Sermons of Eid al-Fitr Prayer at Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) Prayer Ground

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master and prophet, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure and chosen family, the infallible guides, especially the Remaining One of God on earth, and peace be upon the leaders of the Muslims, the guides of the oppressed, and the protectors of the believers.

I congratulate you all, dear worshippers, the entire Iranian nation, and the whole Islamic Ummah on the blessed Eid al-Fitr; just as it is necessary to congratulate all Muslims for the success in fasting during the month of Ramadan and emerging honorably from this divine test, which is virtuous and causes the upliftment of the human spirit. God willing, may He accept these acts of worship and attentions from you and grant you His special grace and favor.

This year, thanks be to God, the month of Ramadan was truly a blessed month for our dear nation. What we witnessed closely was that our people demonstrated signs of devotion and proximity in their behavior and the ceremonies they held, as well as in the groups that performed worship and service activities; the atmosphere was one of spirituality, proximity, and devotion, and truly, the atmosphere of Ramadan.

Firstly, the act of fasting during the hot days and the longest days of the year is, in itself, a sign of spirituality, a sign of the upliftment of the spirit, and this was felt and perceived in all parts of the country, even in areas where the heat was very high; everyone knew and saw the fasting youth, men, and women.

Secondly, the remarkable presence of youth in the worship ceremonies of this month was evident. In Tehran, as we were informed, hundreds of warm and crowded sessions were held day and night, with the majority of participants being young people; whether in educational sessions or gatherings for communion with the Quran; besides the small sessions that were held in some neighborhoods or mosques, the number of large sessions in Tehran was in the hundreds; they were present in all parts of the country in similar proportions.

The iftar tables in mosques and in public spaces; this custom that has been established among the people for several years, where simple public iftar tables are spread in mosques, in alleys, and in streets, is a very good habit and a good tradition that was also significantly present this year.

Assistance to free prisoners who had committed unintentional crimes and needed financial help, and the costs of treatment for patients; many people contributed, and these works were accomplished. This Ramadan, which passed with these characteristics, is truly a blessed Ramadan in the real sense.

And as for the nights of Qadr; the nights of Qadr were truly nights of devotion, supplication, and seeking help from God by the people. The tears that flowed on faces, the cries that were uttered, the hearts that turned to the exalted Lord, are very valuable. These are the things that strengthen the spiritual foundation of a nation and assist it in difficult paths.

Then, at the end of this month, the Quds Day march, with its grandeur and glory, in that hot weather, on the longest days of the year, people came out into the streets, some even brought their children, and marched in the streets. This massive movement of the people is truly a great act, a significant sign, and a historical act; these will remain in history as the glories of a nation. I will say one more thing about this later.

Dear brothers and sisters! What you have gained in this month is a divine reserve for you; you have stored it up. Preserve these reserves; maintain these reserves by continuing this state. Do not neglect the recitation of the Quran, and be sure to pay attention in your prayers; these are things that must be preserved. This month was a practice of discipline, a practice of attentiveness to God; make the utmost use of this practice, keep this reserve for yourselves, God willing, that the pleasure of God and His mercy will encompass you.

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful * Say, He is God, the One * God, the Eternal Refuge * He neither begets nor is born * Nor is there to Him any equivalent.'

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master and prophet, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure and chosen family, especially Ali, the Commander of the Faithful, and Fatimah al-Zahra, the Mistress of the Women of the Worlds, and Hasan and Husayn, the Masters of the Youth of Paradise, and Ali ibn Husayn, Zain al-Abidin, and Muhammad ibn Ali, the Scholar of the First and Last, and Ja'far ibn Muhammad al-Sadiq, and Musa ibn Ja'far al-Kadhim, and Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha, and Muhammad ibn Ali al-Jawad, and Ali ibn Muhammad al-Hadi, and Hasan ibn Ali al-Zaki al-Askari, and the Awaited Mahdi, may God’s blessings be upon them all. O God, make us among their followers and supporters in their presence and absence.

What I will mention in this sermon is one sentence regarding internal issues of the country and one sentence related to general issues of the Islamic world.

As for what I will say regarding internal issues; may the proud Iranian nation be joyful for the great works they have accomplished; bring joy to your hearts, nurture hope; you have accomplished great works: in this blessed month and shortly before it, firstly, you were able to show the world the magnificent and enthusiastic elections; this was a great work, an immense achievement. Secondly, the Quds Day march was a very significant act. This powerful offensive by the IRGC against the enemies was a great work.

As I mentioned in the previous sermon, the achievements -both personal, spiritual, and worshipful - are our spiritual reserves; these things are also our social reserves; these reserves must also be preserved. Preserving these reserves means that the nation must maintain their unity, preserve their solidarity and gathering, keep their revolutionary motivation alive, and hold the movement towards the goals and ideals of the revolution in their hearts as a noble objective.

We hope, God willing, that the new government will be formed as soon as possible and that the necessary work for the country will begin as soon as possible. There are great works ahead that must be accomplished by the officials of the country with the help of the people; work for domestic production, work for the employment of youth, which is among our important issues, and we have declared this year as the year of national production and employment; these works must be pursued with seriousness, God willing.

Among the important works are cultural works; we have many cultural gaps and deficiencies; there are many areas where the enemy has cultural footholds; both the responsible governmental bodies and the vast popular organizations are obliged to address this. "Fire-at-will" means spontaneous and clean cultural work; what we have said means that throughout the country, the youth and thinkers, those with determination, should carry out cultural works with their own initiative, identify cultural gaps, and work against them; "fire-at-will" does not mean lawlessness, vulgarity, and making demands of the empty-minded claimants and burdening the revolutionary movement of the country. Revolutionary forces must be especially vigilant about the order of the country, the tranquility of the country, preventing the enemies from exploiting the situation of the country, and maintaining the laws; this vigilance is primarily directed at the revolutionary forces who are compassionate, interested, and willing for the country to move towards its objectives.

Regarding the issues of the Islamic world, we must say that there are many wounds on the body of the Islamic Ummah; the issues of Yemen are a great injury to the Ummah; the issues of Bahrain are the same; various issues in Islamic countries are similarly concerning. The Islamic world must explicitly support the people of Yemen and express disavowal and enmity towards the oppressors and tyrants who perpetrate such aggressions against these people - during the month of Ramadan, in the blessed month - and support the people; the same goes for the people of Bahrain and the people of Kashmir. Our nation can be the backbone of this great movement of the Islamic world; just as we explicitly express our positions towards friends, enemies, opponents, and adversaries, the Islamic world - especially intellectuals, especially scholars of the Islamic world - must follow this same approach, take clear positions, and seek to please God Almighty, even if others and the tyrants become displeased.

O Lord! Increase the successes of the Islamic Ummah day by day through Muhammad and the family of Muhammad. O Lord! Make us more familiar with our duties day by day through Muhammad and the family of Muhammad.

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful * By time * Indeed, mankind is in loss * Except for those who have believed and done righteous deeds and advised one another to truth and advised one another to patience.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.