Self and Nationalism According to Bediuzzaman Said Nursi

This study tries to prove that the concept of self is one of the basic concepts in understanding Bediüzzaman Said Nursi's thoughts. Bediuzzaman, who does not attribute a concrete reality to the self, states that the collective manifestation of the self occurs in nationality and reflects similar analogies in his views on nationality. Accordingly, just as a person can understand the names and attributes of the Creator to the extent of his ability, based on his own self, he can also understand certain names and attributes of the Creator based on the various differences of national selves. Bediüzzaman also criticizes the idea of resemblance to God, which philosophy sets as a goal, through the Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle and the Islamic philosophers Fârâbî and Ibn Sina. On the other hand, it determines the aim of man to be "moralized with God's moral values" with all his faculties in himself, as well as his mind.