Page 32 - The School of Yusuf (as)

THE SCHOOL OF YUSUF

considered in the light of the Qur’an. A Muslim’s imprisonment, the
duration of his sentence, and the moment of his release, are all de-
pendent on Allah’s will. Nothing and no one can be the cause of
anyone’s imprisonment unless Allah wills it. A person will be con-
fronted with such a situation only if it written for him according to

his destiny. If Allah wills for a Muslim to be imprisoned, there will
be much benefit and good in the time he spends there. But this is a
truth only those few of profound insight and strong faith can com-
prehend.
Bediuzzaman Said Nursi is one whose life is an example in this
regard. Every time he was sent to the School of Yusuf, he reflected
on the wisdom and good in his imprisonment, and shared his

thoughts with all believers. The letters he wrote to his students
while in confinement contained much valuable advice. Ultimately,
he conveyed his profound wisdom in his master work, Risale-i Nur,
which he also wrote in prison. In everything he wrote, he refers to
his circumstances as being beneficial, and reminded others that
everything must be considered through faith and submission to
Allah. Particularly in his later years, when despite his ailing health,
Said Nursi was kept in unheated cells through bitter cold of winter
days, where he was often barred from any contact with the outside-

world, he continued to believe that everything occurred according
to fate, and that everything must be acquiesced to with submission
to Allah. As he wrote in one of his letters:
Then at that point, just when in those freezing conditions I was
most in need of rest and not catching cold and not thinking of

the world, I was overcome with anger and vexation at those who
had sent me into this intolerable exile, isolation, imprisonment,
and oppression, in a way that spelt out their hatred and ill-inten-

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