Syllabus
The whole course on one page. Six phases, twenty-two weeks. For each week, its name, its one idea and what to read, with links to the texts.
The road runs from honesty and direction, inward through the self and the heart, out to the Names and the reading of life, and back to the higher goal. Tap a week to jump to it.
- 1FoundationsWeeks 1–4
Every life is a journey, and the first question is how you travel it.
- 2Knowing the selfWeeks 5–8
The traveller turns inward and finds a whole country there, with the heart as its king.
- 3Cleaning the heartWeeks 9–11
A mirror has no light of its own. Kept clean, it can hold the sun.
- 4The Names and the mirrorWeeks 12–15
One light, seen in many colours and in every drop of water.
- 5Kader and VesveseWeeks 16–20
The world can be read like a book, and a whole tree is written in a seed.
- 6ReturnWeeks 21–22
The road again, seen from higher up and in full light.
Phase 1 · Weeks 1–4
Foundations
Every life is a journey, and the first question is how you travel it.
About this phase →- 01
In the NameOpen
To act “in the Name of God” is to cross the world under the protection of its Owner, instead of alone.
- 02
Honesty with YourselfOpen
Change starts with seeing yourself truly, and with saying only what is true, or staying silent.
- 03
The Higher GoalOpen
A human being was made to know, love and thank the One who made him. That goal puts everything else in its right order.
- 04
Contentment and TrustOpen
Belief changes how the same world looks, and lifts a weight we were never meant to carry.
Phase 2 · Weeks 5–8
Knowing the self
The traveller turns inward and finds a whole country there, with the heart as its king.
About this phase →- 05
Fitra and the NafsOpen
We are made with a nature (fıtrat) that cannot be erased and powers with no built-in limit. The work is not to kill those powers but to steer them to the middle.
- 06
The Heart as KingOpen
A person is a house with many residents, and the heart is meant to rule it. When the heart is sound, the rest fall into line.
- 07
Nafs and EneOpen
The “I” has two faces. Turned beyond itself it is a mirror and a measuring line; turned on itself it swells into a dragon.
- 08
Self-Accounting Without Self-HarshnessOpen
Take stock of yourself honestly every day (muhasebe), but accuse the nafs, not your worth, and then turn back to God.
Phase 3 · Weeks 9–11
Cleaning the heart
A mirror has no light of its own. Kept clean, it can hold the sun.
About this phase →- 09
Shaped by Our SurroundingsOpen
Sins and doubts are inner wounds, and what we surround ourselves with keeps touching the heart; wipe it often, and choose what it faces.
- 10
Prayer as Washing the HeartOpen
The five daily prayers (namaz) wash the heart five times a day and feed it like bread, water and air, and each prayer time marks a turning point in the day, the year and a life.
- 11
Daily Cleaning, and SincerityOpen
A heart in a busy city needs a small daily routine of cleaning, and sincerity (ihlas) decides whether it works. Do it for God alone, not for the room. It is the greatest strength a person or a group can have.
Phase 4 · Weeks 12–15
The Names and the mirror
One light, seen in many colours and in every drop of water.
About this phase →- 12
Meeting the NamesOpen
Our small knowledge, mercy and power are a ruler for His infinite ones. And because we need so much, we are made to need His Names, then to long for them, then to love them.
- 13
The Self as a MirrorOpen
A clean heart reflects the Names as a clean mirror reflects the sun, and different people reflect different Names more strongly.
- 14
The Levels of the NafsOpen
The Sufi tradition maps seven levels of the self (nefs). Nursi honours that road, and points to a shorter, safer and broader one, the four steps of impotence, poverty, compassion and reflection.
- 15
Rising Through the LevelsOpen
We rise through belief, worship, sincerity and service, not by willpower alone. Progress (terakki) is slow and slips are part of the path; the rungs are given from above, and our part is to hand over the weight and step on.
Phase 5 · Weeks 16–20
Kader and Vesvese
The world can be read like a book, and a whole tree is written in a seed.
About this phase →- 16
Nothing Is RandomOpen
Everything happens with God’s knowledge and measure (kader). Whoever believes in kader is safe from grief (kadere iman eden kederden emin olur): accepting it brings peace about the past, it is not giving up on the future.
- 17
Kader and My Share of ChoiceOpen
We have a small but real share of will (cüz-i ihtiyarî), and we answer for how we use it. Look at the past and at misfortune through kader, so you neither despair nor blame; look at the future and at your sins through responsibility (teklif), so you make no excuses.
- 18
Whisperings Are Not YouOpen
An ugly or doubtful thought that comes unbidden is not your belief and not your sin: the reflection of a snake in a mirror cannot bite. Whisperings (vesvese) grow with attention and shrink when calmly ignored.
- 19
Telling the Pulls ApartOpen
A cleaner heart notices what pulls it. Inspiration (ilham) leads towards God, goodness and balance; whispering (vesvese) brings confusion, despair, obsessive doubt or pride. Doubt about whether a prayer “counted” is itself a whisper, answered with ease. Sensing things before they happen (hiss-i kable’l-vuku) is real, but held lightly.
- 20
Learning from a Life LivedOpen
Nursi wrote down his own nights of captivity and exile, the pain first and then the help that came. They show the ideas of this course lived out under pressure and isolation, which speaks to anyone far from home.
Phase 6 · Weeks 21–22
Return
The road again, seen from higher up and in full light.
About this phase →- 21
The Higher Goal, RevisitedOpen
Return to the higher-goal sentence from week 3. With a cleaner heart and clearer self-knowledge it should now be deeper and more concrete; then put the rest of life in order around it.
- 22
Closing and Next StepsOpen
This is a beginning, not an end. Keep reading, keep company, keep cleaning.
Links open the English translation with the Turkish original side by side, on risaleglobal.com.