Al-Baqarah 9: They think they have deceived Allah and the believers. They do not realize they are deceiving only their nafs (ego).

In their own opinion, they think that they deceive Allah and the believers. In their opinion. That is, Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 9 of the Quran. By their own reckoning, that is. They think they deceive Allah and the believers. Because the believer knows what he is. Why does he know? It mentions the believers here. Beware the insight of the believer, for he sees with the light of Allah, it says. So beware the gaze of the believer. Because from the way you breathe, from your gaze, from your movements, from the words in your mouth, from what you live in your heart, he knows you. What was it? From the gaze.

From the gaze. What does Allah Almighty say in His verse? Allah knows the treacherous glance of the eyes, and He knows their good glance too, it says. Of the eyes.

If a tiny particle of that — if it says beware the believer's insight — that believer, from the look in that person's eyes, from his conduct and movements, from his manner, from the distress or the zeal in his heart, understands what he is.

The believer. That is why Allah Almighty mentions the believers here. In their opinion, they think they deceive Allah and the believers. Yet they deceive no one but their own selves.

How beautifully Allah Almighty puts it. Such people are those who turn their backs on the purpose of their creation. We have written this; now let us open it up sentence by sentence. Such people are those who turn their backs on the purpose of their creation. Why was man created? Allah created him for (?); He created him so that His essence would be known. So: 'I will create a being such that, without Me programming that being, by its own desire and wish it will have its own will written for itself as destiny,' He says. 'So I will give a particle of all the qualities in My essence to the one I create, and I will make what I create a mirror for Myself.

In this mirror that human, by his own will, will govern himself, and his own desire and wish, his will, he will have written as destiny, and I will give him all of his destiny. Whether he obeys Me or not, I will make him prove to himself what kind of (?) he is,' He says. So such people are people who turn their backs on the purpose of their creation. They (?) that, they turned their backs. They carry on acting as if there were no death, and 'is now the time for death?' they say when death is brought up. They never bring death to mind. Or, falling into the notion of (?) after death, they are people who deny the realm of the hereafter.

Indeed, today even the weak in faith among Muslims, although believing in the hereafter is required, say: 'Brother, it's really doubtful; has anyone really come back? Will we really be resurrected?' Will we really be resurrected? Well, weren't there the pillars of faith? What were the pillars of faith? To believe in Allah's books, His angels, His prophets, to believe in the hereafter, to believe in good and evil. So how did you become a Muslim? You doubt this. But as long as you say La ilahe illallah from your heart, even with doubts about Allah and His Messenger, as long as you believe and have faith, even with doubts — because you are not going anywhere else.

You have taken refuge here. You are protected in that refuge. But your rank will be very low. You may perhaps even meet punishment. But not forever. Provided, of course, you depart as a Muslim.

Yes. They are people who deny the hereafter, whereas a Muslim, even if he says this much, even if he doubts, does not deny the hereafter. The people in this delusion are those who have tied their whole lives to this world, who, living the worldly pleasures in their hearts as they wish and desire, want to merge with it, who are bent on living for the moment — such are these people. Look, such people, non-Muslims — even if they get trillions, they want another trillion to come. And as long as the trillions are there, in Allah they neither believe, nor trust, nor rely. Then in whom? He trusts neither his children, nor his wife, nor anyone else.

Then whom? He trusts that money. His whole god is money. Material things. His whole god is material things. If he has it, he has life. If he doesn't, he is finished. Life has no taste either. These are the ones who tie themselves to the world. Those who come under the verse in which He says only the disbelievers lose hope in Allah — such people. Yes.

This state of their nafs has shown them the world (?).

They say: 'That wealth I will get.' 'I will get this lifestyle.' 'This car model is very nice.' 'This house design is very nice.' He'll go off to the beaches, you know. Let me say it: he'll go on holiday. There he'll live among stark-naked people. He'll satisfy his nafs, that is. No Allah, no prophet, no book; modesty, decency, manners and so on — 'No, those are people of bygone times.' How can that be? It can't — just look at the animals today. In line with the purpose of their creation, each applies its own nature and its own rule. They apply their rules. The animals.

And humans have decency and manners above the animals, honour and dignity, and chastity. Well, by the verse in which He says they are like four-legged beasts roaming the earth — by its words: if, ignoring man's creation, among the other created beings, as the noblest of creatures, you envy the animals and say 'this noblest creation belonged to that old world' and (?) the creation of those animals and live like them, here is the verse for you. What does it say? They are like four-legged beasts roaming the earth.

Yes. How beautifully Allah Almighty puts it.

Our Lord will address all who come until the Day of Judgement like this. Then our return is to Him; it will catch us. There is no escaping it. Even an atom's worth — the return is to Him. After that, the great (?). The Day of Reckoning. Well, when you get the decree of salvation for this Day of Reckoning — did you, deceived by this passing, false world, turn your back on Allah?

One must think a little, one must be wise.

Yes. We continue. The veiling of their eyes towards the truth, and the blockage of their ears, has increased the hypocrisy in their hearts. Because with their deficient minds — Allah Almighty created minds deficient — they see their own minds as supreme; while our Lord shows us the right and true paths and wants us to walk that radiant path, that path of light and brightness, these — the swampy and dark paths they take for a bright path, and, making gods of their nafs, wandering those restless dead-end roads, people who follow Satan's footsteps through his deception — do you know what they say?

'We are enlightened people.' In fact, because they need light — those wandering in darkness, since they are in need of light, since they cannot see the light, out of longing for that light they say 'we are enlightened people.' Enlightenment is not like that.

Look, every night has a morning, a light, a day. If the light of Allah is not upon them, they are not enlightened; living in the darkness of night, lost in pitch darkness, wandering in swamps, they are poor wretches.

Who is enlightened? However much he may have wandered in darkness, if the light of Allah is in him, one day his morning will come. Light will dawn on him. That is the light of Islam. Yes.

So, towards the truth, their eyes being veiled and their ears blocked have increased the hypocrisy in their hearts. Thinking they know everything, regarding the people before them as fools, they think they are fooling the Muslims. Poor wretches. They think they have established dominance over them.

This behaviour of theirs resembles the example of the ostrich.

The example of the ostrich.

When the ostrich sees its enemy and realises it cannot escape, it buries its head in the sand and thinks it cannot be seen, so they say. Yet its whole body is in plain view. Now, in the (?) of the time, someone who does not believe in Islam — but if you ask him himself, he's a Muslim.

He comes to me, prays beside me, prays behind me, on my right, on my left, he hangs around us. I would understand: he needs something again. He's going to ask us for something. Because there's no prayer, no intention, nothing at all. When he came to me, showing himself that way, he would supposedly exploit our conscience and get help from us to live on. I would say to him: come here, hypocrite. Come here. 'Again I have a need.' Either appear as you are or be as you appear. Don't offer yourself up like this for your need, for worldly gain. 'What do you want?' I said to him. At least let him not think he is fooling the person before him.

I would help — and I did help. At least let him not think he fooled us. Thinking 'I fooled him.' Let him not say 'I took advantage of him.' 'Come,' I told him, 'come. Fine, pray — but not to show off to me, not to benefit from me; pray for Allah,' I told him. Yes. So these talk of deceiving them, of deceiving the Muslims, they say. Yet they only deceive their own selves, the poor wretches.