M Fethullah Gülen

"Call to good and prevent wrong"-- amr bil ma'ruf wa nahy an al munkar. Depending on the translations within the Qur'anic contexts, "calling to good" may be rendered as promoting the right, just, honorable, righteous behavior, and virtue; whereas "preventing wrong" is forbidding what is evil, dishonorable, and vice. The Qur'an urges believers to embrace this duty individually and collectively and praises them when they practice this obligation (Al 'Imran 3:104, 110). This duty is meant to encourage righteous behavior and discourage immorality and aims to remove oppression from society and instead establish justice. It should, ideally, be the distinguishing trait of a Muslim community as it applies to the moral, social, political, and economic facets of life. "Calling to good and preventing wrong" can be classified as a duty in the framework of teaching others about faith (tabligh). Literally meaning "to reach out" or "to convey," tabligh is directed to raise the consciousness among people about their responsibility towards religion. It disseminates knowledge about living one's faith in a principled way. Therefore, any discourse, or any act, that conveys, communicates, reminds, promotes, or publishes the teachings and commands of God to the unknowing--or to the less informed--or any discourse or act, that discourages or prevents people from being wrong, unjust, or evil, comes under the meaning of this word, tabligh.Rooted deeply in the Qur'an, hadith, and commentaries of notable scholars, the book in your hands is a precious resource to comprehend the context and dynamics that make spiritual mentoring and guidance an important part of a faithful life. The content of the book consists of transcripts of a series of sermons M. Fethullah G len delivered early in his career as a preacher. While presenting extensive commentary based on examples from the time of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and Rightly Guided Caliphs, G len does so with awareness of the realities of the modern era, especially with regards to being free from political interests and keeping the scope as wide as possible so to embrace the whole of humanity. The book supports the idea that spiritual mentoring and guidance is an important duty and highlights some principles mentors should take into consideration. While being an essential reference for mentors and counselors in the Muslim community, the book offers many universal principles that all faith communities can benefit from and refer to in their services.

The principles of Islamic faith are not some abstract ideas. They are vital values to be known, reflected upon, believed and internalized, and with which one should achieve the true submission to God the Almighty. These values will be deepened with reflection and remembrance and nourished by worship in the broadest sense of the terms. If we consider them in our human relations and daily affairs, we will not be overcome by our desires and immoralities. In this way, a believer can stay in the sphere of faith all the time, revolving around its main axis. Matters of faith and its practice are reflected in the first Qur'anic chapter al-Fatiha (the Opening) in a great harmony. In this book, Fehullah Gulen interprets the verses of the most important chapter of the Qur'an for a deeper understanding of its relevance to the essence of Islam. Gulen's analysis is well grounded in the Islamic tradition yet provides fresh insights into the message of the Qur'an for today's readers.

Journey to Noble Ideals is a compilation of speeches Fethullah Gulen delivered in Pennsylvania, USA, between 2012 and 2013. The book provides guidelines to build our individual ladders to self-discovery. In Gulen's prescription, climbing this ladder requires "lifelong contendedness," "a spirit of chivalry," "becoming soil to grow roses," "balance and moderation," "being self-critical," "not to be dizzy with worldly pleasures," and "sincerity of intention." Nourished from a millennium old accumulation of knowledge and tradition, Gulen speaks of preserving one's "chastity of thoughts" but not lagging behind, and instead soaring across the "horizons of spiritual knowledge." For Gulen, a healthy society is built on a "happy marriage," observing the "rights of neighbors," "sound reason," and "asking for forgiveness." Above all, his faith rests on a firm belief that "God is sufficient" for all.This work will be a source of inspiration for all the travelers' journeying to noble ideals.

Delving deeper into the soul of Islam and the definition of spirituality, this third volume examines the mainstream path that seekers are expected to follow in order to learn the fundamental concepts of Sufism and the essentials of the Islamic faith. Concepts central to Sufism, such as unity and multiplicity, silence, privacy and company, and sainthood, are thoroughly discussed.

Including a textually long but spiritually endless journey toward insan al-kamil the perfect human this fourth volume approaches Sufism through the middle way, an approach that revives the legacy of the Prophet Muhammad. With an awareness of the social realities of the 21st century, concepts such as tranquility, the truth of divinity, life beyond the physical realm, the preserved tablet, the glorified attributes, and the beautiful names are delicately explained.

This book has a double purpose. On the one hand, it is a call to Muslims to a greater awareness that Islam teaches the need for dialogue and that Muslims are called to be agents and witnesses to God's universal mercy. On the other hand, the book is an invitation to non-Muslims to move beyond prejudice, suspicion, and half-truths in order to arrive at an understanding what Islam is really about...Approximate running time: 600 minutes

This book is a compilation of some of the wise sayings of M Fethullah Gulen, each of which is a criterion or pearl of wisdom by which we may seek and find our way in todays world, or a light illuminating our way, to live as a responsible human being. It contains golden rules for the journeying through life. Those who attempt to reform the world must first reform themselves. In order to be followed by others in the way to a better world, they must purify their inner worlds of hatred, rancour, and jealousy and adorn their outer worlds with all kinds of virtues. The utterances of those who are far removed from self-control and self-discipline, who have failed to refine their feelings, may seem attractive and insightful at first, but they will not be able to inspire others or, if indeed they do, the sentiments they arouse will soon die away. Goodness, beauty, truthfulness and being virtuous lie in the essence of the world. Whatever happens, the world will one day find this essence and no one will be able to prevent that happening. Approximate running time: 96 minutes.

12 CDs. The Life of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, has been a topic for many books and studies. Gulen's approach to the life of Rasulullah, "the pride of humanity". This is not cronical biography. It differs from other books on the Prophet in the sense that Gulen assumes a psychological and sociological analysis on the various aspects of the Prophet's life portraying him as a compassionate father, a profound spiritual leader, a wise statemen, a courageous commander, a loving husband, a most reliable and trustworthy person. Approximate running time: 840 minutes.

This picture book is a verbo-visual journey, at every turn of which we are faced with images -- images that offer a clear message and others that present an abstract vision. Regardless of focusing on a certain theme, this book deals with the all-encompassing questions of our lives through thought-provoking images accompanied by words of wisdom of Fethullah Gulen, a leading scholar and inspirer of our day. The images were selected with the primary aim of encouraging readers in the tireless endeavour to remove the veils from the face of existence in order to witness the love, compassion, wisdom, and peace therein -- at least to try to peek through.

The Quran is believed by Muslims to be the final word of God revealed to humanity through Prophet Muhammad speaking to all humans for all times. This nature of Islams holy book brings along a continuous study of it so that its injunctions are reinterpreted according to constantly changing times and conditions of our world. This book presents such interpretations from a respected Muslim scholar who explains verses for the modern age. Gulen is well-informed of the classical exegetical discipline; nevertheless in this book he keeps his explanations short and to the point, not to tire away readers. The book does not cover all the verses of the Quran, but selected ones, those relate most to the human existence on earth, life after death, and stories revealed in the holy book.

The wisdom of one of the greatest scholars of Islam can be a companion on your own spiritual journey. Considered by many to be the all-time greatest scholar of Islam, Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (1058–1111) was also one of the foremost sages of theology, philosophy and Sufism. His writings on the interrelation of law, theology and mysticism were central in establishing Sufism as a core dimension of orthodox Islamic practice. Muslim communities all across the world today still base much of their practice of Islam on Ghazali's writings. The Forty Foundations of Religion, Ghazali’s own summary of his magnum opus, The Revival of the Religious Sciences, serves as a brief and powerful summary of Islamic faith, worship, law and spirituality. It outlines the basis of Islamic belief, the foundational matters of ritual and practice, and the character traits a person must cultivate and avoid in the perfection of faith. Now you can experience the wisdom of Ghazali even if you have no previous knowledge of The Forty Foundations of Religion or Islam. This SkyLight Illuminations edition—the first publication of significant portions of The Forty Foundations of Religion in English—provides original translations of selected highlights accompanied by insightful commentary that makes the core message of this great spiritual master relevant to anyone seeking a balanced understanding of Islam.

Highly contested by orthodox circles and literalists who narrow religion to formalism on one hand and victimised by practitioners unable to go beyond traditional boundaries on the other, Islamic Sufism continues to be a beacon enlightening the path of millions of believers around the world. Gulen's approach to Sufism in this collection represents the middle way, an approach that in a sense revives the legacy of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, with an awareness of the social realities of the twenty-first century. For Gulen, the marriage of the heart and the mind is necessary for a sensible appreciation of our existence and what we are expected of. He does not confine himself with any typical methodology; he endeavours to reach the water source by opening wells everywhere, for the truth is actually manifested in every single creation and waiting for seekers' drill.This fourth volume of the "Emerald Hills of the Heart" collection concludes a journey - which is textually long, but spiritually endless - towards insan al-kamil, the perfect human, as unfolded stage-by-stage with an escalating scale of concepts that have developed throughout fourteen centuries on the basis of firm roots established in the time of the Prophet by his own practice. Concepts like Tranquility, Secret, Truth of Divinity, Beyond the Physical Realms, Preserved Tablet, Glorified Attributes, and Beautiful Names are delicately explained in this volume.

Becoming increasingly a more well-known figure in the world, the number of social scientists and academics studying Fethullah Gulen's thoughts on diverse issues centred on Islam is rapidly growing. This volume presents Gulen's world-view in separate essays written as lead articles for a literary magazine, "Yagmur", published in Turkish. Gulen's approach to 'speech', his definition of poetry, history, and beauty are eloquently articulated in this book the content of which is deeply embroidered around the lacework of Islam.

This book consists of Islamic prayers Prophet Muhammad and some Muslim saints adopted for various occasions: morning and evening prayers, purification, eating, drinking, pilgrimage and everyday life situations. Additional sections include the most beautiful names of God, prayer for help and success, and other prayers to be recited any time.