Al-Anfal 45: Oh you believers! Whenever you encounter a group, be steadfast and remember Allah often so that you will reach salvation.

Surah Al-Anfal, the 45th verse: O you who believe, when you meet any group, stand firm and remember Allah much, so that you may succeed. None of this saying 'Allah' when in straits, and when you come into plenty, saying 'yallah'. If you seek Allah both in hardship and in plenty, Allah too will be with you. Yes, here, by Hazrat Ahmet ibn Can, in that book he wrote, a person, at the House of Allah, to the ring clinging,

to the ring, says: Be my witness tomorrow on Judgment Day. I came here, I am remembering my Lord, I am worshipping Him — when he says this, from behind him a very old man chuckles quietly.

The one who sought help from the iron, telling it, 'be my witness' — 'Aren't you ashamed? I am praying to my Lord and you laugh,' he says. Well, my son, he says, is there help from iron for a human, he says.

My help is from Allah — say it to Allah, he says. You came all the way here; look, this house, he says, beyt, is the house of Allah.

Father, who are you, he says. Don't you recognize me, he says. Why should I recognize you, he says. Then ask Allah about me, he says. 'Allah, Allah,' the man says. What kind of person is this, that

he tells me to ask You about him, he says. At that moment he hears a voice from the unseen. He is My — hu — friend, hu hu, hu, he is My friend, it says. He immediately grabs the man's hand. He says: Father, tell me, let me do you some service. My son, he says, I have hardly drunk water in my life, he says, bring some water from there, from Zamzam, he says, so in the last moments of my life I can drink my fill of water from there, he says. He goes, runs at once, to get water from Zamzam, fills it, brings the bottle back, and sees that the man has passed away. He beats his breast: what a lowly servant of Allah I am, he says, that to a servant Allah loves I could not be of service, he says.

Then it occurs to him: at least let me serve the dead man, he says, and he goes at once, from the market buys a shroud and comes back, and sees that the dead man is not there. He beats his breast. My Allah, what is this, he says. Again he hears a voice from the unseen. The one who remembers Me in times of plenty, would I leave him alone in times of hardship, it says. I took him long ago and put him in his place, it says. Yes. Look how beautifully it says it.

O you who believe, when you meet any group, stand firm and remember Allah much, so that you may succeed. Remember much. Not only in hard times, but in times of plenty too. Yes. I always remembered Allah. Ever since (?) too. Although I suffered many calamities, I never complained, and never was I unhappy. But I always remembered my Lord.

So you too, remember Allah much. Because He is both our owner, the One who created us, and the One who, though He expects nothing from us, promises us the abode of eternal bliss.

Our Sovereign, abundant in mercy, who provides for us with plentiful provision. Our Creator. That is why one must remember Allah much. Will you remember Him for the blessings He gave? Will you remember Him, give thanks, for creating you as a human? Will you thank Him for giving you from His spirit and making you a part of His essence? Will you thank Him for creating you honored above the worlds? He placed all blessings at your command — will you thank Him for that? He made you vicegerent on earth — will you thank Him for that? For which of them will you give thanks? The blessings He gives are countless.

But see how the human is so attached to his nafs that he eats and drinks these beautiful blessings Allah gives, but the One who gives that blessing he never wants to see; in pride, arrogance, fame and renown, ego and grandeur, with the game of his nafs and the temptation of Satan he lives his life and becomes like a bankrupt merchant.

May Allah protect us from such feelings. We will refrain from such feelings, inshallah.

Yes. O you who believe! When you meet any group of an enemy army, do not, because of your small numbers, lose heart and turn back. Stand firm in battle. Allah is with the Muslims. Yes. But with the Muslim.

Not people who appear Muslim but are unaware of themselves. Well, Hodja, in the battles of Çanakkale, in the Caucasus, they fought until a single person remained, and gave their lives there. What kind of 'being with' is this? Such a question might come to our mind. In fact, in the Battle of Çanakkale they call him the flag sergeant. One single man was left. So as not to hand over the banner, he tore it into pieces and swallowed it. He died there. So as not to surrender the banner, he fought to the end like that. He too was martyred there. Those martyrs down to the last man, those who at Çanakkale fought, thinking a unit will come from behind and rescue us, did not turn back. There they drank the sherbet of martyrdom and attained Allah's mercy, but they did not turn back.

So then, is the life of this world more beautiful, or — carrying out Allah's command, drinking the sherbet of martyrdom, being honored with Allah Almighty's smiling welcome and with His verse that says, 'They are alive, they are provided for in ways you do not know' — is it more beautiful to be honored by that verse? Yes. In this case, Allah Almighty already takes those He loves first during battle, those He loves, those martyrs. Then the others, who see that their comrades have died, that they were martyred, are stirred up; the strength of faith is this; if he also keeps his feet firm, does not draw back, and carries out Allah's command, they win the war.

At Çanakkale they were martyred until one single man remained, but that one man there, by dying, did not surrender the homeland. He did not surrender the homeland, and although he sacrificed his life, Allah was with them; thanks to them Allah Almighty granted the homeland to those left behind. And though they were martyred, their children, the religion of Islam that came after them, He did not let fall into captivity. Yes, if this is not Allah's help, what is it? Had they rebelled against Allah's command, had they, instead of martyrdom there, retreated and fled, today perhaps we would be carrying on our lives under many enemy boots. Yes.

O you who believe, when you meet any group, stand firm and remember Allah much, so that you may succeed. When you meet any group of an enemy army, do not lose heart because of your small numbers and turn back; stand firm in battle. Surely Allah wants, from among you, of those who love Allah's essence, to take martyrs.

Remember Allah much and make dhikr, so that you may succeed. Allah does not leave alone those who remember Him and make dhikr of Him. Whoever says 'Allah', Allah says 'Here I am, My servant'. Whoever mentions Me, He says, in a gathering, I mention him in a better gathering than that, He says. Whoever remembers Me within himself, I remember him within Myself, He says. Yes. Whenever one finds the chance, one makes dhikr. What is dhikr? It is repeating something. Inshallah, you say La ilahe illallah. There is no god but Allah. Then it comes down. La ilahe illallah, La ilahe illallah, La ilahe illallah. Well, this became dhikr.

This became dhikr. Well, for example, Subhanallah, Subhanallah,

I said. This too is dhikr.

Now, when I said this too is dhikr, the tasbih came to my mind. Alhamdulillah is a dhikr. Subhanallah is a dhikr. Allahu Akbar is a dhikr.

Some people, some people — let us put it this way, these people, either deliberately or in ignorance, some people, falling for the games of the enemies of religion, regard the tasbihat after the prayer as bid'ah. They say it is bid'ah. The aim is to make you deny a verse. Hodja, what verse is the tasbihat? Yes. The tasbihat is a verse. Which verse? 'After the prayer, remember Allah for a while,' it says in the verse. What does it say? After the prayer, remember Allah for a while. And the Prophet tells us how that dhikr should be. What does he say? Alhamdulillah, he says. That is, thank Allah. Then Subhanallah. He is Subhan, He is pure.

He is the One who purifies. Then he also says Allahu Akbar. There is nothing greater than Him, he says. How beautiful. Through the tasbihat he has us recite the meaning of the verse. After the prayer, remember Allah for a while, it says. (?) So those enemies of religion, or people living in ignorance, or people who read the Quran yet do not grasp it, fall into such games. Yes. Today one of our children told us an example from Hazrat Mevlana like this. It says: Hazrat Mevlana — well, very beautifully recites the Quran. Very beautifully.

Either Hazrat Mevlana or Hazrat Mevlana's student.

And Hazrat Mevlana says: my son, my child, very beautifully reciting the Quran, you have gathered the walnuts one by one, he says. One by one. But eating the kernel inside is more virtuous, he says. That is, understanding those verses is more virtuous. Understanding the verses.

Today we read the Quran like parrots but we are unaware of the verses. We read like parrots, unaware of the essence of the verses.

A person says the tasbihat is bid'ah, and in the end, though he reads the verses, he is unaware of the verses.

So: remember Allah much and make dhikr, so that you may succeed. Allah does not leave alone those who remember Him and make dhikr of Him. Allah Almighty, whether on the battlefields or while people are doing any work or in their trade, is with them.

On the battlefields they are helped by Allah's power. In their work or trade, Allah gives a person good understanding. Allah Almighty has many unknown doors. He opens doors of good upon His servants. He brings to success those people who remember Him. As the verse also says: I have such servants that neither buying and selling nor trade keeps them from My remembrance. In this case, that person, while trading, observes what is right. Weighing himself under the verses' (?) as to whether he is cheating the person in front of him, he trades. In every matter, in every word: before my Lord, how will I give account for these words of mine — so he calls himself to account in his conscience in the presence of his Lord.

This too is a dhikr. In every trade, in every conversation, whether he cheats a person or not, whether he gives good goods or not — thinking about these, acting in fear of his Lord is a dhikr. That is it: neither buying and selling nor trade keeps them from My remembrance, it says. There is an important (?). There is absent-mindedness, you know; these are exceptions. As soon as the person comes to, he turns back to his Lord with repentance and asking forgiveness. Yes.

Allah Almighty has many unknown doors. He opens doors of good upon His servants. He brings those who remember Him to success. This success is both worldly and otherworldly. Just as he attains success in the world, at the end of his life, when he passes to the hereafter, he will have won victory by attaining Allah's mercy. This is true success. Being with Allah and attaining Allah's mercy. This is true success.