Al-Baqarah 275: Those who consume interest stand up (from their graves) like the ones who were struck by Shaytan. This is because of their saying that “trading is just like charging interest”. Allah however has made trade lawful whereas Allah has forbidden interest. If after this someone is given advice by his Lord and he abandons interest, what is from the past is his and his situation is left to Allah. Whoever turns to interest again, they are the dwellers of hell and they will remain there eternally.

I suppose those who want to listen, right? He would come.

See what our Lord says in Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 275. Those who devour interest, those who devour interest, will rise from their graves like those whom Satan has struck rising from a fit of madness.

Let us now both explain it and also later gather it all together and explain it.

The verse continues, but let me open up this much for you. Those who devour interest will rise from their graves like those whom Satan has struck rising from a fit of madness - so they rise. What is this? Of one whom Satan has struck, it says, like rising from a fit of madness.

Sometimes they show it on television, people seized by jinn. Their hands and arms shake, they throw themselves on the ground, having a fit like this. It brings on a state of madness, they show it so well.

Like the state of such people, it says, these will rise from their graves, from their tombs. From their tombs.

This state is because they say trade is just like interest, it says.

Trade is something else.

Giving money and making money on your money, that is, through it practising usury, is something else.

People have their help for one another. Allah Almighty, Islam in the most beautiful way, as one that will continue until the Day of Judgement, as the perfection of religion, the perfection of religion, what is it? The Torah, the Psalms and the Gospel. These too were a (?). The People of the Book. As their perfection He gathered the four books together. The verses of the Quran, which will continue until the Day of Judgement, He laid out before people.

Now trade: for people to stay alive, food and drink sustain people; whatever covenant they gave Allah Almighty, so that they prove themselves in the best way, Allah Almighty made people sustained by food and drink. So that they could (?), with their partial will people came to have the ability to decide for themselves. With this ability to decide, people become subject to reward and sin. In this case trade has its own place: so that one can earn reward and sin, so that one can watch out for halal and haram, so that one can carry out Allah's commands, trade is something separate. In the religion of Islam, brotherhood and helping one another have their own place.

Allah Almighty has declared the Muslims brothers. Even if one believer is at one end of the world and another at the other end, the two are brothers, He says. Those from the same womb become enemies to each other, but brothers, those who lay their foreheads in the same prostration to the Most Merciful, embrace one another. They are each other's brothers. So if Allah Almighty commands mutual help in Islam, and in many ways, in many verses too, commands giving charity for Allah's sake,

people being bound together by bonds of love in mutual help strengthens the religion of Islam, and people on earth live as if on a festive day. Apart from this, to suck the blood of people who are in need of help, sucking their blood from their backs like ticks, practising usury, leaving their wives and children hungry, taking their goods and property from their hands - these, besides appearing to wrong people outside Allah's commands, are traitors who wrong their own selves. Traitors themselves.

The oppression of this world passes. A person may oppress me. Yet it ends with death. But the oppression the oppressor has done to his own self, in the hereafter, at that supreme court, in the presence of Allah Almighty, when he gives account, there it becomes clear whom the real oppression belongs to.

So these, from their graves, a fit, like one whom Satan has struck rising from a fit of madness, it says, they will rise. That fit of madness. You see those people, completely worn out. After that thrashing, they hold down (?) their hands and feet. They throw themselves about. And in the end, exhausted, crying and moaning, they try to calm down. That is how these will rise from their graves in the hereafter.

Yet Allah has made trade lawful and interest unlawful, it says. After this, whoever receives an admonition from his Lord and gives up interest, what is past is his. And his matter is now left to Allah, it says. See what Allah Almighty says. Yet He has made trade lawful and interest unlawful. From now on interest is haram, look, pay attention. He has made interest unlawful, it says. After this, whoever receives an admonition from his Lord and gives up interest, what is past is his, and his matter is now left to Allah. This verse must be understood very well. If Allah Almighty says interest is haram, it is haram.

It is haram.

What is past - see what it says? After this, whoever receives an admonition from his Lord and...? Pay close attention to the verses. I'll read it once more. After this, whoever receives an admonition from his Lord and...? gives up interest, what is past is his. So then let me carry on with usury. Then, saying this is my Lord's admonition, interest is haram, let me give up interest. Let me make my big haul first. Then let it be mine. Is this verse like that?

What did I say? Pay close attention to the verse. Look. Pay close attention to the verse. Yet trade is lawful. He has made interest unlawful. Now I'll open this part up. He has made interest unlawful. After this, whoever receives an admonition from his Lord, that is, Allah Almighty, with this He supports this verse of His: We hold no one to account for a thing We have not made known. So this person had not heard that interest is haram, or the verse had not come down, or he had not heard it, and this person practised usury, then an admonition came from his Lord; look, pay close attention to what it says: yet trade is lawful, He has made interest unlawful; after this, whoever receives from his Lord an admonition, it says, and gives up interest; so, I say, because Allah created me lacking in understanding, what I did was usury, what I did was haram, I wasn't doing a good thing, my Lord made it haram - if I say this and give it up, it is yours, He says.

You didn't know about it, but as soon as you heard, you gave it up. This is yours. But your matter is left to Allah, it says. Your matter is left to Allah. To the other side. Why is it left to Allah? In this meaning it proves the following. Deeds depend on intentions. You heard about it from afar and carried on with your business. That is, because it didn't suit you, you stayed in limbo. There are such people. There is giving it up the moment one hears. And there is carrying on with one's business, with interest, in a doubtful state. That's why it says it is left to Allah. Allah knows your intention.

What was it? Deeds depend on intentions. That's why it is left to Allah. Yes.

Who? Whoever returns to interest again - well, whoever after this returns to interest again, they are the people of hell, it says. They will remain there forever. They are the people of hell. That is, there is no salvation for them anymore. The reason?

One: going against Allah's command. That is, knowingly, for worldly gain, turning one's back on Allah's verse. Again from the same meaning, the same meaning, another meaning: from a person's faith and belief in Allah Almighty being little, from doubting the hereafter; for his own gain, according to the verse 'Have you not seen the one who deifies his nafs', making light of Allah's command over people and putting forward his own worldly gain. That is, deifying his nafs. Denying the verse itself. Whoever consciously denies a verse is a kafir. So this too was one of the people of hell. Two: from the harm he does to the religion of Islam - what harm?

Because he breaks the bonds of brotherhood, sets Muslims against one another in hostility, as enemies, feeding enmity towards himself or towards people, feeding hostility, drowning the earth in corruption. Well, of course, the 100 lira I take from you, you take 120 lira from me, I pay. I pay its interest. My hundred lira still stands. It has become a hundred and fifty lira. I pay you another fifty lira. The interest has become two hundred lira. I pay you another hundred lira. The interest has become three hundred lira. Because this is interest.

For the hundred lira I took, I have paid you a billion. My debt has risen to two and a half, three billion.

Then you take the man's goods and property from his hands. I'm sitting somewhere. Someone comes: 'Take three and a half billion, close my account,' he says. 'Your account,' he says, 'is four and a half billion.' 'I've given you this much,' he says. 'The money I gave, I (?).'

'This has become interest on interest. My means aren't enough for this. Take the three and a half billion and close it,' he says. 'I don't have a penny more,' he says. The other says, 'Look, I made this much of a sacrifice for you. Your money is this, but I didn't even take this from you.' 'Well,' he says, 'over this time your money has come to this. You are obliged to pay this.' 'Take it if you will; if not, I'm leaving,' the man says. 'I won't take your money,' he says, and walks off.

The man walks off. And he doesn't pay the money either.

Now the man facing him is a mafia.

Him not paying the money suits his purpose. They tie the man hand and foot and take his goods and property from him.

This befits neither Islam nor Allah Almighty's having created man honourable, that having created man in the finest form, as He says, and having created man the noblest of the universe, the noblest of all creatures - nor does it befit humanity. Of course, all people, whether idolaters, Magians, religious or irreligious, Allah is the Owner of them all. Even those who are enemies of Allah, according to the verse 'aduvvallahi ve aduvveküm', even those who are enemies of Allah Almighty - who are they, who are they? Those outside the religion of Islam. He does not want even them to come to harm on earth.

That is His law.

Because Allah created them all. Allah never makes any distinction among people. That is why He says: My mercy has surpassed My wrath. My mercy in the universe (?) everyone. It is equal. In the hereafter, only for the believer. Why? Are those who know and those who do not know equal, it says. Are those who obey the command and those who do not equal? Can you put them on the same scale and treat them the same way?

Ahmet Efendi is the owner of this place, of the factory. He tells me: do this job. I won't. Well, and if you don't? Don't. He tells Doğan: you do this job. Doğan immediately (?) does that job. Am I equal to Doğan in Ahmet Efendi's eyes? What does he do?

For the sake of my wife and children, he gives to me.

After death there is no (?), come here, he says. This is what you were. Allah Almighty too, the one who obeys and the one who does not, whoever it may be - 'Did you think you would die without proving what kind of person you are?' According to this verse He will give. He will give. He will give our sustenance. We will eat, we will drink. But within this trade we ourselves will prove what kind of person we are. On the Day of Judgement, in the presence of Allah Almighty, at the supreme court, with nothing left for us to say to Allah Almighty, our Lord too - as the reward of what each one has earned for his own (?), today with no one being wronged at all - everyone will be given the reward of what he has earned.

Yes, those who continue with interest, they, it says, are eternally people of hell. Had this person known his Lord, had this person believed in resurrection after death, had this person, according to the day of the hereafter, believing that a thousand years here are like one day of the hereafter, been able to grasp that his 70 to 80 years of life here are like an hour and a half, had he been able to grasp that, deceived by the gain of this passing world, the world's swamp looking rosy to him, the nafs and Satan put a yoke on a person's neck, pull him into that swamp of the world and drag him to ruin - he would, in this world, give this up; even if he were (?) between two millstones, he would not compromise on Allah's verses, and he would build up his hereafter.

The evil of interest. Not only interest. But this is interest making one eternally of hell. Through continuing in it. Yes.

Again, let us read the verse. And let us read the tafsir we wrote. Those who devour interest will rise from their graves like those whom Satan has struck rising from a fit of madness. This state of theirs is because they say trade is just like interest, that is why. Yet whoever receives an admonition from his Lord and gives up interest, what is past is his. But pay close attention here. It is not that it stays with the one who devours interest again and again and then gives it up. Concerning one who had not heard of interest, was unaware of the verse, or before the verse came down - in such cases the interest that was taken is his. Provided he gives it up the moment he hears.

His matter is left to Allah, it says. Whoever returns to interest again, they are the people of hell. They will remain there forever, it says. Yes.

We continue with the verse. Let's see how we wrote it in the tafsir. We explained it here like this, but how is it in the tafsir?

We said Allah Almighty loves people very much. So that people are not wronged, Allah recommends helping one another and love and respect towards one another. Isn't it so? The religion of Islam, the religion of brotherhood, love and respect for one another, love for the young, respect for the elders - this is people being bound together here. In this case, to test people with one another, according to their destinies He creates some wealthy and some in need.

Our saying it this way here is so that an ordinary person understands. In fact Allah Almighty does not create them needy. Every person has a destiny he asked of Allah Almighty. Within that destiny, however the person is to prove himself in the best way, Allah Almighty arranges his worldly things accordingly. If he is to prove his sin or his reward, his rank, with a lot of money - if you are to prove it - He gives a lot of money. If with little money, as one in need, the covenant he gave in the best way, or that wish of his, he is in a position to prove himself in the best way in the world as one in little need, He brings him into the world as one in need too.

Otherwise Allah Almighty would be ascribed attributes. 'Had You given me as You gave him, I too would have done like him,' he would say. He would say this. That is Allah's, Allah's attribute, an attribute such that no one asks Allah Almighty questions - will be able to ask. Not because he is afraid. Allah Almighty will have brought to light everything they would ask. Because of this, people will be cut off from questions.

These, over time, the needy becoming wealthy - over time, it says - these, over time, the needy becoming wealthy, and the wealthy coming into need, within people's lifetimes, before Allah Almighty's commands and prohibitions are tested.

If, of course, his destiny holds being tried through poverty and wealth. Some come from poverty and go in poverty, we see it. Someone else goes from wealth, goes wealthy. And some go from wealth to poverty, and from poverty back to wealth again. So our Lord, who wrote as destiny for us that covenant, that wish we gave Allah Almighty, since He knows by what kind of test we will test ourselves in the world: the calamities that befell those before you - did you think you would enter Paradise before they befall you? Yes, we are being tested in the world. In any case we are tested, and with this test we prove what kind of person we are.

So in a situation where people need one another, a person, taking advantage of his brother's situation, without working, as a parasite, by lending money to the person, by taking interest from the needy, makes the person work for him.

Taking (?) of the principal many times over, without reducing anything from the principal, the borrower, not under the debt but under a heap of interest, remains crushed. Even though he pays his principal, in the end his goods and property are taken from his hands. And this is how a society is destroyed. Because Allah loves people, so that they do not fall apart, do not lose their love and respect for one another, He has shown them His laws. To people. Yes.

Allah Almighty has made known how the life-giving sides of people will be. How do we find life? He has made it known to us. What does He say? I am in need. I say to Ahmet Efendi: I need this much money right now. Will you give it? Of course. Here you are. When will you pay it back? Two months later, five months later. Fine. Take your money. Five months later he comes: I couldn't pay my money. The lender will remind him once. And the person facing him, (?): 'I have no money. Give me a little more time,' he will say. The lender is obliged to give this time. He will give it. In that time too, he couldn't pay.

The person couldn't pay. When he reminds him of his money a third time, if he cannot pay, it says, if your situation allows, you should forgive it to him - and if only you knew its place with Him, it says.

This also supports this verse. Who? They buy Paradise with their lives and their wealth. With their lives: the martyrs. With their wealth, who buys it? By giving charity to Allah's servants who are in need. That's why Allah Almighty kept speaking of charity in the verses. Yes. Well, in this case, does Allah Almighty forgive the state of such people, people who run the institution of interest? Yes, He forgives. If he repents. There is no other door to go to but Allah. No, He says, if he goes on like this, if he continues devouring interest - for that is what He says. What does He say? Whoever returns to interest again, they are the people of hell.

They will remain there forever, it says.

Even though he pays his principal, in the end his goods and property are taken from his hands. And this, it says, is how a society is destroyed. Because no bond of love and respect remains among people. No trust and confidence in one another remains. The bonds of brotherhood have been broken apart. A person goes to prayer. 'Forget about his praying. He devours interest,' they say. Even about one who prays. 'The one who prays also devours (?).' What has he done? He has become an enemy even to the one who prays. Or the one who prays has made people hostile even to prayer in the religion of Islam.

This is how bad it is. 'This hajji does this.' 'Look, the hajji does this.'

So under the title of Islam he places dynamite at the very root of Islam. In every respect interest is something Allah does not want.

Allah Almighty has made known how the life-giving sides of people will be. With what? With His religious rulings. If people invested their money in a line of business and shared in that business's profit and loss, the capital of that workplace (?), if by people becoming partners in workplaces the fields of work expanded, the unemployed found life by working in these fields, and people's social living standards rose, and the needy were helped from these too, would it not be better? That's why Allah Almighty says: do not run a black market, do not, by hoarding your goods, by raising prices, load a heavy burden on people's backs, He says.

So Allah - this money not into the pocket of the blood-sucking, octopus-like usurer through interest, not through people's deeds of revenge against one another, but helping one another with bonds of love, raising their living standards, not by the strong crushing the weak and leaving their families hungry and naked, but like a family home - since He wills that they eat the blessing Allah has bestowed sharing it as brothers, like a plate of food brought to the table, He has shown people the bonds by which they find life, yes, the ways by which they find life. To the interest-taker with such a bad habit, Allah speaks like this: If you continue with interest, in the hereafter you will rise from your grave as if struck by Satan and seized by a fit of madness.

Because there you have understood the truth, the truth. You have sensed what will befall you, sensed it. When they realise they will enter hell, it says, their eyes, sky blue, it says, bulge out; they throw themselves face down on the ground, it says. What I'm saying is the verse, the verse.

They are seized by their forelocks and thrown in through a narrow gate of hell, it says. May Allah protect us.

Yes, because there you have understood the truth, sensed what will befall you, understood that there is no return to the world, and you have felt the torment there with certainty. For such a person, the madness-like state that came upon him is little. The madness example in the world is little for him. That madness example you described a moment ago. That is little, little. After all, here you have a hope. What is this hope? I will die, I'll be rid of this. In the hereafter you don't even have such a hope. Why? Because Paradise and hell are eternal. There you are eternal, there is no death.

Yes, this state of theirs being like this is because they say interest is just like trade. Yet Allah Almighty has made trade lawful, while interest is haram. Trade is commerce. A person, freely and of his own will, learning the market situation, buys and sells the goods he will sell, wholesale or retail. Learning the market situation.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) says this hadith, in line with what I've said:

Do not stop a villager before he brings his goods to market and buy his goods, he says. What is this? Let that man come and learn the price at the market. Let him sell his goods at that price, secure his gain and meet his need. That man brings yoghurt, milk, eggs, cheese, whatever it is. You know the price, the market. The man is bringing it. As he brings it: how much is your cheese? Will you give me these at these prices? And you tell the man: I'll buy wholesale. You trick the man out of it. You buy these for three pennies, five pennies. And you will have wasted the man's labour. So what does it say?

Do not take a man's goods from him before he brings them to market and learns the market, he says. So what do we say too? A person, freely and of his own will, learning the market situation, buys and sells the goods he will sell, wholesale or retail. In this case he both makes a profit and makes a loss. The goods have gone up in value. Supply of the goods runs short. He profits from these goods; or, the opposite, more goods have come in. They lose value, and he makes a loss from that. It is a test from Allah upon people. But interest - just as it is not even the shadow of anything like trade, with interest there is pressure, oppression and tyranny over people.

There is taking their goods and property from their hands. God forbid, even the shadow of interest is enough to ruin people.

Yes, whoever heeds Allah's admonition, learns that interest is haram, and gives up interest, what is past is his. His matter is now left to Allah. If we open up the words 'left to Allah': a person, in a period of ignorance, practised usury and devoured interest. Then he heard Allah's verses, understood what interest is, and, giving Allah his word not to deal in interest, he repented. If this person turned to Allah and did not fall short in his prayer, his zakat, his hajj, his fasting, and remained in constant repentance, Allah Almighty on the Day of Judgement forgives this person's sins. The rights of the people he wronged, Allah Almighty gives to those people until they are content with this person.

After this, whoever returns to interest again, they are the people of hell, they will remain there forever. Those who violate people's rights and dues, who through interest wrong people and take their goods from their hands, who make light of Allah's verses and act according to their nafs, and who pass on to the hereafter in this way are eternally people of hell. May Allah Almighty protect us all from such an affliction of interest.