Statements of the Supreme Leader in Meeting with National and Military Officials on the Occasion of Eid al-Fitr

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

I also extend my congratulations on this great Eid to all Muslims of the world, to the Muslim nations, to the great and proud nation of Islamic Iran, and to you, the esteemed attendees of this gathering. I hope that Almighty God will truly make today a day of Eid and a means of joy and success for the Iranian nation and the Islamic Ummah, and that the effects of what our people accomplished in the field of worship of the Almighty during Ramadan will, God willing, be observed in their spirits, actions, and interactions from today onwards.

The characteristic of this Eid and some other Islamic Eids is that they are not exclusive to a specific group within the vast Islamic community. Truly, we Muslims today must seek those points that gather all Muslims in the East and West of the Islamic world, from every nationality, race, language, and culture, around the axis of monotheism and the exalted Islamic word. Eid al-Fitr is among these. Of course, some other Eids also have this characteristic. Therefore, in the Eid al-Fitr prayer qunut, as it has been narrated, we consider it recommended and recite, "the one who made it an Eid for the Muslims"; Almighty God has made this day an Eid for the Muslims.

Eid means an anniversary that is a source of joy and satisfaction. What is a source of happiness for the Islamic Ummah? Approaching Islamic goals. Islam has defined and outlined goals for the Islamic society and Ummah, just as it has for the individual Muslim. We must admit that today, unfortunately, the Islamic world is far from these goals. We, the Muslims of the world, we, the Islamic Ummah, have a significant distance from what Islam wants and approves for the Islamic Ummah.

The Islamic Ummah should be such in the world today, by the blessing of Islam, that it illuminates the path of humanity like a torch; shines upon humanity like a sun, bringing them goodness; gives them warmth, enlightenment, movement, and life. The Islamic society that should be "so that you may be witnesses over the people"; the Islamic society that should "invite to goodness"; the Islamic society that should be a leader of humanity in all goodness, is like this. The Islamic society that should have a reflection of "and to God belongs the honor, and to His Messenger, and to the believers" is distant from the current state of the Islamic world and the Islamic Ummah.

However, thanks be to God, the desire for these lofty goals has emerged in the hearts of Muslims, and Islamic nations have started good movements, and today, thanks be to God, Islamic values are being renewed throughout the horizons of the Islamic world. Contrary to what the enemies of Islam wanted, which was to erase these values from human life, today, thanks be to God, when we look at the East and West of the Islamic world, we see that the masses are increasingly inclined towards the luminous commandments of the Quran and Islamic values; but efforts must be made.

Islamic Iran has gained honor by the blessing of Islam; by the blessing of Islam, it has emerged from under the domination of foreigners; by the blessing of Islam, the hearts of its people have come closer together, and by the blessing of Islam, it has achieved many of the goodness that Islam desires for Muslims. From Islamic Iran and from among this Ummah, what we want for our Muslim brothers around the world is that governments and nations look at Islam as a savior and consider it a source of honor, pride, and dignity. This notion that the enemies of Islam have wanted to instill in many individuals in the Islamic world, that Islam is a cause of backwardness and disgrace, is a satanic suggestion. This is the suggestion of those who have wanted to separate the Islamic Ummah from its essence so that they can easily dominate it.

The Quran is a source of honor for Muslims. The Quran is not just about reciting and believing; the Quran is a comprehensive system of social life; the Quran is a guideline for a prosperous life and a life accompanied by honor, and this is something that is not ambiguous or difficult for Muslim thinkers today.

The masses of Islamic nations are also, thanks be to God, familiar. Muslim nations, Muslim governments, Muslim intellectuals, Muslim politicians, and the youth of Islamic countries must, as much as they can, prepare the mental and practical grounds of their people so that nations can return to Quranic life and move on the path of honor and greatness.

That adherence to a past that is a source of disgrace and stagnation is adherence to ignorant traditions. Adherence to the Quran is a source of enlightenment, free-thinking, and the activation of knowledge, reason, innovation, and effort. Islam revived the social and political dead; "when He calls you to that which gives you life." Islam gave life and leadership to nations that had been covered with the dust of death and knew nothing of true and honorable human community life, and gave them the flag of humanity and defense of humans. Not only then, but today, thanks be to God, it is the same. An example is our country; this is a nation that for centuries under the oppression of tyrannical and unjust rulers had lost its identity, decision-making power, and ability to act; in the last hundred years, under the compounded pressures of colonialism, global arrogance, and foreign interference, it had completely lost its self-confidence. Islam transformed this nation into a leading nation, advanced in the field of science, in the field of action, in the field of politics, in the field of thought, in the field of reason and contemplation, and in life innovations.

This is the remedy for Muslim nations. This is exactly what the anti-Islam prescribers forbid and fear. It is not only today that they prevent and deter it; if you look at the history of colonialism, since colonialism began in Islamic countries, they have repeated this and said and wanted to isolate religion and Islam and drive it out of human life.

We hope that Almighty God will awaken all of us. May He, God willing, save all Muslim nations, the oppressed nation of Palestine, and the oppressed nations suffering from great pains in the Islamic regions, and send Islam and Muslims as a savior angel to all oppressed nations, and may He unite the pure soul of our great Imam, who opened this path before us, with his saints, and include the pure souls of the martyrs and all the self-sacrificers in His mercy.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings