Sixth Principle: The Risale-i Nur should not be attacked in this matter because of my personal faults or those of some of my brothers. It is bound directly to the Qur’an, and the Qur’an is bound to the Supreme Throne. Who has the ability to stretch out his hand and unfasten it? Also, as is indicated by thirty-three Qur’anic verses, Imam ‘Ali’s (May God be pleased with him) three miraculous prophecies and the certain pronouncements of Gawth al-A‘zam (May his mystery be sanctified), the Risale-i Nur has performed an extraordinary service for this country and is a source of material plenty and spiritual effulgence for it, and cannot therefore be held responsible for our petty, personal faults, and it should not be held responsible. Otherwise both material and spiritual loss will be caused to this country which it will impossible to repair.
God willing, the assaults and diabolical machinations against the Risale-i Nur of the atheists hostile to us will be foiled, for its students cannot be compared with others, they cannot be scattered nor be made to give it up; through God’s grace, they will not be defeated. If the Qur’an had not prohibited them from physical defence... those students, who are everywhere and have won public favour, which is like the life-blood of this nation, would never get involved in petty and fruitless incidents like the Shaykh Said1 and Menemen incidents.2 If, God forbid, they were persecuted to the point they were compelled and the Risale-i Nur attacked, the atheists and dissemblers who deceive the Government would regret it a thousand times over.
In Short: Since we do not interfere in the worlds of the worldly, they should not interfere in our work for the hereafter and our service of religious belief.
[I am relating here by way of defence an old memory and pleasant anecdote which was not divulged in Eskişehir Court and was not written in the official records, nor has been included in my defence speeches.]
They asked me there: “What do you think about the Republic?” I replied: “As my biography which you have in your hands proves, I was a religious republican before any of you, with the exception of the Chairman of the Court, was born. A summary is this: like now, I was living at that time in seclusion in a remote tomb. They used to bring me soup, and I would give breadcrumbs to the ants. I used to eat my bread having
The famous Shaykh Said Revolt which broke out in February, 1925 in eastern Turkey. Bediuzzaman strongly advised its leaders against undertaking any such action against the Government, as it would “... make Ahmed kill Mehmed, and Hasan kill Husayn.” [Tr.]
A minor incident which occurred in the town of Menemen in western Turkey 1930, but was blown up out of all proportion and brutally suppressed. Bediuzzaman was in no way involved in it. [Tr.]