“Sometimes individuals may not see and appreciate the priceless values beside them on account of failing to have the right viewpoint, or possessing some preconceived ideas and prejudices, or even sometimes on account of the jealousy they are seized by. Not only can they not appreciate the great person, but they might also even become a ruthless and relentless foe. If you wish, you can call this ‘blindness in proximity.’”¹⁾

“By marrying his sons with the daughters of the Pride of the Universe, Ruqayyah and Umm Kulthum, Abu Lahab had established a further tie of kinship. In short, he had witnessed the beautiful morality of the Pride of Humanity throughout every phase of his life. However, this unfortunate one, who was overwhelmed by blindness in proximity, did not acknowledge the Divine mission of the prince of the Prophets. Let alone not acknowledging, Abu Lahab became one of his archenemies. One of the closest relatives of the Pride of Humanity, under whose blessed feet the stars were no more than cobble stones, did not see, or refused to see, his greatness.”²⁾

“Like distance forms a barrier to seeing and comprehending, likewise, proximity may sometimes be a veil that prevents seeing. Despite sharing the same age with the Pride of Humanity and being witness to the flood of light that drowned the entire Universe, there were people who could not see the Prophet and his Companions, who were like stars of Heaven. However, on the other side, those who were aware of the affinity of such an attainment, who knew how to look and thus increased the value of the matter by perceiving and considering it, saw the sun of Truth that rose beyond them. They became enlightened and were imbued with spiritual colors, one after another, and thus attained happiness in this world and in the Hereafter.”³⁾

“As blindness and deafness in proximity have been experienced in each century, our time is also not an exception. For example, there are both very significant advantages and disadvantages of being close to the devoted souls, representing the Companions of the Prophet in our age. The people of Erzurum use the following proverb for elucidating the matter: ‘A well-nourished cow will never be an ox.’ According to this point of view, these beauties that first appeared in the form of sprouts, then turned to buds and, later on grew branches and became a gigantic sycamore, will always be liable to judgment of that first impression. Yes, it will be the subject of the judgment and still thought of as if it was one of the sprouts.”⁴⁾

“Alongside with the blindness in proximity, there are other kinds of blindness that friends may be exposed to, like the blindness of intolerance, envy and competition. Even ‘tanafus’ (envy, or competing with one another), which is considered like rivalry and has taken its place in the permissible circle of the religion, can be a means of blindness. If to perceive that tanafus is ‘competing with fellows of the same path with the concept of not lagging behind in respect to favors bestowed by the Almighty God,’ then this very concept, which seems to be essentially innocent, may be unfavorable if its limits are not adhered to. For this reason, the most devoted students of the Holy Qur’an stated the following by tying the matter to a much deeper concept: ‘Our brothers and sisters race up to (attaining) Paradise, the final and absolute acceptance by God and the vision of God. I also need to take part in the activities of these wonderful people in order not to be separated from them in the Hereafter.’”⁵⁾

M. Fethullah Gülen, “Those Who Remain in the Distance despite Their Proximity, and the Need for Ceaseless Action”

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