students' own defences, which had to be composed and written out, it was mostly The Fruits of Belief that copies were made of in the prison. This, the Eleventh Ray, which Bediuzzaman described as "a fruit and memento of Denizli Prison and the product of two Fridays", consists of eleven pieces or Topics, the last two of which were written in Emirdağ after he was released. Addressing in particular the prisoners, each Topic explains some matter of belief such as knowledge of God, resurrection and the hereafter, and particularly relevant to that situation, the question of death. It also forms a summary of the truths of the Risale-i Nur. The concluding part of the Eighth Topic was written during the Kurban Bayramı [^237] or 'Id al-Adha, the Feast of the Sacrifices, which in 1943 began on 8 December. Numerous copies of this most important part of the Risale-i Nur were made by Bediuzzaman's students and the other prisoners in Denizli, and it was the effect of this more than anything that led to the extraordinary reform of the prisoners. So much so that while at first it was written out and smuggled around the prison in the greatest secrecy, when this improvement in conduct was noted by the prison authorities, they permitted copies to be made without restriction. It was also sent to the Appeal Court and relevant departments in Ankara as a defence of the Risale-i Nur and was instrumental in securing their acquittal. [^238]

[^237]:Nursi, Şualar, 196 (Eng. tr.: Rays, 253).

[^238]:Tarihçe, 377.

#### Denizli Court

Denizli Court

The same charges were made against Bediuzzaman and his students in Denizli Court as in Eskişehir, They included creating a new Sufi tarikat, organizing a political society, opposing the reforms, and exploiting religious feelings in a way that might disturb public security. The Fifth Ray on Hadiths about the end of time, the treatise that had led to the arrests, was the prosecution's main evidence for their exploiting religion on the grounds it identified Mustafa Kemal as the Dajjal, or Antichrist. Thus, on Bediuzzaman and his students being transferred from Isparta to Denizli, they were again questioned and the Denizli prosecutor set up a committee to study the Risale-i Nur and produce a report for the court. Composed of two local school teachers entirely unqualified to undertake such a job, they produced the report the prosecutor wished of them in a few days and the case was put before the Criminal Court. Their report was superficial to a degree and contained the most shameful misrepresentations. Bediuzzaman