” Therefore, a good leader tries to keep in contact with the information potential at the ground level. The aim of a good leader is not only to teach others what to do, but also to ask how they can be of help and to comprehend what happens in practice. A leader does not decide everything behind closed doors. Instead, they clearly express their targets, anxieties, and needs, maintaining the flow of information from the bottom through to the top by establishing healthy communication. In this way people can see that their efforts are appreciated and they feel better. Who doesn’t want to be appreciated? Who doesn’t want to be listened to, cared about, and valued? How can a leader who does not maintain open communication with those at the ground level, who does not make people feel that they are important and that their ideas are valued gain their full support? People trust and do not want to disappoint leaders and managers who value them.

In Turkey, in the city of Diyarbakir, when the city’s Chief Commissioner of Police died, the funeral was held at the Governors Mansion. Tens of thousands of people from all over the city filled the street early in the morning. They were truly mourning the late Commissioner; it was as if they had lost a close relative. But what had made them love him so much? How had he managed to conquer the people’s hearts? In one of his interviews, he essentially answered this question: “We have established individual contact with our citizens; we have actively participated in their social activities and even their sports.” He continued as follows “I listen to everybody, I talk to everybody. I visit any grocer; if he’s busy I go on to the next. The sincere hospitality shown by an ordinary shop owner is one of the best feelings. In short, I am together with my people. When I was given this duty, they told me to protect the lives and properties of the people; this is my responsibility. Being the Chief Commissioner does not make me different, all of us are humans. We cannot act as we choose. People need to be loved, people need to be respected. If people respect me and I respect them, there isn’t much more to do. This is what people look for in this city.”

Here is the secret of maintaining trust: being close to people, making individual contact, not seeing one’s rank as a privilege, and not looking down on anybody. The Chief Commissioner saw himself as an ordinary man in society, and approached everybody with the same love, respect, affection, and sincerity, no matter what their age, sex, or ethnic background. One cannot help but remember the wise words of Ali ibn Abi Talib “Be a(n ordinary) person among people.” It makes no difference if one is a state official, or a company executive, or just a volunteer who wants to win people’s hearts; you will fail if you do not follow this principle. An absence of trust prevents us from realizing our goals effectively. When we manage to maintain trust however, people just flow toward the common goal spontaneously, like a river which has found its bed. This will be the time when you have attained real success.

Sharing Your Thoughts and Work Increases Trust

Keeping close contact with people is the type of behavior that builds up trust. Some administrators even adopt the principle of not making friends with the staff. They just get entangled with the pomp and prestige of their position, overlooking their own mistakes. Those who are open and realistic on the other hand, receive the same attitude from the people who work under their command.

Listen to Yourself and to Others

A person who knows how to listen can solve most matters easily. Someone who has the patience to listen to people can initiate a better dialogue with people through this ability. While listening, they can learn more, understand new points, and attain a deeper comprehension by seeing different aspects of issues; they can then put forward new solutions.

Listening to oneself leads a person to a deeper comprehension of themselves. If we learn to listen to our different moods and feelings, then we can get to know ourselves better. We realize our strong and weak sides. Someone who knows who they are and what one is experiencing is able to understand others more easily, and is able to look at things from their point of view, thanks to the broader perspective they have attained by listening to themselves. Listening makes people feel that they have been given importance. Not only does it show that you are interested in the person in front of you, but listening to someone helps you to predict that person’s disappointments before it is too late and helps you to prevent them.

Try to sense what people feel. Try to understand how fragile relationships are and the importance they bear for people. Know how difficult it is to establish these relationships and how easily they are damaged. Listen to both yourself, and those around you.

Be Predictable

Being consistent and predictable in a complex world helps the people around you to feel secure. Those who feel that the ground under their feet is firm can be open to new ideas and are not discouraged from taking risks. If they know that you do not change your attitude every day, they will feel that they can trust you. Predictability means being the same person all the time, so that people can predict how you will respond. Do not be afraid of telling the truth. Always give the same message; make yourself clear about what you expect from people. The trust you are to inspire will be the best help you can offer them.