Nur Sakeenah Thomas
Weekly inspirational lessons from Risale-i Nur
In the name of God, the merciful, the compassionate
And from Him do we seek help.
All praise be to God, the Sustainer of All the Worlds,
and blessings and peace be upon our master Muhammad
and on all his family and companions
“And if anyone puts his trust in God, sufficient is (God) for him” (Quran 65:3)
“The garden on the road is the man’s fleeting life in human society and civilisation, where good and evil and things good and bad and clean and dirty are found side by side. The sensible person is he who acts according to the rule: “Take what is pleasant and clear and leave what is distressing and turbid and goes on his way with tranquillity of heart” (The Words).
Bediuzzaman Said Nursi is a scholar who intensely focus on God as he patiently endures difficulties, isolation, deprivation and hardship on his journey of life as his mission is to convey the lessons from the Quran. Ustad Nursi’s focused purpose is to bring us back to God as his focused vision is to save our belief through his Risale-i Nur. Reading, feeling and living in Risale-i Nur is a unique experience as we learn to move on as believers by placing our ultimate focus on God’s infinite mercy. We learn to have a strong focused vision and we learn to avoid distractions as we learn to acknowledge our weaknesses and neediness when we surrender, submit and rely on God to taste the joy of serenity.
“True enjoyment, pain-free pleasure, grief-free joy and life’s happiness are only to be found in belief and in the sphere of the truths of belief” (The Words).
Reading Risale-i Nur inspires us to seek God as we go through difficulties and eventually we will realise it is His unique way to bring us back to Him as life is a journey returning to Him. Although Ustad Nursi’s life is filled with endless difficult challenges, he keeps focusing to seek nearness to God as a means to seek His redha. Ustad Nursi inspires us to put our ultimate focus on God by trusting Him totally as we practice positive actions earnestly despite any challenges because God is the most merciful and the most compassionate. God guides, nurtures, comforts and grants us true solace as we focus on His infinite mercy and depend on His strength as only the Giver of life can teach us the true meaning of life filled with eternal happiness.
“Belief in God is the solution to all our problems, belief in God gives strength and its rewarding as belief gains eternal happiness (Tarihce-i Hayati).
Feeling Risale-i Nur is truly inspiring as there are beautiful inspirational lessons we can learn from Ustad Nursi’s inspiring life-long struggle. It is truly impressive to feel Ustad Nursi’s passion and patience, energetic and enthusiastic manner as he focuses on God while going through many harsh calamities and life threatening situations. Ustad Nursi survived and thrived because he puts his ultimate focus on God and as he flourishes he writes his Risale-i Nur by God’s will which illuminates our journey of life. Learning to ultimately surrender, submit, accept and depend on God are the beautiful lessons we learn from having ultimate focus on God which frees us from distress, grief and sorrow as we feel the light of true solace.
“Risale i Nur provides true solace from distress, grief and sorrow through consolation and the truths of belief” (The Words).
Living in Risale-i Nur can free us from living in fear, anxiety and depression as we learn to put matters into God’s hands and not our own hands and we learn to rely on God’s strength and not our own strength. Ustad Nursi inspires us to focus on beautiful good thoughts by always trusting God and eventually we are able to learn to be attached to Him when we face difficulties in life. Ustad Nursi realises the critical negative situations in life cause the world to tremble with agony, so he struggles forward to bring a positive change through his Risale-i Nur that saves our belief which eventually brings the light of happiness that illuminates our journey of life till eternity.
“The people of iman, reliance and submission who enter the circle of Risale i Nur are saved. For it is through the Nur and vision they have received from the lessons of the Risale i Nur, that they see the marks and expressions of Divine mercy in everything and witness His perfect wisdom and the glory of His justice in all things. With complete surrender and submission, they greet calamities, which are the activities of divine rububiyyah with submission, by smiling and displaying submission. In consequences of this truth, as countless experiences confirm, those who seek the happiness and pleasure of the hereafter together with pleasure of this worldly life, can find it in the lessons of iman and Quran in the Risale i Nur” (Tarihce-i Hayati).
“You alone do we worship and from You alone do we seek help.” (Quran 1:5)
Nur Sakeenah Thomas
8 April 2018
