fusion of ideas occurs through the electric rays of knowledge." Thus, education was an area in which Bediuzzaman expended great effort, particularly for his native Kurdistan. Quite contrary to the accusations of his enemies subsequently that he was a Kurdish nationalist, the aim of all Bediuzzaman’s endeavors for the reform and spread of education in Kurdistan, and for its material and cultural development, was the strengthening of the Ottoman Empire and Islamic world. It was with this intention that he had set out a second time for the Ottoman capital in November, 1907.

Let us now return to 1907, and Bediuzzaman's arrival in Istanbul.

The Governor of Van and Bitlis, Tahir Pasa, who had provided Bediuzzaman with so much encouragement and support, now wrote him a letter of introduction to the Palace, pointing out Bediuzzaman's fame and position among the ulema of eastern Anatolia, and requesting the Sultan's favour and assistance in securing medical treatment for Bediuzzaman. This medical treatment was for a form of mental exhaustion brought about by his extreme mental exertion over a long period of time. Bediuzzaman's nephew, Abdurrahman, notes that it was the competitive solving of mathematical problems in particular that had exhausted his brain, and that for a period of some three years during his stay in Van, he virtually give up debating of this kind and would only speak when necessary. The following is a translation of Tahir Pasa’s letter:

"A request from His most humble servant.

"Since Molla Said, who is famous among the ulema of Kurdistan for his brilliant intelligence, is in need of medical treatment, seeking refuge in the compassion and kindness of His Excellency the Shelter of the Caliphate, he has set out at this time for His Exalted Excellency.