Statements at the Meeting with the Organizers of the National Congress of 6200 Martyrs of Central Province

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

We are very grateful to the dear brothers and activists from various sectors in Central Province who have thought to carry out this beneficial movement and revive the memory of our dear martyrs in that province. Central Province - as you mentioned, has 6200 martyrs from this period - may have had great martyrs in the past as well; it is highly likely that many of the Imams buried throughout this province have attained martyrdom. I have visited the tomb of the esteemed Sultan Sayyid Ahmad in Hazaveh, who is one of our ancestors; the condition of the tomb indicates that this great Sayyid was not buried there in a normal manner; it shows that an incident occurred there, there was a conflict, there was an issue; the same goes for the others; because in Arak Province, many Imams are also buried; we have visited the Imams of that province several times, including the Imams located in Saruq, which has various sections and multiple Imams buried there; it clearly indicates that it was a center of martyrdom; that is, when the noble Sayyids came towards a safe area - which at that time Iran was a safe region for them - one of the centers close to them and on their way was this area that we now call Central Province. And now they were either pursued and martyred there, or they started a movement here - it is also possible that they initiated a movement - doing something against the oppressive regime of that time and were martyred in the conflicts. God willing, may He grant the people of that region the blessings of the martyrs of that area, just as the Iranian nation, thanks be to God, benefits from the blessings of the martyrs.

Regarding the work of the Martyrs Congress that you mentioned, all the activities that have been mentioned by the gentlemen that have been carried out are good works; some are very good and very necessary works; one feels pleased when seeing that these attentions, thanks be to God, have been directed towards those sensitive points and centers. For instance, consider this plan for a mosque where a memory [is recounted]; this is a very important task; the memories of the fathers and mothers of the martyrs and the spouses of the martyrs of the imposed war, the Sacred Defense, are treasures that, if neglected, will be lost to us, just as many of them have already been lost; many fathers of martyrs, mothers of martyrs have passed away; many of them have become forgotten, while each martyr is a collection of lessons for anyone who reflects on the state of that martyr; each of these martyrs, when one reads their conditions, observes things in their lives and during the Sacred Defense and in the battlefield that are all lessons. We must generally know that those who went to jihad and attained martyrdom were distinguished individuals; age does not matter; if they were not distinguished, the Almighty God would not have granted them the gift of martyrdom; the very fact that the Almighty God has made this young man, this adolescent, this man, this middle-aged person attain martyrdom in the path of jihad for the sake of God, indicates that they have a special merit; when one observes their conditions, reads their biographies, if written with precision, one sees that yes, the signs of this distinction exist in their conditions, in their actions, in their statements, which sometimes astonishes one at the high wisdom of the holders of this noble and distinguished rank; the words they say, the statements they make. Of course, this pertains to the martyrs; the disabled veterans are another chapter, they too are the same; the combatants who have not lost their way and continue this movement, this orientation, they too are a separate chapter; each of these is a chapter. We need to ensure that the memory of these individuals becomes more prominent and radiant day by day in the country; it is truly uplifting, hope-giving, and directional. One of the things that must certainly be considered in these memories of the martyrs and their families and in interviews and the like is that questions should be asked, they should be inquired about, and they should explain what motivated this young man to go, what motivated this young wife to agree to her husband’s departure, what motivated these parents to raise this sapling and now let it go in the way of God, in the battlefield; their motivations were God, their motivations were divine satisfaction, their motivations were the mention and name of Sayyid al-Shuhada; the state of our battlefield shows this; do not let this become old, do not let it be forgotten, do not allow space for others to deny it; they will deny it, just as today many of the evidences of the revolution some dare to open their mouths and explicitly deny; they will deny this too; these must be highlighted, must be shown. In any case, this opportunity for you is a great blessing, meaning you should consider this a blessing for yourselves.

Another point that was mentioned during the statements of the gentlemen is that this gathering and this social event that is created and the activities that are carried out are the beginning of work; yes, this is correct, this is completely true. It is not the case that we say very well, now we have organized a large gathering and printed some books and similar things, and the duty is complete; no, this is the beginning of work, this path must be followed, our youth must become familiar with the teachings of the revolution, with the teachings of the Sacred Defense, our adolescents must become familiar. Well, thanks be to God, in these years this work has been done, many of these works have been carried out. Today one observes youths who, at young ages, have neither seen the war, nor seen the Imam, nor have any memento from that era for themselves or their families, yet they understand and know the divine teachings like those youths of the revolution, and sometimes even deeper; this is a divine blessing; we must not forget this path. God willing, may He assist you and grant you success.

The late Karbalaei Kazem, whom you mentioned, yes, I had visited him; I saw him twice in Mashhad; once he came with the late Nobav, and we saw that he was an old man with a cloak on his shoulder and a hat on his head, and when they came, the late Nobav would throw him forward; among them, they came to the Nobav school where I was a student; when he came to visit the students of that school, everyone was focused on the late Nobav Safavi; he was speaking, always in motion, in stillness, busy talking and encouraging; at that time, he would throw this old man forward and go; we asked who he was, and they said he was, for example, Karbalaei Kazem. Another time - I do not exactly remember if it was the same trip or another trip, it was a long time ago - he was sitting on the ground in the Goharshad Mosque by the foot of that minaret next to the portico, and a group of people had gathered around him; one of our friends who was from Qom knew him and said: "This is Karbalaei Kazem, let’s go see him and talk"; we went closer, and he had a Quran in his hand, and someone was reciting a verse, and he was flipping through the Quran, showing the verse with his finger, while he could not read, meaning he was illiterate, but he knew it, he pointed to the verse with his finger; I saw this myself there; the Quran was in his hand, it was his Quran; he would open it and show the verse whenever they mentioned a verse. That friend of ours said that sometimes in some of our scientific books, for example in jurisprudential or principles books, there is a Quranic verse, and they open it and ask if this [text] is in the Quran? He, who is illiterate, places his hand on the verse that is here and says the rest of this Quran is not, [only] this piece of the Quran is; they ask how do you know? He says it shines, when the verse is on this page, I see it shining, I understand that this is a verse of the Quran. Yes, the late Karbalaei Kazem was among the miracles of the Quran, and we went to visit him in that same courtyard of the great Imamzadeh - where he received this blessing - and saw him. God willing, may you be successful and supported.

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