In a powerful khutbah delivered on 4 December 2020, Ayberk Efendi reminded us that true closeness to the Divine is never attained through oppression or worldly power. He began with the Qur’anic call: “O believers, fear Allah and obey Him.” From this injunction he drew a deeper insight about friendship, truth and the spiritual pitfalls of our age.
The Higher Truth Beyond National Proverbs
A familiar Turkish saying holds that “a Turk has no friend except another Turk.” Whatever cultural solidarity it expresses, Ayberk Efendi invited us to look beyond such worldly measures. For a servant of Allah, the only true companion is the Truth itself – Allah alone. This reality surpasses every ethnic or social bond and anchors our hearts in an everlasting relationship with the Divine.
When Tyranny Becomes a Test
In today’s world, many who have drifted away from scholars and authentic guidance may mistakenly be drawn toward tyrants, hoping that oppression will somehow bring them closer to Allah. The khutbah explained that if people are not awakened to remembrance through learned teachers, Allah may allow the harshness of tyranny to serve as a corrective. This is no endorsement of oppression; it is a reminder that every trial contains a hidden mercy. As the khutbah put it, “In every hardship there is relief, and in every relief there is a test.”
Each soul will find Allah either through the clear light of scholarly counsel or through the darkness of tyranny. Tyranny is not a prescribed route but a test for those who have turned away from true guidance. Our final return – “to Him we shall all return” – remains unchanged, and it is through sincere remembrance that we become among those who understand.
We are encouraged to seek Allah first through the counsel of learned scholars, whose words illuminate the heart without the need for suffering. In this way we place ourselves under the mercy of the Almighty, who watches over every servant, even those who wander.
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