Page 166 - Self-Sacrifice in the Qur'an's Moral Teachings

Self-Sacrifice in the Qur'an's Moral Teachings

vited to Ankara. Arriving there in 1922, he was given a formal state re-
ception. However, he rejected its request that he become an official
public preacher, a member of the Assembly, or the director of the
Department of Religious Affairs.
In 1925, a man by the name of Sheikh Said rebelled against
Ankara. Although Said Nursi had no involvement in the rebellion, he
was removed from Van and taken to Burdur, and, later on, exiled to
Barla (Isparta province). There, he wrote the greater part of his mag-
num opus: the Risale-i Nur.
In 1934, those who saw the Risales as their greatest obstacle
wanted to bring Said Nursi to the center of Isparta, where they could
keep him under closer control. He continued his work there. In 1935,
the police searched his house and confiscated all of his books. In addi-
tion, he was arrested and questioned, but was released when no in-
criminating evidence could be found. He was arrested again a few
days later and questioned about his Risales. After that, he and 120 of his
students were sent in military vehicles to prison in Eskisehir. Said
Nursi remained in prison during his trial for treason. The Eskisehir
Criminal Court sentenced him to 11 months in prison and compulsory
residence in Kastamonu; fifteen of his students were sentenced to six

months each.
In 1943, while he was in Kastamonu under surveillance, he was
again arrested on a warrant from the state prosecutor in Isparta.
Although he was very ill, he was taken to Ankara and from there to
Isparta by train. When the court cases regarding the Risales were com-
bined with those in Denizli, Said Nursi was sent to Denizli. There, he
was again isolated in a prison and lived under very difficult condi-
tions. But during the trial, he continued to write the Risales. Later on in
1944, even after he had been acquitted, the government ordered Said

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