Al-Isra 17: We have destroyed many generations after Noah. Your Lord is sufficient as the One who knows and sees the sins of Allah’s servants.

We have come to Surah Al-Isra, verse 17. We destroyed many of the generations after Noah, it says.

Why does it not say after Adam, but speaks of Noah? "O Noah, take those who believe in you onto the ship, and of the animals take one pair each." And He drowns the world in water. Whatever living things there are, after Noah's ship, all of them perish. Then the second spreading of humans and of creatures comes from Noah, that is why. We destroyed many of the generations after Noah. Your Lord suffices as the one who knows and sees the sins of His servants, it says. How beautifully it says it. "Your Lord suffices as the one who knows and sees the sins of His servants," it does not say. Does He know their sins but not know their good deeds?

Now, since He will give an extra plus, you see, for their good deeds, and since He sees them, those who give those good deeds, as His own, (?) it says. That is, because they are destined for Paradise. That warning is for those who rebel against Allah. Many of the people who multiplied again after Noah (peace be upon him) took no lessons from these places where it all happened. These people's evils made them forget Allah, who had brought their ancestors to safety, and they returned again to their unruliness and to denying Allah. Because man cannot step outside whatever covenant he made at Kalû Belâ.

Allah Almighty knows what people will do in the world of mulk, and what those to come until Judgment Day, people and living beings, His creatures, will need and spend. Allah, in the world of mulk, a hidden world, makes people live in a world where His essence is veiled. For those who saw their Lord at Kalû Belâ and yet denied, Allah Almighty created a world where His essence is not seen, the earthly world, and sent mankind into the world. This world is a world of the unseen. That is, a world where Allah Almighty is not seen. Yes, so that people could not say, "Had You sent me to a world where Your essence is not seen, see how I would have worshipped You," Allah Almighty created these worlds.

This is what the verse I read a moment ago means. You know, before the Quran, it says: "Had You sent me prophets before this, that is, had You sent them to the world of mulk and warned me, see how I would have worshipped You" - so that you would not say this, We did these things, it says. Yes.

Because Allah gave man from His spirit, man is in the likeness of his Lord. Now here again, to the superstition-mongers we call out. We say to the superstition-mongers: O people ruled by superstition, get this firmly into your heads. Allah Almighty has given His spirit to no being other than man.

You who give a spirit to cats and dogs, who give a spirit to plants and nature, who, it says, even know about the cat at home, who bring spirits into the world and take them away, get this firmly into your heads. Allah gave man from His spirit, to man alone. There is no other being. Because He gave man from His spirit, man is the likeness and a part of his Lord. The likeness. If you take a drop of water from the oceans, what does it do? It carries the properties of the ocean. The universal spirit is Allah Almighty. From a part of it He created the Prophet. From his spirit He created the spirits of the prophets, and from the prophets' spirits He created the spirits of their peoples. So the prophets are the elders and (?) of their peoples. So people were created as a part of their Lord, and for this reason, as a mercy to the worlds, the Prophet was sent, and people were created honoured above the worlds.

And this honour comes from Allah Almighty giving a part of His spirit. So in that world of lahut, at the address "Elestü bi-Rabbiküm," when He said, "I am your Lord," because our spirits there saw our Lord as being like themselves, they obeyed the Lord they had awaited in their own imagination, and turned their backs on Allah who created them. And the verse "In the time of My Beloved, they too betrayed Me" means exactly this. But Hodja, they said yes. They said yes. How did they say yes? They misunderstand the "yes" too. I gave those people such a reason that with this reason these people know that they were created.

Although they knew they were created thus, although before them I, it says, with My essence said "I created you," they denied Me. Awaiting the Lord of their imagination, they obeyed him, it says. And so idolatry arose. And Allah Almighty says this verse to such people: They will not be able to see their Lord. And those poor superstition-mongers who say "I am a scholar" say: in Paradise, look, Allah Almighty's (?) is indicated, they say. And look, it says they will be gathered blind, it says. These are scholars, mind you. Now I will also read to you here that they will be gathered blind. Then what is this?

What is it? It symbolizes that there is no god but Allah. They will not be able to see their Lord. Because there is no god besides Allah who could be His equal and partner, so that they would see what they created. What does this symbolize? When it says they will not be able to see their Lord, it symbolizes tawhid. Yes, oh you, man who says "I am a scholar," does he know about these, does he know about these verses? They are all sleepwalkers, copies of one another; where they hold rank and office, they neither obey the truth nor explain the truth to people, and they try to trip up those who explain the truth.

Tripping up: in this world, many scholars were tripped up; both the one who tripped and the one tripped have passed on to the hereafter. Tomorrow, at that gathering, at the Gathering, at the supreme court, they will give account; we too will give account, we too will give account. So then, let us come to our senses and take our place in Allah's ranks. Yes.

And it says: because Allah gave man from His spirit, man is in the likeness of his Lord. Therefore, since man would not accept his own likeness as Lord, Allah Almighty created these worlds and, to this world where His essence is veiled, sent man. Since Allah Almighty is free of deficient attributes, so that no one could question or call Allah Almighty to account, Allah Almighty created these worlds and placed the responsibility on people. Now we prove what we have said with many verses. We say: when Allah Almighty created Adam, before giving the spirit, He did not say to Satan and the angels, "Prostrate." Is that so? "When I give him of My spirit," it says, "you shall prostrate." And after giving Adam the spirit, He had Satan and the angels prostrate to Adam.

Satan was not among those who prostrated. He played a game of logic. Now, we have no business with Satan. Why did He not have them prostrate before giving the spirit? If He had had them prostrate before giving the spirit, Allah would have made others prostrate to beings other than His essence. Then why did He have them prostrate after giving His spirit? Because there was a part of Allah Almighty in him. Because He gave from His spirit to man, whom He created honoured above the worlds, because He created him honoured above all the worlds, prostration to Adam was prostration to Allah. So there is a part of Allah in man.

So if He has them prostrate after giving Adam the spirit, O superstition-monger, when you put some spirit into the cat, the dog, nature, will you have man, to that nature, that cat and dog, prostrate? Superstition-monger.

Yes, do you understand His verses, superstition-monger?

So.

So, despite such clear miracles of Allah Almighty, when people stray from the right path and adopt evil ways as the motto of their own nafs: those who, emulating such people, live the same life, many peoples who overstepped Allah's limits, Allah Almighty has destroyed. Of all people and living beings, as the one who knows and sees their sins, Allah suffices. Allah is not separate from His creation. He is the one who, from the eye that sees them, knows their states. Although people do not know themselves and are unaware of what they will need, Allah is aware of these states of theirs. Allah is closer to man than his jugular vein.

For man, within his own destiny, cannot know what will happen a moment later. Whereas Allah Almighty knows not just of the living people but of the people to come until Judgment Day, what they will do. Because He is the one who wrote their wishes for them as their destiny. Allah, who gives people their feelings and their nature according to their destiny, has power over all things.