My parents moved here from Turkey for higher education and met during their master’s program at Lehigh University. But their story — and mine — truly begins with how they encountered Hocaefendi, whose leadership inspired them to pursue their studies in the U.S.

During her college years in Eskisehir, Turkey my mom attended lecture circles discussing Hocaefendi’s writings and sermons and became captivated by his teachings. My grandmother still recalls having to pull her away from those books to help around the house. Meanwhile, an old uncle in my dad’s village had introduced him to the “Risale-i Nur” by Said Nursi, one of Gulen’s teachers, which led him to people who helped him find housing for college. He was introduced to Hocaefendi’s teachings when asked to become a tutor there. At first, he didn’t understand why — he just wanted to focus on his studies. Neither of them had met Hocaefendi in person. Yet, somehow, his influence was powerful enough to guide them to seek education across the globe in a country they had never been to — long before the age of widespread internet or video calls.

My parents came to the U.S., met, and had me — all thanks to the sermons of a man they had never met. By God’s grace, they met him in the unlikeliest place: Saylorsburg. I’m sure you can guess how many Turks lived here before 1999, so when news broke that he was moving permanently, my parents were honored to help him find his new home. I remember the sweet rush of preparing his room with my mom before Hocaefendi’s arrival.

I was 4 or 5 years old, so my memories are mostly snippets. Still, one is clear: I felt completely comfortable around Hocaefendi, free to be myself, even when the adults always told me to act differently —“Be quiet, stop running around, be respectful.” I was being respectful; I loved my Hocaefendi.

I remember running wild around Chestnut Retreat Center when it was a couple of weathered cabins along a dirt road, but as with everything Hizmet and Hocaefendi, there was a vision.

One day, while he was busy writing in his room, my friends and I were next door, jumping on couches and having the time of our lives — just being kids in full chaos mode. He came out and asked us to settle down, and we did … for as long as a group of unsupervised kids could. Then he came out a second time and a third, this time wearing a stern expression. He lined us up and said he would give us a “ceza” in Turkish. To us, that word only meant one thing: punishment. To our surprise, he handed each of us a $20 bill. We raced down the stairs, nearly giving our parents heart attacks as we exclaimed, “We got a ceza from Hocaefendi!” The candy we bought from the vending machine that day may have been the tastiest we’d ever had.

As an adult, I learned that in Ottoman Turkish, ceza refers to any kind of equivalent returned for something given or done, whether punishment or reward. Throughout my life, I’ve never witnessed Hocaefendi tell a lie, even for the sake of a joke.

I have countless priceless childhood memories, yet the truth is that my connection with Hocaefendi mirrors that of my parents — rooted in his writings and sermons. Throughout my adolescence, college years and moments of crisis, Hocaefendi’s words guided me back home.

Often, I found myself as the only visibly Muslim woman in a room or even in an entire school. Despite this potentially isolating experience, I discovered a sense of community wherever I went. Inspired by his example, I aspired to make everyone I encountered feel as he made me feel — free to be themselves. His teachings allowed me to connect through faith, service and shared purpose, emphasizing the importance of accepting people for who they are, walking with humility, caring with compassion and serving with intention. He gave me a profound purpose: to be the best version of myself that God wishes to witness in His creation.

Now, as I live in Hawaii, completing my pediatrics residency and building a new home community, I reflect on the lessons Hocaefendi imparted. Though I wasn’t able to attend his funeral, I find comfort in knowing that he would encourage me to continue my journey with the same dedication I embrace every day.

In Turkey, it is customary to identify oneself by stating the birthplace of one’s father when asked where they are from. However, for me, I proudly and confidently say I am from Pennsylvania, knowing that it’s a place deeply intertwined with my identity and the invaluable lessons I’ve learned from Hocaefendi.

First published in The Morning Call, November 2, 2024

O heart! You and your suffering for Him exist; ah, how nice it is always to be concerned with Him and suffering for Him! That suffering is, in fact, your cure.
O you who are seeking the world; you are like a day laborer in this world;
and you, lover of Paradise, are also far distant from truth.
O you, who are unaware of the truth and pleased with the two worlds,
You are excused, for you have not felt
the pleasure of suffering for the Beloved’s sake. (Rumi)

How does suffering become a cure or a pleasure? Just like hot peppers do. Why do we consume hot peppers, even though they are painful to eat? In his article, Ali Fethi Toprak explains that experts think hot peppers “are good for our health by lowering blood pressure, having antimicrobial effects, and increasing salivation thus making a boring diet fun.” Kocabas also suggests that, according to some studies, the capsaicin present in hot peppers could be used as a pain suppressor.

Also in this issue, Katharine Branning explains that researchers have discovered a link between the heavy consumption of isot pepper and the very low cancer rates in southeast Turkey. The “research has provided conclusive evidence that isot pepper does indeed possess substantial anti-cancer properties.” In Branning’s piece, the very hot isot pepper does not only help cure cancer, but is also an emblem of dialogue, friendship, and mercy, stretching across cultures and religions.

In her heartbreaking memoir, Magdalena Rusanova tells us about her father, who she lost when she was a child. As we read along, we trace each and every threshold she needed to surpass in her life as she grew into adolescence, developed relationships with others, and faced important choices. Even though her father’s memory faded as the years passed, and despite her pain, there was one significant piece of advice he had given her, which happened to guide her all her life. Choosing the right guide is necessary for an unwavering walk in our lives, as Niyazi-i Misri says,

Let not any guide lead you, for he may make it
too difficult to proceed;
It is very easy for one whose guide is perfect
to advance along this path.
The right guide can even help us discover the pleasure in pain.

Love is like Solomon, Borne aloft on the heart, its throne.[1]

The heart is humanity’s most essential feature and its greatest treasure. It is the expression of our spiritual existence, the source of our feelings and beliefs, and the pathway to our soul’s ultimate depths. Those who walk on the path of the heart will not experience any darkness, and those who soar on the wings of their hearts will surmount any obstacle. Human virtues are cultivated on the hillsides of the heart; faith, love, and spiritual pleasures are the fruits of its garden.

If your heart is like a desert, your thoughts and feelings will inevitably wither and fade. In our history, human reason enjoyed its golden age when it submitted to the rule of the heart. Under the heart’s guardianship, reason left behind countless immortal works. In those times, matter was melted and re-forged in the furnace of our spiritual essence. Then our experience became a fairground of the hereafter, this world intermingled with the next, and the treasures of the transcendent realms were on offer here. It is according to the measures of the other world that the objects of this one become priceless. In those times, the sugar was separated from the cane, the bud was pregnant with a flower, and the soil was imbued with the lights of the other world.   Things of this world found fulfillment and were perfected. The tulips and lilies of the earth began to dance in the presence of the heart, and the charms of the next world were felt in every corner.

But we gave our minds to idle gossip and our reason gave way to deceit. And as the tongue of conscience and the melodies of the heart fell silent, the earth became like a graveyard, and our homes like coffins. Life became a drudgery, and our spirits were stifled by the smog of our misplaced longing. In such malaise, carnal feelings and corporeal thoughts ambush our souls like bandits. They present us with various poisons, and we become a deluded crowd: a mob that cannot hear the voice of conscience and is closed to reason, that contemplates and understands nothing.

Today, we yearn for the stories of the heart, for in them we feel the reviving breaths of Jesus.^[2] Since the beginning of the world, the people of the heart have always been the fortunate ones, traveling in the realms beyond the heavens with wings like angels. These heroes transcend the limits of the bodies to hold the reins of both worlds. While others beg from door to door, they live among the blessings of Paradise with contentment. The dust and the grime of this world do not blacken their horizon, nor does the colorful attraction of the hereafter distract them from their purpose. In every deed, they enjoy the friendship of God; thus their devotion is the most profitable trade.[3] In this way, they faithfully realize their heart’s purpose in a way that befits humanity. These fortunate ones sing of their love in the eternal melodies, raising their voices to the furthest galaxies.

The heart is the intersection of God’s grace with humanity’s essence. Therefore, with the seal of the Sovereign on it, the heart unifies the spiritual and material worlds. Our inner and outer beauties are in fact different dimensions of the life of our heart, and the radiance of our appearance is intimately tied to our inner life. When a word is spoken from the heart, the mind is ignited and our consciousness glows like the corona of the sun. At this moment, when the spirit turns its face to the secret voice of the heart, our feelings begin to resonate as if they had been plucked by a mysterious plectrum, and our conscience begins to whirl like a dervish in joy and respect. We feel the fire of love on all sides, and tears of joy quench the suffering of our longing.

When we lose our self and our will in ecstasy, we may temporarily lose our balance, but the heart always remains humble in the presence of God. When we travel in the realm of the heart, we are neither perplexed nor inhibited. If the hero of the heart halts with fright or struggles in his way with difficulty, love succors him like Khidr, holding the reins of his horse and carrying him swiftly over the pits of hesitation.^[4] Our senses, inner and outer, are soldiers at the heart’s command; they are moths fluttering around its brilliant light. The heart speaks with the highest authority, and all our senses submit to its rule. Like the pole star, it orbits only itself, chanting the name of God, while all other senses turn around it, prostrate.

All of us are guests in the house of the heart. Let us sacrifice our hearts to the One whose sovereignty is felt in this house. We are determined to offer our souls to the Sovereign, and we await His judgment. Since the day He breathed life into our hearts, our longing for reunion has bound us to Him, and we have diligently tended to our love as to a great weaving. Our soul trembles with excitement when we feel the nearness of the Friend, but we wait patiently for Him to open the door, with our heads bowed in respect.

As we walk on this way, singing the ballads of longing and love, the heart is our gracious guide. Until our last breath, we promise to follow this blessed guide.

[1] Muhammed Lütfi (d. 1956), Turkish Sufi poet.

^[2] According to the Qur’an, Jesus revived the dead with his word or breath. (See Qur’an, 3:49)

[3] A reference to the Qur’anic concept of the spiritual “trade” mentioned in the verse: “Those who recite God’s scripture, keep up the prayer, give secretly and openly from what We have provided for them, may hope for a trade that will never decline.” (35:29)

^[4] Khidr is a spiritual personality and a man of wisdom in Islamic tradition, who lives in an angelic way, serving God to execute divine commands and succoring people in hard conditions.

We can also interpret muraqaba as trying to observe whatever God wills, and leading a life in unwavering sincerity and in the consciousness of His constant supervision. Such an attitude is possible when the servant knows that the Almighty is aware of all that he or she does, says, knows, and thinks, as stated in the Qur’an: In whatever state you may be, and whichever part of the Qur’an you recite, and whatever deed you do, We are witnesses over you when you are deeply engrossed therein (10:61).

If muraqaba means closing one’s heart to all that displeases Him and separates one from Him, and opening the spirit to receive the radiances, gifts, and favors coming from Him, then we must close what we must and open what we must. The first steps to muraqaba are to accept as great what God has decreed as great, to accept as worthless what He has decreed as worthless, and to prefer His Will and desires over our own. Thinking of the depth of God’s Mercy increases and strengthens one’s love of God and desire to worship Him, and fear and awe of Him causes one to lose any appetite for sin and to live a careful life. Muraqaba leads men and women to discard anything that harms their worship, and to maintain the purity of their thoughts, actions, and intentions even when they are alone, in the consciousness of His continual observation.

Muraqaba is one of the most important and direct ways of reaching God without a guide. It resembles the type of sainthood attained through succession to the Prophetic mission, which is conveying the Divine Message to people, without following a spiritual order. Such travelers can turn to God at any time or place in awareness of their helplessness and destitution, and be admitted to a “private meeting” with Him based on their need. They feel God’s constant supervision while they are watching nature, and so avoid whatever is other than Him; they are deaf to all sounds and voices that are not related to Him; and they praise His Beauty and Grace, and regard it as useless to mention something that is not concerned with Him.

As a matter of fact, if one’s eyes do not remind one of His Seeing, one’s ears of His Hearing, and one’s tongue of His Speech, how can these organs be used other than as pieces of flesh? Rumi says:

God Almighty described Himself as the All-Seeing in order to warn you against evil, He described Himself as the All-Hearing to admonish you not to say anything bad, and He described Himself as the All-Knowing to inform you that He knows you and therefore to exhort you to be alert to corrupt thoughts and considerations.

Rumi regards self-supervision as a protecting screen from evil emotions, thoughts, passions, and acts, and considers it the safest way to be attentive to Divine rights.

The first step in self-supervision is voluntary submission to the Divine Will and wishes in the conviction that He is present everywhere and is aware of all our thoughts, intentions, and deeds: God is Watcher over all things (33:52). The second step is to turn to God with a heart at rest and patiently anticipate the flow of Divine gifts and blessings into one’s heart.

This does not require any physical or spiritual attachment to or relationship with a guide, or the regular recitation of God’s Names. However, if one wishes to follow a guide and regularly recite His Names in accordance with the defined principles, it will certainly be much better. To the extent that an initiate, whether on the first or second step, can act according to the meaning of the Prophetic Tradition: “Perfect goodness is that you worship as if seeing God, for even if you do not see Him, He certainly sees you,”1 and that, always seeing himself or herself as helpless, destitute, and needy before God, believes Him to be the sole point of reliance and source of help, he or she may be traveling safely on the path of self-supervision and therefore be secure against deviation. Over time, those who follow such a path will acquire a peace of heart that will allow their conscience to remain open to Divine gifts and receive radiances from the One of Unity.

One of the most important mechanisms of self-supervision is muhasaba (self-criticism). As this method of self-control allows believers to become aware of personal faults and their causes, they can find the truth in their hearts and then display it in their conduct. In this spirit, the meaning and mystery of: Glory be to Him Who sees me, knows my place and hears my speech manifests itself. Such people know that the Divine Knowledge and Will always keep them under control and, regardless of location or action, seek only God’s pleasure by trying to act in accordance with His wishes.

Note

1. Al-Bukhari, Iman, 37; Muslim, Iman, 1.

The universe is just such a painting for us to observe, but it is not less complicated than the Mona Lisa. Innumerable galaxies ornamented by millions of stars and planets, the entire cosmos displays a panorama that can be perceived in two ways: 1) a colossal space filled with darkness of which only a minute portion can be illuminated by the human mind, 2) a work of art by an artist who wants Himself to be known and appreciated through studying His art. The first approach is from the standpoint of our self-ego who wants absolute freedom and who thinks his mind is the one and only guide for encrypting the “codes” of human existence. This approach provides its traveler with a dim torch of light and leads to an end where one sinks into even more darkness than before; each new discovery is doomed to be followed by things that are more complicated.

The second approach relies more on an “authorized guide.” The traveler of this second approach does not deny the human mind but enjoys it as a divine blessing given for his service in order to discover the cosmos. It is not an ultimate reliance on the mind but rather as a means to appreciate life and to choose right from wrong.

God Almighty did not leave us in this complicated universe alone. He simply did not push us into a mysterious cruel life which eventually comes to an end under the soil or in the crematorium. He sent messengers to every people and books to follow. After the Torah, the Psalms, and the Gospels, the Qur’an was sent to the Prophet Muhammad as the final word of God, a guide to follow and to learn the purpose of life. The Lead Article, an abbreviated version of Gulen’s introduction to a new translation of the Qur’an, provides an extensive analysis of this Holy Book of Islam. Buti explores further on the poverty of human mind which cannot perceive the whole picture, but only single portions of it. “Partial knowledge can never convince the mind and appease the soul, except if it comes after having achieved an overall comprehensive knowledge that encompasses the structure of all existence: humanity, universe, life, and the relationship between them.”

Another decoding comes from Omer Ikramoglu. He discusses the accelerated expansion of the universe with a reference to a Qur’anic verse Dhariyat 51:47.

Rumi, as he is most commonly known in the West, or “Mevlana” in the East, is the spiritual guide for seekers of the truth, even after seven centuries; in fact his work is more illuminating now as he is better known by modern society.

Is he truly understood, though; do his admirers really know enough about him? Is it only the phrases “intoxication” or “burning with love,” used metaphorically by Rumi, that are extracted from his poetry, or is his exceptional and mysterious character understood by those who read him? Whatever the answer, Rumi’s message is for everyone; it reaches down through the centuries.

We have dedicated the current issue to Rumi, whom, we think, is not well enough known or appreciated, either in the West or in the East. Today, whirling dervishes perform the sema, the ceremony of the Mevlevi order, in different states and countries, creating a marvelous spiritual atmosphere. For some Rumi is a spiritual guru and the founder of this order. For others he is a prolific poet addressing their innermost feelings. So, who was Rumi? Who is Rumi? How does his message still enlighten minds, and how do hearts find comfort through his words? Where did he acquire this inspiration?

Rumi’s understanding of love for God and all creation is represented today by many individuals. Toward a Global Civilization of Love and Tolerance is the most recent book by one of those representatives, M. Fethullah Gulen, a leading Islamic scholar and spiritual guide. In our book review section, the foreword written for this book by Thomas Michel, the interfaith dialogue secretary for the Vatican, describes the mission of the book through his encounters with the admirers of Gulen. The book is a comprehensive chronicle that enables us to attain a first-hand perception about Gulen and his outstanding thoughts on issues like love and mercy, Sufism, jihad, terrorism, human rights, and education.

Rumi, Gulen, and many others take the divine revelation and the example of the prophets as the basis of their thoughts. The twentieth century, however, championed the human mind over everything else and simply overlooked the importance of the revelation. Does the revelation exclude the human mind, or is it a dogmatic web of religious teachings and practices? Do the solutions that the human mind has offered solve all our problems and make us happier? This extremely important topic is also examined in this month’s issue.

As modern day people, the more we tend to work the more we internalize. We are becoming lonelier while we grow much less integrated with all the others around us. The world has now become smaller; it is an “online” world. Time and distances have become shorter. We seem to be together, yet somehow we are alone and separated. Under these circumstances, “the other” constitutes the greatest danger for us all; not only individuals, but also nations, and even continents become divided into “us” and “the other.” Human beings are afraid of what they do not know. Isn’t it time to start getting to know one other better? Now is the time to do this; we have every means God has given us through technology. This is how we will eliminate enmity and hatred in the world. In the article “The Question of Lifestyle in Interfaith Relationships” the first steps in this direction have been examined; we hope that the progress made in this area will continue.

A: Guidance is a light that God kindles in those people who use their free will in the way of belief. Only God can guide. Many Qur’anic verses state this fact clearly. For example: If God willed, He could have brought them all to the guidance (6:35); If it had been your Lord’s will, all who are on earth would have believed, altogether (10:99); You do not guide whom you like, but God guides whom He wills (28:56); and For verily You cannot make the dead to hear, nor can you make the deaf to hear the call when they have turned to flee. Nor can you guide the blind out of their deviation. You can make none to hear save those who believe in Our Revelation so that they surrender and become Muslims (30:52-3).

Since it is God Who guides, we implore Him in every rak’a of our daily prescribed prayers, saying: “Guide us to the Straight Path.” God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, says: “I have been sent to call people to belief. Only God guides them and places belief in their hearts.”

Besides the verses above and many other similar ones, we also see in the Qur’an other verses which state that God’s Messenger calls and guides people to the Straight Path, such as follows:

Surely you call them to the Straight Path. (23:73)

Thus We have revealed a Spirit to you from Our Command. You did not know what was the Scripture, nor what the Faith was, but We have made it a light whereby We guide whom We will of Our servants. You are indeed guiding to a Straight Path. (42:52)

The verses do not contradict each other. God creates everyone with the potential to accept belief. However, one’s family, education, and environment play a certain role in one’s guidance or misguidance. To call people to belief, throughout history God sent Messengers and gave some of them Books whereby people could reform themselves. Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, is the last Messenger, and the Qur’an, which God revealed to him, is the last Divine Book. The Qur’an, which has remained uncorrupted, contains the principles of guidance; the Messenger, whether through the Book or his personality, conduct, and good example, functions as a means to guidance. He recites Divine Revelations to the people, shows them the signs of God, and shows them the errors behind their misconceptions, superstitions, and sins.

Everything that exists in the universe is a sign pointing to God’s Existence and Unity. Therefore, if one sincerely desires belief, struggles against carnal desire and temptation, and uses his or her free will to find the truth, surely God will guide such a person to Himself. He declares in the Qur’an: Fear God and seek the means [of approach to and knowledge of] Him, and strive in His way in order that you may succeed and be prosperous [in both worlds] (5:35); As for those who strive in Us [in Our way and for Our sake and to reach Us], We surely guide them to Our paths; and verily God is with the good (29:69); and Whoever fears God [and keeps his duty to Him], He will appoint a way out for him (62:2).

In order to find or deserve guidance, one must sincerely strive for it and search for the ways leading to it. Those whom God has blessed with guidance should first of all represent guidance personally and set good examples for others, and then call others to it through all lawful (Islamic) means. In many verses, God commands His Messenger to do just that: Warn your tribe of near kindred [of their end and the consequences of their deeds and of the punishment of Hell] (26:214); Remind and give advice, for you are one to remind (88:21); Proclaim openly and insistently what you are commanded (15:94); Call to the path of your Lord with wisdom and fair exhortation, and reason with them in the most courteous manner (16:125); and Surely in the Messenger of God you have a good example for him who hopes for God and the Last Day, and remembers God oft (33:21).

God’s Messenger, upon him be peace and blessings, communicated God’s Revelations to people and called them to belief in the best and most effective way, and bore all of the resulting difficulties and persecutions. He rejected without a second thought the most alluring bribes offered to him to abandon his call to belief in One God, and continued his mission without expecting any worldly reward. He sought only God’s pleasure and the prosperity of people in this life and the next. When he conquered Makka, an event marking his triumph in making God’s Word prevail, he forgave those Makkans who had subjected him and his followers to every form of persecution for the past 21 years: “No reproach, this day, shall be on you! God will forgive you. He is the Most Merciful of the Merciful. Go! You are freed.”

God’s Messenger once said to ‘Ali: If someone finds guidance at your hand, this is better for you than having red camels.

According to the rule that one who causes is like the doer, those who lead others to guidance receive the same reward as the others earn thereafter. Their own rewards do not decrease. Similarly, God’s Messenger says: Whoever establishes a good path receives the same reward as those who follow that path thereafter until the Last Day. There will be no decrease in their reward. Whoever establishes an evil path is burdened with the same sins as those who follow it thereafter until the Last Day. There will be no decrease in their burden.

Those who lead others to guidance should not keep bringing it up by saying, for example: “If I hadn’t brought you to this guidance, you never would have found it.” Doing so is a grave sin and shows ingratitude to God, as only God guides and causes one to lead another to guidance. Similarly, those who found guidance through someone else should never attribute their guidance to that person and say, for example: “If I hadn’t met you, I never would have found this guidance.” Instead, those who lead others to guidance should think: “Praise be to God, for He has allowed me to perform such a meritorious a deed as leading someone else to guidance. God is so powerful, so merciful, and so munificent that He creates clusters of grapes on wood. As wood has no right to ascribe to itself the grapes growing on it, I am no more than that wood to attribute another’s guidance to myself.” Those who find the guidance should think: “Go, seeing my need and helplessness, has used one of His servants to guide me. All praise be to Him.”

Nevertheless, those led to guidance should be thankful to those whom God used to lead them to guidance. After all, God created us and whatever we do, and also creates the means that enable guidance and misguidance. However, this does not negate or diminish the part that our free will plays in our guidance or misguidance.

The Prophet says that at the sixth week of the embryo’s development in the mother’s womb, God sends an angel who writes whether the person to come into the world will be righteous and prosperous or wicked and condemned. What does this mean, and how can we reconcile it with man’s having free will?

Answer

The explanations made earlier to reconcile destiny with man’s free will must suffice for an answer to this question. However, in order not to leave the question unanswered, we will say a few words concerning it.

As was pointed out earlier, destiny is a title of Divine knowledge. It is not something that annuls man’s free will and forces him to behave in a preordained way. Since God knows beforehand how each individual will behave in the world, He has an angel pre-record the person’s life history. Man behaves according to the dictates of his free will, not because God preordained his life.

Destiny is related to cause and effect. There are not two separate destinies, one for the cause, the other for the effect. God’s pre-knowledge of the individual’s behavior in a given circumstances does not contradict man’s having free will.

No one except God knows whether a person will go to Paradise or Hell. Although unbelief deserves eternal punishment, we may not judge an unbeliever as being destined for Hell, for it is possible that one day he or she will accept faith and ultimately go to Paradise. There are numerous people who, although once atheists, have embraced Islam. Islam came to guide unbelievers to faith and worship, and thereby make them worthy of eternal happiness in Paradise.

Question

What does Islamic fitra (primordial nature) mean?

Answer

In an authentic hadith, the Prophet Muhammad says that every new-born is born in the Islamic fitra, after which his parents cause the child to become either Christian or Jew or a member of another religion.

The hadith means that everyone has the innate potential to become a Muslim. Meaning peace, salvation and obedience, Islam is, first of all, the natural religion of all creatures. Since everything in nature has been created to render absolute obedience to God and functions according to His laws, all creatures are Muslims. Considered from the viewpoint of their bodily structure, every human being and jinn, whether Muslim, Christian, Jewish, or of another religion, is Muslim since all bodies operate according to the laws determined for them by God. If a new born could lead a completely monastic life free of environmental effects, he would remain a “natural” Muslim. This hadith has another meaning: The mind of a new-born is like a tape on which everything can be recorded, like dough that can be molded to any shape, or blank paper on which anything can be written. If one could be protected from any external effect that would make one’s mind impure, one could easily receive anything related to Islam and become a perfect Muslim. But if the mind impure with many adverse elements, or if Christian or Judaic tenets of belief and conduct are injected into it, the person will become either a Christian or a Jew or suffer great impediments to becoming a good Muslim.

Every new-born is like a seed to grow a good Muslim; in other words, everyone comes to the world as the seed of a future Muslim. Adverse conditions cause this seed to be deformed or spoiled and, consequently, to become either a Christian, a Jew, a member of another belief or, according to the nature of the conditions, a person without religion. There- fore, in order to produce a good Muslim, improving one’s family and environmental conditions is vitally important. After a child has reached the age of puberty, sins are a primary factor in deforming the seed. For this reason, it is said that every sin has the potential to guide the sinner to unbelief. So, one must try his or her utmost to protect himself or herself against sins. Family, education, and environment are also of great importance for this purpose.

Question

What does “guidance” mean, and how can one guide another?

Answer

Guidance is a light kindled in one by God as a result of one’s use of free will in the way of belief. As pointed out earlier, only God can guide one to the truth. There are many verses in the Qur’an that state this explicitly. For example:

If God willed, he could have brought them all to the guidance. (al-Anam, 6:35)

If it had been your Lords will, all who are on the Earth would have believed, altogether. (Yunus, 10:99)

You do not guide whom you like, but God guides whom He wills. (al-Qasas, 28:56)

For verily You cannot make the dead to hear, nor can you make the deaf to hear the call when they have turned to flee. Nor can you guide the blind out of their deviation. You can make none to hear save those who believe in Our Revelation so that they surrender and become Muslims. (al-Rum, 30:52-53)

Since it is God Who guides, we implore Him in every rak’a of our daily prescribed prayers, saying: “Guide us to the Straight Path.” God’s Messenger says: “I have been sent to call people to belief. It is none but God only Who guides them and places belief in their hearts.”

Besides the verses above and many other similar ones, we also see in the Qur’an other verses stating that God’s Messenger calls and guides people to the Straight Path:

Surely you call them to the Straight Path. (al-Mu’minun, 23:73)

Thus We have revealed a Spirit to you from Our Command. You did not know what was the Scripture, nor what the Faith was, but We have made it a light whereby We guide whom We will of Our servants. You are indeed guiding to a Straight Path. (al-Shura, 42:52)

These verses are not contradictory. As we have pointed out in the last question, God creates everyone with the potential to accept belief. However, the family, educational, and environmental conditions have a certain role in one’s guidance or misguidance. So, in order to call people to belief, God sent Messengers throughout human history and gave some of them Books whereby people could reform themselves. The Prophet Muhammad, the last of the Messengers, received the Qur’an from God by means of revelation. This Qur’an is the last of the Divine Books, and it has remained uncorrupted. The Book contains the principles of guidance, and, whether through the Book or through his personality and conduct and good example, the Messenger functions as a means to guidance. He recites the Divine Revelation to people, snows them the signs of God, and he purifies them of their misconceptions, superstitions, and sins. As a matter of fact, every thing and event, every phenomenon in the universe, is a sign pointing to God’s existence and unity. Therefore if one desires to believe sincerely and without prejudice, and struggles against carnal desires and the temptations of the evil-commanding self, and if one uses his or her free will to find the truth, surely God will guide him or her to one of the ways leading to Him. He declares in the Qur’an:

Be aware of God and seek the means [of approach to and knowledge of] Him, and strive in His way in order that you may succeed and be prosperous [in both worlds]. (al-Maida, 5:35)

As for those who strive in Us [in Our way and for Our sake and to reach Us], We surely guide them to Our paths; and verily God is with the good. (al-Ankabut, 29:69)

Whoever is aware of God [and keeps his duty to Him], He will point a way out for him. (al-Jumu’a, 62:2)

In order to find or to deserve guidance, one must strive for it sincerely and search for the ways leading to it. Those whom God has blessed with guidance should first of all represent guidance personally, set good examples for others, and then call others to guidance by using every possible lawful (Islamic) means. In many verses of the Qur’an, God commands His Messenger to do just that:

Warn your tribe of near kindred [of their end and the consequences of their deeds and of the punishment of Hell]. (al-Shu’ara, 26:214)

Remind and give advice, for you are one to remind. (al-Ghashiya, 88:21)

Proclaim openly and insistently what you are commanded. (al-Hijr, 15:94)

Call to the path of your Lord with wisdom and fair exhortation, and reason with them in the most courteous manner. (al-Nahi, 16:125)

Surely in the Messenger of God you have a good example for him who hopes for God and the Last Day, and remembers God oft. (aI-Ahzab, 33:21)

Gods Messenger communicated God’s Revelations to people and called them to belief in the best and most effective way possible. He also bore all difficulties and persecutions in this way. He did not care at all for the most alluring bribes offered to him to give up calling people to belief in God: rather, he continued his mission without expecting any worldly reward. Since his aim was to obtain God’s good pleasure and to cause people to be prosperous in both worlds, when he conquered Makka (an event marking his triumph in his holy struggle to) and made God’s Word in it prevalent, he forgave those who had bitterly persecuted both him and his followers for 21 years, saying: “No reproach this day shall be on you. God will forgive you. He is the Most Merciful of the Merciful. Go! You are free.”

The Prophet Muhammad once said to ‘Ali: “If someone finds guidance at your hand, this is better for you than having red camels.” (Bukhari, Jihad, 102; Muslim, Fada’il al-Sahaba, 35.)

According to the rule that “the one who causes is like the doer,” the one who leads another to guidance receives the same reward as the new believer earns, without any decrease in his own reward. Similarly, God’s Messenger says: “Whoever establishes a good path, he receives the same reward as those who follow that path thereafter until the Last Day, without any decrease in their reward. Whoever establishes an evil path, he is burdened with the same sins as those who follow it thereafter until the Last Day, without any decrease in their burden. (Muslim, Zakat, 69; Ibn Majah, Muqaddima, 203)

One who leads another to guidance should never remind him of it, by saying, for example: ‘If I had not been a means to your guidance, you could never have found guidance.” This is a grave sin and shows one’s ingratitude to God, for only God guides and causes one to lead another to guidance. Similarly, one who has found guidance by means of another should never attribute his guidance to that other and say, for example: “But for you, I could not have found guidance.” Instead, the one who leads another to guidance should think: “Praise be to God, for He has made me, a poor and needy person, a means for so meritorious a deed as leading another to guidance. God is so powerful, so merciful to His servants and so munificent that He creates clusters of grapes on wood. As wood has no right to ascribe to itself the grapes growing on it, I am no more than that wood to attribute another’s guidance to myself.” As for the one who found guidance, he should think: “God, my Master, has seen my need and helplessness and made one of His servants a means for my guidance. All praise be to Him.” Nevertheless, it is proper for the one led to guidance to feel thankful to the one through whom God led him to guidance. After all, since God is the Creator of us and of whatever we do, He also creates the means that enable guidance and misguidance. However, this does not negate or diminish man’s free will in relation to his guidance or misguidance.

The young, having been deprived of all traditional values, were crushed by the pressures of materialism. They showed no signs of purity or profundity of mind, nor depth of feeling, nor spirituality. Such a thing was not at all unexpected given that the experience and traditions cultivated over a thousand years had been sacrificed to an adulterated, cosmopolitan culture.

The most painful and heart-rending aspect of the situation is that the intelligentsia, those who were expected to guide the community, readily adapted to the new low standards. It is difficult for us to comprehend how they could prefer an adulterated culture to the traditional one so subtly formed over the centuries.

In just such conditions our young confronted the problems of coming to age! They were under great pressures resulting from the neglect of centuries. Their bewildered community had left the traditional ways, and a new force had appeared, but one that, not having suffered pangs of birth, was immature. The poor youth could not decide whom to foIlow. And how could they decide, since they had never been given good examples, and had only seen those who fled from themselves in one way or another.

In a society going astray, which had suffered a serious reverse, some went so far as to consider all ideas and traditions that had elevated their ancestors into a great nation as exhausted values. If only the young who were deprived of all the finer feelings had been able to understand what was happening around them!

That being the situation, what we should do is to uplift a generation who has been turned from their origins, and to inject new life into them.

We have no right merely to complain about them or to criticize them for not reading or thinking. They were until very recently given no help at all, although they would have welcomed such help. We may not deny that some of them show a real desire to do serious researches or to learn. Others express that hunger by reading piles of newspapers or listening to the radio or watching television for hours–to kill time or satisfy trivial desires. Also, although some of them gather around preachers to receive what there is to be received, we have, alas, been unable so far to give them anything worthwhile.

When have we guided the young to do the good and to choose the right? When have we been able to teach them to be virtuous? Do we have the ability to speak to them about a message given to make them think, study and reason? Can we be sure of the altruism of those who claim to lead and guide them to higher levels? How many men are there of stature and high standing that we can look up to, men who have renounced material and spiritual pleasures? They were waiting for a ‘Hercules’ who could say ‘I have known nothing of worldly pleasures in my life of over eighty years’, who would not change his life-style until death. We need to find soldiers of Allah who will take on the sufferings of their generation without even thinking of the pleasures of paradise. Alas, we have yet to find guides who would even give up worldly pleasures for the sake of young.

It is true that we have not been able to help the young. We have not been able to find proper schools for them, nor to teach them the right way to integrate with the universe. They have been ground down by the teeth of events and, inevitably, have stood up in rebellion against those who put them in their state of wretchedness.

As in the picture showing a beheaded Goliath, they stand before those who took away their heads, demanding only the return of their souls. For them, to regain what they have lost is the most important thing.

Who will assume the heavy responsibility of returning to them what they have lost? The home? The society or its educational institutions? Under present circumstances none of these are up to the task, albeit certain individuals deserve to be encouraged. If we fail to provide facilities for the young to enable them to build their own world in accordance with the conditions of the real world, our failure will lead on to their destruction. The present state, notably of our educational institutions, is by no means promising. Neither our system of education, which has been degenerating little by little for centuries, nor our homes which are no more than kitchens and bedrooms, nor the society in general, which has been in chaos, hold out much promise for the young.

The only way out is to develop a new understanding of science and to stimulate determination based on morality and insight, together with the cultivation of godliness. The new generation must be guided by a unity of mind, and take the true path in life, and they must regain their original, true identity. Besides, we must realize that we can only enable the young to reach such heights, and so save them from idleness and indifference, by inspiring them with idealism; by urging them to renounce merry-making in favour of the trials of ‘becoming’; by turning them away from self-indulgence and towards a love of others and of the homeland.

We salute the fortunate ones who will shoulder so heavy a responsibility.