Islam and Politics in the Light of Said Nursi's Writings1

1. The author wishes to thank Armando Salvatore, Marcia Hermansen, Omid Safi, and Ali Aslan for their suggestions after reading the first draft of this paper.

Abstract

This article discusses in its introduction the concept of political Islam as it first developed during the final years of the Ottoman Empire, and Nursi's reaction to politics. The bulk of the article then focuses on Nursi's stance concerning politics. As a prolific author, scholar, and activist, Nursi has a unique place among his contemporaries and the article deliberately elaborates on why Nursi coined his famous statement, ‘I take refuge in God from Satan and politics.’ It also presents a limited comparison between Nursi's interpretation of some qur'anic verses and Sayyid Qutb's interpretation of these same texts.

Notes

1. The author wishes to thank Armando Salvatore, Marcia Hermansen, Omid Safi, and Ali Aslan for their suggestions after reading the first draft of this paper.

2. The fact that Islamic texts can be interpreted in different ways does not affect the unique nature of the religion itself. However, it does affect the nature of the followers of that religion. We may have political and apolitical Muslims, violent and peaceful Muslims, who all adhere to one unique religion, namely, Islam. John Esposito uses the term ‘political Islam’ interchangeably with ‘Islamic fundamentalism’. (For a good discussion on what political Islam is, see Esposito, 2000.) Mohammed Ayoob uses the terms ‘political Islam’ and ‘Islamism’ interchangeably (see Ayoob, 2005). Al-Hodaiby, on the ‘deceptive’ term of ‘political Islam’, says, ‘It gives the false impression that there is a distinction between Islam as a religion, with its creed, rights, and ethics, and Islam as a political system’ (see Al-Hodaiby, 1997, pp. 3–4). Such terms, used to define Islam, are ideological and one should remember that the majority of Muslims consider Islam to be not an ideology, but a religion. Therefore, I will use the term ‘political Islam’ for the sake of clarity and for lack of better options, to refer to politically oriented Muslims.

3. Hamid Algar considers him among the renewers of Islam (see Algar, 2001).

4. He was born in 1876 in the vicinity of the Bitlis Province of eastern Anatolia. Nursi did not receive the traditional long-term training of an ^c ālim. Although he was able to challenge the most learned madrasa scholars of his time, he obtained his madrasa knowledge within a short period of study. For more details, see Vahide, 1992, p. 21. Recently, the madrasa educational system in Islamic countries such as Pakistan has received widespread criticism. In fact, Nursi called attention to the inadequacy of this system almost a century ago, suggesting that such schools should provide both scientific and religious education.

5. For details on the relationship between religion and politics, see Ferjani, 2005.

6. The Risale-i Nur Kulliyati contains all the works of Nursi in two volumes. It is provided with a useful index.

7. For Islamism in Turkey, see Kara, 1997.

8. For a good discussion of Muslims' responses to modernity, see Mitchell, 2000.

9. See Ersoy, 1987, section 2, ‘Suleymaniye Kursusunde’, and section 6, ‘Asim’.

10. Also, for analysis of Said Nursi and social change, see Mardin, 1990. See also Yavuz, 1999.

11. For the young Turks' discontent with the Sultan's policy, see Hanioglu, 1995. For this particular conspiracy, see Sahiner, 1979, p. 45.

12. Nursi's book, Münazarat, contains a fine account of his views on constitutional government. This small book has been printed separately in Turkish (Nursi, 1995) but has unfortunately not been translated into English.

13. Nursi, 1996a, Divan-ı Harb-i Orfi (The Court Martial), pp. 1919–1933. This small treatise contains Nursi's defense at his court martial.

14. Nursi believed that modern science did not contradict Islam. He attempted to reconcile religion and science. He said, ‘The light of conscience is the sciences of religion, and the light of the mind is the natural sciences. By bringing these together, the truth will emerge as a result. The lack of the modern science causes fanaticism, and skepticism comes as a result of the lack of religious science’ (Nursi, 1995, p. 127). Despite his strong arguments, he was opposed by some of the ulama who were against modern sciences. Nursi called them ‘externalists’ (zahirperest), the ulama who know only the literal aspect of texts. Nursi complained about the ulama's lack of understanding and turned his face to the future and addressed his remarks to a younger generation.

15. For Ataturk's revolutions, see Inalcik, 1995, pp. 153–164. And for other aspects of Turkism, see Karpat, 1982, pp. 399–412.

16. This event is recorded by Nursi himself in an individual letter to his students. For the details of this conversation, see Nursi, 1996a, Emirdagˇ Lahikasi, p. 1785.

17. This Kurdish uprising had religious motivations. In his letter to Nursi, Shaykh Said said that the new Ankara government was going against Islam and he therefore invited Nursi to revolt against it, but Nursi rejected his invitation, telling him that the soldiers of Ataturk were their sons. In order to protect the rights of innocents, he asked him to conduct his struggle through non-violent action, as he himself did.

18. The Risale-i Nur collection consists of more than 6,000 pages. It can be roughly divided into three parts. The first and major part is the Hakaik-i Imaniyye (The Subjects of Faith). The second part is Lahikalar (Appendices), which consists of correspondence with his students. The third is called Müdafaalar (Court Defenses).

19. Due to their understanding of taqw¯ (piety), early Muslim scholars and jurists rejected appointments as governors and judges because of the risk of losing their spiritual standing by accepting a worldly position, despite the fact that their appointments would be under Islamic governments and they would be asked to judge under Islamic principles. Many pious Muslims, regardless, generally prefer to avoid accepting such positions because of the great responsibility that would be placed on their shoulders and the uncertainty of being able to fulfill that responsibility as God would require.

20. The article is cited in Emirdagˇ Lahikasi, which contains correspondence between Nursi and his students. This is Nursi's approach to politics. It should be noted that he used the term al-siyāsa al-shar^ciyya, which can be translated as ‘politics based on Islamic ethics’, or ‘politics based on Shari^ca’, but this aspect of politics is very subtly expressed in his writings. Nursi praised this type of politics. He used the term ‘Shari^ca’ in an encompassing way. Universal values and the good aspects of Western civilization, which takes its root from heavenly scriptures, such as the Torah and Gospel, were elements of the Shari^ca. Even natural laws were considered a type of divine Shari^ca.

21. For further information on the emergence and growth of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood, see Munson 2001.

22. Later, Nursi would make compassion one of the four principles of his thought: ^c ajz (weakness), faqr (poverty), shafaqa (compassion), and tafakkur (reflection) (see Nursi, 1996a, Sözler, pp. 210–212.) According to Muhammad Sa'id Ramadan al-Buti, a prominent Syrian scholar, Nursi was prompted to abandon politics by fundamental principles of sincerity and compassion towards all people, and by his belief that the basic law of politics—‘The individual may be sacrificed for the good of the nation’—led to the abuse of individual rights. For details, see Buti, 1997, p. 117.

23. At this time, Britain and Germany were the wealthiest nations in the world.

24. For details of Nursi's view on this subject, see Meyve Risalesi (The Treatise of the Fruit), a small book he wrote in Denizli Prison (1996a, pp. 948–987). Interestingly, in this setting, Nursi chose to write on the ultimate goal of humanity rather than to speak against those who had wrongly imprisoned him.

25. This hadith is discussed in Ajluni, n.d., vol. 2, p. 463, cited in Nursi, 1996a, Divan-ı Harb-i Orfi, p. 1921.

26. This verse had been used by the Kharijites, an extreme religio-political movement in early Islam, to proclaim the infidelity of ^cAli, the fourth caliph and the cousin of the Prophet. Many politically oriented extremist Islamic movements today refer to this verse, claiming that rulers who are not following the Shari'a law are infidels.

27. Executed in 1966 by the military ruler of Egypt, Gamal ^cAbd al-Nasir.

28. This refers to Nursi's account of being a prisoner of war in a Russian camp after the First World War. When the chief of staff approached the prisoners, of whom was Nursi one, Nursi refused to stand up because of his religious convictions. Nursi was nearly executed for his stance, but refused to apologize to the general. Later, when the general saw how true his faith was, the general himself apologized to Nursi.

29. For a detailed account for Nursi's understanding of non-violence, see Saritoprak, 2005.