Al-Baqarah 176: (The reason for) this is because they have hidden the rulings of the Book that Allah has sent down with truth. The ones who delve into conflict about the Book surely are distant from the truth.

Let us also explain Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 176, the noble verse. It is also a quarter to ten, so I suppose with this we will close our topic, our lesson here. What does Allah Almighty say in the verse, Surah Al-Baqarah, which verse of it? Verse 176. The reason for this punishment is this, it says; now it explains.

Because they concealed the ruling of the book that Allah sent down as truth. They concealed it. Well, we did not conceal it, we just did not believe. Same situation, it makes no difference. Those who fell into dispute by affirming part of the book and denying part are in a schism far from the truth. The reason these people remained subject to this punishment is that they concealed the book Allah Almighty sent, the rulings in the book that are truth. These people would accept the verses that suited them and deny the verses that did not suit them. Allah Almighty's clear rulings sent in the Quran, without relying on any evidence, interpreting them by their own nafs, about Allah's verses they fell into dispute.

Because of the enmity toward Allah in their nature and because they are far from Allah, of course regarding the verses Allah Almighty sent, they will accept what pleases their nafs and deny what does not please their nafs. If these people were obedient to Allah, they would say there is wisdom in what Allah sent and submit to it. So these states of theirs, being far from the truth, because of the hatred in their hearts, they will remain subject to this punishment.

Their situation: in the realm of Lahut, when Allah Almighty created our souls and said, I am your Lord, their denying Allah out of the pride and arrogance, the conceit in their own nafs, their turning their backs on Allah.

Someone who doesn't know this says: Hodja, can one turn one's back on that Allah? Allah Almighty created us very close to His Essence. When man looked, he saw Him too in the form of a human.

In this case, out of the grandeur in his own being, out of his arrogance, man did not accept Him as Lord. He waited for the Lord of his own imagination. So, since Allah Almighty knew the Lords of their imagination, since He knew they were waiting for that Lord, We, He says, would have descended from the clouds with angels and made them prostrate, He says. We would descend from the clouds with angels and make them prostrate. And in their imagination they are waiting for such a Lord. One who will cover the sky like this. And with grandeur; they will prostrate to Allah out of fear. This does not match Allah Almighty's purpose in creating man.

Because whatever Allah Almighty intended, He created and programmed that. Did He create man in order to frighten him? He was going to make Himself known to him. I will create a human, I will create a being; of his own desire and will, without any pressure, without using any force at all, of his own desire and will, I want My Essence to be known, He says, and He creates man. He creates the souls. There: ve küntüm ezvâcen selâseh. All the pairs, three classes coming from one another. Fe ashâbü'l-meymeneti mâ ashâbü'l-meymeneh. Those of the right: those who, without seeing any pressure or any force, using their reason, said, yes, You are my Lord.

Because there, in a coming-into-being, sir, not knowing even a moment ahead, the one who knows he was created and says, a Lord created me, and using his reason obeys Allah.

Ve ashâbü'l-meş'emeti mâ ashâbü'l-meş'emeh. Fe ashâbü'l-meymeneti mâ ashâbü'l-meymeneh. What does it say after that? Those of the left. Meş'emeti mâ ashâbü'l-meş'emeh ve ashâbü'l-meymeneti mâ ashâbü'l-meymeneh. Ve ashâbü'l-meş'emeti mâ ashâbü'l-meş'emeh: those of the left, it says. Woe to you too. Who are they? Those who saw Allah Almighty like themselves, saw Him in human form, and did not recognize Him as Lord. Then: ve's-sâbikûne's-sâbikûn, ülâike'l-mukarrabûn, fî cennâti'n-naîm. A third group, the group of the foremost, it says. The group of the foremost. These are the group of the saints, the prophets, the martyrs, the witnesses.

There every person, of his own desire and will, in the presence of his Lord, made a covenant with Him. And no one knows of this covenant. What does Allah Almighty say in Surah Al-A'raf, verse 172? Bismillahirrahmanirrahim. This for those who don't know it, we always say it. Because these are points that are very much needed and where in fact all matters are settled.

He brought forth from the loins of the children of Adam their offspring. God forbid. And made a covenant with them. Just look at that. He brought forth their offspring from their loins. Well, blessed one, there are no loins here, so what does it say? Look: ve iz ehaze, He made a covenant. Rabbüke min benî Âdeme. Your Lord made a covenant with Adam. Made a covenant. Zuhûrihim. Those who will emerge, zürriyyetehüm. With those who will emerge from Adam's offspring. What is it, then? Your Lord made a covenant with those who will emerge from Adam's offspring. Where is this? In that realm of Lahut. In the address Elestü bi-Rabbiküm.

Ve eşhedehüm: whom He took as witness, enfüsihim: against their own selves. Elestü bi-Rabbiküm: where He said your Lord, it is not am I not your Lord either. When He said to me, am I not your Lord, I will witness my (?) creation so that I will deny it. After that He will say to me, am I not your Lord. Suddenly there is a coming into existence. And Elest is a definite command. A definite command. Your Lord's... In this case people, of course, if it is explained by a bare mind that has neither seen nor known that place, people will explain it wrongly, and those unaware of these matters will ascribe attributes to Allah Almighty. Ascribe attributes.

Yes.

That is why these people, these people who will see this punishment, both change Allah's book in this world and also, sir, they concealed the idea of the book He sent; part of the book they affirmed, part of it they denied. What suits them, they say okay to. What doesn't suit them, they cover up. And in this way they fell into dispute. While living their lives in this world, these people do not want to remember Allah Almighty. Why don't they want to? Because it weighs heavily on their nafs. His Lord shows him the right path. Pray. Don't deceive anyone. Don't consume interest, don't get mixed up with interest.

Help people as much as you can.

Reach out your hand to the destitute.

Know the helplessness of your nafs. Never give in to pride and arrogance.

Well, does the human nafs accept this?

It will drink alcohol, gamble, commit adultery, boast, so-and-so has a car, so-and-so has a yacht, so-and-so has a villa, so-and-so has a house, it will say. When he appears before people like Korah, just as our Lord destroyed Korah, how will you be any different from him?

So these people, while living their lives in this world, do not want to remember Allah Almighty.

If someone gets up, speaks of Allah and starts giving advice, or else they say, is this the time now; but when immoral, indecent words are talked about, they listen with admiration, and afterwards, in the pleasure of their nafs, they burst out laughing. In such immoral talk, oh, is this the time now? they never say. Look at people's characters. Now such people keep multiplying, and people who say Allah keep decreasing.

So what does Allah Almighty say? Hold fast to the rope of Allah. But not like some poor wretches do. They brought a rope, saying this is Allah's rope. They were apparently holding (?). I have held Allah's rope, they were apparently saying. May Allah give them sense. Holding fast to Allah's rope means carrying out the commands and prohibitions Allah has sent. It is to be ruled by its sharia rulings.

Yes. The pride and arrogance in the nafs of such people harbor an antipathy toward Allah Almighty's verses. They look for ways to find an excuse against every verse of our Lord. By opposing the verses they seek to satisfy their own nafs.

They look for their own supporters.

In helplessness, in a dead end, they look for supporters and want to satisfy their nafs. Pay attention. A person who uses hashish and heroin looks for a friend who uses hashish and heroin like himself and tries to get him hooked too.

Sir, he will be friends with him. The gambler, the gambler goes to his gambler friend. These too, because they deny Allah, know that Allah exists. Because their hearts are restless and scattered, they look for supporters and want to get rid of that restlessness. But not one person, not three people; even if there were hundreds, millions, they still cannot find peace. What do they do? To find peace they either go to a tavern, or they try to pass their time in a swamp of debauchery and turn to seeking peace. Yet instead of peace, in the swamp of this world they sink deeper and deeper. But they don't realize it; they are unaware.

By opposing the verses they seek to satisfy their own nafs. They hold themselves equal to Allah; looking for errors in Allah's verses, as if there were errors in the verses, they see them as faulty. What is it, then? So, to cover up their own faults, sir, they say the headscarf is not in the Quran.

Many verses they set out to deny according to their own nafs. Well, now I ask. If he is such a Muslim, to this Muslim lady, in the verse, you who say there is no headscarf in the Quran, now, those rabbis who changed Allah's verses with their own hands, how are you any different from them? One single... between them and us there is a difference. One single difference. If people of this mentality had come at that time, they would have changed Allah's verses in the same way. In this time it is not possible for them to change them. That is the only difference. The proof of this difference by a verse: We sent down the Quran, and We are its guardian until the Day of Judgment.

Not a single letter of it will be distorted or damaged, it says.

Allah will perfect His light until the Day of Judgment: with the words of that verse, to such wretched people, people speaking in such ignorance, who set out to deny the verses, these verses are Allah's slap to them.

To make the verses accepted according to their own reason, they argue with people. So for these reasons these people increase their punishment. How patient they are with the Fire. They remain subject to that verse. May Allah protect us all from having such bad character and, on the Day of Judgment, from such a punishment, we said.