#### The Şekerci Han

The Şekerci Han

There is no record of this letter having evoked the desired response. In any event, Bediuzzaman's first task when he arrived in Istanbul was to establish himself among the Istanbul 'ulema to attract attention towards the problems of the Eastern Provinces, and publicize his ideas on educational reform. Indeed, by way of spurring him on, Tahir Pasha had said to him: "You can defeat in argument all the 'ulema of eastern Anatolia, but you could not go to Istanbul and challenge all the big fishes in that sea," knowing that he could not let such a challenge remain unanswered. [^84] Thus, on his arrival, Bediuzzaman established himself in the religious centre of Istanbul, Fatih, in large building known as the Şekerci (Sweetmakers') Han, which served as a hostel for many of the leading intellectual figures of the time. The poet Mehmet Akif, and Fatin Hoca, the Director of the Observatory, were among its inhabitants. There are many contemporary descriptions of Bediuzzaman. The following, written by Ahmed Ramiz Efendi, owner of the İctihad Publishing House, describes his arrival:

[^84]:Tarihçe, 48-9.

It was in 1323 (1907) that the news spread around that a person of flashing brilliance — a rarity of creation — called Said-i Kurdi, [^85] having risen like the sun over the rugged, precipitous mountains of the East, had appeared on the horizons of Istanbul...

[^85]:In this period, until following the First World War, Bediuzzaman was mostly known by this name. Subsequently, he was called 'Nursî', after the village of his birth.

Said said: "I have come here to open schools in my native land, I have no other aim. I want this, nothing else." In other words, Bediuzzaman wanted two things, to open educational establishments in every part of the Eastern  Provinces, and to receive nothing in return. [^86]

[^86]:Şahiner, Said Nursi, 78; Nursi, Divan-ı Harb-i Örfî, 5-6.

Bediuzzaman cut a striking figure in Istanbul. On the door of his room in the Şekerci Han he hung a sign which read:

"Here all questions are answered, all problems solved, but no questions are asked."

The following are the impressions of some of his visitors to the Han and those who saw him at that time. The first is the account of Hasan Fehmi Başoğlu, later a member of the Consultative Committee of the Department of Religious Affairs.

About the time the Second Constitution was proclaimed I was studying in the Fatih medrese. I heard that a young man called Bediuzzaman had come