Peace Building in a Multicultural World: Said Nursi’s Perspective in Risale-i Nur1
By Hasbi Sen, M. Hum2
Introduction
Islam, especially its divine book holy Quran, demonstrates the prominence of peace and
harmony between the communities. Through itsverses as in the verse 5:16 (where with Allah
guides all who seeks his good pleasure to ways of peace and safety) Quran seeks a peaceful
situation between the communities.
Human beings are naturally inclined towards beauty, perfection, goodwill, and justice. They
like these attributes, and dislike ugliness, imperfection, selfishness and injustice. A society
can be a real society and become a means of progress only if it posesses high attributes.
Otherwise it is a deceptive society, and it can lead humanity to disaster rather than happiness.
A proof of this two world war, the death of millions of people, and near-ruining of the world.
A system that benefits a small minority while leaving the great majorty in poverty.
Other problem is internal conflict among Muslims and disharmony between Muslims and
non-Muslims. We must save harmony in multicultural dan multi-religion society. In this
paper I try to present thought of Said Nursi for peace building in the multicultural society.
1. A Brief Biography of Said Nursi
Turkish religious leader Said Nursî (1877-1960) was an Islamic philosopher who
authored the Risale–i Nur Collection, a huge Quranic commentary of more than five thousand
pages. In his rich, full life, Said Nursî witnessed and experienced much. As both an observer
and participant during his eighty–four years, he lived through the decline of the Ottoman
Empire, World War I and the emergence of the modern Turkish Republic. An influential
Islamic teacher and philosopher, he also endured religious oppression and suffered through
prolonged periods of exile and imprisonment. He was resilient, however, and emerged as an
important teacher and philosopher who inspired generations of students who embraced his
writings.
1 Presented at symposium on “CROSS-CULTURAL COMMUNICATION IN A PERSPECTIVE OF
PEACE:LOCAL, NATIONAL, AND GLOBAL CONTEXTS” Fikom UP, Jakarta, July 30, 2015 2 Founder of Nur Semesta Foundation Jakarta
Said Nursî, later known as Bediüzzaman Said Nursî, was born in 1877 in Nurs, a small
village in the province of Bitlis in eastern Turkey. The middle child in a family of seven
children, he was raised in a sun–dried brick house. His parents were Kurdish farmers who
were devout and humble.
In the agricultural setting, Nursî lived in close harmony with nature, aware and curious
about his natural surroundings. Considered an exceptionally child bright, he memorized the
manuals of the classical Islamic fields of knowledge in a short time. His remarkable academic
accomplishments earned him the title “Bediüzzaman,” which means “the wonder of the
time.” Nursî received his basic, formal education from the best–known scholars in his region.
He became a popular student with his teachers, due to his high intelligence and large capacity
for learning. When he reached adolescence, he remained an enthusiastic student and
continued exhibiting his characteristic sharp memory. By the time he was fourteen, he
completed the traditional Turkish madrasah education. At sixteen, he could hold his own in
debates with distinguished scholars.
Following his madrasah education, Nursî studied the physical sciences, mathematics and
philosophy. As his learning progressed, he came to the conclusion that the traditional Turkish
madrasah education was inadequate. Essentially, he believed that the world was entering a
new age that would place high value on science and logic, and he felt that the classical
theological curriculum was ill– equipped to remove the doubts an individual might
experience regarding the Quran and Islam. Possessing extensive scientific knowledge, Nursî
would always strive to integrate science with theology throughout his life, via his writings
and teachings. According to his worldview, modern physical sciences and the Quran were not
irreconcilable. Indeed, he felt that science made it easier for people to better understand the
truths revealed in the Quran.
Based upon his own copious learning, Nursî developed an Islamic educational
curriculum that combined both theological teachings and modern sciences, both of which he
felt should be provided at religious and modern schools alike, as this would simultaneously
eliminate disbelief on one hand, and fanaticism on the other. He even developed a plan to
establish a university, called Medrestu'z Zehra (the Resplendent Madrasah), where both of
these disciplines would be taught. In 1907, he went to Istanbul to promote the plan to Sultan
Abdul Hamid. Subsequently, he received funding for the construction of the university.
However, it only got as far as the building's foundation. Further construction was halted with
the outbreak of World War I.
During the war, Nursî served as the commander of a volunteer regiment assigned to the
Caucasian front in eastern Anatolia, where he demonstrated heroism in battle. To maintain
his regiment's morale, he entered the trenches that were besieged by constant shelling. Later,
he received a medal.
While serving in the military, Nursî began composing what would become a celebrated
commentary on the Quran. Written in the Arabic language, the work combined religious and
natural sciences. Reportedly, Nursî wrote it while traveling on horseback and in the trenches
on the front line. These efforts proved to be the beginnings of his major work, the Risale–i
Nur (Epistle of Light), which eventually was endorsed by eminent scholars. Work was
interrupted, however, when Nursî became a prisoner of war. While fighting in a battle against
invading Russian forces, he was captured along with ninety other officers and sent to a camp
in Kostroma, in the northwestern region of Russia.
In early 1918, when Russia succumbed to chaos during the communist revolution, Nursî
escaped from the prison camp and, after a long and arduous journey, made his way back to
Istanbul. Upon his return to his homeland, he received a war medallion and was offered a
government position, which he turned down. Instead, he accepted an appointment at Dar al–
Hikmat al–Islamiya, a religious academy.
But he survived and entered into what he considered the second phase of his life. In his
mind, the historic period that included the end of the World War, the defeat of the Ottoman
Empire and the occupation of Turkey marked his existence with a deep demarcation. He
referred to the period leading up to and including these turbulent times as the “Old Said,” as
he experienced a profound personal change and became deeply dissatisfied with the world.
The next phase of his life would include isolation and spiritual solitude, not entirely self
imposed.
His peace was shattered in 1925 when he was accused of participating in a rebellion in
eastern Turkey. He was arrested and sent to Barla, a remote village located in the mountains
of the Isparta province. Actually, Nursî played no part in the rebellion. The rebels had sought
his help because of the strong influence he had over people, but he turned down their
requests. “The Sword is to be used against the outside enemy; it is not to be used inside,” he
told them. “Give up your attempt, for it is doomed to failure and may end up in the
annihilation of thousands of innocent men and women because of a few criminals.”
During his exile, Nursî resumed work on the Risale–i Nur, Nursî attempted to establish
links between Quranic verses and the natural world as well as to demonstrate that no
contradictions existed between religion and science. Also, Nursî advanced the radical idea of
God as the divine artisan of a mechanistic universe.
Risale–i Nur was actually a collection of dictated thoughts and sermons. In the eight and
a half years that he spent in Barla, Nursî wrote approximately three–quarters of the Risale–i
Nur collection. His followers made handwritten copies that they secretly circulated, as
Turkey's new secular regime banned all religious writings. The collection was distributed in
this fashion until 1946, when Nursî's students gained access to duplicating machines. It is
estimated that previous to the automation, 600,000 handwritten copies were created and
disseminated.
During his exile, which Nursî referred to as the second part of his life (the “New Said”),
he also wrote an essay about God and resurrection as well as thirty–three other pieces that
were eventually collected asSozler (The Words). He also compiled letters written to students
in a collection called Maktubat (Letters). In addition, he wrote two more
works: Lem'alar (The Flashes) and Sualar (The Rays).
In 1943, his essay on God got him into political trouble. He was arrested again and sent
to prison. While awaiting his trial, he continued his work from prison, writing new essays and
helping criminals to reform. Eventually, he was acquitted, but he was not granted his
freedom. Instead, he was sent to Emirdag, another remote village, where he was arrested yet
again. This time, he was sent to Afyon prison, a brutal place where Nursî endured great
suffering. By this time, he was in his seventies and afflicted with several illnesses. He was
placed in an isolation cell with broken windows, where he spent two harsh winters.
Reportedly, he was also poisoned, but he survived this attempt on his life and his conviction
was eventually overturned.
He received a reprieve of sorts in the new Turkish era that ensued. In 1950, the first free
elections were held in Turkey, and a multi–party political system was established. The newly
formed Democratic Party, which Nursî supported, deposed the secular Republican People's
Party and its hostile attitudes toward religion. In this new era of religious freedom, the first
session of the new parliament revoked the ban over Adhan (the call to prayer). This new
period in the Turkish Republic marked the beginning of a new, personal period in Nursî's life,
which he called the “Third Said.” During this period, his major works were published in
Latin script, and the number of Nursî's students increased both within and outside of Turkey.
After a brief illness, Nursî died on March 23, 1960 in Urfa, in southeastern Turkey. Later
that year his grave was moved to an unknown location in Isparta, where he had been exiled
for so long during his life. Following his death, he continued to be an honored figure in
Turkey and other Muslim nations. It has been commented that his Risale–i Nur helped keep
the Muslim faith alive in Turkey during the period of religious oppression, and it played a
part in the subsequent resurgence of Islam in that region of the world. Once a forbidden text,
the Risale–i Nur is now available in many languages.
(http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Said_Nursi.aspx).
2. Peace Building in the Thought of Said Nursi
According to Zeki Saritoprak (2005, 415) “Nursi's understanding of peace seems to be
unique in the contemporary context of Islamic activism. Despite his contemporaries'
involvement in politically-oriented reactionary opposition to their own governments and to
the West, Nursi preferred to avoid all this. Nursi called his disciples "volunteer civil servants
of safety" (asayis memurlari). He conceptualized his idea of nonviolent activism with the
term "Musbet Hareket" or positive action. The term presents the essence and the major
principle of nonviolence in Nursi's teachings. For him, the notion of positive action goes
deeper than simply refraining from violence. It is evident in his writings that Nursi cared for
everyone in his heart, including those who persecuted him. Although he was poisoned by his
oppressors over seventeen times, Nursi never attempted to respond in the same way; instead,
he asked his disciples to avoid revenge (Sahiner, 1979, 341-342). One can hear echoes of the
Qur'anic verse in the conversation between the sons of Adam in Nursi's request from his
devout students when he says, "Dear brothers, if I am murdered by my opponents, for the
sake of innocents and elders I ask you not to take my revenge. The torture of the grave and
the fire of hell is enough for them." (Nursi, 1996: 1060). From 1926 until the 1960's, a time
when all religious ideals were suppressed, Nursi and his followers were sporadically
imprisoned. Despite all the persecution they faced, one cannot find any preaching of hatred in
his writings.
While saying that the physical sword should not be used, Nursi presents the Qur'anic
truth as a shining diamond sword that negates the physical sword. The destruction that
violence can bring caused Nursi to avoid all kinds of physical force. His well-known farewell
letter to his students is considered an example of this. The letter opens with the following
statement: "Dear Brothers, our duty is to do positive action and not negative action. It is to
serve faith in accordance with what pleases God. We should not interfere with the duty of
God. We must respond to all the difficulties we face during our service to faith with patience
and thankfulness. Such a service will protect society from disorder." (Nursi, 1996: 1912)
In response to the government's accusation of igniting disobedience in society, Said Nursi
said that he served the social order of society better than a hundred chief police officers.
Throughout his Risale-i Nur (The Treatise of Light), he developed five pillars of social
harmony to shield society from social disorder and anarchy. These principles were
compassion, respect, trust, to be conscious of what is lawful and unlawful, and obedience to
the rule of law(Nursi, 1958: 241). According to Nursi, it would be impossible to assign a
policeman to every member of society, yet through living these principles there would a
spiritual police over the heart of each constituent of society (Saritoprak, 2005: 423).
Saritoprak (2005: 425) conclude that “A peaceful society cannot be achieved through
violent actions. Nursi's teaching was cherished in Turkey in a time of anarchy and conflict,
from 1960-80. His students and followers never became a part of the conflict during this
time. Instead, they played a pivotal role in society's reconciliation. Even when a wave of
armed struggle was continuing between leftists and nationalists, which cost the lives of at
least 10,000 people, Nursi's followers remained peaceful and avoided involvement in
anarchy”.
3. Factors of Peace Building
a. Love
Nursi (2012: 50-51) express that the time for hostilities has passed and now time for the
love “What I am certain of from my experience of social life and have learnt from my life-
time of study is the following: The thing most worthy of love is love, and that most deserving
of enmity is enmity. That is, love and loving, which render man’s social life secure and lead
to happiness are most worthy of love and being loved. Enmity and hostility are ugly and
damaging, have overturned man’s social life, and more than anything deserve loathing and
enmity and to be shunned. Since this truth has been clearly explained in the TwentySecond
Letter of the Risale-i Nur, here we shall point it out only briefly. It is as follows: The time for
enmity and hostility has finished. Two world wars have shown how evil, destructive, and
what an awesome wrong is enmity. It has become clear that there is no benefit in it at all. In
which case, on condition they are not aggressive, do not let the evils of our enemies attract
your enmity. Hell and Divine punishment are enough for them.
Since love and enmity are contrary to one another, like light and darkness, they cannot
truly combine. The opposite of whichever is predominant in the heart cannot at the same time
be truly present. For example, if love is truly present, then enmity will be transformed into
pity and compassion. This is the position towards the believers. Or if enmity is truly present
in the heart, then love takes on the form of feigned approval, not interfering, and being
apparently friendly. This may be the position towards unaggressive people of misguidance.”
b. Unity and Brotherhood
In reality, however, Muslims all around the world frequently involve in tension, hatred,
disharmony, and conflicts internally and externally. There are continuous tension and conflict
between imams, kyais,10 Sufi leaders, Mullahs, Islamic organizations, Islamic political
parties, and madzhabs. There are also continuous conflicts between the traditionalists and the
modernists, between the extremists and the moderates, and between the orthodox and the
progressive groups at local, national, and international level. Internal conflicts have been one
of the most disturbing problems in Muslim society. Although many explanations have been
given regarding the causes of the conflicts and many measures have been taken as the cures,
the conflicts continue to occur and reoccur, spreading at individual, organizational, local,
national, and international levels, causing disunity, isolation, frustration, hopelessness, and
despair in Muslims' religious, social, economic, and political life.
This reality shows that for many Muslims, Islam has not been an integrating force, but
rather a disintegrating force. Indeed, it opposes the very mission of Islam as a peace and love
maker on earth (rahmatan lil alamin) and makes Muslims disunited, powerless, and hopeless.
Internal conflicts have triggered social, cultural, and political conflicts among Muslims. They
have been one of the sad sites of the history of Muslim society all around the world. Internal
conflicts have spread and damaged their life and reputation. They make social relationships
among Muslims fragile, weaken their political life, and destroy their religious life.
Furthermore, internal conflicts have created a negative image about Islam and Muslims.
Many people, including some Muslims, begin to see Islam as a major cause of social and
political problems and Muslims are trouble makers, not love and peace makers. Certainly,
Muslims do not have the respect to spread love and promote peace.
Nursi's ideas regarding various problems of humanity, including Muslim internal
conflicts can be found in his work, Risale-i Nur. Although most of his discussions on the
causes and cures of Muslim internal conflicts refer to Turkish twentieth century experiences,
his ideas and arguments are helpful to all humanity. Risale-i Nur can be a source of
inspirations for Muslims and non-Muslims all around the world to understand and cure their
fundamental problems (Sirozi, 2004: 305-307).
In relation to Muslim internal conflicts, Nursi suggests nine commands as a remedy:
1. To act positively, that is, out of love for one's own outlook, avoiding enmity for other
outlooks, not criticizing them, interfering in their beliefs and sciences, or in any way
concerning oneself with them.
2. To unite within the fold of Islam, irrespective of particular outlook, remembering those
numerous ties of unity that evokes love, brotherhood and concord.
3. To adopt the just rule of conduct that the followers of any right outlook has the right to say,
"My outlook is true, or the best," but not that "My outlook alone is true," or that "My outlook
alone is good," thus implying the falsity or repugnance of all other outlooks.
4. To consider that union with the people of truth is a cause of Divine succour and the high
dignity of religion.
5. To realize that the individual resistance of the most powerful person against the attacks
through its genius of the mighty collective force of the people of misguidance and falsehood,
which arises from their solidarity, will inevitably be defeated, and through the union of the
people of truth, to create a joint and collective force also, in order to preserve justice and right
in the face of that fearsome collective force of misguidance.
6. In order to preserve truth from the assaults of falsehood.
7. To abandon the self and its egoism.
8. And give up the mistaken concept of self-pride,
9. And cease from all insignificant feelings aroused by rivalry (Nursi, 2011: 203-204)
Nursi believes that adopting these nine commands will enable Muslims to unity muslims.
In another book, The Letters, Nursi (2010: 308) encourges muslim for brotherhood.
He said “Your Creator, Owner, Object of Worship, and Provider is one and the same for both
of you; thousands of things are and the same for you. Your Prophet (UWBP), your religion,
your qibla are one and the same; hundreds of things are one and the same for you. Then too
your village is one, your state is one, your country is one; tens of things are one and the same
for you. All of these things held in common dictate oneness and unity, union and concord,
love and brotherhood, and indeed the cosmos and the planets are similarly interlinked by
unseen chains. If, despite all this, you prefer things worthless and transient as a spider’s web
that give rise to dispute and discord, to rancour and enmity, and engage in true enmity
towards a believer, then you will understand – unless your heart is dead and your intelligence
extinguished – how great is your disrespect for that bond of unity, your slight to that relation
of love, your transgression against that tie of brotherhood!”
c. Dialogue between Muslim and Non-muslim
According to Said Nursi (2011: 204) common enemy for Islam dan christian is
“aggressive atheism”. Facing a common enemy, that of “aggressive atheism”, Muslims
should unite, “not only with their own fellow-believers, but also with the truly pious
Christians.”
Nursi answer a question in his book, Munazarat, about friendship with Jews and
Christian. Someone ask him “in the Qur’an friendship with Jews and Christian is proscribed.
O you believe! Take not the Jews and Christians for your friend and protector (Qur’an, 5:51).
Nursi firstly explains the rules of Quranic exegesis, and says the prohibition is not general.
He state that “the prohibition from friendship with Jews and Christians is because they reflect
Jewishness and Christianity”, and that friendship with them may be based on other attributes.
He adds: “besides, a man is loved not for himself, but for his attributes or skills. In which
case, just as it is not necessary for all the every attribute of every Muslim to be Muslim, so it
is not necessary for all the attributes and skills of every unbeliever to be unbelieving.
Consequently, should it not to be permitted to consider good and adopt an attribute or skill
which is Muslim? If you have a wife from the People of the Book, of course you should love
her!” (Nursi, 2000: 55)
Canan (2005: 452) mention in his paper that having placed the question of friendship with
non-Muslim in this realistic contex, Nursi describes the true meaning of such friendship. He
sees it in terms of “or being friendly with them springs from our admiration for their
civilization and progress, and our borrowing these, and for the preservation of public security,
foundation of all wordly happiness.” He then concludes the discussion saying: “ such
friendship is certainly not included in the Qur’anic prohibition.”
When asked about relations with the People of the Book, a question that was much asked
after the proclamation of the Second Constituion, Nursi always answered the people’s
ingranied mistaken views by recalling principles of the Shari’a. For instance, he hold those
who asked , “How can we be equal with non-Muslim?” that this meant equality before teh
law and that in law a king ang beggar were equal. Nursi gave a example that Ali bin Abi
Talib and Salahuddin al-Ayyubi had both pleaded their cases before courts ith ordinary non-
Muslims (Nursi, 2000, 53).
Michel (1998: 553) concluded that five years before Nursi death, in supporting the
Baghdad pact, he noted that an advantage of the pact was not only that Turks would gain 400
million brothers and sisters among Muslim peoples, but that the international accord would
also gain for Muslim Turks “the friendship of 800 million Christians” and be a step toward a
much-needed peace and general reconciliation between the two communities of faith.
4. Three Big Enemy for Peace
According to Nursi (hutbe 90) the biggest enemies were ignorance, poverty and conflict.
We must fight them with education, industry and unity. Nursi tried to establish a university
that is called medresetuzzehra in order to educate Turkish and Kurdish people with modern
and religious sciences.
In order to overcome poverty Nursi sees zakat as a solution. He said (2007: 52) "The bridge
that maintains peace and order in social life is Zakat. In humanity, the life of social life is
born out of mutual assistance. The cure and remedy for the calamities that stem from
uprisings, revolts, and conflicts that prevent the advancement of mankind is mutual
assistance."
He continued in The Letters (2010: 319) "Zakat is a most essential pillar for happiness -
not merely for individuals and particular societies, but for all of humanity. There are two
classes of men: the upper classes and the common people. It is only zakat that will induce
compassion and generosity in the upper classes toward the common people, and respect and
obedience in the common people toward the upper classes. In the absence of zakat, the upper
classes will descend on the common people with cruelty and oppression, and the common
people will rise up against the upper classes in rancor and rebellion. There will be a constant
struggle, a persistent opposition between the two classes of men. It will finally result in the
confrontation of capital and labor, as happened in Russia."
Conclusion
Peace is one of the dare needs of this current world. There are many communal conflict
all over the world. As a Turkish scholar Said Nursi devoted his life for peace and he
encouraged to live in a peaceful and friendly situation among the multicultural word.
He motivated Muslims to save unity and brotherhood. He encouraged Muslim for
dialogue with non-Muslim in order to build peace in society. According to him the biggest
enemies were ignorance, poverty and conflict. Human being must fight them with education,
industry and unity.
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