Statements of His Eminence in the Meeting and Allegiance of Those Involved in the Construction of the Sacred Shrine of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified)

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

First, I must express my condolences to you dear ones and the sincere and loyal forces to Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) and the revolution for this great, unforgettable, and irreparable calamity.

Whoever among our great nation has shown more sacrifice and sincerity for the revolution, Islam, and the Imam, is more bereaved in the calamity of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified). By this account, you dear veterans, warriors, and Basij forces of various institutions are truly the mourners. The Imam truly belonged to you.

Secondly, I must express my heartfelt gratitude for the commendable efforts and exemplary work you have put into constructing and preparing the shrine of our dear Imam, the qibla of all our hearts. Of course, words fall short in expressing gratitude for the sincerity and efforts of all those who work as selflessly and compassionately as you do; however, I am obliged to express my heartfelt thanks to you.

You have labored and strived, spending continuous and long hours without rest and without thinking of anything other than work and effort; but the blessed product of these efforts should be a source of joy for you, and it is. The movement and effort made to honor the Imam and to exalt and respect the high status of that great man is the ongoing charity that will never become obsolete as long as the world and Islam exist.

Regarding the personality of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), it is truly impossible to speak. When we want to talk about the dimensions of this dear figure of the era and the legacy of the prophets, we know it will remain incomplete. It takes a long time for eloquent tongues to encompass the greatness of this personality; therefore, I do not wish to speak on that matter because we are too small to be able to examine the dimensions of that great personality.

However, I want to say that if we consider the Islamic Republic system and this great and global revolution, and the great resurrection that has occurred in the world, and the even greater resurrection that has arisen within people, and this transformation that has turned copper into gold, as the pure word and the pure tree—which it is—the root of this pure tree is this great personality from whom everything grew. He was the one who nurtured this blessed tree. He was everything, and if he were not, we would have nothing.

In the past, there was the same Iran, the same nation, the same geographical position, and the same jurisprudence, Quran, and Nahj al-Balagha; but in reality, we had nothing and were falling further behind day by day, and our character was being dissolved. Then he appeared and stepped onto the scene, like an existence that gives being and realization to essences, like a sun that shines and reveals things, and like a spirit that is breathed into a body and revives its parts, he revived and revealed us and set us in motion; then the geographical, historical, and cultural value of our past, the Quran, Nahj al-Balagha, and our nation was revived and became useful to us.

He was the key. He was considered the root of this tree. This root must be preserved. If this system is separated from its root—that is, from the dear Imam (may his soul be sanctified)—it is like a tree that has been cut off from above the ground; that is, it has been sawed off from the ground and a gap has been created between its trunk and root. It may have a form and appearance for a few days, but its fate is clear: there is no longer a vital and nourishing connection between the two.

We must not allow the Islamic system to be separated from its root—that is, Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified). You may say the Imam has separated from us and resides in the celestial realm, and we are not connected to him. But I must say that the personality of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), like the personality of the prophets, was not only in his physical existence. The day when Prophet Moses (peace be upon him) was taken from his people, did the Israelites and the nation of Moses (peace be upon him) become completely separated from their source? No, the connection and attachment in spiritual and moral personalities are not dependent on their physical existence. The day when the Messenger of Islam, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), passed away, did the Islamic nation become without a prophet? We who came in later centuries and generations, did we no longer have a prophet? Yes, we had a prophet; while his body was not with us and resided in the celestial realm and beyond.

The identity of spiritual personalities is not in their body and worldly presence; rather, it is dependent on their thought, path, guidance, and pointing finger—which always remains. The Prophet and the saints and our great Imam pointed with their finger to a direction and showed the way. Of course, they themselves moved ahead of everyone; they did not stand and say you go. At present, this pointing finger still exists. These determine the identity of the Imam and the source and vital root of a society that can always be nourished from it; because it is no longer dependent on his body.

If we want to preserve this thought, but the personality of the Imam and his memory and legacy are not cared for, we will certainly make a mistake. Therefore, you see that we have been told to cry for Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) every year. Crying means that a calamity is alive; as if it happened just yesterday. A person was martyred over a thousand years ago, why should we cry for him today? Our crying is because if his memory with all its dimensions does not remain alive in our minds, lives, and existence, gradually his thought and pointing finger will fade; whether we want it or not.

If the construction of the dome, shrine, and courtyard of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) is of concern to you and you spend energy, money, life, and creativity on it, it does not mean working for a person; rather, it means working for the intellectual identity of the Imam. This work affects the survival of that thought. Your action is ongoing charity and means keeping the memory of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) alive.

The creation of domes, shrines, and mausoleums for great figures has been criticized and opposed by some narrow-minded individuals in the Islamic world for several centuries. Later, the hand of British politics turned them into a form of government and politics, and they also fiercely fought against such commemorations. Narrow-minded theorists and treacherous politicians insisted that no mausoleum should be built! You saw what they did to the mausoleums of the Imams (peace be upon them), the companions of the Prophet (peace be upon him), the friends and relatives of the Messenger of God, and the martyrs of Uhud. If they were not afraid of Muslims, they would have done the same to the Prophet's (peace be upon him) mausoleum and leveled it with the ground!

According to our perspective, Islamic relics are dear. Islam could have told people to stand on a flat ground and pray and worship; whereas it instructed the construction of mosques; "Only those shall maintain the mosques of God." Building a mosque is the criterion, and the external embodiment of this work is considered by Islam because it has a significant impact. The same applies to personalities.

God willing, this blessed shrine and mausoleum will be a center of blessings, enlightenment, the spread of thoughts, divine inspirations, spiritual states, and the attention of loving and insightful people, and everyone will benefit from this place according to their branch. Therefore, the work you have done is valuable.

To the dear veterans present in this gathering, I remind you that whatever we give in the way of God remains for us and is truly spent for our real "self." Whatever we keep for ourselves does not remain for us and, like everything else in the world, will perish. I have firm belief in this matter and there is no point of doubt in my mind.

In the time of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), a goat was brought to him and the Prophet slaughtered it. The poor and needy came to him and asked for meat. The Prophet (peace be upon him) kept cutting from the meat of that goat, which he had slaughtered for himself, and gave it to the poor. Ultimately, only the shoulder of it remained. Since there was no one else, he took it to his house to cook and eat. One of the Prophet's wives said: O Messenger of God! All of our goat is gone and only this shoulder remains for us. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: No, all of it remains and it is this shoulder that will leave us; because we will eat this shoulder and it will be finished, but those we have given away will remain for us.

Therefore, whatever you give from the wealth and riches of the world will remain for you; and whatever you spend or leave for others to consume after you will leave your hands.

The body is in the same state. Whatever you use of your body in the way of God, for example, using your hands, feet, eyes, and other organs in the way of the front, construction, service to God's creation, and efforts for others and other good deeds, know that the more you do these things, the greater the reward.

The peak is when a person gives a limb in the way of God. There is nothing higher than this act. If you had eyes for another hundred years and during this time you used your eyes thousands of times in the way of God, its virtue would not be as much as now that you lost this eye in the battlefield and in the way of God. And if the hand and foot that have been cut from you, you worked and strived with it for another hundred years and ran for God and solved people's problems—which all these actions have virtue—but it is not as much as offering your body parts in the way of God.

Those who were martyred reached the highest and most complete level; but you who were not martyred, in fact, your severed and injured limbs have been martyred. Appreciate this sacrifice because it connects you to the pure chain of martyrs in the way of God.

Once I was thinking about the veterans, and it seemed to me that sometimes their virtue is even greater than that of the martyrs. A veteran is someone who, after giving a part of his body in the way of God and carrying a martyr's limb or limbs with him, and in the rest of his life and age, is pious and grateful and performs righteous deeds, God Almighty says about such wounded in war in the Quran: "Those who responded to God and the Messenger after injury had befallen them, for those who did good among them and feared God is a great reward." The word "great" at the end of this noble verse is worth pondering.

Sometimes you and I use this word and, for example, say it is a great mountain, and sometimes it is God, the Blessed and Exalted, who states it; God, from whom all greatness originates and by whose will all existence and place come into being and perish; God, who is greater than can be described. Such a God, with this unimaginable greatness, says: If you practice piety and goodness, you will have a great reward. This greatness is beyond my and your imagination.

Dear veterans must appreciate this position—even though they face hardship. I know you endure hardship. Deprivation of legs, hands, spinal cord, eyes, and health is difficult for you who are in your youth and could have been healthy. No great and good reward is given to a person without hardship. Do not think that a person can reach great rewards without enduring hardships; no, such a thing is not; "The best deeds are the hardest and most difficult ones." In return for this hardship you endure, that great reward is given to you.

You carry a martyr's limb with you, and you are alive and enjoy the pleasures of life to a great extent. When a person is between death and life, if told to stay alive but without a certain limb or to choose death, he says stay alive, take that limb too. Life is sweet and every person wants it. Therefore, our veterans enjoy the blessing of life, carry a martyr's limb with them, and—if they observe piety and goodness in action—reach that great and unbelievable reward. Appreciate these blessings.

Currently, I am not addressing the practical aspect of the responsibilities of officials and what responsibilities they have; because the limits are clear and I do not want to make recommendations; because recommendations in a speech do not take precedence over private recommendations. Thanks be to God, there is an organization for the work of veterans, which we hope will improve day by day. I want the spiritual aspect of the matter to be clear to you. You dear veterans should be aware that you have a good opportunity and position. God willing, may God grant you patience, reward, and good compensation and return what has been taken from you in multiplied form in meaning.

We wish that God grants you healing, which is something that is completely hopeful. We hope, God willing, that increasing progress and facilities will enable all of you dear ones to compensate for the deficiencies.

Again, I thank all of you dear brothers and congratulate you and the great nation of Iran on the birth of Imam Hadi (peace be upon him).

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings