I have thought over my past many times. I have thought a great deal about writing this book, Ruhnama. Every time it 

was as if the souls of Oguz Han, Gorkut Ata and Görogly were appealing to me. The soul of Oguz Han said:

“Write! The place where your nation came into existence will be the route; the place which your nation favours will be the territory; the wishes of your nation will be realized.”

The soul of Gorkut Ata said:

“Write! The things that the nation favours, and the things that are written on the fate, mind, and heart of the nation are sacred.”

The soul of Görogly said:

“The nation that travels a straight road is happy. The happiness of the nation is the basis of the brave preservation of the country and the territory. Today, the happiness of your nation is in your hands. Saparmyrat, show the way of the golden life to the Türkmen nation. This will be your task; this will be your way.”

The soul of our father Magtymguly said:

Souls and hearts beat together,

The army marches, soil and stone dissolve.

If the food is prepared and served at one table,

The future of Türkmen is bright and prosperous.

My guiding souls, my father and my mother, said:

“Allah selected the four heroes of the Türkmens –Oguz Han, Gorkut Ata, Görogly and Magtymguly- as the inheritors of the prophets. Today, Allah the Great has designated you as their inheritor. Son, devote your life to maintaining the unity of the Türkmen nation and to sustaining the golden life for them.”

Sometimes, I wonder whether I feel too proud of my nation, or whether my eyes are dazzled by the light of the word “Türkmen,” or whether I am enchanted by the magic of the word “Türkmen.” However, so far human beings have never been damaged by affection. Nobody has ever been injured by his or her love of the nation. Be afraid of those who do not love their nation. If everybody likes their own nation, then the nations will like each other. Those who do not like their own nations cannot like other nations. The word “Türkmen,” lies in my bosom like a beloved baby warmed by the heat of my heart.

Türkmen, the name of our nation.

Our fathers consecrated this word as a flag and they fought bravely against its greatest enemies. This word was an inseparable comrade to them even when they fell, a spear lodged in their breasts.

Feelings of duty and responsibility and action underlie the love of the nation.

Our nation prevented deviations from unity and collaboration even in severe conditions by the saying, “Do not leave your nation even if you are killed.” One feels sorrow for the peoples of the world who have not yet achieved nationhood; and one feels twice that sorrow for those who leave the path of the nation and consider this great idea, the nation, to be merely the detritus of history.

Our nation is the greatest source of pride to us! We live to fulfil our due to this great word; even if we die, we desire to die as Türkmens.

If you live a wretched and dissolute life, whether near or far away, they do not say, “That man is like that,” but they say, “That nation is like that.”

If you live an honourable and excellent life, whether near or far away, they say, “That man is Türkmen! They are the nation that directed the course of history.”

Our great Türkmen nation overcame those terrible disasters and troubles by the guidance of the word “Türkmen.” Being Türkmen has saved the nation from the fire.

My Beloved Türkmen Nation!

Your origin lies in Oguz Han. Twenty-four tribes, forty families constitute the essence of the Türkmen nation. In the course of history, some of these tribes have dispersed across the world and preserved their national self-awareness by means of forming new groups. However, today, when Türkmenistan has become an independent state, tribal relations are detrimental to the unity of the Türkmen nation. My beloved Türkmen nation, it is on this issue that I am addressing you now.

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The Türkmen nation has been reborn as a whole. To have an independent and impartial state is only possible by the unity and indivisibility of the nation.

Beloved people, the one who will carry the Türkmen to the future is the Türkmen himself. Today, there are more than 22 million Türkmens in the world, and there are 5,500,000 Türkmens living in our independent and impartial country. I especially want to make clear here that there are people living in our territory from more than forty different nations; they are living in peace, happiness and unity with the Türkmens.

The Türkmen sees other nations as his own brothers, his own friends. Racism cannot find a place among Türkmens. Türkmens respect the languages, the religions and the traditions of other nations. The rights and responsibilities of all citizens living in Türkmenistan are equal before the law of the Türkmen state.

The dining table is assumed to be holy by the Türkmen nation. The dining table is the sign of unity and it gathers the Türkmens around itself. The dining table is the pledge of the Türkmen. When the Türkmens are asked, “Who is Han?” they answer, “The dining table.”

By means of preserving its national characteristics, after many years the Türkmen nation has succeeded to great spiritual power. By building upon this historical foundation and the experiences of the past, we have managed to establish stability and well-being in our country in the transition period. Within a short period of time, the regulations and constitution of the organization of the national state have been prepared and implemented; the required background for our foreign relations has been achieved.

Independence has changed the fate of the Türkmen nation completely and has brought it to the point of perfection because the nation state is the clear evidence that idea of the existence of the nation is not only an imagining or a sweet desire. A nation is constructed only by the existence of a nation state.

Nation is the transformation of human groups in the context of certain spiritual foundations. A nation is shaped materially according to these spiritual foundations. The reason for my frequent repetition that Oguz Han is the father of our nation is that Oguz Han has provided a political and national identity to the Türkmens. By means of his efforts, the foundations of the Türkmens, who are one of the first nations of the world, were built upon. This gives us the following lesson: nation begins with the spirit and its material form, civilization; thus, spiritual integrity is needed for a people to transform into a nation.

I say that the ancestor of the Türkmen nation is Oguz Han because, when Oguz

Unity and integrity form the eternal and fundamental principle of the Türkmen nation.

We love our nation, our homeland, our state. Love becomes much when it is shared. Fire becomes fierce when it is fed with firewood. Prayer becomes acceptable if it is frequently repeated.

Nations are forever, but tribes are temporary. Nationality carries a society towards eternity, while societies based on tribalism are short-lived. Every member of the Türkmen nation must accept this principle. Life depends on our understanding life and reality. The more we understand our being of Türkmen nationality, the stronger our nationality becomes. In the 21^st century, the Türkmen nation gains its strength from the model of personality it puts forward.

Türkmen is a nation cherished and beloved by Allah. I understand this truth from this fact: since Allah the Most Exalted loves the Türkmen nation, he has let them live for  5000 years. If he didn’t love them, he would have removed them from history. For this reason, the Türkmen nation bears the great duty of preserving our religion, belief, national dignity, and national values; and the duty to transmit them to future generations without any change.

May the Türkmen stand as long as the world stands. May Türkmenistan stand as long as the world stands. May the independent and impartial Türkmenistan last forever!