ADNAN OKTAR: ... That local pressure is most uncomfortable. Insha’Allah, it will be lifted in the time of Hazrat Mahdi (as). There will be a climate of total freedom and liberty. There will still be irreligious people in the time of Hazrat Mahdi (as), and leftists and communists, but they will all live at ease. Nobody will target them. Everyone will respect them, and they will be first-class citizens. Nobody will demand to know why they are communists and say they have no right to life. There will be an extraordinary conception of democracy and freedom in the time of Hazrat Mahdi (as). Nobody will interfere with anyone else. Nobody will speak against anyone for not performing the salat (daily prayer), and even if he does perform the salat, that will still not make him a prophet.
REPORTER: There is in any case no compulsion in our religion, no compulsion at the heart of our religion.
ADNAN OKTAR: Of course. Almighty Allah has issued a pronouncement, saying, “There is no compulsion in the religion.” That pronouncement is very clear, a verse of the Qur’an. If you bring in compulsion, then hypocrisy arises. OK, the man then prays, but he does so with hatred of you in his heart. What good is that to you? He is not praying for Allah, but for you. The salat is performed for Allah, what good to you is a salat performed for you? Why is the man a hypocrite? Because you put him in the position of a hypocrite. Let him be honest. If he does not pray, then so be it. As simple as that. We are all brothers, whether we cover our heads or not. The slightest compulsion within this system is highly unpleasant and a violation of good conscience. People who do not cover their heads are also first-class Muslims, and those who do cover up are also first-class Muslims. This division needs to be done away with, this pressure needs to be done away with. There can be no question of “our views and our community being the most perfect of all.” Nobody is guaranteed a place in paradise, apart from the prophets. Therefore, saying that such and such a person is a saint is wrong. Allah knows the truth, not us. We may go to paradise, or we may go to hell. We live between hope and fear. That applies to everyone, to me and you and everyone. They say that such and such a person is a saint, but how do they know? They say he is destined for paradise. But how do they know? Insha’Allah, he will go to paradise. We of course want everyone to go to paradise. But it would be wrong to make any absolute pronouncements.
THERE IS NO COMPULSION IN ISLAM AND EVERYONE SHOULD ENJOY FREEDOM OF BELIEF
