In the “Psychology Talks from Existence to the Search for Meaning” program, where Ramadan was discussed, Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan emphasized that Ramadan is an important period for humans to remember their servitude. Tarhan, stating that the ego desires endlessly; it is greedy, insatiable, limitless, irresponsible, and like a wild horse, said that Ramadan is a significant period for ego training. Tarhan said, “If we give the command to the heart, we will be on the good side; if we give the command to the ego, we will be on the side of evil.”

This week, the holy month of Ramadan was discussed in the “Psychology Talks from Existence to the Search for Meaning” with Üsküdar Üniversitesi Founding Rector Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, organized by the Conscience of the Age Club with the support of the Üsküdar Üniversitesi Health, Culture, and Sports Department.

“If there were no fasting, it would be impossible to comprehend how dire hunger and poverty are”

Making notable evaluations regarding the month of Ramadan, Tarhan emphasized that this significant period we are in is a time for social awareness. Tarhan stated that if there were no fasting, it would be impossible to understand how dire hunger and poverty are; “Allah invites the rich to aid the poor, meaning the rich are tested by helping the needy. The poor, in turn, are tested by not rebelling against their situation, but by being patient and working. The rich can fully experience the pitiful conditions and hunger of the poor through the hunger of fasting. If there is no fasting, it is impossible to comprehend how dire hunger and poverty are and how much those in such situations need compassion. In fact, that compassion is also a form of gratitude. When we say ‘gratitude,’ we always understand the word ‘elhamdülillah,’ whereas showing compassion, helping someone who has fallen, and assisting someone in need are also forms of gratitude. A beautiful example in our culture during Ramadan is going to the neighborhood grocer, taking the credit ledger, tearing out the pages, and paying for them. Zakat is actually given once a year, but people time it to coincide with the month of Ramadan for higher reward, as it is a blessed month. Zakat is the debt of the rich to the poor; Zakat is not the property of the rich. When a year has passed, one-fortieth of that money is the right of the poor. Unpaid Zakat will be given to that person as a piece of fire; it is a human right. No one can go into the presence of Allah with this. Humans mistake fleeting, temporary things for eternal ones,” he said.

“The Quran mandates generosity and Zakat against global inequality”

Stating that compassion and mercy strengthen social bonds, Tarhan drew attention to some rules Islam implements, such as the prohibition of interest, to prevent global inequality. Tarhan said; “With the month of Ramadan, practices that increase compassion cause the rich to notice the poor, and the poor not to harbor resentment, anger, or hatred towards the rich. The mentality of ‘What do I care if someone else starves to death!’ is the biggest cause of social chaos, conflict, and rebellions. Today, global inequality is at an extreme level. At the World Economic Forum 2019 meeting in Davos, three dangers facing the world were identified: loneliness, climate change, and global inequality. The Holy Quran mandates generosity and Zakat against global inequality. This means you either put your money to work or you pay Zakat. In such situations, people are forced to make their money work, fearing it will erode if idle, and thus push themselves to support economic activity. The ‘You work, I eat’ mentality, on the other hand, leads to interest. With the interest money earned, one travels the world and enjoys themselves without working, while in another sector, many companies work day and night to pay off the interest they owe and go bankrupt for this reason. Economies collapse due to interest, people go bankrupt, and states go bankrupt due to their debts. Islam also introduces the prohibition of interest against this danger, which is a rule that regulates social life. Especially in Ramadan, it creates a ground to draw attention to this,” he stated.

“If we give the command to the heart, we are good; if we give the command to the ego, we are heading in the wrong direction”

Tarhan stated that there is a need to raise awareness about controlling the ego during Ramadan, emphasizing that if we give the command to the heart, we will go in a good direction, but if we give the command to the ego, we will be on the side of evil. Tarhan said; “The ego desires endlessly; it is greedy, insatiable, limitless, and irresponsible. The ego ceaselessly desires like a wild horse. The ego desires, but the soul, connected with conscience, tells the ego to stop, to brake. The heart and soul are on one side; the ego and Satan are on the other, meaning there is a balance. Reason says not to obey the ego; reason synthesizes here, and we use our partial free will with reason. The inclinations of Satan and the ego are malevolent inclinations, while the inclinations of the soul and heart are benevolent inclinations. With our reason, we choose one of these inclinations. If we give the command to the heart, we go in a good direction; if we give the command to the ego, we go in a bad direction. Reason only makes us choose; if it gives command to the heart, you stay away from error by connecting with Allah. If you give command to your ego, it is self-serving, greedy, and never satisfied. It has recently been understood that positive and negative emotions are divided into two in our brain; if a person considers something that comes to them as being of good emotions, it goes to the positive files of the brain, but if they say it is bad, it goes to the memory files related to bad behaviors, and accordingly, chemicals in the brain become active. If one thinks of it as malevolent, avoidance and fear arise. If one thinks of it as benevolent, compassion and cooperation occur, and the brain begins to secrete hormones related to it. We actually receive the upfront payment for good-bad thinking in this world,” he explained.

“In Ramadan, everyone from the rich to the poor understands that they are not the owner!”

Tarhan conveyed that in the holy month of Ramadan, everyone, from the richest to the poorest, remembers that they are not the owner but a servant, an 'abid.' He said; “Modern man eats insatiably, lives in luxury, and throws half of it in the trash. They usurp the rights of the poor. If your neighbor is hungry, and you throw half of your food in the trash, the One who gave you these blessings will hold you accountable. The Messenger of Allah says, ‘He is not one of us who eats his fill while his neighbor goes hungry.’ In the holy month of Ramadan, everyone's ego, from the richest to the poorest, understands that they are not the owner but are owned, a 'memluk'! It tells the ego, ‘You are not the owner, you are owned, not free, but a servant.’ Emotional intelligence training, under the name of Positive Psychology, has begun. The most important thing it taught us is that a person will not be spontaneously helpful unless expected to be, a person will not be spontaneously good unless expected to be. The universe, family, society, system, education system, and state must expect him to be a good person; if not, when a person is not educated and left to his natural course, he becomes malevolent. Positive psychology tells us this. The individual needs to be commanded to do good. That is, his parents and the education system will approve of him being good. Only then will the person know his own boundaries and the boundaries of others, will not usurp the rights of others, and will cut off greed, insatiability, and limitlessness. Ramadan provides this. In Ramadan, the month reminds a person of the thought, ‘There are hungry and poor people, I should know my place. I am not the owner, this property is not mine. I am a guest here.’ Adopting his servitude and worship, remembering that he is a servant, not a kind of earthly god, enters into true gratitude. If he adopts his servitude and possesses his worship, if his head can go to prostration, then going to prostration means feeling his helplessness and weakness before Allah,” he expressed.

“Our desire for immortality is proof that there is life after death”

Tarhan emphasized that there is a causal link between our mind, heart, emotional world, and eternity, drawing attention to the fact that desires for perfection and immortality prove that there is life after death. Tarhan said; “Evil was created for the understanding of good. Therefore, if there is no justice in this world right now, then there must be a great Supreme Court after this world; if not, this world has no meaning. In this world, evil goes unpunished for many people, and many good people suffer as victims. If there is no life after death, there is no justice in this world. For the Creator of this world to create something so unjust is contrary to reason and conscience. Therefore, since He gave us the desire, He must have wanted to give us eternal life. Our mind apparatus, our heart apparatus, our emotional apparatus, our desire for eternity, perfection, and immortality are proof that there is life after death. Just as the presence of hunger in our stomach is proof of food, and there is a causal link between them, there is a causal link between these apparatuses within us and the eternal realm. Therefore, through methods of reasoning, we can find Allah, understand the afterlife, understand why we worship, the necessity of worship, and strongly, almost certainly, believe in the existence of eternal life. We see this with the eye of reason. Allah, as a secret of test, does not show it with the physical eye. But He has given reason, saying ‘seek, find’; a hint is enough for the discerning… Allah has given hints, that’s all. Destiny says, ‘You have to make an effort; there's no such thing as a cooked pear falling into your mouth.’ He gives respite but does not neglect. They ask Hz. Ali; ‘You worship so much, what if Allah does not exist?’, and he replies; ‘If He does not exist, I lose nothing from my worship and servitude. I am happier, more peaceful.’ What Allah wants from us are not things we cannot do. He tells us to be moral, honest, conscientious, fair, mindful of human rights, and not to consume what is forbidden. He says, ‘I gave you 24 pieces of gold; spend 1 of these 24 pieces in worship for Me.’ There are 24 hours in a day; spend 1 hour in worship, this is what I want, otherwise, you are free within the general framework,” he said.