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| Man in The 'Spiral' of
Thoughts Fethullah Gülen Man is a being shaped in mind and spirit,
and in character, in accordance with the view of things and the world that
he has acquired after years of thinking and consideration. Thought, intention and ambition are of the
same importance in the development of a man’s potentialities as the
earth, air, rain and sun are in germination and growth of seeds under the
soil. Intention and thought have a primary influence upon the formation of
a man’s morals and character. Sound minds and character develop from
pure thoughts and intentions. Thought is a seed, from which the tree of
personality grows. Manners are flowers of this tree and joys and sorrows
its fruits. The one who looks upon the bright side of the world thinks of
good things, and the one who thinks of good things germinates in his soul
the seeds of virtues and beauties, and thereby lives in the gardens he has
formed in his bosom. Contrary to this, the pessimistic souls who are
critical of everything and look upon their environment through the holes
of their dark world, can never discern what is good and beautiful in it,
nor can they truly enjoy their lives. Even if they were admitted in
Paradise, they would again sing the praises of Hell and pour out their
grievances to the angels of Hell, and, therefore, they always live in the
pit of regrets and complaints. Man, being the Creator’s vicegerent on
earth, has been created so that he should rule over the whole creation. In
order to be able to carry out this significant mission, he has been
endowed with great potentialities. Through systematic thinking and
deepening in spiritual life, he will develop those potentialities and
acquire a sublime character and personality. Pessimism and evil thoughts
will, by contrast, cause him to develop an evil character, or, if, as a
third alternative, he does not build his personality by developing his
potentialities in accordance with the Commandments of his Creator, he will
rot away, with nothing positive to give his community. The gardens that a man builds in his soul
through pure thoughts and intentions will, in the course of time, flourish
so as to surround the whole world and spread the perfumes of happiness to
everybody. Evil thoughts and intentions, by contrast, offer everyone
‘blood, pus and filth’. In fact, man carries in his being the
potentialities of being either a ‘monster’ or an ‘angel’. In this
realm of trial, he may rise to the ‘highest of the high’, as he may
fall to the ‘lowest of the low’. So, the one who uses his will-power,
by reliance on God, in accordance with the demands of the Divine Will,
will attain to the highest of the ranks by God’s leave and help, while
those who make themselves devoid of this support will regret and wail over
their pitiful ends. Although it is always questionable what
part man’s free will has in his accomplishments, all his duties and
responsibilities are, nevertheless, based on this ‘fine thread’. By
seeing his strength and richness as innate impotence and poverty, by
relying therefore upon God’s Power and Riches and submitting his will to
the Divine Will, a man can discipline himself and direct his thoughts and
feelings to lofty ideals to gain eternity for them and so build his
character and personality. Without being discouraged in the face of any
setbacks, and without neglecting to consider again and again the
prevailing circumstances, he uses his free will as a key to discover the
traps laid for him by his material, carnal self and eliminates them from
his way to eternity. He also analyses his inner world continuously without
being tired, and finally succeeds in realizing the mysteries of selfhood.
This enables him to develop all his potentialities to virtues and
beauties, and at last, as gold is obtained after tons of earth has been
sifted in large cauldrons, and many other processes, he may become an
ideal of humanity. Whoever sincerely intends to become a true ‘human being’ and strives in this way for a whole lifetime, will one day attain his ideal and discover his real essence. One who pursues something, usually attains it; a ‘door’ is opened to the one who knocks at it persistently. This is a Divine law, according to which one can be elevated to the rank of humanity through pure intentions, systematic thinking, unshakable resolution and uninterrupted strife. Man is sent to the world equipped with the potentialities to obtain these means, and is promised help and support in his efforts to rise ‘upwards’. Therefore, what is left to him to do is to use his free will in accordance with his Creator’s Commandments and attain that rank through upward movements. Source: |