In this Note, since the science and civilization of Europe were placed to a degree in the Old Said's thought, while the New Said was travelling in the mana’wî progressing paths of thought, the science and civilization of Europe transformed into sicknesses of the heart on that journey of heart and caused excessive difficulties. While the New Said necessarily wanted to shake off his mind and cast away that adorned fallacious philosophy and dissolute civilization, he was compelled to the following dispute — which in one respect is very brief and in another is long — with the ma’nâwî collective personality of Europe in order to silence the feelings of nafs, which testifies in favour of Europe in his rûh.

Let it not be misunderstood. Europe is two: The first, I do not address this first Europe, which follows the sciences serving justice and equity and the crafts beneficial for the life of society through the faydh it has received from the true religion of ‘Îsâ ‘Alayhissalâm. Rather, I address the corrupted second Europe that drives mankind to dissipation and dhalâlah by the naturalist philosophy's darkness and supposing civilisation's evils to be its virtues. It is as follows:

At that time, on that journey of the rûh, I said to the ma’nâwî collective personality of Europe, which apart from beneficial sciences and the virtues of civilization, holds in its hand meaningless, detrimental philosophy and detrimental, dissolute civilization:

Know, O second Europe! Holding a sick philosophy soiled with dhalâlah in your right hand and a dissolute and detrimental civilization in your left hand, you claim that the happiness of mankind is with these two! May these two hands of yours be broken and may these two filthy gifts of yours kill you and they will kill!

O wretched rûh which distributes and spreads kufr and ingratitude! I wonder, is the happiness of a man, who fell into torments and is stricken with terrifying calamities in both his rûh and his conscience and his mind and his heart, possible through his body apparently being in a deceptive adornment and wealth? Can it be said that he is happy? I wonder, do you not see that due to being despaired of some minor thing and his hope for an imaginary wish being ceased and his being disappointed at some insignificant matter, sweet imaginings become bitter for him, pleasant states torment him and the world becomes narrow and a dungeon for him? But what happiness do you ensure for such a helpless man who through your inauspiciousness has received the blows of dhalâlah to the deepest corners of his heart and the very foundations of his rûh, and because of such dhalâlah whose hopes have all been exhausted and whose pains all arise from it? I wonder, can it be said of someone whose body is in a false and fading Jannah and whose heart and rûh are suffering torment in Jahannam that he is happy? Thus, you have perverted unfortunate mankind in this way; you make them suffer Jahannam-like torments in a false Jannah.

O mankind’s nafs al-ammarah! Look at the following comparison and see where you drive mankind. For example, there are two ways before us. We take one of them and see that at every step is a helpless, impotent man. Tyrants are attacking him, seizing his property and goods and destroying his tiny shack. Sometimes they wound him as well. It is such that the samâ is weeping at his pitiful state. Wherever it is looked, things are going in this manner. Since the sounds heard on that way are the rumbles of tyrants and the weeps of the oppressed, a universal mourning envelops that way. Since, regarding humanity, man suffers pain with the pain of others, he is subjected to boundless pain. Whereas, since conscience is unable to endure such a pain, one who travels on this way is compelled to do one of two things: either by divesting himself of humanity and embracing boundless savagery, he will bear such a heart that he may not grieve with the destruction of the majority — so long as he remains safe —, or he may numb the requirements of the heart and mind.

O Europe, which is corrupted with dissipation and dhalâlah and distanced from the religion of ‘Îsâ ‘Alayhissalâm! With your blind genius bearing a single eye like the Dajjal, you gifted this Jahannam-like state to the rûh of mankind. Then, you understood that it is such a disease without remedy that casts man from the a’lâ ‘illiyyin to the asfal sâfilîn and lowers him to the most unfortunate level of animals. The remedy you have found for this disease is the attractive playthings, sedative desires and fantasies of yours that serve to numb the senses temporarily. May this remedy of yours kill you and it will kill! Thus, the way you have opened up for mankind and the happiness you have given them resembles this comparison.

The second way is the way that Al-Qur'an Al-Hakîm has gifted to mankind through its hidâyah. It is as follows:

We see that in every halting-place, every place, every town on this road, mustaqîm soldiers of a Just Sultân are to be found; they are on patrol. From time to time at the Sultân's command, they discharge some of the soldiers and take their weapons, horses and equipment belonging to the state and give them their leave papers. Their weapons and horses with which they are familiar being taken saddens those discharged soldiers, but in point of haqiqah, they are happy to be discharged and extremely pleased to visit the Sultân and return to his capital city.

Sometimes the demobilization officials come across a raw recruit. He does not recognize them. They say "Surrender your weapon!". The soldier replies: "I am a soldier of the Sultân and I am in His service. Then I will go to him. Who are you? If you come with His permission and consent, I greet you with great pleasure, show me His orders. Otherwise, go away and stay far from me. Even if I stay on my own and there are thousands of you, I will still fight you. It is not for my nafs, because my nafs is not mine; it belongs to my Sultân. Indeed, my nafs and the weapon I have are the trusts (Amanah) of my owner. To protect the trust, defend my Sultân's honour and protect his dignity, I will not bow my head before you!"

Thus, this state is a sample of the thousands of states on the second way which cause joy and happiness. Compare other states. Throughout the journey on the second way, convening and despatching troops with joy and celebrations, which is called birth, and discharging of troops with cheer and military bands, which is called death, are seen. Thus, Al-Qur'an Al-Hakîm has gifted this way to mankind. Whoever accepts this gift wholeheartedly travels on this second way leading to the happiness of both worlds. He neither grieves for the things that have passed nor fears for the things that will come.

O second corrupted Europe! Some of your rotten and baseless foundations are as follows:

You say: "Each living being from the greatest malâikah to the tiniest fish owns itself and works for itself and strives for its own pleasure. It has the right to life. Its aim and purpose of its endeavour are to live and ensure the continuance of its life." And by supposing the compassionate, munificent manifestations of a universal law among the principles of the beneficence of Al-Khâliq, Who is Karîm, which manifests through plants succouring animals and animals succouring man through the principle of mutual help, which is followed by the essentials of the universe with perfect obedience, to be a conflict, you have judged idiotically: "Life is a conflict." I wonder, how the run of food particles to the body cells with perfect eagerness in order to nourish them — which is one of the manifestations of that principle of mutual help — be aconflict? How can it be a clash and struggle? Rather, that succour and run is a mutual help by the command of a Rabb, Who is Karîm.

Also, one of your rotten foundations is:

You say: "Everything owns its own nafs." A certain proof that nothing owns its own nafs is this: among causes the one who possesses the most extensive will regarding choice and the noblest is man. Whereas, one-hundredth of the most obvious acts of such a man that he performs by his will like thinking, speaking and eating, only a single, doubtful part is given to the hand of his will and is within the sphere of his power. How can it be said that he owns himself for the one who does not own one-hundredth of the most obvious acts such as those? If the hand of such noblest one who possesses the most extensive will is tied from real disposal and ownership to such a degree, someone who says: "Animals and inanimate beings own themselves" proves that he is more animal than the animals and more lifeless and unconscious than inanimate beings.

What throws you into such an error and makes you fall into such an abyss is your one-eyed genius, that is, your extraordinary, inauspicious intelligence. Because of that blind genius of yours, you have forgotten your Rabb, Who is Al-Khâliq of all things, you ascribed them to an imaginary nature and attributed His works to causes, you have divided the property of Al-Khâliq to taghûts, which are bâtil ma’bûds. At this point and in the view of your genius, it is necessary for every living being and each man to resist alone against innumerable enemies and to struggle in order to procure infinite needs. And they are compelled to withstand those innumerable enemies and needs with a power like a particle, a will like a fine thread, a consciousness like a disappearing flash, a life like a fast extinguishing flame, a life span passing quickly like a minute. But the capital of that helpless living being is not sufficient even for one of the thousands of its desires. When it is stricken by a calamity, it does not wait for a remedy for its trouble other than from deaf, blind causes. It becomes the place of manifestation for the mystery of وَمَا دُعَاءُ الْكَافِرِينَ اِلاَّ فِى ضَلاَلٍ  1

Your dark genius has transformed mankind's daytime into night. To warm the affection of that troublesome, cruel and dark night, you have illuminated it with deceptive, temporary lamps. Those lamps do not smile with joy at the face of mankind. Rather, those lights mockingly laugh at and make fun with mankind’s foolish joy amidst their pitiful and lamentable state.

In the view of your students, each living being is a wretched calamity-stricken, who is subjected to the assaults of dhâlims. The world is a place of universal mourning. The sounds in the world are the cries and wails arising from deaths and pains. The student who has received the lesson thoroughly from you becomes a pharaoh. But he is an abased pharaoh, who performs ‘ibâdah to the most contemptible thing and considers every benefit he receives to be his Rabb. Also, your student is rebellious. But a wretched rebel who accepts infinite abasement for a single pleasure of his. He displays despicableness to the degree of kissing shaytan's foot for a contemptible benefit. Also, he is an oppressor. But since he cannot find any point of support in his heart, in his essence, he is an extremely impotent oppressor boastful man. The endeavour of this student aims to gratify the desires of the nafs; he is a cunning man who, under the veil of patriotism and self-sacrifice, seeks the benefit of his nafs and works to satisfy his ambition and pride. He does not love anything seriously other than his nafs and sacrifices everything for his nafs.

As for the sincere and total student of the Qur'an, he is an ‘abd. But he is an esteemed (‘azîz) ‘abd who does not stoop to performing ‘ibâdah even before the greatest of creatures and does not make an immense benefit like Jannah the aim of ‘ubûdiyyah. Also, he is mild and virtuous. But he is a mild man carrying exalted endeavour who does not stoop to lowering himself before anyone other than his Fatir Zuljalâl without His permission and order. Also, he is poor, but a poor, who has no need, because of the reward, which his Mâlik, Who is Karîm, has treasured for him in the future. Also, he is weak, but a weak, who is strong relying on the strength of his Sayyîd Whose Qoudrah is infinite. While the Qur'an does not make the eternal Jannah an aim and purpose for its true student, would it make this fading, transient world an aim and purpose for him? Thus, understand how different from one another are the endeavours of the two students.

You also can compare the patriotism and self-sacrifice of Al-Qur'an Al-Hakîm’s students with the students of sick philosophy. It is as follows:

The student of philosophy flees from his brother for his own nafs and sues him. As for the student of the Qur'an, considering all the sâlih ‘abds in the samâwât and on the earth to be his brothers, he offers du’â for them most sincerely, becomes happy with their happiness and he feels a powerful connection for them in his rûh. Also, he considers the greatest things, the ‘arsh and the sun, to be each submissive officials and ‘abds and creatures like himself.

Also, compare the sublimity and joy of rûh of the two students. It is as follows:

The Qur'an gives such joy and loftiness to the rûh of its students that instead of the tasbih with ninety-nine beads, it gives to the hands of its students the particles of ninety-nine ‘âlams displaying the manifestations of the ninety-nine Names of Allah as the beads of a tasbih; it says: "Recite your awrâd with these!" Here, when they recite their awrâd, listen to the students like Shah Jilânî, Rufa'î and Shazalî (ra) who are among the students of the Qur'an! Look! They hold in their hands the chain of particles, the number of drops and the number of breaths of creatures; they recite their awrâd with them. They perform dhikr and tasbîh of Janâb-i Haqq.

Thus, look at the miraculous tarbiyyah of the Qur'an of Miraculous Exposition: how this tiny man, who gets dizzy and is stunned with some trifling grief and least sorrow and defeated by a tiny microbe, becomes elevated through the tarbiyyah of the Qur'an. And his subtle faculties expand to such a degree that he considers the huge beings of the world to be short as a tasbih for his wird. And although he belittles Jannah as the aim of his dhikr and wird, he does not consider his nafs greater than the least creature of Janâb-i Haqq. He combines the utmost humility with the utmost dignity. You can compare from this how abject and low are the students of philosophy.

Thus, concerning the haqiqahs, which the one-eyed genius of the sick philosophy of Europe sees wrongly, the hidâyah of the Qur'an, which looks at the two ‘âlams with two of its shining eyes knowing the ghayb and points with two of its hands to the two happinesses for mankind says:

O man! The nafs and property which you hold in your hands are not your possession but rather a trust (Amanah) to you. The owner of the trust is a Rahîm, Who is Karîm, Who possesses absolute power over all things and knows everything. He wants to buy from you the property you hold so that He will protect it for you; it will not be lost. He will give you a significant price in the future. You are an ordained soldier charged with duties. Work with His name and act on His account. He is the One Who sends you the things you need as rizq and protects you from the things your power does not suffice. The aim and result of this life of yours is being the place of manifestation for the Names and shuûn of such Mâlik. When a calamity strikes you, say:  اِنَّا لِلّٰهِ وَاِنَّا اِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ2 That is to say, "I am in the service of my Mâlik. O calamity, if you have come with His permission and consent, greetings, you are welcome! For, indeed, we shall return to Him some time and enter His hudhur; we yearn for Him. Since He will, in any case, free us from the responsibilities of life some time, let the discharge and freeing be through your hand, O calamity, I consent to it. If He has ordered and decreed you to test my dutifulness and loyalty in preserving the trust, but if He does not give permission and consent to me to surrender to you, so long as I have the power, I will not surrender the trust of my Mâlik to one not trustable."

Thus, as an example out of a thousand, look at the degrees of the lessons given by the genius of philosophy and hidâyah of the Qur'an. Yes, the haqiqah of the state of two sides proceeds in the manner described above. But the degrees of people in hidâyah and dhalâlah are different. The degrees of ghaflah are different. Everyone cannot feel completely this haqiqah in each degree. Because ghaflah numbs the feelings. And in this age, it has numbed the feelings to such a degree that the people of civilisation do not feel the grief of this excruciating pain. But, the veil of ghaflah is rent through increased sensitivity of ‘ilm and the warnings of death which every day points out thirty thousand corpses. Thousands of curses and regrets to those who enter dhalâlah by the taghûts and natural sciences of Foreigners and follow them and imitate them blindly!

O sons of this land! Do not try to imitate Europeans! I wonder, after the boundless cruelty and enmity that Europe committed against you, with which mind do you follow and trust their dissipation and bâtil thoughts? No! No! You, who dissolutely imitate them! You do not follow them but rather execute yourselves and your brothers by unconsciously joining their rank. Be cautious that the more you immorally follow them the more you lie in the claim of patriotism! Because your following them in this way is despising your nationality and it is ridiculing the nation!

هَدَينَا اللّٰهُ وَ اِيَّاكُمْ اِلَى الصِّرَاطِ الْمُسْتَقِيمِ3