When the Ottoman State abandoned following Al’lah’s Law (the Holy Qur’an) and relied only on mankind’s temporal laws, the state eventually collapsed. It is known that the laws written by man never agree with Al’lah’s Satisfaction as they are unable to bring about happiness either here or in the Hereafter, since they were enacted by mankind and not by their Provider. They would be, therefore, imperfect, and their insufficiency would affect mankind in both this life and the Afterlife. That’s why this great empire was afflicted with calamity, weakness and ignominy, to the point where it became totally insolvent. The state was bankrupt after being one of the wealthiest in former times.
Urgent stringent proceedings were put in place to try to ward off its desperate situation and stop this terrible economic crash. As part of these measures the government began to seize money from its population. No-one was spared and merchants had their fortunes confiscated; so too did the money dealers who had immense financial power, for they controlled the circulation of currency and trade development throughout the country, or even further. Moreover, it imposed stringent taxes and prevented gold or cash from leaving the country. Severe penalties were imposed on everyone who was caught contravening the regulations and attempting to smuggle gold or money out of the Turkish state, thereby attempting to stop the financial crash and strengthen the economy. They hoped that these harsh measures would achieve that aim.
Such an extreme financial situation and the severe laws applied to halt the slump caused great suffering and hardship. The group of Syrian traders living and trading in Turkey were very badly affected and they would be forced to leave the country because of the collapse. The matter had escalated beyond their worst possible expectation. No wonder! Because it was likely they would lose the financial gains and wealth they had worked for and accumulated during their lifetime. What could they do? They would not be allowed to take their fortunes with them when they left for their homeland. How would they be able to transmit it to Syria since their financial affairs would be subject to close inspection by the authorities and anyone who contravened the laws would face capital punishment?
If they submitted to the fait accompli imposed by the Turkish state and left behind all the property and wealth that they had earned during their lives, it would definitely be expropriated by the Turkish government at the earliest opportunity. During these critical times, the eminent scholar Mohammad Amin was visiting his brother Saleem Bey, who was living in Turkey. The Will of Almighty God arranged for the significant Syrian business men, the owners of notable companies and large factories, to assemble at the home of retired general, Saleem Bey, in the presence of his venerable brother, Mohammad Amin, where they explained their troubles to him expressing their distress and bitterness at the fate of their fortunes at the hands of the oppressive Turkish Empire. They complained saying, ‘Oh Saleem Bey! We have suffered many difficulties and worked hard all our lives and exerted ourselves to earn our fortunes. How could they extort it from us? How could they take it all away? They have even gone so far as to impose the death penalty on anyone who fails to declare their gold to the government… Oh, it’s all so unjust!’
The eminent, exalted master, M. A. Sheikho listened to their complaints, and after recognising the seriousness of the situation he began to formulate a plan that would ensure the transportion of the gold to Damascus. He soon settled on a brilliant course of action and rushed off to try it out. Then convinced that it would succeed he called them together again and said, ‘I can help you to get the gold out of Turkey and transported to Damascus safely and without any problems.’ He explained his simple but clever plan to smuggle the golden liras by hiding them in the hollowed out struts of the wooden boxes used to transport their everyday household goods.
The traders agreed to his offer after he had explained how he would do it and they became fully convinced that it would succeed. Due to their great confidence in the virtuous master and their belief in his unquestionable integrity they readily brought their entire fortunes of golden liras and placed them in his honest hands to be transported to their country, Syria. They allocated to him thirty golden liras from every hundred he could get out of Turkey and deliver to Damascus: a high proportion because of the extreme danger of this transaction.
The ethical master accepted the thirty percent they offered him because he had a very special reason for shouldering the burden of this particular task: the ample amount gold he would receive was to be reserved for a most important cause, the time when our master Jesus (pth) was to return. Mohammad Amin was expecting his appearance at that time, and by then, it had been made known to him that our master Jesus would need money and gold in preparation for his worldwide sovereignty. Thus, for the sake of this illustrious intention Al’lah had inspired him to think up the extremely clever and inventive idea for concealing the gold and sending it out of Turkey.
He set to the task and brought in a number of wooden crates and drilled out a circular tube through the centre of each of the support struts: this was the same diameter as a golden lira. He started to put the gold coins inside them, inserting a layer of sawdust between each of them as he wanted to avoid the possibility of them touching each other and making a noise. He then closed the top of the circular hole and made them appear just like their original state, so as not to arouse any suspicion. He continued to work in this manner until all the coins were completely concealed and the fortunes of the Syrian traders and wealthy men were sealed inside the struts of the wooden boxes and ready for their illicit journey.
And so he left on the first train heading from Istanbul to Damascus with a pile of wooden boxes which were filled with his belongings and such like. On the way the train stopped at the customs post where a group of Turkish officials accompanied by experienced German inspectors got on the train aiming to carry out a strict examination of all goods and baggage destined for Syria.
They set about searching the passengers and their belongings looking for gold or other contraband money. As they came closer to the place where Mohammad Amin was sitting, he glanced at them and he became deeply afraid, because the situation was potentially extremely serious. Hence, and before anyone could pay him any attention, he calmly stood up and went off to to the compartment which had been designated for higher military ranks and important officials only. On this particular journey it was occupied by four high ranking German dignitaries ranking.
As soon as Mohammad Amin entered this compartment,
displaying intelligence and superior self-assurance he moved as quick as a wink up to one of those Germans and swiftly snatched off his hat and put it on his own head, then he handed him a cigarette, and as soon it was between the man’s lips he lit it for him. They were merely light, rapid and astonishing motions which caused looks of wonder and curiosity to appear on their faces and remove the weariness of the long journey which had tired them. Indeed they felt revived and enlivened by this quirky behaviour and liveliness, and even gave out a hearty chuckle at his antics. Then, Mohammad Amin sat with them just as an old friend would… a fair, handsome Syrian, albeit an officer in the Turkish army, sitting amongst them with the hat of a high-ranking German on his head! They were four chiefs, and now they were five!
Just moments later, the inspecting commission reached the compartment where Mohammad Amin was sitting happily with the Germans… how odd! Those German chiefs had been four, how had they become five? One of the members of the commission, who was a German expert, glared at the five chiefs and he thought he recognised the new face among them, so he asked him a question in German, which caused great dread in the heart of the venerable master. As a reaction, he said spontaneously,
‘Ya… ya… ya,’ trying to say, ‘Ya Al’lah.’ [138] But with Godly
Disposal and His Will to save him, he could not say the words ‘Ya Al’lah’, and in fact he loudly uttered the German words for ‘Yes’… ‘Ya… ya… ya’ which came out with a certain guttural tone of voice because of his terror, so, he sounded as natural a German, as the Germans themselves. [139]
And his fair skin, tone and hair colour helped to convince the inspectors that he was in fact a member of the German group.
The inspector stared at Mohammad Amin’s features and stature, and he did not suspect at all that he did not belong to the group in this carriage, especially when the four great chiefs burst out laughing for the astonishing, forceful reply he had made and which excited much mirth. By then all the members of the inspection group and the experts had joined in the laughter and then left to get on with their mission to search the other sections of the train and its passengers.
So this honourable master escaped! The Almighty had rescued him due to his noble intention and great love for Al’lah’s Envoy, our master Jesus Christ (pth), when the inspectors and experts left him without searching his belongings at all as they thought him to be one of the high level German group. So he managed to get the gold out of Turkey and into Syria after suffering certain difficulties during that long journey.
Immediately after Mohammad Amin arrived at Damascus, he took the wooden crates and headed immediately for one of his unoccupied houses (which he had inherited from his late father and had still not been sold). There, he took all the gold from the boxes and started to divide it into individual lots of one hundred golden liras. He took thirty liras from each hundred, which was his agreed share, then he placed all of his own share in one heap and did the same with the traders’ gold, placing it in another, bigger heap. He stared at both golden piles… and saw his own as a brilliant and luminous object as if there was real light shining from it, whereas the traders’ pile seemed to him dull and alarming as if shades of darkness emanated from it.
After this august master had divided the money for its Syrian owners according to what they had entrusted to him he delivered it to their respective families and obtained receipts from each of them.
As for his share of the golden coins, it remained well hidden and he never once used any of it, because he always kept in mind the second coming of our master Jesus (pth), [140] who might need it as soon as he returned, preparing for his kingdom. No-one had been informed of the place where these golden liras were hidden except this grand master’s son-in-law Abdul-Hadi al-Bani (may god have mercy upon him) who kept it a secret till the imposing master M. A. Sheikho left this world to be near to his Provider. At that time Mr. Abdul-Hadi assembled the sons and daughters of his virtuous father-in-law and gave them their father’s golden liras in full as they were his legal inheritors.
So, since the time of our great guide the signs indicating the coming of our master the Christ have regularly appeared and still do, but the entire world is still waiting for the coming of this grand man (pth) that he might wipe out the terrible aggression to which this world is increasingly subjected; to establish justice; and to stand up for the truth everywhere in order to spread and maintain the Word of Al’lah.
May God expedite his appearance.