Adnan Oktar A9 TV; February 7th, 2016

How can something be considered right if the opposite of it does not exist? How will we be tried if satan and the lower-self do not exist? How can we recognize what is beautiful, what is right? It is impossible. It is impossible to achieve any higher love, any higher wisdom in this way. Then we would be no different than a child, we would not be able to develop.

Wisdom is a light shed upon us by God; it is given to mankind by God as an inspiration. Wisdom does not appear out of nowhere. If God takes the wisdom away, one would be astounded, become speechless, tongue-tied as if a mute.

Of course, a believer should be open to advice. A Muslim might make a mistake, there is nothing wrong with this but he should always pay heed to advice of others: In other words, a Muslim shouldn't be arrogant, disrespectful and snobbish, right? Even though he won't follow the advice, he should politely listen to it within the limits of the Qur'an and say, "I will try hard to do so."

It is quite natural for a Muslim to make a mistake. People should not be afraid of making mistakes. Even if it is a big mistake, it can be solved by giving advice. But reacting angrily to advice is not normal. You could say, "Okay, I will consider this. May God bless you. I will try my best." That's it. But angry overreaction to advice is abnormal behavior.

God says, "No one despairs of solace from God except for people who are disbelievers." It is quite abnormal to lose hope that people will become better. Advising such people and putting them on the right path is what should be strived for.

Satan affects people in many various ways. Among these effects, one of the worst is the sense of inertness. Believers should counter it through their will and wisdom.

When you advise hypocrites to talk about God, they go crazy, you tell them to stay away from blasphemy, they go crazy. It is like satan’s session. You know how satan goes mad all of a sudden? That is how they go mad out of nowhere. That is why you have to be very careful and even-tempered when you talk to hypocrites.

You need to be very attentive while talking to a hypocrite. When they are prescribed goodness and proscribed evil, they become insane, enraged. Since their souls welcome rebellion and fiendishness, they feel very uncomfortable.

Hypocrites do not appreciate advice. When someone tries talking to them to give advice, they go mad.

Blind, angry criticism is very wrong. Criticism is necessary, but it should be done to help, not to humiliate.

Satan, the self, dissentious people, blood-shedders, warmongers, thieves, evil people; all are a part of the trial. "If it weren't for " some people say. They will always exist. If the trial exists, so will they. What you must do is to respond to them patiently through wisdom and willpower and defeat them.

Forbidding looking beautiful, attractive, alluring, handsome does not lead to virtue, to chastity. Being virtuous and chaste is only possible through compassion and wisdom.

History does not repeat itself. The system always progresses and gives rise to innovations; it undergoes a change in every cycle. When people try to repeat their past deeds through a romantic historical conception, it will only lead to their ruin, their defeat. We live in the era of science, knowledge, love and piety. Victory can only be achieved through love and piety. There is no other way.

Criticism should always be constructive and include a solution. It’s important to point to solutions that will help people.

Self-criticism is crucial to prevent arrogance. If one thinks of himself as immune to mistakes, he’s already fallen into satan’s trap; self-criticism is a remedy. God forbid, those who refrain from it will only hurt themselves.

A Muslim feels pleased by being criticized and corrects his mistakes. A hypocrite, on the other hand, gets paralyzed when they are criticized.

If you told those [who are weak in faith] to remain sleepless for the sake of God, to serve Islam, they wouldn't do that; but if you told them that they would win a car if they waited standing up for days without any sleep, they would do it without hesitation. This shows the tendency of the inner self to assume an animalistic, dishonorable, low character.

If one allows his lower self to take control, the lower self will start acting like an animal; it will act primitively like one.

The human body tends to behave like an animal when left to its own devices; it will just want to eat and sleep, it will easily get scared and act selfishly. One should balance out that animalistic side by means of faith. One shouldn't allow oneself to act like an animal.

Forgiveness is a characteristic God appreciates greatly. That is because revenge might give a lowly pleasure to one's soul, but forgiving is hard; I mean it [forgiveness] necessitates will-power and wisdom. That is because in forgiveness one does not achieve satisfaction, but revenge might bring satisfaction. That is why God takes forgiveness as a basis.

Many people give in their lower-selves and the pressure of the satan but forget about love. Without love, the body collapses, sanity regresses, foresight and perception would be lost.

Muslims are one another’s bothers. If one has a mistake, you simply give advice; resorting to violence and insults is not acceptable.

No group or community has the right to discipline another. A Muslim only says what is right and wrong, but should never try to set anyone straight.

Those who have a sickness in their hearts are proud, egocentric and arrogant. They regard the sense of superiority as a precious form of worship. However, they are not aware of the fact that they are doing it under the influence of satan. They cannot realize their evil actions.

Satan specifically identifies and attacks those people with sickness in their hearts. Should these people forsake God, then they are unaware of this. The influence of satan envelops them like a layer of iron and satan will never release his hold on them again. He has a strong grip on their souls.