The Dream in Which My Father Memorized Surah al-Baqarah

The late writer and poet Yavuz Bülent Bakiler relates:

“My father was the head of the Civil Registry Office in Sivas. He was a devout man who performed his prayers faithfully. His Arabic was also good enough for him to understand the Qur'an.

At some point, he became acquainted with the Risale-i Nur. I do not know exactly how he came across it. What I do know is that he would type out portions of these works on a typewriter and then distribute them among the people around him.

During that period, my father had a very remarkable dream. With tears in his eyes, he told me about it. He said:

‘In my dream, I saw Said Nursi. He asked me to open Surah al-BaqarahThe second and longest chapter of the Quran, containing 286 verses. and recite it. I opened the surahChapter of the Qur’an. and began reciting. He listened attentively. When I finished, he said, “Recite it again.” So I began once more.

Meanwhile, I thought to myself, “Why is he asking me to recite it again? Did I do something wrong or make a mistake somewhere?”

I carefully recited the surahChapter of the Qur’an. again from beginning to end. Then he said once more, “Recite it again.” I started for the third time, but by then I had begun to sweat.

Suddenly, I woke up. To my astonishment, I was sitting upright in bed on my knees, with my hands resting on my knees, reciting Surah al-BaqarahThe second and longest chapter of the Quran, containing 286 verses.. I immediately got up, performed wudūThe minor ritual ablution performed by washing specific parts of the body., took the Qur'an, and looked inside it—and then I realized that I knew the entire Surah al-BaqarahThe second and longest chapter of the Quran, containing 286 verses. by heart.’

Thus, my father had memorized Surah al-BaqarahThe second and longest chapter of the Quran, containing 286 verses. in his dream. He told me this while weeping, with tears in his eyes.”