Statements in Meeting with Officials and Artists of the 'Office of Art and Literature of Resistance' of the Islamic Propagation Organization

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

The matter I must present to the brothers, above all, is my gratitude. Many of the thoughts I had intended to share if I ever met you were covered in Mr. Zam's report. It is evident that, thanks be to God, you are attentive to all aspects of these matters. I extend my gratitude to you for embarking on this path and steadfastly pursuing it, utilizing the resources God Almighty has bestowed upon you sincerely and rightfully. None of what we possess truly belongs to us; it belongs to Him, and our will must be employed in the path of His pleasure and desire. This resource is of great value. As your brother and a Muslim who cares deeply about these concepts and is not devoid of concern for such matters, and also as a reader who derives spiritual pleasure from these writings, I thank you.

As I mentioned, I have read almost all the books you have published from the 'Office of Art and Literature of Resistance,' and I have found some of them to be truly exceptional. The book 'My Commander,' which was mentioned, is among the most outstanding parts of this work. The very idea is significant. What has been written and presented there—whether you wrote it or the individuals themselves wrote and sent it to you and it was later edited—is very remarkable. When I read these, I thought that if we were to publish these booklets and books to export the concepts of the revolution, we would not have done a small task; a great deal has been accomplished. Of course, they have given the glad tidings that, thanks be to God, they are considering translating these as well. These are very valuable.

I also saw a booklet named 'Maqtal,' which dissected those critical and decisive moments; points where Islamic concepts manifest themselves. In military campaigns—as a large-scale operation—Islamic concepts are not visible. The whole world engages in military campaigns, the whole world fights, the whole world wins one day and loses another, everyone retreats, and everyone also attacks and sacrifices; but where Islamic thought, spirit, and character particularly define themselves are specific places. Seeking out those places, emphasizing them, and articulating them well is truly an outstanding and important task. Fortunately, your works are of this kind.

Yes, I share the concern that was mentioned with you brothers, and this anxiety exists in my mind that the culture of war and the culture of revolution, and indeed the spirit of the revolution—that spirit which found a field for growth and flourishing in war—might be lost. Of course, one must rely on God Almighty and be optimistic about the future; I am truly optimistic about the future and see many horizons as good and bright. In any case, this concern exists, and the way to eliminate it is for us to strive; that is, when we strive to the extent of our capacity, we will no longer have any anxiety.

I believe that although war in itself has no intrinsic value, it is a very important arena for the manifestation of Islamic and revolutionary spirit and correct Muslim characteristics; from this perspective, it is very valuable. One should be grateful for the existence of such a time and environment; one should truly be saddened and grieve for its absence. Although no one likes war—for the sake of war—but this other side of the coin is something very great for us. Now that we no longer have war and do not want to create a war ourselves to become a field of revolution, those eight years of war must nourish our history. We must use what happened in those eight years of war, that spirit of resistance, that spirit of sacrifice accompanied by sincerity—the very thing that truly existed in our war arenas.

Where your writings reflect sincerity, that point moves a person. Anything you present that indicates sincerity is very important; otherwise, everyone sacrifices; they sacrifice for fanaticism and showmanship too; it also involves the risk of death. For example, a pilot in a maneuver performs several loops in front of people and has a fifty percent chance of crashing; but he accepts this for showmanship. For the sake of showmanship, they do even more; for example, some set themselves on fire! These have no value. Where the work is accompanied by sincerity, meaning a person does something solely for the sake of God and to fulfill a divine duty, it has that purity and brilliance. In demonstrating these points and instilling this spirit throughout and extending our history, much effort must be made; those eight years of war must be utilized.

From the beginning to the end of the Ashura incident, in one sense, it was half a day; in another sense, it was two days and nights; in yet another sense, it was seven or eight days; it was no more than that. From the day Imam Hussein entered the land of Karbala until the day he was separated from his family, how many days was it? From the second to the eleventh of Muharram, it was eight or nine days; the incident itself was half a day. See how much this half-day incident has blessed our history and is still alive and inspiring today. This incident is not just something to be read and told for people to enjoy or be emotionally affected; no, it is a source of blessings and movement. This has been felt in the revolution, the war, and our past history. In the history of Shi'ism, and even in the history of anti-oppression revolutions in Islam—even by non-Shi'ites—the Karbala incident has been brilliantly and prominently influential; perhaps it has been influential even outside the Islamic environment. In our own history—that is, in these thirteen or fourteen hundred years—that half-day incident has had an effect. So, it is neither strange nor far-fetched. If we do not want to compare our eight-year war with the eight or nine hours of Imam Hussein's Ashura, or consider it much more brilliant—which it truly is; I do not know of any incident in history that can be compared to the sacrifice of that half-day; everything is smaller than that—but ultimately, it is a reflection of that, or a drop from that ocean. Why should we not think that within our society, it can be a source of influence for many years?

This thought has always been in my mind that the incident of the second of Farvardin—the incident of the Feyziyeh School—was small compared to the incident of the fifteenth of Khordad; it was not comparable at all. The incident started an hour or two before sunset and continued for an hour after nightfall; that is, for three or four hours, they severely beat the students in the Feyziyeh School environment, threatened, and insulted them, and in a milder form, they put them under pressure in the main streets of Qom. As far as we knew, I think one or two people were killed in that incident, and of course, a larger number were injured. Therefore, the incident did not have very large dimensions. Imam was able to use that incident to mobilize the entire Iranian nation. The fifteenth of Khordad was not created by Imam—on that day, Imam was in prison—the fifteenth of Khordad was a spontaneous incident. The fifteenth of Khordad was the product of a movement that Imam created on the second of Farvardin. I mentioned this point to Imam in the same year. It was near the New Year of 1964 when I was released from prison and was able to visit Imam—who was then in a house in Gheytarieh. In those few moments that I was able to visit him, kiss his hand, and with the emotional state I had from seeing him, I spoke a few words with him, I mentioned this point. I said that your absence outside caused the fifteenth of Khordad, with all its greatness, not to be utilized. That is, people like us who were outside could not make a tenth of the use that Imam made of the second of Farvardin from the fifteenth of Khordad; while the fifteenth of Khordad was a great center. Later, when Imam came out and was exiled, his references and words in awakening and reviving the spirit of struggle in the people and bringing the youth to the front made the fifteenth of Khordad so blessed that during that period, for example, a year or eight or nine months that Imam was not there and this incident had happened with that fervor, no one could make such use of that incident.

I want to say that this is a treasure. Will we be able to extract this treasure, or not? It is our art to be able to extract it. Imam Sajjad was able to extract the treasure of Ashura in those few hours. Imam Baqir and the Imams after him also extracted it and made this flowing spring flow so that it is still flowing and has always been a source of good in people's lives, always awakening, always teaching what to do; it is still the same now. Even now, each of us, whenever we read any sentence from Imam Hussein's statements that have remained for us, we remember and feel that we are gaining new spirit and understanding a new word.

Of course, in these places, understanding a new word is not like discovering an undiscovered formula; no, we have heard it a hundred times. A person at a moment of moments understands a truth, then a heedlessness comes, and what he understood leaves his mind; human nature is like this. Therefore, this continuous thought that we need to do, this continuous reminder that we need to hear, is so that those moments of understanding and knowledge and the illumination of the mind and spirit continue, and a person has a state of expansion.

This contraction and expansion that the mystics speak of is a reality. Sometimes a person is in contraction, completely closed and confined, all truths are in front of him; but no drop of those truths and knowledge reaches him. Sometimes a person is open and expanded, and all rays and lights shine on him. At that moment, a person sometimes shines like the sun. The person himself also feels his own radiance. A person must seek these moments in the words and statements of Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) and create them for himself. These words create such moments in a person.

We had sacrifices in these eight years; it is no joke. These brothers who are disabled and freed, every incident that happened to them, and every sincere experience that they either showed themselves or saw in others, in my opinion, is enough to guide people. These incidents and experiences truly guide us.

When I read books, I usually write a note or an inscription on the back; that is, if something comes to my mind, I note it on the back. When I read the book 'My Commander,' I involuntarily wrote a part of the Ziyarat on the back: 'Peace be upon you, O friends of God and His beloved ones.' I truly felt that in the face of these greatnesses, one feels insignificant. When I saw this grandeur in this book, I truly felt insignificance in myself.

Who can show us this grandeur? This grandeur exists, but someone must show it to us. Who is that person? It is you. That is, if you know your worth, you can be the bearer of such radiance that moves people. Such truths truly transform us. That truth happened and disappeared in a moment. Of course, it remains in the celestial realm; but in the material world and in the account of our time and place, an incident happened in a moment and ended and went. What can make this incident enduring? What can convey it to the heart and insight of a person in such a way that even the ordinary eye does not see it in presence, in the absence of that incident? That is art. Art has this role and can do this work.

I have seen incidents with my own eyes that perhaps the material eye could not perceive; but later, when you artists put them into writing, or show them in the form of a play, or express them in the language of a story, when I review those incidents, I see what amazing incidents they were; I begin to understand them anew. Therefore, in my opinion, the role of the Muslim artist is an extraordinarily prominent role.

Unfortunately, the field of art is still not in your hands. One of the miracles of the revolution is the nurturing of artists and narrators of the history of the revolution. Thanks be to God, there are a number of you, but there are also those who have an advantage over you in terms of numbers and resources, they are ahead of you and have facilities at their disposal; some of them are also artistically rich, but they are a wealth in the service of foreigners, and a sword in the hands of enemies. A person usually feels small in front of an artist. When I look at artists, I see that they have a lofty position in front of me; but those artists whose art is in the service of foreigners, even though their art is high and some of them are very prominent artistically, I do not feel any value in the art they have.

Money and wealth and strength of arm and eloquent tongue and other wealth that is not in the service of truth and humanity and righteousness and correctness, what value does it have? It has no value. Now science is in the service of atomic weapons and in the hands of Israel. Is this valuable? No, it has no value. The value of these things is relative. Absolute value does not belong to these. Of course, there are absolutely valuable things. The foundations of religions are to make correct and true values absolute; however, science and industry and technology are not among those absolute values; it depends on where it is used, in whose hands it is, how it is used; art is also of this kind.

Even if your numbers and resources are less compared to the multitude of such artists, nevertheless your value is far higher and greater than theirs; although I think I do not know your numbers either. In this regard, if you find it necessary to tell me something later, tell me. Just now, I remembered that long letter in which the gentlemen expressed affection towards me and a column of artists' names was listed at the bottom of the letter. Although I did not know many of the names, there were many. We certainly have many good forces; we must recognize them. At the beginning of the revolution, some people said there was a shortage of men; we said it was ignorance of men. The reality is that we do not know the personalities.

In any case, your work is important. I just wanted to say this so you know; although you know. You must continue on this path and in this direction with more effort and determination, by seeing problems as small and taking big steps, by seeing goals as distant, by seeking help from God Almighty and having sincerity—which is the essence of the matter—with God's will. We also—as I mentioned—truly pray for you that God grants you success and helps you. We are pleased that, thanks be to God, this pure and wholesome current exists within our society, and we pray to God that you become more successful and encouraged and that your hands reach out more warmly towards fundamental and good works and, with God's help, remove obstacles. God willing, the gentlemen will be successful and supported. Convey my greetings to the brothers who are in the provinces and are not present in this meeting.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings