Translator's Preface
This little book started out as a translation of a Turkish audiotape produced by Sufi Master Ahmed Hulusi titled “Yasamin Gercegi”, which translates into English as “The Truth Of Life”.
A small dilemma arises from the definitions of some of the words spoken on the tape and the conceptions these prompt in people’s minds. The way the Master speaks on the original audiotape, together with the fact that his commentary style is very conversational, make it difficult at times to grasp the essence of the subject easily, partly because there are so many sufist terms being used. In order for my readers to clearly understand the sufist terms in their proper context I have made a great effort to do the following things:
1) Translate the Sufist terms into English.
2) Translate the Turkish expressions into their English equivalent.
3) In order to help the readers to understand the text properly, I have tried to avoid literal translation of the text as far as possible and to stick to a free translation technique, which truly reflects the actual meaning of what has been spoken on the original audio tape.
I have personally consulted with many individuals for assistance in helping me to edit the translation and bring it to its final state. Translation of the speech as well as the editing process lasted several months and I would therefore like to express my gratitude to those who gave me their assistance for all their efforts. Special thanks are due to Mr Metin Arkin for his proof reading and Mr Steve Coleman for his editing, suggestions and invaluable help in bringing the translation to its present form, as well as to all the others who have contributed to it in any way.
I have also included a glossary section at the back of this booklet to help readers to understand the terminology used in the speech. This way, one can simply look up the meaning of the word italicised in the original text and get its meaning straight away to avoid any further confusion.
By translating his audiotape, I wanted to play my part, however small, in his process of Giving To The World. Of course, I may have a few mistakes too. May Allah the almighty forgive me for all the errors that I may have made during the translation and grant me the vision to comprehend things as they really are.
Ahmed Hulusi