An-Nisa 120: Shaytan (devil) makes promises to them and boosts them with false hope. Yet, the promise of the devil (shaytan) is nothing but a trick to deceive (the humankind).

We stopped at Surah An-Nisa, verse 120; we continue. Satan makes them promises. Look, the subject of our lesson has now come in. Satan makes them promises and gives them hope. Yet Satan's promising them is nothing but deception. How beautiful. The verse. It is nothing at all but deception. What does Satan say? To Allah Almighty: a life until the Day of Judgment give me. And our Lord says: I have given you that life. Let me see people, but let them not see me. I have given you that too, He says. Let me roam in their bloodstreams. I have given you that too, He says. And I will sit in front of them.

Your servants who come to You, I will hold back from Your path, he says. O accursed one! If they follow you, take them, I have given them to you, He says. Yes, well then: the one who is the enemy of man, the enemy of our ancestor Adam, who out of pride and arrogance did not prostrate before Adam, who out of that pride and arrogance, out of his own desire, rebelled against Allah and took the attribute "accursed" — how can you follow this cursed creature, with your honored creation, with that spirit, with a portion of our Lord's spirit given to you? What does it say? Lakad halaknel insâne fî ahseni takvîm — I created man in the finest form, it says. Does it befit you, created in this fine form, to follow Satan's leave with your nafs and to run after the cursed one?

Mashallah. Yes.

What does it say? Satan makes them promises and gives them hope. How does Satan make promises? He speaks words that please the nafs. He gives temptations. Like what?

You do this job, you'll get a lot of money. You speak about this person, keep yourself above him. Who is he anyway? You're going to bow to him? That is, he always gives man attributes like pride and arrogance, ego, grandeur, glory, fame, traits like worldly desires, and he keeps man away from being the perfect man. This person inclines to the world, boasts of the world's wealth, shows off to people with that worldly wealth; that worldliness Allah gave him as a trust, he sees it as raising him above people and thinks he holds a rank above them. This poor man is not even aware that he is dragging his own self to destruction.

Look how nicely Satan tempts. Yes.

Satan makes them promises and gives them hope.

Yet Satan's promising them is nothing but deception. Why is it nothing but deception?

In that address "Elestü bi-Rabbiküm," all the spirits made a covenant with Allah Almighty. That is, all people made a covenant. Everyone's wishes and desires, their aim, were written for them as destiny. Even Satan knows nothing of that destiny. Even the people who made the covenant with your Lord know nothing of their destiny. Because these worlds were closed. The person was taken up to the barzakh. When his time comes, with the spirit's coming into the world, in proportion to his covenant there, the person who, by his own partial will, had his aim written for himself as destiny, begins to play that scenario here as an actor.

Well, now I ask: although you made a covenant with your Lord, although you had your wishes and desires, your aim, written for yourself as destiny, while you know nothing of it — the promise Satan gives, when it isn't even possible for him to reach those ranks — how is that? You believe that temptation of Satan and run after him. Believing the temptation he gives, you follow his trail. Does this fit in a person's mind? Of course, to man, naturally — what does it say? He will tell deception, it says. Deception.

Why deception? Some may turn out true. Within people's destinies, what he said may turn out true. "See, I was guessing it would be like this anyway, I knew it would turn out like this," he says. And the person does harm to his own self. You can't know one second ahead what is in your destiny.

And Imam al-Ghazali says: as long as a person can look at the sun, that long can he speak about destiny. Yes. In this case a person will use his reason. His reason. Yes. Allah, who created the universe, created people in the world of lahut. The world of lahut is where the spirits were created. The spirits, long before — before the body of our father Adam was created as a body, that is, before clay was brought from the earth and shaped, before the spirit was breathed into it — in that, which we call the world of spirits, the lahut world — — they say lahuthane, you know, for places where statues are made; these are not taken from there anyway — there Allah Almighty created our spirits.

There He made a covenant with us. Yes.

He created them in the world of lahut. He made a covenant with them at "Am I not your Lord." That is: I am your Lord, He said. Definitely. Not "am I not." I always say it. "I am," He said. How did He say it? Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. Ve iz ehaze Rabbüke min benî Âdeme min zuhûrihim zürriyyetehüm ve eşhedehüm alâ enfüsihim elestü bi-Rabbiküm. We, with those who will emerge from the offspring of the children of Adam. Look: with those who will emerge. Coming out of their loins, taken out — in the world? in the mother's womb? in the hereafter? No. Listen carefully. With those who will emerge. "Zuhurihim," it says.

Look what it says. He made a covenant — Rabbüke min benî Âdem. Your Lord made a covenant with Adam. With whom? Zuhurihim. With his offspring that will emerge. Not yet emerged. That is, those who will come out of the loins of the children of Adam, before they came out, in that world of spirits, in the world of lahut, when our Lord gave them life, He made a covenant with them in His address "I am your Lord." And "ve eşhedehüm," it says — He took them as witnesses — "alâ enfüsihim," against their selves — "elestü bi-Rabbi- küm?" We are your Lord, He said; I am your Lord, He said. So — "Am I not your Lord?" He said.

What does His saying "Am I not your Lord?" mean? For Him to say it, those spirits were created bit by bit, those spirits were witnesses of their Lord, and after that, when that spirit denies its Lord: Didn't I create you? Am I not your Lord? He will say. "Elestü" is a definite command. The address "I am your Lord." And the Messenger of Allah saying: yes, this is our Lord. Witness. What are we saying now? There, there He made the covenant. Let's open these up word by word now. Allah who created the universe created people in the world of lahut, (?). He made a covenant with them at "Am I not your Lord." He wrote for each person his own wish as his destiny.

People cannot know their own destinies. Yes, because those worlds were closed. Only Allah knows people's destinies. No one else can know. Because after making the covenant on that destiny, the spirits were taken up to the world of barzakh. How long we waited there is not known. If there is one thing we know, we know that we came into the world. But be truly sure of this: I know the world of lahut too, I know "elestü bi-Rabbiküm" too, I know the barzakh too, but how long one stayed in the barzakh I don't know. But I know that place, I know I am living in the world now, I know that afterward I will go back there again, and then, the trumpet being blown, that we will give account in the presence of our Lord — I know it in line with the verses, and I know it according to the covenant I made.

That is why I explain the verses with absolute certainty. Your Arabic grammar doesn't know this.

What is it? Arabic grammar doesn't know this. Yes. There's more beyond this, but I'm not saying it.

There's more beyond.

So be wise. Act taking that day of reckoning into account.

Only Allah knows people's destinies.

Anyone else? Within this destiny, people know some things. Some — but some, those who have that high rank. Now when I say there's more beyond, this is where it comes in. I also know how I will go. How will I go, Hodja? I am of the people of Paradise. I know how I made the covenant to be of the people of Paradise.

It shows you in which time you will go. You can't say I'll go in the time of the Companions. You fear that time. You choose the time yourself. Look what He says to me while making the covenant: if you come in this time, you will slip, He says. You will slip. And I say: my Lord, well, if in that time I am going to slip, protect me with Your mercy before I slip, and take my life before I slip. There, the covenant. So since I will go without slipping, this too means Paradise.

I suppose a little of how this covenant is, from those who saw it, we are telling you. We're not telling stories like that. These are not stories. No. "Allah Almighty threw a ball. Whoever that ball hit became a Muslim." Whatever became of whatever, and so on. "You know, Allah created the spirits in the twilight. He scattered something of His light on them. Whoever took of that light found his way. Whoever couldn't take of that light lost his way and went astray." There: this address "elestü bi-Rabbiküm." Twilight — in that world of lahut people were three groups. Ve küntüm ezvâcen selâseh — three classes.

Fe ashâbü'l-meymeneti mâ ashâbü'l-meymeneh. Ve ashâbü'l-meş'emeti mâ ashâbü'l-meş'emeh. Ve's-sâbikûne's-sâbikûn. Ülâike'l-mukarrabûn. Fî cennâti'n-naîm. One is (?), one is (?), and one is the group of the foremost. When He said I am your Lord, the people who said yes to the right, those who rebelled to the left. And those righteous servants at the very front. Yes. Three groups.

Among these, among those righteous servants, when our Lord sends, as charged with duty, the scholars who will keep His religion standing on earth until the Day of Judgment, He shows them these worlds. But not to all of them. To whom? To the qutbs. To the mujtahids. He shows those worlds to those people according to their ranks. So when he says, this man doesn't know Arabic, how will he open up the verses — when you open up the Arabic with that grammar, I can tell whether it is a verse or not. You tell me something in Arabic. Whether it's a verse or not, I'll tell you whether it is a verse. I haven't memorized it. But you cannot attribute qualities to Allah about (?); they call this an inner knowledge, they call this an inspiration given by our Lord.

You are far from these, you cannot know. So listen well, listen well, benefit from these counsels. Don't let it cross your mind that Hodja Efendi is praising himself. I am only explaining my situation to you in order to convey my duty, so that tomorrow, on the Day of Judgment, you won't say: my Allah, he didn't tell us about himself, didn't make himself known, so we didn't believe him — that's why I say it. Otherwise, God forbid. If even an atom of pride came to my self, neither could I tell you these sciences, nor would my Lord grant me these sciences.

Yes.

The promises Satan gives man are a deception. Because within a person's destiny, what will befall that person and what he will obtain — only Allah knows that. And, as I said a moment ago, as far as our Lord has made known to people those worlds — how one will go within one's destiny, for example, like this. Otherwise he can say what will befall him within seconds. That is within our Lord's knowledge. Ah, sometimes He makes known things of the future. That becomes the miracle-grace of the hodjas, of such people.

Satan, however, when he deceives a person, people, makes all sorts of promises to people with temptation. With temptation. All sorts. Today in the world we watch these people, exactly the people on Satan's path.

For example, we recently went through an election. What bragging, what bragging, what unimaginable words, what handing out of money. He gives from his father's purse, of course. And if he wins, he'll take and give.

What are these? Deception. This does not befit a human being. There: deceptions just like Satan's deceiving. Yes. Oh Hodja, did those men come and break faith with their word?

The tried is not tried again.

If you try the tried, you can't put a hundred and one grams of water into a hundred-gram glass.

You go to the bank — a note of yours gets protested. They never give you credit again for life. This is what you are, they say.

The examples are out there.

People, (?) people, those who chase glory and fame, those who pursue ideologies — it is not possible for them to lead this state. We have seen these. We have faced disasters.

The state has faced losses.

He gives you what he promised. And through devaluations he takes from you more than what he gave of what he promised. And you think you got it.

There's a story about a hen.

To the hen, it says, they throw feed in front of it. The hen doesn't know its egg is being taken from behind, it says.

Why are they having the Quran shut away? Because the Quran holds a light in front of people. The Quran makes the human mind work three times as much as outside the religion of Islam. What does it say? From the verse: one Muslim is equal to three unbelievers, it says. That is, in terms of three times the capacity of reason. So, the reason of people who run after ideologies outside the religion of Islam and the reason of one who says "Allah" are not the same. Judge accordingly.

For this reason too they want to do away with the Quran.

They prepare this trap, and Allah prepares a trap too. But We are the best of those who prepare traps, He says. He thinks he is making his way by his reason, but he cannot know he is spinning round in that whirlpool. Because he cannot comprehend that Allah's word is valid until the Day of Judgment. And they (?) would extinguish Allah's light with the blowing of their mouths. Unaware of the verse — with the verse where He says Allah will complete His light until the Day of Judgment — the traps they set, with lost time, they bury their traps on their own heads. Yes. They prepare that trap. And Allah Almighty raises a scholar.

Through that scholar He has their trap prepared as a trap for themselves.

Yes.

(?) what Satan promises — when Allah grants a person what is in his destiny, the person who (?) that grace, thinking this grace is from Satan, although he comprehends that Allah gave it to him out of His grace, follows Satan. He believes in him as if Satan had given what was granted to him by Allah. Yes.

O man! Pay no heed to the temptation of Satan, who sets traps in front of the people who will come until the Day of Judgment. Until the Day of Judgment. Because he made such a promise to our Lord. I will set traps in front of Your servants who come to You, and Your servants who come to You I will separate from You.

In return, don't you forget this verse either. O accursed one, if they follow you, take them, I have given them to you, He says.

Yes. Let us not be among those this verse applies to. Allah protect us.

Don't forget that the accursed one too, created by Allah, is lower than man, who was created as a human being, the noblest of creation.

Lower than man. Because man was created the noblest of creation.

Saying this brings some events to my mind again. I am in Germany.

That people are honored, that Allah Almighty gave man of His spirit — we are explaining. That mosque imam, bound by superstitions, says: he holds man above the angel, he says. He holds man above the angel, he says. This man is a deviant, he says. The imam there, the mosque imam. Look at a deviant. How does anyone declare himself like this?

Man, he says — he holds him above the angel. The angel is superior, he says.

If the angel were superior, there would have been no need for man at all. Allah Almighty would have taken the angel as the one He addresses Himself. Angels are genderless. Angels were created from His light. They were created from the light of the Beloved of the Almighty, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). The worlds were also created from his light. The accursed one was also created from his light. The Throne and the Footstool, every atom, except people, all were created from the light of the Messenger of Allah. Then Allah Almighty gave of His spirit to the Messenger of Allah. From his spirit the prophets, and in the spirit of the prophets the spirits of the peoples were created. In this way the Prophet (peace be upon him) became "Ve mâ erselnâke illâ rahmeten li'l-âlemîn." The angels are not a mercy to the worlds.

Gabriel, Michael, Israfil, Azrael are not a mercy to the worlds either. They are prophets created from the light of the Messenger of Allah. They are the prophets of the angels. We believe in them, we have faith in them. But they are not superior to man. If they were superior to man — when Gabriel (peace be upon him) said, from the Sidrat al-Muntaha, if we go one ant's length further we will burn, that place was passed by the one who is human, to whom He gave a portion of His essence, of His spirit — the Beloved of the Almighty, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) — he passed and went on. The world, Allah's Throne, remained under his feet.

O My Beloved, step on My Throne with your shoes on, He says. Let My Throne be honored with the dust of those shoes, He says. O my Allah. Yes. Do you know what this means? That He sees the Messenger of Allah before Him as (?) of that spirit of His, to which He gave a portion of His essence. (?) — respect to him, respect to His own Essence, of Allah Almighty. It was respect to His own Essence. Yes. Man — the poor man who does not step into his place.

So, don't you ever think? Don't you ever use your right? Don't you ever reflect? According to the verse, the one created lower than you and who is your enemy — you run after that accursed one and take him as your guide.

For Allah's sake, don't you pity yourself? Yes. As human beings we need to reflect, we need to think. What are we saying? Don't forget that he too, created by Allah — that is, the accursed one too, created by Allah — is lower than man, who was created as a human being, the noblest of creation. Know your place, and by running after these cursed and banished beings don't drag yourself to destruction.

That Satan's promise to people is a deception — from your mind don't let it slip. Because Satan is a created being like all created beings. He is helpless. He couldn't bring himself to guidance — he couldn't bring himself to guidance, so how could he show you the way and bring you to guidance? O man, bring you to guidance. So don't believe him, and don't follow his path and walk in his tracks. All of these are the counterparts of the verses. Every noble word, every sentence. Do not follow Satan's tracks, it says. Do not follow Satan's footsteps, it says. "By running after cursed and banished beings" — the counterparts of the verses.

We cursed him, and He banished him. Sir, what are we saying? He too, created by Allah — of course, because the universe was created by Allah. And don't forget he is lower than man, who was created as a human being, the noblest of creation. Because he was created from the light of the Messenger of Allah. Look, all of it, word by word, everything said is the counterpart of the verses.

I say: if there is one more commentary written as the counterpart of the verses like this, show it to me too. A person, with nice word games, with gilded words, saying "let's talk Sufism," goes as far as denying Allah. Open the commentaries. Yes.