Statements of His Eminence in Meeting with Officials, System Executives, and Invitees of the International Islamic Unity Conference

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

I extend my congratulations on this blessed Eid and the birth of the Seal of the Prophets, peace be upon him and his family, and Imam Ja'far Sadiq, peace be upon him, to all Muslims of the world, to the great nation of Iran, to you dear guests and esteemed attendees of this gathering, to the officials and those involved in the country, especially to the self-sacrificers and their families.

One of the ongoing charities of the revolution, realized by the blessing of the enlightened mind of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), was the introduction of the days of the birth of the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him and his family, as the days of unity. This matter is interesting because Islamic unity is a wish. Some truly have this wish, while for others it is merely lip service. In any case, this wish requires a practical path. No wish is realized without striving and effort, and when we think of practical ways for this purpose and wish, one of the best and greatest is the great personality of the world of creation, namely the blessed existence of the Noble Prophet and the centrality of this noble figure for the emotions and beliefs of the general Muslims. Among the truths and teachings of Islam, there is perhaps nothing that is so unanimously agreed upon by the opinions and beliefs and also the emotions of all Muslims, or it is very rare; because emotions also play a significant role. Except for some minorities and groups separated from the general Muslims who do not give much importance to emotions and have nothing to do with love, attention, and devotion, the general Muslims are engaged with emotions towards the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him and his family. Therefore, the existence of this noble figure can be a pivot for unity.

I want to draw special attention to this point today in the presence of high-ranking officials of the country and prominent figures of the Islamic world from various countries.

Dear brothers; dear and esteemed sisters! Today, the issue of unity is an absolute necessity for Muslims. Today, the enemy of Islam and Muslims has two characteristics that it has not had throughout history. One is that it is intensely equipped with wealth, politics, propaganda, and various tools of influence and impact. Who is the enemy of Islam? The front of global arrogance, from Zionism to America, to oil companies, to mercenaries and intellectuals who work for them, are equipped all over the world. Never has the front opposing Islam been so equipped with all tools.

The other characteristic is that this equipped front is today extremely sensitive to the danger that Islam poses to it and the Islamic awakening it brings about. This sensitivity arises from seeing that Islam can go beyond a moral recommendation and appear in a position of thought that creates a system. The enemies of Islam saw that Islam could bring about a revolution; they saw that Islam could establish a stable and enduring system; they saw that Islam could bring a nation to self-awareness, transform them from a state of spiritual defeat to stability, self-reliance, and pride in themselves and their religion; they saw that Islam could empower a nation so much that all those tools we mentioned become ineffective and blunt against this nation.

Almost seventeen years after the victory of the revolution and the Islamic Republic system, the only superpower claiming superpower status in the world was forced to retreat in political and economic confrontation with the Islamic Republic. This is something observed today. This matter is not hidden from the eyes of global arrogance analysts. The power of Islam is showing itself. They saw that in the Islamic world, every group seeking to reform its environment, society, and country turns to Islam. Before the victory of Islam in Iran, in various countries, groups that wanted to make reform their slogan turned to Marxism or intense nationalisms; but today, in Islamic countries, if you look, intellectuals, youth, clergy, academics, and various groups of people, if they have a claim to reform, they turn to Islam. This is the high capability and capacity of Islam. The enemy sees these; hence it has become sensitive.

The Islamic world, in the face of the enemy of Islam and Muslims, is confronted with these two characteristics: being more equipped than ever and more sensitive to Islam than ever. What will this enemy do?

The best tool this enemy has is to create division among Muslims; especially to create distance between those sections that can inspire other Muslims. You see today in various Islamic countries, how much money from oil dollars and otherwise is spent to write books and attribute strange and bizarre beliefs to Shi'ism. I once collected a large portion of these books and saw that many books are written. The most cunning propaganda elements strive to prepare and organize these books to create division; to separate that part of the Islamic society that has raised the flag of Islam, with its peak and pinnacle being Islamic Iran, and also other places that, with the help of Islam, have been able to confront the events of life and grapple with powers, from the rest of the Islamic world.

Today in the Islamic world, there is a lot of money, a lot of thought, capable human resources, a large number of scholars, poets, writers, artists, and capable political figures in the Islamic world, and a significant portion of the vast financial resources and underground God-given mineral resources are in the hands of Islamic countries. If these are aligned with each other, or at least do not work against each other, see what will happen in the world! The enemy ensures that in the Islamic world, all these human and financial resources are set against each other, they incited the Iraqi regime; they created an eight-year devastating war in this region, and then they helped it to see if it could completely uproot this young sapling, which of course they could not.

'God sets forth a parable: a good word is like a good tree, its root is firm,' this is the characteristic of the Islamic word, it is not uprootable: 'and its branches are in the sky, yielding its fruit every season by the permission of its Lord.'

Today, too, they are making maximum efforts politically; therefore, my conclusion, understanding, and recommendation as a servant; as someone who sees and feels the enemy's conspiracy, to Muslim brothers is that today unity among Muslims is a vital necessity for Muslims. It is not a joke or a slogan; Islamic societies must seriously find unity of word and move in harmony. Of course, unity is a complex matter; creating unity is a complex task. Unity among Islamic nations accommodates differences in sects, differences in lifestyles and customs, differences in jurisprudence. The meaning of unity among Islamic nations is that in matters related to the Islamic world, they move in harmony, help each other, and within these nations, do not use their resources against each other.

One of the factors that can be central in this regard is the sacred existence of the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him and his family. Muslims and Islamic intellectuals should invest in the personality and teachings of this noble figure and love for this noble figure, with a comprehensive view towards Islam. Among the factors that can be the pivot of this unity and all Muslims can agree upon is following the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet. All Muslims accept the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet. Of course, Shi'ism believes in their Imamate; non-Shi'ism does not consider them Imams in the Shi'ite terminological sense, but knows them as great figures of Islam, knows the family of the Prophet, knows them as knowledgeable of Islamic teachings and laws. Muslims should unite in acting upon the words of the Imams, peace be upon them, and the Ahl al-Bayt of the Prophet. This is one of the means of unity.

Of course, this is a technical task; it is not an easy task and has prerequisites. Those who are experts, those who are knowledgeable in Hadith, those who are in the sciences related to Hadith, know what the prerequisites of this task are. The criteria for understanding Hadith, receiving and bearing Hadith, and the criteria for the authenticity and validity of Hadith must be agreed upon. There must be agreement on the narrators of Hadith. In the past, mainly the Abbasid caliphate and to some extent the Umayyad caliphate arranged things in such a way as to remove the teachings of the Ahl al-Bayt from the mindset of the Islamic world; therefore, their narrations were less transmitted. A narrator transmits a Hadith and it makes no difference to him whether he transmits it from Hasan al-Basri, from Qatada, and from others. Why not transmit from Ja'far ibn Muhammad, peace be upon him?! It was the caliphate apparatus of the likes of Harun, Ma'mun, Mu'tasim, Mutawakkil, and the likes of these that prevented, blocked the paths, and accused some narrators of Hadith; therefore, one of the tasks that must be done is a common understanding in these preliminary areas of Hadith. Scholars have a duty in this regard; Islamic thinkers have a duty in this regard.

How much regret and sorrow there is that the Islamic thinker's mind, which should write and strive for the dignity of Muslims and the raising of the flag of Islam, goes after divisive issues, creating division, creating conflict and void among Muslims, writes and works; accuses one and declares another out of religion! Scholars have a great duty in this regard to achieve unity and prepare the prerequisites for unity; not just scholars of one side, but scholars of both sides.

Brothers and sisters! Sometimes the enemy uses people who have no malice or illness to create division both among Shi'ites and among Sunnis. In the Shi'ite community, an action is taken that is provocative and sensitive for the non-Shi'ite Muslim brother. The same action is taken in the Sunni community, regarding something that is provocative and hateful for Shi'ites. Who does these things?! Today there is a single enemy against us; in addition to the fact that there is a single book, a single tradition, a single Prophet, a single Qibla, a single Kaaba, a single Hajj, a single set of worships, a single set of fundamental beliefs in the Islamic community. Of course, there are also differences. Scientific differences may exist between any two scholars. In addition to these, there is a single enemy against the Islamic world. The issue of unity among Muslims is a serious matter. It should be approached in this way. Every day this issue is delayed, the Islamic world has suffered a loss for one more day, and these days are such that some are so sensitive that they affect a lifetime. Do not let it be delayed.

The Islamic Republic, by the grace of God, has taken steps in this regard from the very first day. Our great Imam (may his soul be sanctified) was the leader of this path, and the greats, officials, speakers, writers, various apparatuses, and thinkers of the Islamic world have also made many efforts.

We hope that Almighty God will help, strengthen the steps, guide the hearts in this path, bind the hands of unity warmly together, and bring the hearts closer together, God willing.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings