Statements of the Supreme Leader in Meeting with Officials and Executives of the System, on the Occasion of Eid al-Mab'ath

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

I extend my congratulations on this great Eid to all Muslims of the world, to the dear nation of Iran, and to you, the esteemed attendees. Regarding the importance of this blessed day, if one wishes to employ words and expressions, perhaps no statement can convey the greatness and significance of the Mab'ath. Words, in many instances, have been repeatedly used in metaphorical meanings and lack the capacity to express the magnitude of this event. It might be said that the mission of the Seal of the Prophets, peace be upon him and his family, is an event that should be compared to the very creation of humanity; it is that grand and significant. What should be presented to us as a lesson and benefit from this event and Eid is the message of the Mab'ath to the extent of our understanding and ability to utilize it. What can be understood and said in summary is that the mission of the Noble Prophet has specified and determined a goal in the realm of individual existence and inner transformation of humans, as well as in the realm of social life and collective living. In the realm of individual existence—which is essentially about creating a transformation in humans—verses have been revealed in the Word of God. Like this noble verse from Surah Al-Imran: 'Indeed, Allah conferred a great favor upon the believers when He sent among them a Messenger from themselves, reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom.' This purification and teaching of the Book and wisdom is the same inner transformation of humans. For humans to reach the purpose of their creation, they must achieve the goal of the prophets' mission concerning themselves. That is, they must transform; they must become righteous; they must become good and be saved from the impurities, baseness, and defects and the whims within humans that corrupt the world. This is in the realm of individual existence. The mission is for this. In the statement that 'I was sent to perfect noble morals,' it also returns to this. 'I have been sent to complete human virtues.' That is, to refine humans; to purify humans; to guide humans towards wisdom; to elevate them from the ignorance of common simplicity to understanding and wise living. This is in the category of the individual and in the realm of individual life.

In the realm of social life, what has been specified as the goal is social justice. 'So that people may uphold justice.' 'Justice' differs from 'equity.' Justice is a general meaning. Justice is the noble and prominent meaning that exists in personal and public life, in body and soul, in stone and wood, and in all the events of the world. It means a correct balance. Justice is this. It means correct behavior; a correct balance; being moderate and not deviating from the limit. This is the meaning of justice. However, equity, as one understands it, is this justice in social relations. It is what we today refer to as 'social justice.' This is different from that general meaning of justice. Although the prophets' overall movement is towards that general meaning of justice—'By justice, the heavens and the earth are upheld'; the heavens are also upheld by that moderation and justice and being measured—but what is currently an issue for humanity and what it thirsts for and cannot live without is equity. Equity means that justice is broken down and manifests as social justice. 'So that people may uphold justice.' The prophets came for this.

Humanity cannot live under the shadow of injustice, oppressive behavior, aggression, and reliance on bullying and force. This is not life. This is hell. The prophets came to make the environment of life a paradise. Of course, if we look closely, this second goal, which is the prophets' goal in the realm of social life, is also a prelude to achieving the same goal that exists in the realm of the individual. That is, inner transformation; becoming righteous and becoming a correct human. Any object you observe in the world, its correct form is that which yields the desired benefit. Humans did not come to harm others, to envy others, to want everything for themselves, to deprive others, to emit evil from their existence for the world and humanity, to cling to trivial matters, and to be oblivious to the ultimate perfections and ideals. Humans did not come for these! Humans came to be good, to be beneficial, to move, and to progress towards perfection. If this happens and they move towards perfection and their path is beneficial for themselves and others, that human is transformed and purified. These are the goals of the mission.

Today, when hundreds of tongues and throats and pens around the world, with the money of colonial apparatuses, strive to speak against spirituality, religion, Islam, and any Islamic fervor and pretend that this material order of the world, this bullying system that dominates the world, is good and there is no need for Islam to come and inflict a blemish on this bullying system, is humanity exempt from such a mission? Does humanity today not want to purify itself? Is it not a flaw for humanity that individuals, wherever they are, think only of their own comfort and the suffering of others? Is it not a flaw for humanity that idealism does not exist among its individuals and everyone is content with their current state of life, and if someone has a piece of bread, they hold onto it with both hands so that a stronger person does not come and snatch it from them, and they do not bite it with their teeth? Is this state of the world good? Is such an order and such an international system the promised paradise for humanity? Should nothing be done against it, to reform it, and to discipline it? Should humanity not make a move and undertake a mission? Is the 'law of the jungle' not truly ruling in the world today, or at least in significant parts of the world? Is there any news of equity?

Look and observe the entire world and the surface of this earthly globe. You will see that a number of people from a multi-million nation—big and small, men and women, sick and healthy, all of them—are being killed by another group; their homes are being destroyed; the honor and dignity of their women are being violated; they have no medicine, no food, no comfort, no security, and there is no real movement in the world! In the bitter and tearful incident of Bosnia and Herzegovina, what reason do those who crush the people have for doing so? Do they have any justification for this action? Even if they had a nationalistic justification, this was not the way. Even if they had a religious justification, this was not the way. Is this not indicative of savagery and the true rule of the law of the jungle? If, when the Serbs attacked the Muslims of Bosnia, there had been a serious reaction from around the world—from Europe, from America, from Asia, and from Islamic countries—and they had gone to discipline them; it would have shown that if there is deviation in the world, there is also growth and health. We see that such a thing does not happen.

This was one example. Another example is in our neighborhood, the country of Iraq with its historical background. Today, those who claim to be the owners and claimants of the world enter a house that, unfortunately, must be said to be 'an ownerless house'! They bomb, they strike, they kill, they destroy cultural artifacts, they annihilate innocent people, and they trample on sacred things. This country, which today is a victim of the world's savages, has ten times the historical background and cultural and ancient greatness of their country. It is a rooted country with fifteen, sixteen million or more people living in it. It is a cultured country that, in terms of the level of human culture, also has an acceptable level. Because of a few or a group of unworthy and truly wicked people who rule this country, what right do the powers have to allow themselves to subject a country and a nation to such aggression and violation? Is this not savagery?

They should be asked: What is your justification for saying 'We have decided to discipline Iraq'? Who are you? In the world, who should discipline you? If you give yourself the right to intervene in global issues in this way and become the custodian of the Security Council, to implement the council's resolutions, why are you like this with Israel? In the face of the crime that Israel is committing against the Palestinians today, why do you close your eyes?

Is this not the law of the jungle? Is this not bullying? Is this not a savage and ignorant world? Does this world not need a mission? Is the religion of God not a need for these people today?

If the religion of God is not needed, what prescription can save humanity? What prescription can penetrate so powerfully and strongly into the hearts of humans and believers that they can stand against the powerful and arrogant powers of the world? See how Muslims stand today wherever they are! See how the Islamic Republic, because it is, by God's grace, supported by the Quran; relies on God, and its officials and people have faith in God, stands against the roars of the world's bullies! No factor other than religion can stand against the madness of today's world and the powerful of today's world.

That mission is needed today as well. Humanity today must also be transformed and purified from within, and its social order must become a just and equitable order. Today, there is no equity in the world, no justice. There is oppression, and they have filled the world with oppression against oppressed nations. I want to say one sentence to you dear brothers who are officials of the Islamic Republic: You can stand tall against the powers that rely on force; provided that you stand with all your being on the liberating laws of Islam and adherence to Quranic laws, and without any hesitation or consideration for anyone, move on this path and the straight path. Then you can stand well. This is the lesson that Islam taught us. This is the lesson that the great Imam taught us with his conduct and words after fourteen centuries. This is the remedy. It is not without reason that they were so hostile to the Imam. They are still hostile to the Islamic Republic and the flag of Islam that the Islamic Republic holds; but they have no problem with the flag of Islam in the hands of compromising, dependent, and their own people. They have no fear of them, no fear, no consideration, and no hostility. But with the Islamic Republic, yes. They are hostile to its personalities, to its nation, to its government, to its president, to its parliament, to its judicial laws and officials. They are hostile to everything that keeps this system standing. They are even hostile to your slogans. They mock the slogan of enjoining good and forbidding evil; they mock the slogan of Hezbollahism and accuse you. But the truth is that it is the same enjoining good and forbidding evil and the same Hezbollah movement and the same adherence to principles that can stand against the deviations and gross errors of today's world. Nothing else can. Nations also want this.

The mission is an Eid for us. It means a new movement. A new movement. This is the meaning of Eid. Remembering that which has been forgotten for successive centuries and today Muslims, by the blessing of Islam, can find new life.

If Islamic governments adhere to Islam, nations will support them with all their being. Then they can stand against bullying. Today, global arrogance expects that any country that makes a move against it and slightly questions its interests, it can do the same thing it did with Iraq. What prevents them? A living nation; a resistant and brave nation and a nation that is united with its government. If the black-hearted rulers of Iraq could have their nation with them, this would not have been their fate. The path to the greatness of the Islamic world today is a return to the message of the mission. May God grant us the success to move on this path and grant us the knowledge of religion and the knowledge of the straight path and the success of purification and movement towards social equity.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings