Statements of the Supreme Leader in Friday Prayer Sermons (Ashura 1416)

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

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds. We praise Him, seek His help, believe in Him, rely on Him, and ask for His forgiveness. We send blessings and peace upon His beloved, His chosen one, the best of His creation, the keeper of His secrets, and the conveyor of His messages, the bearer of His mercy and the warner of His wrath, our master and prophet, Abu al-Qasim Muhammad, and upon his pure, chosen, infallible, and purified family, the guided leaders. Especially upon the remainder of God on earth. Blessings upon the leaders of the Muslims, the protectors of the oppressed, and the guides of the believers. The Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) said: "Hussain is from me and I am from Hussain" (peace be upon him and his family). He also said: "Indeed, Hussain is the lamp of guidance and the ark of salvation."

I advise all my dear brothers and sisters who are performing the prayer, and myself, to fear God, to observe piety, to avoid sins, and to seek the pleasure of the Almighty Creator, exalted is His greatness. This is the spirit and purpose of life, and it is what will benefit us on the day when "neither wealth nor children will avail," and it will also be a source of happiness and honor in this worldly life.

Today, on the occasion of Ashura, I intended to speak about the Hussaini movement, peace be upon him. It is a strange thing; our entire life is filled with the remembrance of Hussain, peace be upon him; thanks be to God. Much has been said about the movement of this great figure; however, the field of thought, discussion, research, and study remains vast. There are still many things about this great, strange, and unparalleled event that we must think about and discuss with each other.

If you consider this event carefully, it might be said that one can count more than a hundred important lessons in the few months of the movement of Abu Abdullah, peace be upon him—from the day he left Medina and headed towards Mecca, until the day he drank the sweet cup of martyrdom in Karbala. I did not want to say thousands of lessons; it can be said there are thousands of lessons. Each gesture of that great figure could be a lesson; however, when I say more than a hundred lessons, I mean that if we want to scrutinize these actions, we can derive a hundred titles and headings from them, each of which is a lesson for a nation, for a history, for a country, for self-cultivation, for managing society, and for drawing closer to God.

This is why Hussain ibn Ali, may our souls be sacrificed for him and his name and memory, shines like the sun among the saints of the world. Consider the prophets, the saints, the Imams, the martyrs, and the righteous! If they are like the moon and stars, this great figure shines like the sun. However, those hundred lessons aside, there is one main lesson in the movement and uprising of Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, which I will try to present to you today. All those are the margins, and this is the text. Why did he rise? This is the lesson.

Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, was told: You are respected in Medina and Mecca, and there are so many Shia in Yemen. Go to a corner where you have nothing to do with Yazid, and Yazid has nothing to do with you! So many followers, so many Shia; live, worship, and preach! Why did you rise? What is the matter?

This is the main question. This is the main lesson. We do not say that no one has said this; indeed, much work and effort have been put into this, and much has been said. Now, what we present today is, in our view, a new interpretation and perspective on this matter.

Some like to say that the Imam wanted to overthrow the corrupt government of Yazid and establish his own government. This was the goal of Abu Abdullah's uprising, peace be upon him. This statement is half correct; I do not say it is wrong. If the intention of this statement is that the great figure rose to establish a government; in such a way that if he saw it was not possible to achieve the goal, he would say it did not happen, let's go back; this is wrong.

Yes; someone who moves with the intention of government goes as far as he sees this work is feasible. As soon as he sees there is no rational possibility of success, his duty is to return. If the goal is to establish a government, one can go as far as it is possible to go. Where it is not possible to go, one must return. If the one who says the goal of the Imam's uprising was to establish the rightful Alawi government means this, it is not correct; because the overall movement of the Imam does not show this.

On the opposite side, it is said: No sir, what is the government; the Imam knew he could not establish a government; rather, he came to be killed and martyred! This statement was also very common for a while! Some even expressed it with beautiful poetic expressions. I even saw some of our great scholars say this. This statement that the Imam rose to be martyred is not a new statement. It was said: Since nothing can be done by staying, let's go and do something by being martyred!

We do not have this statement in Islamic documents and sources that one should throw oneself into the jaws of death. We do not have such a thing. The martyrdom we know in the sacred law and see in the narrations and verses of the Quran means that a person pursues a sacred goal that is obligatory or preferable and gives himself up to be killed in that path. This is the correct Islamic martyrdom. But for a person to set out to say "I will go to be killed" or a poetic expression like "my blood will slip under the feet of the oppressor and bring him down"; these are not related to that event of such greatness. There is some truth in this too; but this was not the goal of the Imam.

So in summary, we cannot say that the Imam rose to establish a government and his goal was to establish a government, nor can we say the Imam rose to be martyred. It is something else that I will try to explain in the first sermon—which is the main part of my talk today, in the first sermon, and this matter—God willing.

It seems to me that those who said "the goal was government," or "the goal was martyrdom," have confused the goal with the result. No; the goal was not these. Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, had another goal; however, reaching that other goal required a movement that had one of two results: "government," or "martyrdom." Of course, the Imam was prepared for both. He prepared the preliminaries for government and was preparing them; he also prepared the preliminaries for martyrdom and was preparing them. He was preparing himself for both, and either was correct and had no objection; but neither was the goal, rather they were two results. The goal is something else.

What is the goal? First, I will briefly state that goal in one sentence; then I will explain it a bit.

If we want to state the goal of Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, we must say that the goal of that great figure was to perform a great obligation of the obligations of religion, an obligation that no one before Imam Hussain—not even the Prophet himself—had performed. Neither the Prophet had performed this obligation, nor the Commander of the Faithful, nor Imam Hasan al-Mujtaba.

It was an obligation that holds an important place in the overall structure of the Islamic intellectual, value, and practical system. Despite the fact that this obligation is very important and very fundamental, it had not been acted upon until the time of Imam Hussain—I will explain why it had not been acted upon—Imam Hussain had to perform this obligation so that it would be a lesson for all of history. Just as the Prophet established a government; establishing a government became a lesson for all of Islamic history and he did not just bring its ruling. Or the Prophet waged jihad in the way of God and this became a lesson for all of Muslim history and human history—forever. This obligation also had to be performed by Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, so that it would be a practical lesson for Muslims and for the length of history.

Now why did Imam Hussain do this? Because the opportunity to perform this obligation arose during the time of Imam Hussain. If this opportunity had not arisen during the time of Imam Hussain; for example, if it had arisen during the time of Imam Ali al-Naqi, peace be upon him, Imam Ali al-Naqi would have done the same thing and the great event and great sacrifice of Islamic history would have been Imam Ali al-Naqi, peace be upon him. If it had arisen during the time of Imam Hasan al-Mujtaba or during the time of Imam Sadiq, peace be upon them, those great figures would have acted. Before the time of Imam Hussain, it did not arise; after Imam Hussain, throughout the presence of the Imams until the time of occultation, it did not arise!

So the goal became to perform this obligation, which I will now explain what this obligation is. Then naturally performing this obligation leads to one of two results: either the result is reaching power and government; welcome, Imam Hussain was ready. If the Imam had reached power, he would have firmly held power and managed society like the time of the Prophet and the Commander of the Faithful. Sometimes performing this obligation does not reach government, it reaches martyrdom. Imam Hussain was ready for that too.

God created Imam Hussain and the other great Imams in such a way that they could bear the heavy burden of such a martyrdom that would arise for this matter, and they did bear it. Of course, the story of the calamities of Karbala is another great story. Now let me explain the matter a little. Dear brothers and sisters who are performing the prayer! The Holy Prophet and every prophet when they come, bring a set of rulings. These rulings that the Prophet brings, some are individual and are for a person to reform himself. Some are social and are for the world of humanity to be built and managed and for human societies to be established. It is a set of rulings that is called the Islamic system.

Well; Islam was revealed to the sacred heart of the Holy Prophet; it brought prayer, fasting, zakat, almsgiving, Hajj, family rulings, personal relationships, jihad in the way of God, establishing government, Islamic economy, the relations of the ruler and the people, and the duties of the people towards the government. Islam presented all this set to humanity; the Holy Prophet explained all of them.

"There is nothing that brings you closer to paradise and distances you from hell except that I have forbidden you from it and commanded you to it"; the Holy Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, explained everything that can bring a person and a human society to happiness. Not only did he explain, but he also acted and implemented them. Well; during the time of the Prophet, the Islamic government and Islamic society were established, the Islamic economy was implemented, Islamic jihad was established, and Islamic zakat was collected; it became a country and an Islamic system. The engineer of this system and the leader of this train on this track is the Holy Prophet and the one who sits in his place.

The track is also clear and specified. The Islamic society and the Islamic individual must move on this track, on this path, and in this direction; if such a movement is made, then people will reach perfection; people will become righteous and angelic, oppression among people will disappear; evil, corruption, discord, poverty, and ignorance will disappear. Humanity will reach complete happiness and become a complete servant of God.

Islam brought this system through the Holy Prophet and implemented it in the society of that day. Where? In a corner called Medina and then expanded to Mecca and a few other cities.

A question remains here: if this train that the Holy Prophet set in motion on this track, a hand or an incident came and derailed it, what is the duty? If the Islamic society deviates; if this deviation reaches a point where there is a fear of the complete deviation of Islam and its teachings, what is the duty?

We have two types of deviation. Sometimes people become corrupt—this happens many times—but Islamic rulings do not disappear; but sometimes people become corrupt, governments become corrupt, scholars and speakers of religion become corrupt! From corrupt people, no correct religion is issued. They distort the Quran and truths; they make good things bad, bad things good, the forbidden known and the known forbidden! The line that Islam, for example, drew in this direction, they change it one hundred and eighty degrees to the other direction! If the Islamic society and system are afflicted with such a thing, what is the duty?

Of course, the Prophet had said what the duty is; the Quran also said: "Whoever among you turns back from his religion, God will bring a people whom He loves and who love Him" to the end—and many other verses and narrations and this narration that I am quoting from Imam Hussain for you.

Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, recited this narration of the Prophet for the people. The Prophet had said; but could the Prophet act on this divine ruling? No; because this divine ruling can only be acted upon when society has deviated. If society has deviated, something must be done. God has a ruling here. In societies where deviation reaches a point where there is a danger of the deviation of the essence of Islam, God has a duty. God does not leave a person without duty in any matter.

The Prophet stated this duty—the Quran and Hadith said—but the Prophet could not act on this duty.

Why couldn't he? Because this duty can only be acted upon when society has deviated. Society during the time of the Prophet and the time of the Commander of the Faithful had not deviated to that extent. During the time of Imam Hasan, when Muawiya was at the head of the government, although many signs of that deviation had appeared, it had not yet reached the extent that there was a fear of the complete transformation of Islam.

Perhaps it can be said that at a certain point in time, such a situation also arose; but at that time, there was no opportunity for this work to be done—the appropriate situation was not there—this ruling, which is part of the set of Islamic rulings, is no less important than the government itself; because government means managing society. If society gradually deviates from the track and becomes corrupt and God's ruling is changed; if we do not have that ruling of changing the situation and renewing life—or in today's expression, if we do not have that ruling of revolution—what good is this government?

Therefore, the importance of that ruling which pertains to returning the deviated society to the main track is no less than the importance of the ruling of government itself. Perhaps it can be said that its importance is greater than jihad against the infidels. Perhaps it can be said that its importance is greater than the usual enjoining good and forbidding evil in an Islamic society. Perhaps it can even be said that the importance of this ruling is greater than the great divine acts of worship and greater than Hajj. Why? Because in reality, this ruling guarantees the revival of Islam; after it is on the verge of dying, or has died and disappeared.

Well; who should perform this ruling? Who should fulfill this duty?

One of the successors of the Prophet, when he finds himself in a time when that deviation has occurred. Of course, provided that the situation is appropriate; because the Almighty God does not impose a duty on something that has no benefit. If the situation is not appropriate, whatever they do, it has no benefit and no effect. The situation must be appropriate.

Of course, the meaning of the situation being appropriate is something else; not that we say because there is danger, the situation is not appropriate; that is not the meaning. The situation must be appropriate; meaning a person must know that when he does this work, a result will follow; meaning the message will be conveyed to the people, the people will understand and will not remain in error. This is the duty that someone had to perform.

During the time of Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, both that deviation had occurred and that opportunity had arisen. Therefore, Imam Hussain must rise; because deviation had occurred. Because after Muawiya, someone had come to power who did not even observe the outward appearances of Islam! He drank wine and committed unlawful acts. He openly committed sexual transgressions and corruption. He spoke against the Quran. He openly recited poetry against the Quran and against religion and was openly opposed to Islam! However, because his name was the leader of the Muslims, he did not want to abolish the name of Islam. He was not an adherent to Islam, interested in, or sympathetic to Islam; rather, with his actions, like a spring from which rotten water constantly flows and spills out and fills the entire slope, from his existence, rotten water spills out and will fill the entire Islamic society! A corrupt ruler is like this; because the ruler is at the top of the peak and what flows from him does not remain there—unlike ordinary people—but spills out and covers the entire peak!

Ordinary people each have their own place. Of course, the higher someone is; the higher their position in society, the more their corruption and harm. The corruption of ordinary people may be for themselves or for a group around them; but the one who is at the top, if he becomes corrupt, his corruption spills out and fills the entire space; just as if he becomes righteous, his righteousness spills out and covers the entire slope.

Such a person with that corruption, after Muawiya, became the caliph of the Muslims! The caliph of the Prophet! Is there a deviation greater than this?! The situation is also ready. What does it mean that the situation is ready? It means there is no danger. Why; there is danger. Is it possible for someone who is at the head of power, in opposition to opposing people, not to create danger for them? It is war after all. You want to pull him down from the throne of power and he sits and watches! It is obvious that he also strikes you. So there is danger.

When we say the situation is ready, it means the atmosphere of the Islamic society is such that it is possible for the message of Imam Hussain to reach the ears of people at that time and throughout history. If Imam Hussain wanted to rise during the time of Muawiya, his message would have been buried. This is because of the state of the government during the time of Muawiya. The policies were such that people could not hear the truth of the rightful speech. Therefore, this great figure was the Imam for ten years during the caliphate of Muawiya, but he did not say anything; he did not take any action or rise; because the situation there was not appropriate.

Before him, Imam Hasan, peace be upon him, was there. He also did not rise; because the situation was not appropriate. Not that Imam Hussain and Imam Hasan were not inclined to do this work. Imam Hasan and Imam Hussain are no different. Imam Hussain and Imam Sajjad are no different. Imam Hussain and Imam Ali al-Naqi and Imam Hasan al-Askari, peace be upon them, are no different. Of course, when this great figure made this effort, his position is higher than those who did not; but they are equal in terms of the position of Imamate. For any of those great figures, if it had arisen, they would have done the same work and reached the same position.

Well; Imam Hussain also faced such a deviation. Therefore, he must perform that duty. The situation is also appropriate; so there is no excuse. Therefore, Abdullah ibn Ja'far and Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya and Abdullah ibn Abbas—these were not ordinary people, they were all knowledgeable in religion, wise, learned, and understanding people—when they told the Imam "Sir! There is danger, do not go" they wanted to say when there is danger on the path of duty, the duty is lifted. They did not understand that this duty is not a duty that is lifted by danger.

This duty always has danger. Is it possible for a person to rise against such a seemingly powerful power and there be no danger?! Is such a thing possible?! This duty always has danger. The same duty that the great Imam performed. They also told the Imam "Sir! You have opposed the Shah, there is danger." Did the Imam not know there was danger?! Did the Imam not know that the security apparatus of the Pahlavi regime arrests, kills, tortures, kills a person's friends, and exiles them?! Did the Imam not know these things?!

The work that was done during the time of Imam Hussain, its smaller version was also done during the time of our Imam; however, there it reached the result of martyrdom, here it reached the result of government. It is the same; there is no difference. The goal of Imam Hussain was the same as the goal of our great Imam. This matter is the foundation of Hussaini knowledge. Hussaini knowledge is a great part of Shia knowledge. This is an important foundation and itself one of the foundations of Islam.

So the goal became to return the Islamic society to the correct path. When? When the path has changed and the ignorance, oppression, tyranny, and betrayal of some have deviated the Muslims and the situation and conditions are ready.

Of course, the periods of history are different times. Sometimes the conditions are ready and sometimes they are not. The time of Imam Hussain was ready, our time was also ready. The Imam did the same work. The goal was the same. However, when a person sets out for this goal and wants to rise against the government and the center of falsehood, in order to return Islam and the Islamic society and system to its correct center, sometimes when he rises, he reaches government; this is one form of it—in our time, thanks be to God, it was like this—sometimes this uprising does not reach government; it reaches martyrdom.

Is it not obligatory in this case? Yes; even if it reaches martyrdom, it is obligatory. Does it not have any benefit if it reaches martyrdom? No; it makes no difference. This uprising and this movement have benefits in both cases—whether it reaches martyrdom or government—but each has a different kind of benefit. It must be done; it must be moved.

This is the work that Imam Hussain did. However, Imam Hussain was the one who performed this movement for the first time. It had not been done before; because before him—during the time of the Prophet and the Commander of the Faithful—such a situation and deviation had not arisen, or if there was a deviation in some cases, the appropriate and conducive situation was not there. During the time of Imam Hussain, both existed. Regarding the movement of Imam Hussain, this is the main issue.

So we can summarize and say: Imam Hussain rose to perform that great obligation which is the renewal of the structure of the Islamic system and society, or to rise against major deviations in the Islamic society. This is through uprising and through enjoining good and forbidding evil; rather, it is itself a great example of enjoining good and forbidding evil. Of course, this work sometimes reaches the result of government; Imam Hussain was ready for this. Sometimes it also reaches the result of martyrdom; he was ready for this too.

Why do we say this? We derive this from the words of Imam Hussain himself. I have selected a few phrases from the words of Abu Abdullah, peace be upon him—of course, there are more than these, all of which express this meaning—first in Medina; the night when Walid, the governor of Medina, summoned the Imam and said: Muawiya has passed away and you must pledge allegiance to Yazid! The Imam said to him: Let it be until morning, "we will see and you will see who is more deserving of allegiance and caliphate." Let's go and think, see if we should become the caliph, or Yazid should become the caliph! The next day, Marwan saw the Imam in the streets of Medina and said: O Abu Abdullah, you are giving yourself to death! Why don't you pledge allegiance to the caliph? Come and pledge allegiance, don't give yourself to death; don't put yourself in trouble!

The Imam replied to him with this sentence: "Indeed, we belong to God and to Him we shall return, and peace be upon Islam when the nation is afflicted with a ruler like Yazid." We must bid farewell to Islam and say goodbye; when a ruler like Yazid comes to power and Islam is afflicted with a ruler like Yazid! The issue is not the person of Yazid; anyone like Yazid. The Imam wants to say that until now whatever it was, it was bearable; but now the essence of religion and the Islamic system is at stake and with the rule of someone like Yazid, it will be destroyed. He points out that the danger of deviation is a serious danger. The issue is the danger to the essence of Islam.

Imam Abu Abdullah, peace be upon him, both when leaving Medina and when leaving Mecca, had conversations with Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya. It seems to me that this will is related to when he wanted to leave Mecca. In the month of Dhu al-Hijjah, when Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya came to Mecca, he had conversations with the Imam. The Imam wrote and gave something to his brother Muhammad ibn al-Hanafiyya as a will.

There, after testifying to the oneness of God and so on, he reaches this point: "I did not rise out of arrogance, nor out of pride, nor as a corrupter, nor as an oppressor"; meaning people should not be mistaken and propagandists should not propagate that Imam Hussain, like those who rise here and there to seize power—for self-display, for pleasure, and oppression and corruption—enters the field of struggle and war! Our work is not of this kind; "I only rose to seek reform in the nation of my grandfather." The title of this work is reform; I want to reform. This is the obligation that had not been performed before Imam Hussain. This reform is through uprising—uprising means rising—the Imam mentioned this in this will—it is almost an explicit statement of this meaning—meaning first we want to rise and this uprising of ours is for reform; not for the sake of necessarily reaching government, not for the sake of necessarily going to be martyred. No; we want to reform. Of course, reform is not a small task. Sometimes the conditions are such that a person reaches government and takes the reins of power himself; sometimes he cannot do this—it is not possible—he is martyred. In any case, both are uprisings for reform.

Then he says: "I want to enjoin good and forbid evil and follow the path of my grandfather"; this reform is an example of enjoining good and forbidding evil. This is another statement.

The Imam wrote two letters in Mecca: one to the leaders of Basra and one to the leaders of Kufa. In the letter of the Imam to the leaders of Basra, it is stated: "I have sent my messenger to you with this letter and I invite you to the Book of God and the Sunnah of His Prophet, for the Sunnah has been killed and innovation has been revived. If you listen to my words, I will guide you to the path of righteousness"; I want to eliminate innovation and revive the Sunnah; because they have killed the Sunnah and revived innovation! If you follow me, the right path is with me; meaning I want to perform that great duty which is the revival of Islam and the revival of the Sunnah of the Prophet and the Islamic system.

Then in the letter to the people of Kufa, he said: "By my life, the Imam is none other than the one who rules by the Book and establishes justice, adheres to the religion of truth, and confines himself to that for God and peace." The Imam and leader and head of the Islamic society cannot be someone who is of immorality and corruption and betrayal and distance from God and these things. He must be someone who acts by the Book of God. Meaning he acts in society; not that he only prays in a private room; rather, he revives acting by the Book in society, takes justice and fairness, and makes truth the law of society.

"The one who adheres to the religion of truth," meaning he makes the religion and law and regulations of society truth and sets aside falsehood. "And confines himself to that for God"; apparently, the meaning of this sentence is that he keeps himself on the straight path of God in any way and does not become captive to satanic and material attractions; and peace. Therefore, he specifies the goal.

Imam Hussain left Mecca. The Imam, along the way, in each of the stations, has a speech with different tones. In a station called "Baydha," while Hurr ibn Yazid is also beside the Imam—the Imam goes, he also goes beside the Imam—they reached this station and stopped. Perhaps before they rested—or after a little rest—the Imam stood and addressed the enemy army, saying:

"O people, indeed the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) said: 'Whoever sees a tyrannical ruler making lawful what God has forbidden, breaking God's covenant, opposing the Sunnah of the Messenger of God, acting among the servants of God with sin and aggression, and does not change it by word or action, it is incumbent upon God to make him enter his abode.'" Meaning if someone sees a ruler in society who is in power and oppresses, considers what God has forbidden as lawful, considers what God has made lawful as forbidden, sets aside God's ruling—does not act—and does not urge others to act; meaning acts among people with sin, enmity, and oppression—a corrupt, oppressive, tyrannical ruler, whose complete example was Yazid—"and does not change it by word or action," and does not take action against him with words and actions, "it is incumbent upon God to make him enter his abode," God will make this silent, indifferent, inactive person suffer the same fate as that oppressor on the Day of Judgment; meaning he will be placed in the same line and in the same camp as him. This is what the Prophet said. This is one of the examples of what we said the Prophet stated the ruling of this matter. So the Prophet specified what to do if the Islamic system deviates. Imam Hussain also refers to this statement of the Prophet.

So what became the duty? The duty became "to change it by word and action." If a person finds himself in such conditions—of course, when the situation is appropriate—it is obligatory to rise and take action against this act. Wherever it may lead; whether he is killed, remains alive, apparently succeeds, or not. Every Muslim must rise and take action against this situation. This is the duty that the Prophet stated.

Then Imam Hussain said: "And I am more deserving of this"; I am more deserving than all Muslims to perform this uprising and this action; because I am the son of the Prophet. If the Prophet made this change, meaning this action, obligatory on every Muslim, it is obvious that Hussain ibn Ali, the son of the Prophet, the heir of the Prophet's knowledge and wisdom, is more obligatory and more appropriate than others to take action and I took action because of this. So the Imam states the reason for his uprising.

In the station of "Azid," where four people joined the Imam, there is another statement from Imam Hussain, peace be upon him. The Imam said: "By God, I hope that what God has intended for us is good; whether we are killed or we are victorious." This is also a sign that we said it makes no difference; whether they reach victory or are killed, it makes no difference. The duty is the duty; it must be performed. He said: I hope that what the Almighty God has intended for us is our good; whether we are killed or we reach victory. It makes no difference; we are performing our duty.

In the first sermon after entering the land of Karbala, he said: "The matter has reached what you see..." then he said: "Do you not see that the truth is not acted upon and falsehood is not forbidden so that the believer desires to meet his Lord truly"—to the end of this sermon—let me summarize and conclude. So Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, rose to perform a duty. This duty is directed at every Muslim throughout history. This duty is that whenever they see that the system of the Islamic society has become fundamentally corrupt and there is a fear that all Islamic rulings will be changed, every Muslim must rise.

Of course, in appropriate conditions; when he knows this uprising will have an effect. Among the conditions are not remaining alive, not being killed, or not being harmed and tortured. These are not among the conditions; therefore, Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, rose and practically performed this duty so that it would be a lesson for everyone.

Well; anyone in history and in appropriate conditions can do this work; of course, after the time of Imam Hussain, such conditions did not arise during the time of any other Imams. This itself has an analysis of why it did not arise; because there were other important works that had to be done and such conditions did not occur in the Islamic society until the end of the presence period and the beginning of the occultation period. Of course, throughout history, such conditions often arise in Islamic countries. Today, perhaps in some places in the Islamic world, the conditions are there and Muslims must perform them. If they do, they have performed their duty and have spread and guaranteed Islam. In the end, one or two people fail.

When this change and reform movement is repeated, corruption and deviation will surely be eradicated and eliminated. No one knew this path and this work; because it had not been done during the time of the Prophet, it had not been done during the time of the first caliphs, and the Commander of the Faithful, who was infallible, had not done it. Therefore, Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, gave a great practical lesson to all of Islamic history and in reality, insured Islam both in his time and in any other time.

Wherever there is corruption of that kind, Imam Hussain is alive there and with his method and action, he says what you should do. This is the duty; therefore, the memory of Imam Hussain and the memory of Karbala must be kept alive; because the memory of Karbala places this practical lesson in front of the eyes.

Unfortunately, in other Islamic countries, the lesson of Ashura is not known as it should be. It must be known. In our country, it was known. People in our country knew Imam Hussain and knew the uprising of Imam Hussain. The Hussaini spirit was there; therefore, when the Imam said that Muharram is the month when blood triumphs over the sword, people were not surprised. The truth was also this; blood triumphed over the sword.

Once, many years ago, I mentioned this same point in a session to an audience—of course, before the revolution—a metaphor came to my mind, and I mentioned it in that session; that metaphor is the story of the same parrot that Rumi mentions in the Masnavi.

A person had a parrot at home—of course, it is a metaphor and these metaphors are for expressing truths—once he wanted to travel to India. After saying goodbye to his family, he also bid farewell to that parrot. He said I am going to India and India is your homeland. The parrot said: Go to such and such a place, my relatives and friends are there. Tell them one of you is in our house. Tell them about my condition and say that he is in a cage and in our house. I do not want anything else from you.

He went, completed his journey, and reached that place. He saw yes, many parrots were sitting on the trees. He called them, saying: O dear and eloquent parrots! I have a message for you; one of you is in our house, his condition is very good. He is in a cage, but he has a very good life and suitable food. He sent you greetings.

As soon as the merchant said this, he suddenly saw those parrots sitting on the branches of the trees, all flapped their wings and fell to the ground. He went forward and saw they had died! He was very sorry and said why did I say something that caused all these animals—for example, five or ten parrots—to lose their lives upon hearing this! But it was over and he could not do anything.

The merchant returned. When he reached his house, he went to the parrot's cage. He said: I delivered your message. He said: What did they reply? He said: As soon as they heard your message from me, they all flapped their wings, fell to the ground, and died!

As soon as this word came out of the merchant's mouth, he suddenly saw the parrot also flapped its wings in the cage, fell to the bottom of the cage, and died! He was very sorry and upset. He opened the cage. The parrot was dead; he could not keep it. He took its leg and threw it on the roof. As soon as he threw it, the parrot began to flap its wings in the middle of the air and sat on the wall! He said: Thank you very much, dear merchant and friend; you yourself provided the means for my freedom. I was not dead; I pretended to be dead and this was a lesson that those parrots taught me! They understood that I am here in the cage, captive and imprisoned. How could they tell me what to do to be saved? They practically showed me that I should do this to be saved!—Die to live!—I received their message from you and this was a practical lesson that reached me from that region with spatial distance. I used that lesson.

I told the brothers and sisters who were listening to this speech that day—more than twenty years ago: My dear ones! How should Imam Hussain say what your duty is? The conditions are the same conditions; life is the same type of life; Islam is the same Islam. Well; Imam Hussain practically showed all generations. If not a single word was narrated from Imam Hussain, we should have understood what our duty is.

A nation that is captive, a nation that is in bondage, a nation that is afflicted with the corruption of its leaders, a nation that is ruled by the enemies of religion and they have taken control of its life and destiny, must understand over time what its duty is; because the son of the Prophet—the infallible Imam—showed what to do in such conditions.

It could not be done with words. If this matter was said with a hundred languages and he himself did not go, it was not possible for this message to pass through history and reach; it was not possible. Just advising and saying with words does not pass through history; they interpret and explain it in a thousand ways. There must be action; that too such a great action, such a difficult sacrifice with such greatness and heart-wrenching that Imam Hussain performed!

Truly, what is before our eyes from the scene of the day of Ashura deserves to be said that among all the tragedies of human history that we know, it is still unique and unparalleled. Just as the Prophet said, the Commander of the Faithful said, Imam Hasan said—according to what is in the narrations—"There is no day like your day, O Abu Abdullah"; there is no day like your day, like your day of Ashura, like Karbala, and like your event.

Today is also the day of Ashura and I would like to recite a few words of mourning. Every part of Karbala is a mourning. Every event of Ashura is tearful and painful. Every part you take; from the hour he entered Karbala, the speech of Imam Hussain, his words, his sermon, his poetry, his news of death, his conversation with his sister, with his brothers, with his loved ones, all these are mourning, until it reaches the night and day of Ashura and the noon and afternoon of Ashura! I will now mention a part of them.

These days are the days of mourning and crying; you hear it everywhere. I, to feel myself somewhat included in this great Hussaini feast, will mention these few words and since our nation has given many young people in the way of God—perhaps among this crowd, there are thousands who have lost their young ones—I thought I would mention a few words about the young ones of Imam Hussain. We tell everyone to read the mourning from the text; now I want to read from the text of the book "Luhuf" by Ibn Tawus, to see how textual mourning is. Some say one cannot just read what is written in the book; we must develop it—create it—well; sometimes that is not a problem; but now we will read a few words from the book.

Ali ibn Tawus, one of the great scholars of Shia in the sixth century AH, is from a family all of whom are people of knowledge and religion. All of them or many of them are good; especially these two brothers—Ali ibn Musa ibn Ja'far ibn Tawus and Ahmad ibn Musa ibn Ja'far ibn Tawus—these two brothers are among the great scholars, great authors, and great trustworthy ones. The famous book "Luhuf" is by Sayyid Ali ibn Musa ibn Ja'far ibn Tawus. In the expressions of our preachers, the exact phrases of this book—like a narration—are read; because it is so authentic and important. I will read from it.

He says: "When no one remained with him except his family"; meaning when all the companions of Imam Hussain were martyred and no one except his family remained, "Ali ibn al-Hussain, peace be upon him, came out"; Ali Akbar came out of the tent. "He was one of the most beautiful people in creation"; Ali Akbar was one of the most beautiful young men. "He sought permission from his father to fight"; he came to his father and said: Father, now allow me to go and fight and sacrifice my life for you. "He permitted him"; he did not resist and allowed him to go!

This is not another companion or nephew or niece that the Imam would say do not go—stand—this is his own flesh and blood! Now that he wants to go, Imam Hussain must give permission. This is the offering of Imam Hussain; this is the Ismail of Hussain going to the battlefield. "He permitted him"; he allowed him to go. But as soon as Ali Akbar set out towards the battlefield, "then he looked at him with a look of despair"; Imam Hussain cast a look of despair at the stature of Ali Akbar. "And he lowered his eyes and wept, then said: O God, bear witness"; he said: O God, bear witness. "Indeed, a young man has gone out to them who is the most similar in creation, character, and speech to Your Messenger"; I have sent a young man to fight and to the jaws of death who is the most similar to the Prophet in all people; both in appearance, in speech, and in character; in every way!

What a young man! His character is also the most similar to the Prophet. His appearance and speech are also the most similar to the Prophet and to the speech of the Prophet, of all people! You see how much Imam Hussain loves such a young man! He loves this young man; not just because he is his son. Because of the resemblance, such a resemblance to the Prophet! That too Hussain who grew up in the lap of the Prophet. He has a great affection for this son and the departure of this son to the battlefield is very difficult for him. Finally, he went.

The late Ibn Tawus narrates that this young man went to the battlefield and fought bravely. Then he returned to his father and said: Dear father! Thirst is killing me; if you have water, give it to me. The Imam also gave him that answer. He returned and went towards the battlefield. The Imam replied to him: Go and fight; it will not be long before you will be quenched by your grandfather. "He returned to the position of struggle"; Ali Akbar returned to the battlefield.

The author of this book, Ibn Tawus, is a trustworthy person. It is not that he wants to say something to make people cry and, for example, warm up the gathering; no. His expressions are authentic expressions. He says: "And he fought the greatest fight"; Ali Akbar fought the greatest battle; he fought with utmost courage and bravery. After he fought for a while, "Munqidh ibn Murrah al-Abdi, may God's curse be upon him, shot him with an arrow"; one of the enemy's men targeted him with an arrow. "And he threw him down"; so he threw him from the horse to the ground.

"He called out: O father, peace be upon you"; the young man's voice was raised: Father, goodbye! "This is my grandfather who sends you greetings"; this is my grandfather the Prophet who sends you greetings. "And he says: Hurry to us"; he says: My son Hussain! Come quickly, join us—Ali Akbar uttered this one word—"then he sighed a sigh and died"; then he let out a sigh or a cry and his soul left his body.

"Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, came"; as soon as Imam Hussain heard the voice of his son, he came to the battlefield; where his young one had fallen to the ground. "Until he stood over him"; he reached above his young one. "And placed his cheek on his cheek"; he placed his face on the face of Ali Akbar. "And said: May God kill the people who killed you, how daring they are against God"; the Imam placed his face on the face of Ali Akbar and said these words: May God kill the people who killed you...

The narrator said: "And Zainab bint Ali, peace be upon them, came out"; the narrator says: Suddenly we saw Zainab coming out of the tents. "She called out: O beloved, O son of my brother"; her voice was raised: "O my dear one; O son of my brother!" "And she came and threw herself on him"; she came and threw herself on the lifeless body of Ali Akbar. "Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, came and took her and returned her to the women"; Imam Hussain, peace be upon him, came, took his sister's arm, lifted her from the body of Ali Akbar, and sent her to the women.

"Then he made his family, peace be upon them, come out one after the other"; he narrates the continuation of this incident that if we want to read these expressions, truly the heart of a person melts from hearing these words!

From this expression of Ibn Tawus, a thought came to my mind. This that he says: "And she threw herself on him," what is in this sentence of Ibn Tawus—which he certainly narrated from authentic narrations and reports—does not say that Imam Hussain threw himself on the body of Ali Akbar; Imam Hussain only placed his face on the face of his young one. But the one who threw herself out of impatience on the body of Ali Akbar was Lady Zainab.

I have not seen in any book or any Maqtal that this great Zainab, this aunt of the masters, this wise woman of Bani Hashim, when her two sons, her two Ali Akbars, were also martyred in Karbala—one "Awn" and one "Muhammad"—showed any reaction; for example, she let out a cry, or a loud cry, or threw herself on their bodies! It occurred to me that these mothers of our time's martyrs truly practice and implement the version of Zainab! I have not seen, or I have seen very few mothers—a mother of one martyr, a mother of two martyrs, a mother of three martyrs—when a person sees them, feels weakness and helplessness in them!

The mothers are truly lionesses that a person sees Zainab al-Kubra is the original version of the behavior of the mothers of our martyrs. Her two young sons—Awn and Muhammad—were martyred, Lady Zainab, peace be upon her, did not show any reaction; but there are two other places—besides the case of her own sons—where she threw herself on the body of a martyr; one is here where she came over Ali Akbar and involuntarily threw herself on the body of Ali Akbar, and one is the afternoon of Ashura; when she threw herself on the body of her brother Hussain and her voice was raised: "O Messenger of God! This is your Hussain covered in blood"; O Prophet of God, this is your Hussain; this is your dear one; this is your piece of flesh! What calamities they endured! There is no power and no strength except with God, the Most High, the Most Great.

Before the second sermon, let me make a few supplications; with these tearful eyes, let us call upon God. It is Friday noon, God willing, the Almighty God will bestow His blessings and mercy upon us.

O Lord! We beseech You by Hussain and Zainab, peace be upon them, to make us among their friends, supporters, and followers.

O Lord! Make our life a Hussaini life and our death a Hussaini death.

O Lord! Unite our great Imam who guided us to this path with the martyrs of Karbala. Unite our dear martyrs with the martyrs of Karbala.

O Lord! Bestow Your mercy and grace from the treasury of Your unseen upon those who have sacrificed their lives and time in the way of God, in the way of this revolution, and in the way of Islam; our dear disabled veterans, the self-sacrificers, the freed captives, and those who are still in the enemy's captivity—whatever their number may be.

O Lord! Bestow Your mercy upon this nation and people; resolve all the difficulties of this nation with Your grace, wisdom, and prudence.

O Lord! Grant this great nation, this Hussaini and Ashuraic nation, victory over all its small and large enemies; make its enemies despair and fail.

O Lord! Revive and refresh Islam among us day by day.

O Lord! Grant the best and most abundant reward to those who work hard for this nation and country and serve in every way—especially the country's officials who serve sincerely.

O Lord! Forgive our predecessors; grant healing to our sick; include our parents, those with rights over us, and our teachers in Your mercy and grace.

O Lord! Fulfill the needs of all those who have requests and have asked us to pray for them and have asked us to present their requests to the Almighty God.

O Lord! By Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, elevate the Islamic nation wherever they are in the world; teach them the Hussaini duty; grant them the success to perform this duty.

O Lord! By Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, make the heart of our Imam of the time, our Master of the Age, may our souls be sacrificed for him, pleased and satisfied with us; make us among the supporters and followers of that great figure; grant us the success and happiness of visiting that great figure.

O Lord! By Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, grant us the good that we asked for and did not ask for, and protect us from every evil that we sought refuge from and did not seek refuge from.

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

Say: He is God, the One. God, the Eternal. He neither begets nor is born. And there is none comparable to Him.