From the Risale-i Nur Collection
The Twentieth Letter
THE KEY TO BELIEF
Bediuzzaman Said Nursi
Contents
Preface
The Twentieth Letter
Introduction
The Happy News For Believers
Reflections On Unity
An Addendum to the Tenth Phrase
of the Twentieth Letter
The Direct Way to the Truth
The Need For Renewal of Belief
The Requirements of Belief
The Degrees of Belief.
The Most Valuable Service to Life
The Attaining of True Belief.
The Twentieth Letter
In His Name, be He glorified!
And there is nothing but it glorifies Him with
praise
.1 l.Qur*an, 17:44.
2. BukJiäri, Adhän, 155; Muslim, Dhikr, 28, 30,74, 75, 76; Tir-midhl, Mawäqit, 108; Nasä'i,
Sahw, 83-6; Ibn Maja, Tijära, 40; Abs DSM, Manäsik, 56; Däriml, Salät, 88, 90; Muwatta', Hajj,
127, 243; Musnad, i, 47; ii, 5; al-IJäkim, al-Mustadrak, i, 538.
There is no god but God, He is One, He has no partner; His is the dominion and His is the
praise; He alone grants life, and deals death, and He is living and dies not; all good is in His
hand, He is powerful over all things, and with Him all things have their end.1
Introduction
Be certain of this, that the highest aim of creation and its most important result are belief in
God. The most exalted rank in humanity and its highest degree are the knowledge of God
contained within belief in God. The most radiant happiness and sweetest bounty for jinn and
human beings are the love of God contained within the knowledge of God. And the purest
joy for the human spirit and the sheerest delight for man's heart are the rapture of the spirit
contained within the love of God. Indeed, all true happiness, pure joy, sweet bounties, and
untroubled pleasure lie in knowledge of God and love of God; they cannot exist without
them.
One who knows and loves God Almighty is potentially able to receive endless bounties,
happiness, lights, and mysteries. While one who does not truly know and love him is
afflicted spiritually and materially by endless misery, pain, and fears. Even if such an
impotent and miserable person
owned the whole world, it would be worth nothing for him, for it would seem to him that he
was living a fruitless life among the vagrant human race in a wretched world without owner
or protector. Everyone may understand just how wretched and bewildered is man among
the vagrant human race in this bewildering fleeting world if he does not know his Owner, if
he does not discover his Master. But if he does discover and know Him, he will seek refuge
in His mercy and will rely on His power. The desolate world will turn into a place of
recreation and pleasure, it will become a place of trade for the hereafter.
¦ FIRST STATION
The Happy News For Believers
Each of the eleven phrases of.the above-mentioned sentence affirming Divine Unity contains
some good news. .And in the good news of . each lies a cure, while in each of those cures, a
spritual pleasure may be found.
FIRST PHRASE: 'There is no god but God.'
This phrase contains the following good news for the human spirit, subject as it is to
countless needs and the attacks of innumer-
able enemies. On the one hand it finds a place of recourse, a source of help, through which is
opened to it the door of a treasury of mercy that will guarantee all its needs. While on the
other it finds a point of support and strength, for the phrase makes known to it its Creator
and True Object of Worship, Who possesses an absolute power that will secure it from the
evil of all its enemies; it shows it its master, and who it is that owns it. Through pointing this
out, the phrase saves the heart from utter desolation and the spirit from aching sorrow; it
ensures an eternal joy, a perpetual happiness.
SECOND PHRASE: 'He is One.'
This phrase announces the following good news, which is both healing and a source of
happiness:
Man's spirit and heart, which are connected to most of the creatures in the universe and
reach the point of being overwhelmed in misery and confusion on account of this connection,
find in the phrase 'He is One' a refuge and protector that will deliver them from all the
confusion and bewilderment.
That is to say, it is as if 'He is One' is saying to man: "God is One. Do not wear yourself out
having recourse to other things; do not demean yourself and feel indebted to them; do not
flatter them and fawn on them and humiliate yourself; do not follow them and make things
difficult for yourself; do not fear them and tremble before them; because the Monarch of the
universe is One, the key to all things is with Him, thé reins of all things are in His hand,
everything will be resolved by His command. If you find Him, you will be saved from
endless indebtedness, countless fears."
THIRD PHRASE: 'He has no partner.'
Just as in His Divinity and in His sovereignty He has no partner, God is One and He
cannot be many, so too in His dominicality and in His actions and in His creating He has no
partner. It sometimes happens that a monarch is one, having no partner in his sovereignty,
but in the execution Of his affairs his officials act as his partners; they prevent everyone from
entering his presence, saying: "Have recourse to us."
However, God Almighty, the Monarch of Pre-Eternity and Post-Eternity, has no partner in
His sovereignty, just as He has no need for partners or helpers in the execution of His
dominicality. If it were not for His. command and will, His strength and power, not a single
thing could interfere with another. Everyone can have recourse to Him directly. Since He has
no partner or helper, it may not be said to someone seeking recourse, "It is forbidden, you
may not enter into His presence."
This phrase, therefore, delivers the following joyful announcement to the human spirit: the
human spirit which has attained to faith may, without let or hindrance, opposition or
interference, in any state, for any wish, at any time and in any place, enter the presence of the
All-Beauteous and Glorious One, the One of power and perfection, Who is the Pre-Eternal
and Post-Eternal Owner of the treasuries of mercy, the treasuries of bliss, and may present its
needs. Finding His mercy and relying, on His power, it will attain perfect ease and
happiness.
FOURTH PHRASE: 'His is the dominion.'
That is to say, ownership is altogether His. As for you, you are both His property, you are
owned by Him, and you work in His property. This phrase announces the following joyful
and healing news:
"O mankind! Do not suppose that you own
yourself, for you have no control over any of the things that concern you; such a load would
be heavy. Also, you are unable to protect yourself, to avoid disasters, or to do those things
that you must. In which case, do not suffer pain and torment without reason, the ownership
is another's. The Owner is both Ail-Powerful and All-Merciful; rely on His power and do not
cast aspersions on His mercy! Put grief behind you, be joyful! Discard your troubles and find
serenity!"
It also says: "The universe, which you love, to which you are connected and which grieves
you by its confusedness and which you are unable to put right, is the property of an All-
Powerful and Merciful One. So hand over the property to its Owner, leave it to Him. Attract
His pleasure, not His harshness. He is both All-Wise and All-Merciful. He has free disposal
over His property and administers it as He wishes. Whenever you take fright, say like
Ibrahim Hakki: 'Let's see what the Master does; whatever He does, it is best;' see it well, and
do not interfere!"
FIFTH PHRASE: 'His is the praise.'
Praise, laudation, and acclaim are proper to Him,
are fitting for Him. That is to say, bounties are His;
they come from His treasury. And as for the treas-
ury, it is unending. This phrase, therefore, delivers
the following good news: ;
"O mankind! Do not suffer and sorrow when bounties cease, for the treasury of mercy is
inexhaustible. Do not dwell on the fleeting nature of pleasure and cry out with pain, because
the fruit of the bounty is the fruit of a boundless mercy. Since its tree is undying, when the
fruit finishes it is replaced by more. If you thankfully think that within the pleasure of the
bounty itself is a merciful favour a.hundred times more pleasurable, you will be able to
increase the pleasure a hundredfold.
"Within an apple an august monarch presents to you is a pleasure superior to that of a
hundred, rather a thousand, apples because it is he that has bestowed it on you and made
you experience the pleasure of a royal favour. In the same way, through the phrase 'His is
the praise' will be opened to you the door of a spiritual pleasure a thousand times sweeter
than the bounty itself. For this phrase means to offer praise and thanks; that is to say, to
perceive the bestowal of bounty. This in turn means to recognize the Bestower, which is to
reflect on the bestowal of bounty, and so finally to ponder over the favour of His compassion
and His continuing to bestow bounties."
SIXTH PHRASE: 'He alone grants life.'
That is, the giver of life is He. The one who causes life to continue by means of sustenance
is again He. The supplier of the necessities of life is also He. And the exalted aims of life
pertain to Him and its important results look to Him and ninety-nine out of a hundred of its
fruits are His. Thus, this phrase calls out to ephemeral and impotent man in this way, it
makes this joyful announcement:
"O man! Do not trouble yourself by taking the heavy responsibilities of life onto your own
shoulders. Do not think of the transience of life and start grieving. Do not see only its
worldly and unimportant fruits and regret that you came to this world. Rather, the life-
machine in the ship of your being belongs to the Ever-Living and Self-Subsistent One, and it
is He Who provides for all its expenses and requirements. Also, your life has a great many
aims and results and they pertain to Him, too.
"As for you, you are just a helmsman on the ship, so do your duty well and take the wage
and pleasure that come with it. Think just how precious is the life-ship and how valuable its
benefits; then think just how Generous and Merciful is the Owner of the ship. So, rejoice and
give thanks and know that when you perform your duty with integrity, all the results the
ship produces will in one respect be transferred to the register of your actions, that they will
secure an immortal life for you, will endow you with eternal life."
SEVENTH PHRASE: 'And deals death.'
That is, the one who causes death is He. He discharges you from the duty of life, changes
your abode from this transitory world, and releases you from the labour of service. That is,
He takes you from a transient life to an immortal one. This phrase, then, shouts out the
following to ephemeral jinn and man:
"Here is good news for you! Death is not destruction, or nothingness, or annihilation; it is not
cessation, or extinction; it is not eternal separation, or non-existence, or a chance event; it is
not authorless obliteration. Rather, it is being discharged by the Author Who is All-Wise and
All-Compassionate; it is a change of abode. It is being despatched to eternal bliss, to your
true home. It is the door of union to the Intermediate Realm, which is where you will meet
with ninety-nine per cent of your friends."
EIGHTH PHRASE: 'And He is living and dies riot.'
That is to say, the Possessor of a beauty, perfection, and munificence that are infinitely
superior to the beauty, perfection, and munificence to be seen in all the creatures of the
universe, and that arouse love, and an Eternal Object of Worship, an Everlasting Beloved,
one single manifestation of Whose beauty is sufficent to replace all other beloveds, has an
enduring life through pre-eternity and post-eternity — a life free from any trace of cessation
or ephemerality and exempt from any fault, defect, or imperfection. Thus, this phrase
proclaims to jinn and man, to all conscious beings, and the people of love and ardour:
"Here is good news for you! There is an Everlasting Beloved Who will cure and bind your
wounds caused by countiess separations from the ones you love. Since He exists and is
undying, whatever may happen do not fret over the others. Furthermore, the beauty and
generosity, virtue and perfection in them, which are the cause of your love, are, passing
through many veils, the shadows of the palest of shadows of the manifestation of the Ever-
Enduring Beloved's ever-enduring Beauty. Do not grieve at their disappearance, for they are
rnirrors of a sort. The changing of the mirrors renews and embellishes the manifestation of
the Beauty's radiance. Since He exists, everything exists."
NINTH PHRASE: 'AH good is in His hand.'
Every good action you perform is transferred to His register. Every righteous deed you do is
recorded with Him. Thus, this phrase calls out to jinn and mankind with the following good
news: "O you wretched ones! When you journey to the
grave do not cry out in despair, 'Alas! Everything
we owned is destroyed, all our efforts wasted; we
have left the beautiful broad earth and entered the
narrow grave,' for everything of yours is pre-
served, all your actions written down, every service
you have rendered recorded. One of Glory in
Whose hand is all good and Who is able to bring
all good to fruition, will reward your service: draw-
ing you to Himself, He will keep you only tempo-
rarily under the ground. Later, He will bring you to
His presence. What happiness for those of you who
have completed their service and duty; your labour
is finished, you are going to ease and mercy! Ser-
vice and toil are over, you are going to receive
your wage! . "Indeed, the All-Powerful One of Glory preserves seeds and grains, which are
the pages of the register of last spring's deeds and the deposit-boxes of its services, and
preserves and publishes them the following spring in glittering fashion, indeed, in a manner
a hundred times more plentiful than the originals. He is, then, preserving the results of your
life in the same way, and will reward your service in a truly abundant fashion."
TENTH PHRASE: 'And He is Powerful over all things.'
That is, He is One, He is Unique, He has Power over everything. Nothing at all is difficult for
Him. To create the spring is as easy for Him as to create a flower, and He creates
Paradisewith as much ease as He creates the spring. The innumerable artefacts which He
continuously creates every day, every year, every century, witness with numberless tongues
to His boundless power. Thus, this phrase too delivers good news:
"O man! The service you have offered and the worship you have performed are not for
nothing. A realm of reward, an abode of bliss, has been prepared for you. An unending
Paradiseis awaiting you in place of this fleeting world of yours. Have faith and confidence in
the promise of the Glorious Creator Whom you know and Whom you worship, for it is
impossible for Him to break His promise. In absolutely no respect is there any deficiency in
His power; impotence cannot interfere in His works. Just as He creates your tiny garden, so
too is He able to create Paradise for you, and He has created it and promised it to you. And
because He has promised, He shall, of course, admit you to it.
"Since we see through observation that every year on the face of the earth He gathers
together and disperses with perfect order and balance, with perfect timing and ease, more
than three hundred thousand species and groups of animals and plants, most certainly such
an All-Powerful One of Glory is capable of carrying out His promise. And being thus
Absolutely Powerful He creates samples of the resurrection and Paradise in thousands of
forms every year.
"And since, promising eternal bliss through all His revealed Books, He gives the glad
tidings of Paradise; and since all His actions and deeds are carried out with truth, veracity,
and seriousness; and since, through the testimony of all His works of art, all perfections
point to and testify to His infinite perfection, there being in absolutely no respect any defect
or fault in Him; and since the breaking of a promise, lying, falsehood, and deception are the
ugliest of qualities, besides being defects and faults; then most decidedly and most certainly
will that All-Powerful One of Glory, that All-Wise One of Perfection, that All-Mercifu'l'Dne
of Beauty, carry out His promise: He will open the gate to eternal bliss; He will admit you, O
people of faith, to Paradise, which was the original home of your forefather Adam."
ELEVENTH PHRASE: 'And with Him all things have their end.'
That is, human beings are sent to this world, which is the realm of trial and examination,
with the important duties of trading and acting as officials. After they have concluded their
trading, accomplished their duties, and completed their service, they will return and meet
once more with their Generous Master and Glorious Creator Who sent them forth in the first
place. Leaving this transient realm, they will be honoured and elevated to the presence of
grandeur in the realm of permanence. That is to say, being delivered from the turbulence of
causes and from the obscure veils of intermediaries, they will meet with their Merciful
Sustainer without veil at the seat of His eternal majesty. Everyone will find his Creator, True
Object of Worship, Sustainer, Lord, and Owner and will know Him directly. Thus, this
phrase proclaims the following joyful news, which is greater than all the rest:
"O mankind! Do you know where you are going and to where you are being impelled? As
is stated at the end of the Thirty-Second Word, a thousand years of happy life in this world
cannot be compared to one hour of life in Paradise. And a thousand years of life in Paradise
cannot be compared to one hour's vision of the sheer loveliness of the Beauteous One of
Glory. You are going to the sphere of His mercy, and to His presence.
"The loveliness and beauty in all the creatures of this world and in those metaphorical
beloveds by which you are so stricken and obsessed and for which you are so desirous, are
but a sort of shadow of the manifestation of His beauty and of the loveliness of His Names;
and all Paradise with all of its subtle wonders, a single manifestation of His mercy; and all
longing and love and allurement and captivation, but a flash of the love of the Eternal
Worshipful One and Everlasting Beloved. And you are going to the sphere of His presence.
You are being summoned to Paradise, which is an eternal feasting place. Since this is so, it is
not with weeping that you enter the grave, but smiling with expectation."
The phrase announces this good news as well: "O mankind! Do not be apprehensive
imagining that you are going to extinction, non-existence, nothingness, darkness, oblivion,
decay, and dissolution, and that you will drown in multiplicity. You are going not to
extinction, but to permanence. You are being impelled not to non-existence, but to perpetual
existence. You are going to enter not darkness, but the world of light. And you are returning
to your true owner, to the seat of the Pre-Eternal Monarch. You will not drown in multiplic-
ity, you will take your rest in the sphere of Unity. You are bound not for separation, but for
union."
SECOND STATION
Reflections On Unity
The Second Station proves Divine Unity at the level of the Greatest Name, briefly and in
summary form.
