• Istanbul

Bediuzzaman came to Istanbul from Emirdag, probably between the 20th and 25th April ,1953, on his way to Samsun. He stayed first in the Marmara Palas Hotel in Bayezit, then stayed one night in Camlica on the Asian side of the Bosphorus, after which he moved to Üsküdar, where he stayed three nights. Finally, on the invitation of one of his young students in Istanbul, Mehmet Firinci, Bediuzzaman moved to his house in the Draman district, close to Fatih. The family moved to another house next to their bakery, and being unable to complete his Journey, Bediuzzaman stayed three months in their modest, but pleasant, old wooden house. It was exactly what he had been looking for.
Beside obtaining medical reports and then making his defence in Istanbul Criminal Court, Bediuzzaman attended the celebrations marking the five hundredth anniversary of the conquest of Istanbul by Fatih Sultan Mehmet in 1453 during his stay, received many visitors, and was able to make excursions by bus around Istanbul. He also wrote a number of important letters, one of which on the radio was included in A Key to the World of the Risale-i Nur. Another letter, described as a fruit of Bediuzzaman's trips in and around Istanbul, reflects his attitude towards modem life and its encouragement of wastefulness, extravagance, and idleness. Part of it is included here:
".... Since modem Western civilization acts contrary to the fundamental a laws of the revealed religions, its evils have come to outweigh its good aspects, its errors and harmful aspects its benefits; and general tranquillity and a happy worldly life, the true aims of civilization, have been destroyed. And since wastefulness and extravagance have taken the place of frugality and contentment, and laziness and the desire for ease have overcome endeavor and the sense of service, it has made unfortunate mankind both extremely poor and extremely lazy. In explaining the fundamental law of the revealed Qur'an: Eat and drink, but waste not in excess, and,