Oneness of Allah

The Twentieth Letter

In His Name, be He glorified!

And there is nothing but its glorifies Him with praise.

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.

There is no god but God, He is One, He has no partner; His is the dominion and His is the praise; He alone grants life, and deals death, and He is living and dies not; all good is in His hand, He is powerful over all things, and with Him all things have their end.

[This sentence expressing Divine Unity, which is recited following the morning and evening prayers, possesses numerous merits and according to an authentic narration, bears the degree of the Greatest Name. It contains eleven phrases, in each of which are both some good news and tidings, and a degree in the affirmation of the Unity of God's Dominicality, and an aspect of the grandeur and perfection of Divine Unity from the point of view of a Greatest Name. Referring the explanation of these great and elevated truths to other parts of the Risale-i Nur, in fulfillment of a promise we shall for now write a brief, index-like summary of them in two Stations and an Introduction.]

Windows of Faith

The Thirty-Third Word

This Word consists of
Thirty-Three Windows

While being the Thirty-Third Letter,
this is also the Thirty-Third Word.

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
We shall show them Our signs in the furthest horizons and in themselves, so that it will become clear to them that this [Qur'an] is indeed the Truth. Is it not enough that your Sustainer witnesses all things?1

Question: We would like a concise explanation of the ways man and the universe, that is, the microcosm and the macrocosm, point to the necessary existence and Unity of God and His Dominical attributes and functions, which the two parts of the above verse denote. For the unbelievers have gone too far, they are saying: "For how long shall we say: 'And He is powerful over all things', and have to raise our hands?"
Answer: The thirty-three Words that have been written form thirty-three drops from the ocean of this verse and from the seas of truth which flow from it. If you look at them, you will find your answer. What we say now is only a sort of hint to the sprinkling of a single drop from the ocean.
For example, if a wonderworker wants to build a mighty palace, he first of all sets the foundations in a wise and regular fashion, and plans them in a way suitable to their future purpose and results. Then he skilfully divides them into sections and apartments. Next, he orders and arranges the apartments, and decorates them with tapestries, then illuminates them with electric lights. Then, in order to renew his ingenious works and favours in that magnificent and adorned palace, he makes fresh creations and new changes and transformations in every level of it. And then he installs a telephone in each apartment connected to his own abode, and opens up a window from each, so that his may be seen.
In just the same way, And God's is the highest similitude,2 the Peerless Creator, Who is named with a thousand and one sacred Names such as All-Glorious Maker, All-Wise Sovereign, All-Just Arbiter, willed the creation of the palace of the universe and tree of the cosmos, which forms the macrocosm. He set the foundations of the palace, the tree in six days through the principles of wisdom and laws of His pre-eternal knowledge, then He divided and formed it into the higher and lower levels and branches through the principles of Divine Determining and Decree. Next, He adorned everything, each world in an appropriate manner, like the heavens with the stars and the earth with flowers. Then He manifested and made luminous His Names within the arena of those universal laws and general principles. And then in a special way sent to the assistance of individuals crying out at the constraint of those universal laws His Names of Most Merciful and All-Compassionate. That is to say, within those universal and general principles He has special favours, special succour, special manifestations, so that everything may seek help from Him and look to Him at every time for every need. Then from every apartment, every level, every world, every realm of being, every individual, from everything, He opened up windows which would show Himself, that is, make known His existence and Unity. He left a telephone in every heart.
For now we shall not attempt to discuss those innumerable windows, which is anyway beyond our power. Referring them to the all-encompassing knowledge of God, we shall only point out in a concise and brief manner Thirty-Three Windows-since it corresponds to the blessed number of the tesbihat following the prescribed prayers, and for a more detailed explanation of this, which forms the Thirty-Third Letter and Thirty-Third Word and consists of gleams from verses of the Qur'an, we refer readers to the rest of the Words. 

Human and Universe

The Twenty-Third Word

[This Word contains Two Chapters]

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.
Indeed, We have created man on the most excellent of patterns, * Then sent him down to the lowest of the low, * Except those who believe and do good deeds.

First Chapter

We shall explain in Five Points only five of the virtues of belief out of thousands.

FIRST POINT
Through the light of belief, man rises to the highest of the high and acquires a value worthy of Paradise. And through the darkness of unbelief, he descends to the lowest of the low and falls to a position fit for Hell. For belief connects man to the All-Glorious Maker; it is a relation. Thus, man acquires value by virtue of the Divine art and inscriptions of the Dominical Names which become apparent in him through belief. Unbelief severs the relation, and due to that severance the Dominical art is concealed. His value then is only in respect to the matter of his physical being. And since this matter has only a transitory, passing, temporary animal life, its value is virtually nothing. We shall explain this mystery by means of a comparison:
For example: among man's arts, the value of the materials used and that of the art are entirely different. Sometimes they are equal, sometimes the material is more valuable, and sometimes it happens that five dollars' worth of art is to be found in material like iron worth five cents. Sometimes, even, an antique work of art is worth a million while the material of which it is composed is not worth five cents. And so, if such a work of art is taken to the antiques market and related to a brilliant and accomplished artist of former times, and announced mentioning the artist and that art, it may be sold for a million dollars. Whereas if it is taken to the scrap dealers, the only price received will be for the five cent's worth of iron.Thus, man is such an antique work of art of Almighty God. He is a most subtle and graceful miracle of His power whom He created to manifest all his Names and their inscriptions, in the form of a miniature specimen of the universe. If the light of belief enters his being, all the meaningful inscriptions on him may be read. As one who believes, he reads them consciously, and through that relation, he causes others to read them. That is to say, the Dominical art in man becomes apparent through meanings like, "I am the creature and artefact of the All-Glorious Maker. I manifest His mercy and munificence." That is, belief, which consists of being connected to the Maker, makes apparent all the works of art in man. Man's value is in accordance with that Dominical art, and by virtue of being a mirror to the Eternally Besought One. In this respect insignificant man becomes God's addressee and a guest of the Sustainer worthy of Paradise superior to all other creatures.However, should unbelief, which consists of the severance of the relation, enter man's being, then all those meaningful inscriptions of the Divine Names are plunged into darkness and cannot be read. For if the Maker is forgotten, the spiritual aspects which look to Him will not be comprehended, they will be as though reversed. The majority of those meaningful sublime arts and elevated inscriptions will be hidden. The remainder, those that may be seen with the eye, will be attributed to lowly causes, Nature, and chance, and will fall utterly from value. While each is a brilliant diamond, each becomes a piece of dull glass. His importance looks only to his animal, physical being. And as we said, the aim and fruit of his physical being is only to pass a brief and partial life as the most impotent, needy, and grieving of animals. Then it decays and departs. See how unbelief destroys human nature, and transforms it from diamonds into coal.