ADNAN OKTAR: For that reason, one needs to be patient in the face of primitive thoughts and know that something told may not take effect immediately. There are some people, they preach things and then say; "I explained him, but he was not affected." How did he not get affected? After 3 years, 5 years, its effect would show. If you are going to tell something, you'll leave it be. Just like the Prophet Moses (pbuh) being placed into an ark and left by his mother. Allah then directs him towards something good. We also leave the good behavior; a blessing, a beauty, and it would certainly be beneficial in some way for that person and be effective. Therefore one needs not to be hasty. For example, when I was in the Academy I was preaching. I entered the Academy in 1979; until 81, 82, 83 ,I have had two friends and then three friends, then four, then five. Three of them left and two remained; again one or two left and five remained. Our number could maximum reach to five. But those were constantly leaving and the new ones were coming. Because in the first years of the school, they continued with their Anatolian culture or the Istanbul culture they had, but some time later they were entering that intellectual artist mood in the school. Tying scarf around his neck, pulling the arm of the sweater up to here, swinging his hands down, and so.. Then when there is an artwork, putting his hand under his chin and watching at length, measuring with a pen. Now when they entered that mood, they changed after a while of course and entered into a weird state of mind, I mean some of them. I consider all of them free from that, but some of them did that. Then they began to think that they would begin to make a living and become a good artist and such. In fact, it didn't happen that way. For instance, I have had a friend from the faculty of fine arts; he used to associate himself with sculptor Rodin, he had such moves. I ran into him years later and he had lime marks on his head. I asked him "What do you do for living?" He said "I'm painting buildings."

Now of course painting the walls to white can be considered as a form of art.. Well, of course that is not like it, to tell the truth, they didn't face such things, in practice. They were dreaming, dreaming about becoming a very famous artist, about his works selling for billions, but there is no such thing. Everywhere is full of artists; there is no such thing. But when they enter into that mood, they forget religion. They forgot the things we told them and they were not influenced.  They thought that great things would happen, that  they would begin to make a living. They were possessed by the world and thus they gave up. But then Allah increased of course and all is going very well now. In saying that all is going very well, of course we do face difficulties as well.