Al-Isra 21: See how some people are superior to others. Verily, the hereafter is greater in terms of degrees and superiority.

A. Metin Saruhan · 21 February 2022 · Misinterpreted Verses

The misinterpretation

Look how we have made some people superior to others. Of course, the Hereafter is greater in terms of differences in degree and superiority.

The right translation

See how some people are superior to others. Verily, the hereafter is greater in terms of degrees and superiority.

Explanation

This is where we have gone wrong: How We have made some people superior to others. The truth is: How some people are superior to others.

Our Lord does not favor anyone over anyone else. Because when people made a covenant with our Lord in the Elestu bi Rabbikum address, our Lord wrote their destiny according to the degree of faith of each person. In this case, Our Lord knows those who are more faithful to Our Lord, those who love Our Lord more in their hearts. Because Our Lord says in His verse, "We know the secrets of your hearts". In this case, those who are closer to our Lord are not the same as those who have a low degree of faith. Just as people who work in the world are not the same as those with high earnings and those with low earnings who can barely support themselves, even though they get what they work for in the world to come, when they make a covenant with our Lord in the Hereafter, their degree of faith in our Lord is not the same. The correct way of opening the verse is not how We have made some people superior to others, but how some people are superior to others. Because they have misinterpreted all such verses, they have accused our Lord of injustice, of discriminating between people.

What is said in the video

In verse 21 of Surah Al-Isra, among its wrongly translated verses, we are reading the wrong one. "Look how We have made some people superior to others."

This part is wrong. Allah does not make anyone superior to another. What would He be doing here? He would be committing injustice. Allah would be discriminating among His creatures. Can that be? Well, they ask the Prophet (peace be upon him): Whom do you call a wrongdoer? He says: a father who discriminates among his children is also a wrongdoer. Well, if we as humans discriminate among children and become wrongdoers, would Allah, as the Creator, (?) the lack of His justice to man, sir, and Himself be judged by this deficiency? God forbid. Allah Almighty is exalted above deficiency and excess. If He gives a part of His spirit, to Him they are all one.

All are one. Even in this world, in the verse He says, your world, We distributed it equally. In the verse He says: whether unbelievers or Muslims, We distributed equally. To some He gave oil, to some gas, to some crops, He gave and gave.

He distributed the world equally. In this case Allah Almighty has ruled with His attribute of justice. On earth, unbeliever, Muslim, idolater, Magian, He did not distinguish any of them. He gave them all equal rights. People, by the deeds they do, show what kind of person they are, they prove it. When he comes before Allah Almighty, he won't be able to say: You gave him this, You didn't give it to me, that's why I did this like that. Yes. What does it say? Here: "Look how We have made some people superior to others. Surely the Hereafter is greater in degrees and in differences of superiority," it says. Whereas it says: look how some people are superior to others.

Look, how beautifully it puts it. Don't your eyes see? Ahmet and Mehmet go to the mosque, Hasan and Hüseyin do dhikr. And you, sir, go after drink, after gambling. And you go after adultery. Now you... Are those who know and those who don't equal? Are those who obey Allah and those who don't equal? The one who carries out the command of Him who created the worlds from nothing, the Owner of the worlds, and the one who turns his back on Him, are they equal? Yes, surely the Hereafter is greater in degrees and degrees and in differences of superiority. Paradise has seven degrees too. The human self has seven states too.

What does it say? In the human self there are seven states of the nafs. Nafs ammara, nafs lawwama, nafs mulhima, nafs mutmainna, nafs radiya, nafs mardiyya, nafs safiya. Those at nafs safiya are the righteous servants. Together with the prophets. Nafs radiya, and (?) is like that too. Nafs radiya is the state of ilm al-yaqin. Nafs mutmainna: the believers. Nafs lawwama: people who have not become believers, people of karamat. These can slip. Is the Paradise of one who prays with nafs ammara or nafs lawwama the same? Sir, or the one who prays and the person who is God-fearing and rises to nafs mulhima, are they equal? The one at nafs mulhima with the door of karamat, and the person who has risen to nafs mutmainna and come to know the divine manifestations, are they equal?

They have degrees, part by part. It's like that here too, isn't it? Now let's put it this way. Is the understanding of a primary school pupil and a middle school pupil the same? Is the understanding of a middle school pupil and a high school pupil the same? Is the understanding of high school the same as university? Is the understanding of someone with a doctorate the same as the other's? It's all like that, part by part. By the degree of their faith, by how they know Allah, they have risen degree by degree in the Paradises. For example, to one He gave a house. To another He gave two houses. To another He gave a yacht. To another He gave a palace.

To another He gave a palace together with an estate. Like that. To another He gave gardens beneath which rivers flow. Earn in this world, receive there. He doesn't say: work and give it to Me. Reform your nafs. Get along well with your people. Fulfil Allah's commands.

Do not oppress anyone out of spite (?).

Yes. He doesn't ask anything of us. He always asks goodness of us. If we do good, if it pleases our Lord, He raises us degree by degree. Of course.