99-101

Second question: Previously, while you were visiting the nomadic tribes of the east, you used to encourage them to embrace civilisation and progress. Why did you withdraw from current civilisation for nearly forty years, calling it “Vile,” and submerge yourself in seclusion?

The Answer: Since the current Western civilisation acts contrary to the samâwî fundamental laws, its evils outweigh its good; its errors and harms outweigh its benefits. The general comfort and the happiness of worldly life, which are the true aims of civilisation, are spoilt. Since wastefulness (israf) and dissipation have taken the place of frugality (iqtisâd) and contentment, and laziness and inclination for luxury have taken the place of endeavour and service and have prevailed over them, the Western civilisation has made wretched mankind very poor and very lazy. The fundamental law of the samâwî Qur’an 1 لَيْسَ لْلاِنْسَانِ اِلاَّ مَا سَعَى٭ كُلُوا وَ اشْرَبُوا وَ لاَ تُسْرِفُوا decrees: "The happiness of mankind is in frugality and endeavour for labour and work, and through them, the upper and lower classes can make peace with each other." Since this principle has been explained in the Risale-i Nur, I will briefly say one or two subtle points:

The First: During the nomadic period, mankind was in need of three or four things. Out of ten people, only two were unable to acquire these three or four needs. Through misuse and waste by inciting the desires of nafs, making inessential needs essential, and due to custom and addiction, the current cruel Western civilisation makes today's civilised man needy for twenty things instead of the four things he actually needs. Out of twenty people, only two can obtain those twenty needs in a completely halal way; the eighteen remain in need. It means that the current civilisation makes man very poor. In respect of those needs, it has urged mankind to dhulm and gain haram earnings. It has always urged the helpless lower class and the upper class to fight. By abandoning the Quran's sacred fundamental law of zakat being wâjib and interest (ribâ) being haram that establishes obedience of the lower class to the upper class and the compassion of the upper class for the lower class, the current civilisation has compelled the bourgeoise to tyranny and the poor to revolt. It has destroyed the peace of mankind!

Second Subtle Point: Since the wonders of the current civilisation are the ni’mah of Ar-Rabb, they require a true shukr and to be used for mankind’s benefit. However, we now see that these wonders shatter the enthusiasm for work because they encourage a significant number of people to laziness, dissipation and follow the desires of nafs amidst comfort by giving up labour and work. By way of lack of contentment and frugality, these wonders encourage dissipation, wastefulness, dhulm and haram.

For example, as The Key of Nur2 in the Risale-i Nur says, “Although the radio is a great ni’mah and requires a ma’nawî shukr offered by using it for the benefit of mankind, it encourages laziness and following the desires of nafs by listening to it because four out of five of it is used for the desires of nafs and unnecessary trivial things; it shatters the enthusiasm for work and abandons its true duty. Even I myself saw that although certain very beneficial and wondrous devices should be used for labour and work and the actual benefits for mankind’s needs, eight out of ten of those wondrous devices compel mankind to indulge in pleasure, amusement, desires and laziness, while only one or two out of ten are used for essential needs. Like these two minor examples, there are thousands more.

In Short: The current Western civilisation has made mankind poor by increasing their needs because it does not completely heed samâwî religions. By destroying the foundation of frugality and contentment, it has increased wastefulness, greed and envy and opened the way to dhulm and haram. By encouraging mankind to the instruments of dissipation, it has also threw mankind into extreme laziness. It shatters the enthusiasm for work and labour and makes people waste their lives fruitlessly on the desires of nafs and dissipation. It has also made sick mankind, who is needy and became lazy, and caused the spreading and transmission of hundreds of types of illnesses through misuse and wastefulness.

Furthermore, due to the three intense needs, the inclination towards dissipation, numerous sicknesses that bring death to mind at all times and the currents of irreligion being spread into this civilisation, the current Western civilisation shows death, which is in front of awakened mankind’s eyes, as an eternal execution; it threatens mankind and gives a kind of Jahannam torment to them.

Now, the awakened mankind awaits, pleads and seeks from the rahmah of Allah, and it is understood from the signs and indications of the Qur'an of Miraculous Exposition that in response to this terrifying calamity of mankind, through the awakening of four hundred million students of Al-Qur’an Al-Hakîm, the Qur'an will once again heal these three terrifying wounds of mankind with the samâwî and sacred fundamental laws of four hundred million people within the Qur'an as it did thirteen hundred years ago, and, if qiyâmah will not break out soon, the Qur'an will cause mankind to gain both the happiness of life in this world and the âkhirah and will demonstrate that death is a discharge paper for entering the ‘âlam of nûr, not an eternal execution, and show that the goodness in civilisation, which emerges from the Qur’an, will completely prevail over the evil of civilisation and it will make civilisation a servant and a helper to itself and the samâwî laws but will not give some part of the religion as a bribe in order to gain some part of this civilisation in the way it has been for now.

اَلْبَاقِى هُوَ الْبَاقِى

Said Nursî