Speech to the deputies of the fifth Majlis
(18.6.1996)
Source: Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Tehran, in Persian 0957
gmt 18 Jun 96
The following are excerpts from a recording of Ayatollah
Khamene'i's speech:
In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate...
The fifth Majlis was formed under conditions where, more than ever
before, the enemies of this nation had intensified their propaganda attacks and were
intent - and still are intent - on weakening the Islamic Republic through their various
ploys and tricks. Their wish was that this Majlis would not be able to convene at the
specified time. They were also hoping for a low turn-out in the elections and were looking
for an election process afflicted with disputes and clashes among the people, officials
and the supporters of famous personalities. Furthermore, they wanted the country's
conditions to deteriorate because of the elections and were wishing for an atmosphere of
enmity which would mar the people's vision and insight. These were the wishes of the
enemy...
Today, praise be to God, the new Majlis has been formed. From what I
know about the internal affairs of the present Majlis, it is clear that all the esteemed
brothers and sisters in the Majlis are well aware of the country's priorities and the
nation's needs. They are also fully aware of their grave responsibilities, which are often
more important than mere legislation. These responsibilities include the safeguarding of
the integrity of this nation and its revolution, and also preserving all the features
which are essential for the country's proud and strong presence on the international
arena. God be thanked, the approval of the deputies' credentials is proceeding well, or is
about to finish and the serious task of the Majlis will soon begin, God willing; the
sooner it begins the better because the people are waiting for you to get on with it...
This life will end one day. One may live for 50 years, 60 or 70 years .
Some live longer, some shorter. It will pass like a flash of lightning. The position of
responsibility will end sooner than life. Up to yesterday there were others sitting in
this Majlis, it is your turn today and tomorrow there will be different deputies. This
short space of time in the position of responsibility is not worth abandoning our
religious duties. This is the essence of what I am trying to tell you.
Praise be to God, this Majlis is a good Majlis. When I look at the
Majlis's composition, I can see that our previous terms of the Majlis were generally or
mainly the same. It is a good Majlis and a good composition of deputies have sat around
here. They are believers from the midst of the middle class. They have no affiliation with
the aristocracy. They are not following unhealthy political doctrines.
I do not wish to say that the existing political factions among our
brothers and sisters are some sort of gang-up. Well, each faction has its slogans and
pursues certain policies. However, if you look at them more carefully, you will realize
that they are the same. They all pursue the same objective. They all think alike. It is
very, very rare to find individuals among the deputies who pursue other
objectives. I
think it is far fetched to imagine even such individuals exist in this Majlis. Praise be
to God, this Majlis is a good Majlis.
Throughout the parliamentary history of this nation, the true Majlis
was experienced by the nation after the revolution. Before that, the parliament was not a
true Majlis, except in two or three terms... Today the deputies truly represent the
people. No-one can say that there are individuals in this Majlis who are not in favor of
implementation of the Islamic laws in this country. I do not think so. Even the
representatives of the religious minorities, who in their personal belief do not believe
in the sacred religion of Islam, have accepted the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Republic
means a set of Islamic instructions. They work towards the implementation of these
instructions too. No-one in this Majlis is against reconstruction of this country through
proper Islamic means and independently. No-one is against uprooting poverty from the midst
of the people. No-one is against creation of comfort for the people. However, in the
Majlis of the pre-revolution era there were individuals who only thought of their own
interests. They used to say: As far as I am concerned, the important objectives are to
line my own pockets with money; to protect my own land and to secure my own
interests. I
do not care what happens to the people. I do not care if Iran is drowned. I do not care if
all the houses are demolished. I do not care if thousands die of starvation. Nothing was
important to them. Whereas in the post-revolution Majlis, in the Islamic Majlis, such
thoughts never enters anybody's mind. We can conclude, therefore, that all the deputies
pursue the same objectives.
It is important that I should remind you dear brothers and sisters that
today you enjoy a certain authority which you lacked before being elected as Majlis
deputies. In other words, you now have the authority to legislate, which is your main
responsibility. Of course, the Majlis has other duties and responsibilities, as stipulated
by the constitution; that is to say supervision over what the government does, approving
ministers, etc. However, your most important duty is to legislate...
If an economic, cultural or political problem should prove very harmful
to the nation and Islam, or if it impedes the movement of our people towards their
ultimate, lofty objectives, then it is up to you to provide suitable solutions. If you
refrain from passing the appropriate laws, then the government can sit idle and say that
it is powerless to do anything. Of course, our government would never act in this way,
because it is intent on helping and supporting the Majlis and, by all its bills and
proposals, in fact it provides the Majlis with a suitable working agenda. Praise be to
God, our government today is capable and efficient. The government officials,
furthermore,
are caring individuals. I want to repeat here that in the entire history of Iran, we have
never had such a good collection of ministers, and our nation has never before enjoyed the
service of such a good group of individuals.
Throughout the entire history of Iran, our executive power has never
been led by someone enjoying as much support and admiration as our present
president. This
is one of the realities of our country today. If our president was not an efficient and
capable person, if he did not acknowledge all his responsibilities, if he lacked religious
insight and if he was someone who had not fought for the sake of God, then all the good
legislation by the Majlis would have been totally futile. There is no point in having laws
if there is no one to implement them. In other words, the presence of a good executive
power is like enjoying strong muscles. It is up to you to show the way and set the
pace.
This is what an Islamic Majlis is all about. As I said in my earlier message to
you, each
minute of your time is extremely valuable. You must not waste even one second of the
Majlis time, whether in the various committees or in the Majlis chamber proper...
Some deputies might propose a bill to the Majlis just to please the
people of their constituencies. To pass such a bill may be beyond the capabilities of the
Majlis because of budget restraints or because it is not part of the government plan. For
instance, they might propose building something somewhere. It is below the dignity of a
deputy to seek popularity by resorting to such measures. And if you wish to be
successful,
you must be independent and free. This was one of the reasons I opposed the participation
of cabinet ministers in the Majlis elections. Of course there were other reasons too but
one of the reasons was the one I mentioned.
The various political factions should take part in the
elections. They
should also take part in all the affairs of the country. No affair of the state is the
monopoly of a certain stratum, of a particular ideology or a particular political
faction.
Everyone must take part. We have learnt by experience that this is in the interest of the
country and its progress. This was the reason we encouraged different political factions
to compete in the elections. It will always be the same. We shall also encourage different
political factions to enter the social arena. However, we strictly banned cabinet
ministers, saying: Ministers are not permitted to take part. The reason is that we believe
the executive authority should not interfere in the affairs of the legislative
authority.
Both of them work on the same front for the country, but they perform two different
tasks.
It is not possible for the referee to be a player at the same time. It is not possible for
the policy maker to implement the same policies. This is not possible.
When we say the Majlis deputies should be independent, we mean they
should judge for themselves. Of course, they should ask the experts to help them. Such
experts exist in the ministries, in the universities and in the Majlis itself. Praise be
to God, we are not short of experts today... If the Majlis is a parliament in which the
deputies think for themselves, in which the committees think for themselves, make
decisions and then insist on carrying them out - carrying the government behind them -
then it will be an effective Majlis that will be able to run the country in the best
possible way. This is something we have said repeatedly to the brother and sister
deputies, and we are now saying it to you.
Of course, as I said, government officials are, fortunately, very
sympathetic officials. They care. They act on the basis of a sense of duty. There are
people among the ministers who, my guess is, with every action they do, they first stop
and think whether it will please God or not. This is the kind of ministers we have
today,
God be praised. This is the kind of government we have. The president's
qualities, of course, speak for themselves. He is a religious, learned man, struggling in the path of
God, with complete competence regarding the affairs of the country, he is
experienced. All
this goes without saying as far as the head of the government is concerned . Every single
one of our ministers, God be praised, enjoys such great qualities. You, however, are
representatives of the people. Your dignity and status must be in line with what is
expected of you.
At any rate, you must trust in God and Exalted God will,
hopefully,
make your tasks easier. You must increase this unity and solidarity that exists in the
Majlis with every passing day. If it comes to pass that, at the end of this term, these
political factions, which now imagine they have some differences, reach the conclusion
that they do not have any differences at all and are good friends, you should know that
you have made a great gain; both you and the country...
Speech on anniversary of Imam Khomeini's
demise (3.6.1996)
Source: Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Tehran,
in Persian 0600 gmt 3 Jun 96
... Dear people of Iran, let me tell you this:
You, the
great people of Iran, have advanced every day despite the pressures and the threats of the
enemy. This is the first point. No-one can deny the fact that serving hands and able arms
have advanced the country in the past 17 years. Iran is no longer the country that it was
during the royal tyranny with all its chaos, deprivations and discriminations. The
achievements of the country since the revolution 17 years ago are more than all the
achievements of that evil and corrupt regime. This was the first point: progress.
The second point is this: all the progress was achieved while our
enemies, that is the United States and its political and economic allies, were threatening
us. They told us: Gentlemen, you will suffer from economic sanctions. They said: You will
die of hunger. They said: The road to progress will be closed to you. They said this and
they said that. But, thank God, there has been much progress despite their
threats,
despite their enmity and despite their pressures. This was the second point.
And the third point is: My dear ones! My brothers and sisters! Oh,
great nation! You should know that today, the major aim of America and its arrogance is to
force the revolution, the Islamic Republic and the Iranian nation to take back its
word;
to declare that it has taken back its word, that it has taken back the word of the Imam
Khomeini . All the efforts of its arrogance are directed at this. Why this? Because it
sees that the Imam's message has awakened Islamic nations. Look at the world's different
nations - especially Islamic nations - and see how they have become influenced by the
message of the exalted Imam. America's arrogance has realized that if it wants to silence
the nations, put them in their place and make them abandon the right path, the only way is
to do something to make these nations see that Islamic Iran and the Iran of the Imam has
abandoned its path. In this way it hopes to make everyone lose hope and abandon their
path. Arrogance has understood this. All its efforts are directed at this.
Today they are bringing pressure to bear on the Islamic Republic of
Iran's government to give in on the question of Israel, on Islamic issues, to stop
chanting Islamic slogans and reduce all these proclamations about Islam and the Koran
which are held in common by Muslim countries. All the pressure is aimed `t this.
Vhat H have to say is that hf the Iranian nation wants to continue the
path of glory and progress ,just as, God be thanked, it has done hn these past
years,
thanks to the blessings of the powerful `nd serving hands in the Islamic Republic of
Iran's government which endeavored and worked hard in different sectors and progressed ,
hf the Iranian nation wants to `dvance `nd obtain the results of the path nf
glory, development, reconstruction, affluence, then the way to do this is to continue
steadfastness and endurance in the face of the enemies and arrogance.
Chants of God is Great!
In the past several years, the Iranian people have achieved much and
they must look after these achievements. All sectors of the nation, particularly the
officials of the Islamic Republic, must act wisely, intelligently and sensibly in order to
prevent the destruction of these achievements, be they the direct outcome of the
revolution - such as popular government, popular sovereignty, popular presidency, popular
deputies and such - or things that are the indirect result of the revolution - such as
construction, revolutionary work and revolutionary art by revolutionary elements in the
government or in other organizations. These things must be guarded wisely and
intelligently by the Iranian people and by government officials. The way to guard these
achievements and to create more is for the Iranian nation and officials to follow the path
that the noble Imam sketched out by his actions; the path of resistance in the face of
enemy's expectations and endurance in the face of unrestrained fabrications by those
abroad. Public chants of approval People talk about the path of the Imam and the line of
the Imam.
But what is the path of the Imam? It is too general to say that the
path of the Imam is Islam or the revolution. It is obvious that the line of the Imam is
the path of Islam and the revolution. Indeed, no-one is against Islam or the
revolution.
But to meet the expectations of that noble man, the father of the revolution and the
engineer of Islamic Iran, is to learn from his perseverance and resistance in the face of
the enemy. He did not fear the enemy. The enemy's threats did not move him. No-one can
accuse the noble Imam of unwise acts. No! If learned people looked carefully, they could
understand the correctness of his path, that took him towards his aims. And this is my
statement at the seventh anniversary of the demise of that noble man.
All the officials, the various sections of the public and the Iranian
nation must learn from the Imam's perseverance in the face of the enemy's
expectations.
And if other nations want to get anywhere this is the path to follow. The way to solve the
Palestinian issue is to show resistance and endurance. The way to solve the various
interventions of the world arrogance in the region is to show endurance. The Iranian
people should know that if it were not for the Imam the great borders of Iran would not
have been safe. The enemy would have violated the borders, would have stayed on our
territory and would have brought eternal shame on the Iranian nation. The Imam' s
resistance did not allow this. Today, if you want to have a beloved Iran, if you want to
be a proud nation and if you want to materialize the aims of the noble Imam, which were
the aims of Islam and the revolution, you must not give in to the enemy's
expectations.
Thank God, the officials are as strong as a mountain. Today, the government of the Islamic
Republic, the people's deputies, the judiciary, the armed forces and the whole nation are
standing like an iron wall against the enemy's expectations and will not blink in the face
of their threats. Indeed, this is the fit and honorable path to follow.
The Americans want to advance their cause through threats. This is not
possible. They can't even do it through intervention. The Iranian nation will not turn a
blind eye to the rights of the Palestinian people. The Americans say that we should turn a
blind eye to the Palestinian people and sign the imposed compromise. It is obvious that
the Iranian people, effectively and forcefully, reject this path and regard anyone who
follows it as a traitor. Public chants "God is great" , and "death to
Israel"
And the people should know that the message of the Imam and the message
of you great revolutionary people has spread throughout the world. Although seven years
have passed since the demise of Imam Khomeini , his name and memory has not aged and will
not age. Of course, the propaganda of the enemy attempts to give the impression that the
message of the revolution has declined in the world. But this is a lie and a
falsification. Today, in all parts of the world, even places where there are no signs of a
Muslim, the name and the symbol of your great revolution, the great movement of our nation
and the great movement of that noble man is evident among the people.
This is the path of might for Iran. This is the path of glory. This is
the path of development for our territory. This is the path of welfare, victory and
prosperity. God willing, the Iranian nation will continue to pursue this path with might.
And with God's grace future generations will complete it....
Speech on Teacher’s Day and international
Labor Day (01.05.1996)
Source: Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran Network 1, Tehran, in
Persian 1001 gmt 1 May 96
The following are excerpts from a recorded speech by the
Leader marking Iran's Teacher’s Day and international Labor Day on 1st May, broadcast
by Iranian radio later the same day:
In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate... It may be that,
in a society, there is work, effort, education - but what is the motivation behind that
work? In what direction is this work or education moving? Imagine, for example, the work
that is being done today in munitions plants in the United States: There, too, there are
workers, but the work that is being done there - whether it is the labor of a simple
worker, of a skilled worker, a foreman, a sectional director, a plant director or the main
designers behind the work - all their work is at the service of warmongering. That is the
purpose of their work. It is aimed at serving usurpers, such as Israel. It is aimed at,
for example, the atomic bombing of Hiroshima - once upon a time.
Today, too, if the United States were not afraid of public opinion, if
it were not afraid of its own internal destruction, in short, if it were not for the
harnesses and barriers impeding the US administration, it would be willing to drop atomic
bombs wherever it felt like. Murdering people is not a difficult thing for them. Or, for
example, at a university devoted to intelligence or espionage sciences for the CIA
organization in the United States, too, there are teachers and students who are engaged in
teaching and studying. Does that teacher have the same value as we attach to our teachers?
Is a student, the product of whose efforts is changes thought - not to defend the national
interest of the United States; if it were, we would have no complaints. Let them manage
their own national interests within the boundaries of their own country in a reasonable
way. We have no wish to stop them from that. We are not jealous. However, that education,
that studying is at the service of the most evil and the dirtiest political hands and
human beings in the world, against independence - seeking movements, against independence
- seeking countries, to the benefit of reactionary regimes, against progressive regimes.
That is the motivation behind their work.
Look my dear ones, I want you, the workers' community of the country
and academic’s community of the country, to pay attention to this point. The nature
and substance of work is not important but it is the spirit of work which is important.
The mere fact that only an arm moves and turns a wheel doesn't create any value, any
spiritual value, any moral value. We should see why the wheel is turning, for what purpose
and for whom, and what purpose the wheel will serve... One should see what is the
substance of a subject, what is its purpose and in what direction that teaching moves.
This is important, my dear ones.
Today in the world, science is being taught, but in some cases it is
aimed at destroying human values. Today there are people who are acquiring education in
order to serve foreigners who are lying in ambush beyond the borders of the country with
satanic aims. This is not an important value. Once in our own sacred territory in Iran , a
number of people were educated simply for the sake of steering Iranian society and Iran
further towards corruption. This does not have any value or credit. The direction is
important, the spirit is important.
Let us talk again about our own society and our own country. I want to
say to you, my dear ones, the country's workers, the country's teachers: Today any
scientific, cultural or working movement that is carried out in the service of the Islamic
Republic and in the service of Islamic Iran and for the reconstruction of this country and
for the country's growth and development, is a religious duty. That includes any task that
you perform today. There are no differences between this and that factory or this and that
school. If today in Islamic Iran a teacher teaches only one word and his intention is to
educate a student to serve the country - a country which is today the land of Islam and an
arena for the greatness and glory of Islamic instructions - then it is a good word. If it
becomes a hundred words then it becomes a hundred good words...
My dear ones, today Iran, your Islamic <Iran,> is the focal point
of the freedom and liberation of humanity.
Crowd chants: "God is Great" , "Khamene'i the
leader" , "Death to America" , "Death to Israel"
Your country is the focal point of the liberation of humanity. Why? We
don't have that much (?free) relations with humanity sentence as heard . What are we
trying to do? The point is: Today the satanic and evil powers - those that you refer to as
arrogant powers, for example the USA - are standing against humanity. They are standing
against human values. They don't care about the lives of millions of people. You have seen
that Israel killed, wounded and made homeless tens of thousands of people in 10 to 16 days
and caused many grievances. It didn't touch the global arrogance in the least. These are
the people who, when a cat is trapped in a well in a house, mobilize their equipment and
spend money, as a deceitful act, to free the cat, which is an animal. Occasionally they
pretend to be humanitarian to the extent that even we, who know them very well, sometimes
doubt whether all these expression of kindness are really true. They deceive people to
that extent.
A great catastrophe Lebanon fighting occurred in front of their eyes
and they did not say anything. This was not the only incident - since the beginning of the
Islamic revolution, over the past 17 years, the people of Iran have been looking at issues
and evaluating the world problems with their eyes open - if you look you will find
hundreds of such examples. For example, when the Americans, the Zionist apparatus of the
world, the lying global powers, were supporting Iraq, you saw that the Iraqi government
used chemical bombs on Halabjah and poured chemical substances by air during daylight on
the people and left their bodies like dead wood in the streets. It was an unprecedented
incident. You shiver when you hear of such an incident. All the world's television
channels filmed it and showed it. No-one condemned Iraq. Most of the world community did
not even refer to it let alone governments.
The Islamic Republic, of course, made a lot of fuss about it in the
world. A number of people, when they realized that they cannot do anything but submit to
public opinion, said a few words which they wouldn't have said otherwise. That was the
same Iraq to which they referred as an awesome giant a few years later and confronted it.
Because, at that time, Iraq was fighting the Islamic Iran. Such are those global powers.
The threat of global sovereignty over humanity is a serious issue. Up to some time ago,
there were two powers, East and West, so there was at least some rivalry between them. In
this way, they balanced each other out to some degree. Today, it is a question of absolute
power. The Americans have become so impudent that they have started striding this way and
that throughout the world, saying: Look, you should break off your relations with the
Islamic Republic of Iran because we are not on good terms with it. Shamefulness to this
degree! Of course, the Europeans and the countries of the world slapped them in the face.
They ignored them. But that is the extent of their shamefulness!
Well, these are the ones who wish to gain ever more mastery over
humanity; to
dig in their claws; to carry out their bullying; to express their
opinion on important international events and impose their opinion on everyone. On
Palestine. On Lebanon. On Bosnia. Everywhere, where something occurs, they want to be
present, express their opinion and make their presence felt. Then, they expect all
governments to obey them. Weak, humble and worthless governments actually start praising
them, contrary to the interests of their own nations, encouraging them and magnifying
their importance.
On the other side, who is it that is standing up to them? Which
government and nation is it that does not bat an eyelid in the face of their
ever-increasing threats? Which system is it that, with reliance on its people, on the
strong will of its great and proud nation, has said no to all their threats and insults?
Where is that place?
Do you think that we are the only people who say this? Today, all those
countries, which are knowledgeable about international issues, especially issues relating
to this region, admit that it is only the system of the Islamic Republic of Iran that has
the courage and the strength to stand up to their ever- increasing pressure and say, no.
Crowd chants in support "Death to those who oppose the supreme
jurisconsult", "Death to America" , "Death to Britain" ,
"Death to Saddam and the hypocrites", "Death to Israel" .
This saying of no by the Iranian nation and government even encourages
other governments to stand firm. If you have been paying attention, you will have noticed
examples of this in the course of various events. You may have noticed reported in the
news. I do not want to mention any names. You saw numerous instances of this during the
recent events in Lebanon and in other situations.
In other words, your steadfastness even affects governments and excites
nations. Nations are emboldened. Nations derive courage from it . The spirit of fear that
they have tried to inject into the bodies of nations is discarded. The steadfastness of
this nation, the growth of this nation has this impact on the whole world's public
opinion.
We do not listen to foreign radios for a judgment on our own situation.
It is obvious that foreign radios are run by a bunch of mercenaries who have received
money to write articles filled with insults from top to bottom. Well, when someone swears
at someone else, does he base it on reality? For example, when he says someone's father is
a such and such, has he actually gone and seen that person' s father? He is just swearing.
They are swearing at the Islamic Republic of Iran. That is of no value.
We base our judgments on realities. This is the reality of the world
today and the more this Islamic country, this independent country, this brave nation makes
progress, in science, in work, in experience, at universities, at factories, at schools -
the better it becomes, the greater will become the psychological impact that I said it has
on other nations. Those who impose economic embargoes on the Islamic Republic wish to
prevent the Islamic Republic from having an effect on other nations due to its industrial,
technical and scientific progress. God be praised, they cannot do so. We have made
progress by the day. We thank God for this.
Today, the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the government
officials that serve the nation are working hard. Our active and dear president is working
with all his might. You can see this. The people, too, are truly helping. The people's
support is very valuable . Everything depends on this link between officials and the
people. These efforts will bear fruit. Your work, your knowledge, your schools, your
culture, your universities, your factories can affect the progress made by this country
every day. That is, they can give hope to nations, humble the enemy, make the tyrants of
the world and international dictators, the manifestation of which is the US
administration, slip further away from their evil goals with every passing day.
Message to Hajj pilgrims 1416 (25.4.1996)
Source: IRNA news agency, Tehran, in English 1241 gmt 25 Apr 96
(also available as booklet)
Following is the text of the message from Ayatollah Khamene'i,
transmitted in English by the Iranian news agency IRNA on 25th April:
I the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful, and praise be to
Allah, the Lord of all the worlds, and salutations upon the Sayyid lord of the first and
the last, Prophet Muhammad al-Mustafa and his blessed household, and upon Baqiyatullah
fil-Ard 12th and hidden Shi'i imam.
Hajj (pilgrimage), this ever-flowing fountain of piety and
spirituality, goodness and blessing shall, each year and for ever, supply the Islamic
world, and each and every fortunate Muslim, with its abundant favors, and all individuals
or congregations may draw benefits from it in proportion to their capacities and
capabilities.
The pilgrims to the Baytullah al-Haram Ka'bah are not the only ones who
imbibe at this bountiful fountain: If this great obligation is truly recognized and
properly carried out, then all Muslim nations and individual Muslims throughout the world
will be overflowed by its blessings. Harm has always come to individuals and communities
from two quarters: Firstly from within themselves, that is, through human weaknesses,
unbridled desires, irresolution and lack of faith and other destructive traits, and
secondly from without, namely by enemies who, because of their rebelliousness, paranoiac
wishes, aggressiveness and devouring nature, oppress mankind and make their lives
unbearable and miserable by forcing war, injustice and suppression upon them.
And the Islamic world, both as individuals and nations, has always been
exposed to the two kinds of threats, and today they are being threatened more than ever
before: deliberate propagation of corruption in Islamic countries and imposition of the
Western culture on them, to the spreading of which certain dependent regimes also
contribute that affects not only individual behaviors, but also influences many aspects of
life from city architecture to general living conditions to radio, television, the print
media on the one hand, and military political and economic pressures on some Muslim
nations coupled with human slaughter as in Lebanon, Palestine, Bosnia, Kashmir, Chechenya
and Afghanistan on the other, are glaring examples of the two kinds of threats directed
against the Islamic communities. The pilgrimage is like an everflowing river, divinely
granted, at the banks of which Muslims may always wash from their faces the dusts of
hardship and suffering, pollution and malaise, and to refresh themselves by this eternal
provision in order to confront and overcome the two vulnerabilities at all times.
In the performance of Hajj the elements of piety, remembrance,
presence, submission and absorption in God Almighty, shall serve to remove the first
threat, and the elements of togetherness, unity and feeling the enormity and the strength
of the great, Islamic Ummah, of which Hajj is the crowning symbol, will tackle the second
threat. The immunity and resistance of individual muslims and Muslim nations shall
increase as these two aspects of Hajj are strengthened, but if one or both become weak or
extinct, then the Islamic Ummah, as individuals, nations or states, shall become more
vulnerable.
In the texts of the holy shari'ah of Islam and in the holy Koran,
sufficient emphasis is laid upon both these aspects of Hajj, and there shall be no doubt
whatsoever about them for those with seeing eyes and unbiased hearts: Along with the
command
"Celebrate the praises of Allah, as you used to celebrate the
praises of your fathers, yea, with far more heart and soul" (surah 2, verse 200),
there is the order
"and an announcement from Allah and His Messenger to the people
assembled on the day of the great pilgrimage, that Allah and His Messenger absolve
themselves from the polytheists and pagans" (surah 9, verse 3),
and together with the divine wisdom
"it is not their meat, nor their blood, that reaches Allah: it is
your piety that reaches him, he has thus made them subject to you that you may glorify
Allah for his guidance to you, and proclaim the good news to all who do good'' (surah 22,
verse 37),
we are also made hopeful
"that they may witness the benefits provided for them" (surah
22, verse 28).
Any recommendation, propagation or endeavor in the direction of
weakening or abandoning these two aspects of the pilgrimage will undoubtedly be a
confrontation with the verses and injunctions of the Holy Koran.
There is no heavier loss to the Islamic Ummah than allowing the
teachings and the guidance of Islam, which are vital, eternal, invaluable provisions for
Muslims and the whole of humanity, to fall into oblivion through the negligence or
ignorance of their religious, political leaders, and to deprive people from their
benefits. Hajj is an everlasting valuable reserve of that kind, and it is obligatory upon
all Muslims to get to know it better and to exploit it more deeply for the good of the
Islamic Ummah.
Today the Islamic world is faced with certain extremely threatening
problems, and if Muslims do not strive to remove them through the power of faith,
struggling, reliance on God, sublime selflessness and with open eyes to utilize the
reserved potentials deposited by the Almighty in this straightforward religion, then their
arrogant enemies, who are equipped with political and military power and technology, will
tighten their encirclement of them and further postpone the days of freedom and salvation
in the Islamic countries, not only for decades but for centuries, in the course of which
certain nations might by annihilated or they may lose their Islamic identities by the
imposition of the corrupting components of the West' s culture.
Today, after the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran, and
Islamic reawakening in many Islamic countries, numerous facts of bitter or sweet nature
are known and great numbers of people in the Islamic world are able to properly analyze
events around them and to understand the realities of their situations. Yet it must be
admitted that the bewitching influence of radios, televisions and the print media, often
run by Zionists, their Western allies, and certain seemingly Muslim elements who behave as
servants of the arrogant powers, are perpetually engaged in distorting the truth. It may,
therefore, be propitious here to give a brief summary of the problems facing the Islamic
world as well as of the potentials and possibilities at the service of world Muslims.
As far as potentials are concerned, we must, first of all, make mention
of the numerical strength of over one billion Muslims throughout the world that embraces
some 50 countries and extends from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean. This great
Ummah includes nations well known for their talents and intelligence, some civilizations
that go back a few thousand years, and great individuals in the fields of science and
politics. This great part of the world's population, better known as the Islamic Ummah,
possesses a very rich culture and an everlasting heritage that brilliantly shines in
history, and it does enjoy, despite its great variety, an amazing unity instilled in all
its component parts and particles.
These singlehearted brother nations, formed of different, racial
designations, black, white and yellow, who speak dozens of tongues, believe in being parts
of the same great, Islamic Ummah in which they take pride, and daily they pray to God in
one language and receive their instructions and inspirations from the same divine book
that explains all the truths and contains the orders for all their needs and obligations.
"And we have sent down to you the Book explaining everything, a
guide, a mercy and glad tidings to Muslims" (surah 16, verse 89).
The geographical location of this great Ummah is perhaps the richest
region of the world in natural resources, with the single commodity of oil being the
support and sustenance of today's industrial civilization. And if the Ummah were to stop,
for only a few months, the flow of oil to its customers, the larger part of the world,
especially these countries whose governments have for centuries made the Islamic nations
the victims of their greed and arrogance, shall face a dark, cold and helpless prospect. A
complete list of all the potentials of the Islamic Ummah would embrace hundreds of other
outstanding topics in fields ranging from culture, politics, economic to social, material
and historical contributions that any researcher with some insight will be able to
discover.
Now we turn to the big problems that this great part of humanity, the
Islamic Ummah, is today facing: Problems that have made it nigh impossible for such a
great, rich and gifted portion of mankind to exploit its exceptional, practical
potentials, which has left the Islamic countries behind the marching caravan of scientific
advancement, deprived them of their own abundant, material wealth, subjugated them to
foreign cultures, subjected them to others on the international political scene, and
militarily exposed them to aggressions and aggressive policies of arrogant powers.
These problems, that are mainly caused by negligence, mismanagement or
treasonous behavior of elements within the Islamic Ummah, would form a long list. They
could, however, be briefly categorized under the following headings:
- Sectarian conflicts, mainly publicized and intensified by evil ulema
and paid writers.
- Ethnic and national conflicts, emanating from chauvinistic
tendencies, the fires of which are often fanned by dependent, subservient intellectuals.
- Submissiveness towards interventionist powers, turning certain
governments into satellite states of the big powers.
- Surrendering to the corrupt culture of the West and even helping to
spread it for their own political and doctrinaire purposes.
- The indifference of certain governments to their own people or their
disregard of people's needs, beliefs and aspirations, and taking up despotic stands
against them.
- A dread of the arrogant powers, particularly of the United States, on
the part of some political and cultural leaders in the Islamic world.
- The presence of the usurper, Zionist regime in the heart of an
Islamic region, that is the root cause of many other difficulties.
- Promoting secularism and introducing Islam as an abstract experience
for individuals that has nothing to do with questions relating to people's lives such as
government, politics, economic management, etc.
These and scores of other problems equally grave, though with
historical roots mostly, were solvable if the religious and political leaders had shown
any sincerity, determination and independence. They are the source of the present
predicament of the Islamic world, bringing in their wake poverty, backwardness, ignorance,
superstition, prejudice, discrimination, political servility, war and destruction.
The point is that if Hajj were held rightly and as commanded by God, it
is capable of remedying all the major maladies and causes of failure, though not all of a
sudden but gradually in the course of several long years.
This gathering of millions of brothers and sisters from all over the
Islamic world at a single place, and that too at the scene of observance of spiritual
rites performed in unison under the majestic banner of tawhid unification , with refreshed
memories of the early years of Islam, of the battles of Badr and Uhud, and the pilgrims
presence in the (Prophet's) mosque within whose walls still reverberate the animating
revelations of the Koran as pronounced by the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and
his family, and the resounding cries of "Allah Akbar God is Great " of the first
warriors of Islam, in an atmosphere charged with zikr commemoration , supplication and the
sense of presence before.
God, the Almighty and the Glorious, which liberates human beings from
their feeble, self-seeking and crooked-minded self and unites them with the source of
divine majesty, greatness and power - this is healing spring that lends strength to the
hearts, edifies the will and steadies the resolve, infusing confidence into the souls,
broadening the visions, bringing the aspirations closer, uniting the brothers and
disappointing the devil and defeating his ghul monster. Yes, a true and perfect Hajj, a
Hajj worthy of tawhid, a Hajj that is the mainspring of the love of God and the faithful,
of the rejection of satans, idols and idolaters, such a Hajj would first curb growth of
all problems of the Islamic Ummah and then resolve them, to become a source of honor for
Islam and vigor for Muslims and of the independence of Islamic countries and their freedom
from the evil of the aliens.
It was on the basis of such a correct view of the significance of Hajj
that after the triumph of the great Islamic revolution of Iran, the issue of Hajj came to
have top priority in the international agenda of the government of the Islamic Republic.
Thus this noble regime combined the religious-political aspect of this rite, a
manifestation of the divine majesty and power, with its devotional aspect, a manifestation
of divine mercy and compassion, bringing the contemporary Hajj closer to the Hajj of early
Islam. It revived the ceremony of Disavowal of the polytheists Infidels in Hajj as a
symbol of this and it has pursued the observance of this Islamic duty, despite all the
political harassment and obstructionist moves inspired by un-Islamic motives.
As a system that has affirmed the life, dynamism and power of Islam in
administering human societies despite the anti-Islamic propaganda and efforts of the last
100 years, the Islamic Republic views Hajj not as a means to further its own goals, but as
a forum for the awakening of muslims and reviving of the spirit of Godwardness and faith
in the implementation of the Islamic shari'ah as well as the honor and independence of the
world's Muslims. Those who negate and reject the dynamic and comprehensive character of
Hajj are in fact against the honor and independence of Muslims and their deliverance from
the bloody claws of imperialism and Zionism. Any such kind of fatwa or religious decree is
tantamount to giving a ruling in violation of God's revelations, and it derives most
probably from ignorance of the realities of the world and its environs and a lack of
adequate insight into the affairs of Muslims.
Today everyone who knows the plight of Muslim nations under the
tyrannical domination of the United States, whoever is aware of the crimes of the Zionists
and their covert conspiracies against Muslim countries, whoever senses the danger of the
growth of this malignant, cancerous tumor within the political and economic body of the
regional states, whoever observes the gloomy conditions of the homeless Palestinians who
suffer in refugee camps, seeing their country and homeland under the occupation of their
oppressors, whoever is aware of the condition of south Lebanon, of its territories under
Zionist occupation and its parts under perpetual threat of aggression, whoever has heard
about the recent catastrophic events in Lebanon, where the Zionists, now for the 12th day
and with the support of the US government, have been bombarding more than half of that
country from air, land and sea, massacring children and women and ordinary civilians,
whoever is aware of Bosnia, Afghanistan, Kashmir, Tajikistan and Chechenya, whoever knows
about the successive hostile measures of the roguish US regime and the anti-human Zionists
against the Islamic Republic which today is the manifestation of the sovereignty of the
Koran and Islam. Yes, anyone who knows these facts and possesses a sense of Islamic honor
and religious duty will not doubt that to forego such a great opportunity as the Hajj and
waste such a powerful God-given source of support to Islam and Muslims is to incur an
irremediable loss and commit an unforgivable sin.
The present weakness of Muslim states and the sorry disunity of the
Islamic countries cannot be concealed or denied. Today the Arab world by its own deeds
placed itself in such a condition that, regrettably, it is unable to defend the Lebanese
people who are victims of the crimes of the usurper Zionist regime, and face, even for a
single day, an enemy that has usurped its territories. While stockpiles of fighter planes
and air defense equipment bought `t stupendous cost from Western factories dxist today in
these countries, the aircraft nf the bloodthirsty Zionists freely destroy the homes of
@rab people `nd none of these governments is able to stop it. These bitter facts, along
with the increased political influence of imperialist powers within many of these
countries, as well as the unchecked nffensive aimed `t achieving a complete cultural
invasion of these countries and many other regrettable and alarming events, are sufficient
to make every sane mind and wakeful conscience realize that Islamic countries and nations,
whose representative sample is now present around the Holy Ka'bah and at other sacred
premises of this land of revelation, stand, more than ever before, in greater need of the
spirit and spirituality of Hajj and its abundant resources, which it is essential for them
to utilize. This is our viewpoint and thesis concerning Hajj and the other delivering
sacraments of Islam.
It is for this very straightforward and bold stance in the defense of
Islam and Islamic laws that the Islamic Republic, from the very beginning, has been the
target of the wrath and resentment of the imperialist powers with the USA, the big satan,
at their head. They accuse the Islamic Republic of exporting insecurity and of pursuing
expansionist policies so as to justify their malice and hostility in the eyes of the
world's people and Muslim public opinion . Their mercenary radios and media funded by the
Zionists or by American and Zionist stooges and propagated from the Islamic countries
against the Islamic Republic incessantly broadcast accusations, rumors, commentaries and
biased and false reports against the Islamic Republic, meant to curtail the spiritual
influence of the Islamic revolution and to damage the sanctity and popularity of the name
of our late Imam Khomeini , may Allah sanctify his soul.
With the help of the most up-to-date propaganda techniques they try in
an unmanly manner to cast disrepute on the Islamic Republic and to turn away its
supporters in the Islamic world. With their lies and slander, they are trying to raise a
wall between triumphant Islamic Iran and other Islamic countries, where they are afraid of
the repetition of the Iranian experience. The most infamous of the world' s terrorists,
that is, the leaders of the usurper Zionist regime and their perverse patrons in the US
government, accuse Islamic Iran of terrorism. At the slightest pretext, the US and Israeli
leaders are quick to raise their accusing finger at the Islamic Republic and to mention in
their political statements, after every few words, the sacred, majestic and radiant name
of Islamic Iran with resentment and rage. It is a matter of pride for us that the world's
infamous scoundrels and perverts should hate us. We too regard their ugly character and
polluted hands with disgust and resentment. God and His Messenger too hate and dislike
them.
Today, with God's grace and despite the hostility and obstructionism of
the malevolent, the Islamic Republic marches onwards with power, honor and a steady
resolve and determination, as a stable country with an accelerating pace of construction
and development, with an administration that is popular and close to the masses, with a
deserved presence and repute in the world, with a zealous faith in Islam, with its live
and dynamic youth free from the grievous problems of the youth in many other countries,
with a people intelligent, brave and ready to defend Islam and Iran, with an expansive
spirituality side by side with growth and development, and, ultimately, with an exemplary
and rare solidarity among the citizens. Thank God, the massive propaganda of the enemy
serves us as the indicator of our increasing power and the greatness of our people and
country.
At the end, I call upon all the dear pilgrims to make the fullest use
of the opportunity provided by these great days and I invite all of them to contemplate
upon Hajj and to draw a spiritual provision for the rest of their lives. I ask the revered
clergymen to raise these issues in an appropriate manner in the gatherings of Iranian and
non -Iranian caravans and bring the spirituality of Hajj and its political message to the
hearts and souls of the pilgrims.
I beseech God, the exalted, to grant honor to Islam and Muslims and
give real independence to Islamic countries, liberating them from the political and
economic domination of the imperialists. I beseech the one Lord to preserve the majesty
and glory of Islamic Iran under the shelter of the special favor and attention of the Imam
of the Age, may our souls be his ransom.
Peace be upon all our faithful brethren.
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