Statements of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in a meeting with various segments of the people of Qom on the anniversary of the blessed Eid al-Ghadir

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

We congratulate you on the blessed Eid al-Ghadir - which in our hadiths is referred to as "the greatest Eid of God" - to our dear nation, to you esteemed individuals present here, and to all the people of Qom, who have a very long-standing commitment to the Guardianship of the Islamic Jurist; at least a history of one thousand and one hundred years.

On the day when many Muslims in the vast Islamic lands were deprived of the lights of the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), Qom, in the last years of the lives of the Imams (peace be upon them); during the time of Imam Hadi and Imam Askari and thereafter, was the center for disseminating these lights and training distinguished students of the Ahl al-Bayt.

In the present era, the people of Qom played a groundbreaking role in the astonishing Islamic Revolution. For the people and youth of Qom who were able to initiate a great movement at the forefront of the revolution, it was a good test that gradually led to the general movement of the people of the country and the great Islamic Revolution. May God increase the rewards of the dear people of Qom day by day and bestow His blessings upon them and you esteemed individuals.

After the revolution, Qom has remained the center of the direct and authentic line of the revolution in all fields, and in the Sacred Defense and various issues, the steadfastness and persistence of Qom, the people of Qom, and the esteemed seminary of Qom have been able to guide many segments of the nation during these periods.

The issue of "Ghadir" is not merely a historical matter; it is a sign of the comprehensiveness of Islam. If the noble Prophet - who, over ten years, transformed a primitive society plagued by prejudices and superstitions into a progressive Islamic community through his great struggles and with the help of his loyal companions - had not thought of a plan for after these ten years and had not provided a roadmap for the Ummah, this work would have been incomplete. The residues of pre-Islamic prejudices were so deep that perhaps many years would be needed to eradicate them. The appearances were good; the faith of the people was a good faith; of course, not everyone was at the same level; some had embraced Islam one year, six months, or two years before the passing of the noble Prophet; it was the might of the Prophet's military power along with the attractions of Islam that had drawn them to Islam. Not all were among the deeply-rooted Muslims of the early period. To cleanse the residues of ignorance from the depths of this society and to keep the line of Islamic guidance straight after the ten years of the Prophet's time, a strategy was necessary. If this strategy had not been implemented, the work would have been incomplete. The verse in Surah Al-Ma'idah states: "Today I have perfected your religion for you and completed My favor upon you," explicitly indicates that this blessing - the blessing of Islam, the blessing of guidance, the blessing of showing the straight path to humanity - would only be complete when a roadmap for after the Prophet was also determined; this is a natural matter.

The Prophet accomplished this task at Ghadir; he appointed Amir al-Mu'minin, who, in terms of character - whether in terms of faith, moral character, revolutionary and military character, or behavior with various segments of individuals - was an outstanding and unique individual, and he obligated the people to follow him. This was not merely the Prophet's thought; it was divine guidance, a divine command, a divine appointment; like the other words and guidance of the noble Prophet, all of which were divine inspirations. This was a clear command from the Lord to the noble Prophet, and the noble Prophet acted upon this command. The issue of Ghadir is this; it signifies the comprehensiveness of Islam and a vision for the future and what is necessary for the guidance and leadership of the Islamic Ummah. What is that? It is the qualities that the character of Amir al-Mu'minin embodies: namely, "piety," "devotion," "absolute adherence to religion," "not considering anything other than God and the path of truth," "fearlessly moving in the way of God," "possessing knowledge," "possessing wisdom and strategy," "possessing the strength of determination and will"; this is a real and at the same time symbolic act. Amir al-Mu'minin was appointed with these characteristics, and at the same time, this symbolizes the leadership of the Islamic Ummah throughout the life of Islam - whatever happens - this act is the symbol of Islamic leadership over time, the same thing that was realized in the divine selection of Amir al-Mu'minin. Ghadir is such a reality.

We, the Shi'ah and followers of the Ahl al-Bayt, thank God thousands of times for opening our eyes to this truth, for making our hearts receptive to this truth, for bringing us into environments where this truth was established; these are great blessings.

One point that followers of the Ahl al-Bayt and all Muslims must keep in mind is that we should not use the event of Ghadir - which is a sign of the greatness and comprehensiveness of Islam - as a means to weaken Islam. I feel particularly obliged today and in these days to convey to all our dear nation and all Muslims in every corner of the world that they should be vigilant that today, for the purpose of weakening Islam, the enemies are targeting this specific point, this very thing that is the source of the greatness of Islam; namely, the issue of Shi'ah and Sunni, acceptance of Ghadir and denial of Ghadir. The enemy wants to turn the issue of Ghadir into a source of fratricide and bloodshed; whereas Ghadir can be a means of coalition and brotherhood among Muslims. The late martyr Motahhari (may God be pleased with him) wrote a detailed article before the revolution about Allameh Amini's book "Al-Ghadir" and proved that Allameh Amini's "Al-Ghadir" is a means of unity for Muslims. Some thought that the book "Al-Ghadir" might be a cause for division. He says if we think correctly, act correctly, and proceed wisely, the book "Al-Ghadir" will be a source of unity for the Islamic world. Our Sunni brothers can also refer to the sources of Ghadir in an unbiased environment; they either accept it or they do not. In either case, whether they accept or do not accept, it is certain that the issue of Ghadir does not create any war or dispute between the acceptors and non-acceptors and does not necessitate differences. The same goes for the Shi'ah. The Shi'ah should also thank God for being blessed with this belief and knowledge from the Lord. Those brothers who did not accept this truth, or did not refer to it, or are unaware, or could not convince their minds, they also do not have a belief. This does not necessitate differences and conflicts.

Today, the insistence of global arrogance in the Islamic world is on creating division. They have tried other ways; however, they have failed. You can observe that America, in the two or three interventions it made in the Middle East, has failed in all without exception; neither in Iraq, nor in Lebanon, nor in Afghanistan, nor in Palestine, the objectives that the arrogant America pursued - even with very heavy and abundant costs (money, weapons, human forces, and politics) - to achieve its goals in these four points, it could not succeed and has failed in all four points; it has not reached its objectives and is tasting the hardships of defeat. A few years ago, we were saying these things, but today even the Americans themselves say this, and their politicians repeat it. Therefore, their hands are tied from other avenues.

Several ways remain for them to inflict defeat on the awakening of Islam - which is rooted in the raising of the flag of the Islamic Republic in Iran. One major way is the issue of Shi'ah and Sunni, to say that the Islamic Republic of Iran is a Shi'ah republic and to place it against the large Sunni community; to inject religious prejudices and emotions into the field. This is a very dangerous and important matter, and they are doing this. The hands of politics are not idle. All our efforts should be to neutralize this arrogant desire. Everyone must be vigilant; our nation, our elites, our missionaries, our hardworking and devoted clergy, all must pay attention that any action or expression that aids this enemy plot should not occur.

We have seen in our own society that some have been provoked by the enemies - with signs, not by guess; truly provoked by the enemies - to act in the name of defending Shi'ism, to beat the drum of Shi'ism, to do things and say words that would confuse the other side, the Sunni community; to disturb their hearts. The enemy entered the field with this means; it spent money. We have seen this, we are aware of it.

The Shi'ah community must continue its path with composure. We do not abandon "Praise be to God who made us among those who cling to the Guardianship of Amir al-Mu'minin"; we firmly hold onto the Guardianship of Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) - which is a great blessing from God - but we do not quarrel with anyone who has not clung to this strong rope. This is the duty of the Shi'ah community. What the enemy wants is for us to have differences.

The duty of the Sunni community is the same. Our Sunni brothers should also know that the enemy's plot is to create differences, to create prejudices, to incite fratricide; they will not settle for anything less than fratricide. Look at what they are doing now in Baghdad and various cities of Iraq! Wherever they can reach a Shi'ah mosque, the Baratha mosque, the holy shrine of the two Imams al-Askari, the mosque of Kufa, wherever they think there is a gathering of those they consider Shi'ah, they create explosions and kill innocent people. This is what the enemy wants. The enemy is financially supporting them; the intelligence services of America and Israel are behind these extremist and takfiri groups, even if their foot soldiers are unaware of what is behind the scenes; but their leaders know. This is what America wants. Therefore, they too must be awake and aware.

Today, Islamic awakening and the movement towards achieving the lofty values of Islam have taken on a new life. In all the Islamic world, especially among the youth, the educated, the university students, the informed class, and all the general public, their inclination towards Islam and the governance of Islamic values is incomparable to thirty or forty years ago. Islamic awakening has begun. They fear this; they want to destroy it. They must not allow this Islamic awakening, this general movement in the Islamic world, to be neutralized by the enemy's plot, which is to incite Shi'ah and Sunni against each other. In a religious dispute, when both sides engage in heated arguments with prejudice, many logical arguments will be trampled upon. Logical arguments will no longer be heard. They must not allow this; especially their intellectuals and scholars should be vigilant, advise, and declare this unity that we are pursuing and have repeatedly mentioned. Their politicians should also be the same; the leaders of Islamic countries should know: the dignity and power of Islam is their strength; the strength of the Islamic Republic is their support. Since the victory of the revolution, the political propaganda of the enemies of the revolution has been based on frightening the Muslims around the Islamic Republic from the Islamic Republic; their effort has been to scare the Arab countries, the Persian Gulf countries, and beyond from the Islamic Republic. For over twenty years, they have seen that the Islamic Republic has not attacked any neighbor, nor any non-neighbor, nor any country; if any attack occurred, it was from an Arab state. The same doomed Saddam attacked us and Kuwait; if he had the opportunity, he would have attacked other Arab countries as well. From Iran, there has been no aggression or transgression against any of these countries; they have seen this. They must know that the dignity of Islam and the dignity of the Islamic Republic is their strength. America exploits the weakness of Islamic governments and bullies them. If they are strong and have support, it cannot bully them. America pays tribute to the usurping Zionist government and extracts tribute from Arab governments! If Arab governments rely on a great power, they will not have to pay tribute anymore.

What they are pursuing today has been raised in news, analyses, and speculations of their political commentators for some time, and the reality is that the Americans are seeking to form a coalition of America, England, and some Arab states against the Islamic Republic of Iran. Arab governments must be very vigilant; they must be very attentive. The alliance of two filthy and impure governments against a Muslim nation; a nation that has made so many sacrifices for the dignity of Islam, that has sacrificed so many young people to uphold this proud flag; how can anyone ally with two filthy and impure entities against such a nation?! Of course, it will yield no benefit. Once, they formed an even greater alliance; America, England, the Soviet Union, all of Europe, and many of these Arab countries united against the Islamic Republic in the imposed war; their goal was to seize part of Iran's territory through this wretched, doomed individual and to disgrace the Islamic Republic, to say that it could not defend its own territory; they exerted all their efforts for eight years, and in the end, they could not achieve anything. Now, it is the same. Their conspiracy against the Islamic system will not succeed. But they must be vigilant and careful not to fall into the traps of the enemies. The more the Islamic Republic gains power in terms of science, technology, and social standing, this power belongs to the Islamic world; it is a heavy weight on the scale of the Islamic world.

The nuclear energy that is a domestic achievement for the Iranian nation is a source of pride here. This is a source of pride for the Islamic world. That the Americans and the British and a few Arab states sit down to discuss Iran's nuclear energy and how we should not allow it, how we should impose sanctions, how we should reassure Israel in this regard, this is a political mistake from the Islamic governments. Islamic governments should take pride; they should know that this strength is their strength.

Of course, the Iranian nation will undoubtedly not give up its rights, and the officials of the country have no right to disregard the rights of the Iranian nation.

May God willing, may the blessed Eid al-Ghadir be blessed for all of you; may it be blessed for our great nation; may it be blessed for all the Islamic Ummah. And God willing, may the Almighty God, by the greatness of Amir al-Mu'minin and by the message of the character of Amir al-Mu'minin on this day, grant this nation a gift. And may the sacred heart of the Awaited Imam (may our souls be sacrificed for him) be pleased and satisfied with us.

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