Message to the Pilgrims of the Sacred House of God

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

And proclaim the pilgrimage among men: they will come to you on foot and on every lean camel, coming from every remote path. That they may witness benefits for themselves and mention the name of God on appointed days over what He has provided for them of the beast of cattle. So eat thereof and feed the distressed, the needy. (Quran 22:27-28)

Thanks be to God, the Wise and Mighty, who bestowed favor upon His servants and called them to gather at His House, and appointed His great Prophet to proclaim the call of Hajj from the minaret of history. He made the precincts of the House safe and secure, purified it from the idols of ignorance, and made it the circumambulation of the believers, the rendezvous of the distant, the manifestation of the congregation, and the assembly of the community. He made the House of God, which the custodians of the Kaaba and the servants of the circumambulation and the Sa'i had turned into a market of trade and a shop of leadership and sovereignty during the first ignorance, belong to the people and a source of benefit and profit for them, and despite the monopolists, He made the newcomers equal in rights with the residents. He made Hajj the symbol of unity and greatness of the Muslims and the harmony and connection among them, and the antidote to many afflictions that individuals and Muslim societies suffer due to separation from their origin and root, such as alienation, self-forgetfulness, susceptibility to deception, neglect of God, enslavement by the worldly, distrust of brothers, listening to the enemy's words about them, insensitivity to the fate of the Islamic community, and even ignorance of an entity called the Islamic community, and unawareness of the events in other Islamic lands, and heedlessness in the face of the plots of the new enemies of Islam and Muslims, and many other deadly diseases that have always threatened Muslims throughout Islamic history due to the dominance of the unworthy and the godless over the political life and destiny of Muslims, and in recent centuries, with the presence of foreign colonial powers in the region or their corrupt and worldly agents, have taken on a crisis and destructive form.

Thanks be to God, who made Hajj an inexhaustible treasure and an ever-flowing spring and a clear and continuous stream for the eternal community, which, in any case, whoever recognizes and appreciates it, will be able to use it and make it a cure for these deadly diseases. And thanks be to God, who showed mercy to the worthy nation of Iran and fulfilled the longing for the Kaaba of the desired after the reproach of the thorns of the desert of pursuit, with a cup of union that had the sweetness of both honor and success. He graciously returned the right that had been unjustly withheld from them for several years and filled the empty place of a nation that had replaced the Abrahamic and Muhammadan Hajj (peace be upon them) with the Hajj of ignorance, in a good manner. He calmed the burning hearts of the eager, estranged, and confined with a sip of union and responded to the souls rejoicing from the lights of knowledge and filled with the longing for visitation. He bestowed special grace upon the sincere servants and fulfilled the promise of victory for the believers and made His House the place of circumambulators and those who stay in devotion.

O Lord! Bestow Your grace and kindness upon these eager pilgrims who have found their way to the solitude of the Friend after a soul-crushing wait, and upon all the brothers and sisters who have hastened from the corners of the world to the general court of mercy and forgiveness. Illuminate their hearts with the lights of knowledge and insight, and include Your guidance and help for them, and arm them with firm resolve to reform the state of the community, and grant them victory over their enemies; Amen, Lord of the worlds.

O Lord! Bestow Your mercy and grace upon the souls of the martyrs who, four years ago, were targeted by hostility and hatred in the sacred sanctuary of God, and men and women, old and young, were unjustly martyred at the threshold of the Friend's House, and brought their loved ones and dear ones waiting with their bloodied bodies out of expectation. Grant them the reward of a complete Hajj, which they longed for and ascended to the heavens.

O Lord! Bestow Your mercy and grace upon our departed Imam and leader, that tested and righteous servant, that truthful successor of the saints, that pious and vigilant human who sought Your pleasure and whose friendship and enmity were for Your sake, and who feared no difficulty in Your path. Bestow abundant reward upon his pure soul from the Hajj of the pilgrims and the worship of the worshippers and the efforts of the strivers who were guided and led by him, and fulfill his great wish, which is the establishment of the Abrahamic Hajj and the utilization of the Islamic community from this great divine ceremony.

O Lord! Bestow Your highest blessings, peace, and greetings upon the savior of humanity in all ages and the greatest Prophet and Your chosen one, Muhammad ibn Abdullah (peace be upon him and his family), who showed the straight path to mankind and recited Your revelation to them and placed the keys to the happiness of this world and the hereafter within their reach, and in his blessed life, he provided a model for the long centuries of humanity. Blessings and peace and greetings be upon him and his pure and infallible family, especially the remaining proof of God on earth, the awaited Mahdi (may God hasten his reappearance and may our souls be sacrificed for him).

Now, you brothers and sisters who have gathered from different parts of the world in the great assembly of Hajj and have joined the Islamic and Quranic 'we' in the migration from the tribal, racial, and sectarian 'I', it is appropriate to keep in mind certain issues, exchange ideas about them with other Muslims, and after the Hajj journey, make them the basis of reflection and action:

1) The first matter is the appreciation of the great and mysterious duty of Hajj to the House of God. Hajj is the manifestation of monotheism, and the Kaaba is the house of monotheism. The fact that in the noble verses related to Hajj, the mention of God is repeatedly emphasized, indicates that in this house and by its blessing, every non-God factor must be removed from the scene of the mind and action of Muslims, and the various forms of polytheism must be eradicated from their lives. In this environment, the axis and center of every movement is God, and the circumambulation, the Sa'i, the stoning, the standing, and other rituals of Hajj, each in its own way, display attraction to 'Allah' and rejection and disavowal of 'the equals of Allah'. This is the 'upright religion' of Abraham (peace be upon him), the great idol-breaker and the herald of monotheism on the peak of history.

Polytheism is not always in one form, and the idol does not always appear in the form of wooden, stone, and metal figures. The House of God and Hajj must, in all times, recognize polytheism in its specific attire of that time and identify and reject the idol that is a partner with God in its particular manifestation. Today, of course, there is no news of 'Lat', 'Manat', and 'Uzza', but instead, and more dangerously, there are the idols of the gold and power of global arrogance and the ignorant and arrogant systems that have filled all the living space of Muslims in Islamic countries.

The idol that many people in the world, including many Muslims, are today forced and imposed to worship and obey is the idol of American power, which has seized all the cultural, political, and economic affairs of Muslims and moves nations, willingly or unwillingly, in the direction of its interests and purposes, which are the opposite of the interests of Muslims. Worship is this unconditional obedience that is imposed on nations today in the face of the will of global arrogance, headed by America, and they are driven towards it by various means.

The culture of corruption and immorality that is promoted among nations by colonial hands, the culture of consumerism that increasingly sinks the lives of our nations into its quagmire so that Western companies - which are the brain and heart of the camp of arrogance - can profit more, the political domination of the arrogant West, whose foundations are laid by puppet and anti-people governments, the military presence that takes on a more apparent form with every excuse, these and the like are all manifestations of the same polytheism and idolatry that are in complete opposition to the monotheistic system and monotheistic life that Islam has prescribed for Muslims. Hajj and the great gathering around the house of monotheism must reject those manifestations of polytheism and warn Muslims against them. Hajj, with this clear and evident concept, is recognized as the highest place of disavowal from the polytheists, and the Almighty God, through His own tongue and that of His noble Prophet (peace be upon him), has postponed the declaration of disavowal from the polytheists to the day of the great Hajj; 'And a proclamation from God and His Messenger to the people on the day of the great Hajj that God is free from obligation to the polytheists and so is His Messenger. So if you repent, it is better for you, but if you turn away, then know that you will not cause failure to God. And give tidings to those who disbelieve of a painful punishment.' (Quran 9:3)

The cry of disavowal that the Muslim raises in Hajj today is a cry of disavowal from global arrogance and its agents, who unfortunately exercise powerful influence in Islamic countries and, by imposing a culture and politics and a life system filled with polytheism on Islamic societies, have destroyed the foundations of practical monotheism in the lives of Muslims, and their monotheism is only a lip service and the name of monotheism, and there is no trace of the meaning of monotheism left in their lives.

Hajj is also the manifestation of the unity and solidarity of Muslims. The fact that the Almighty God calls all Muslims and whoever among them can, to a specific point and at a specific time, and gathers them for days and nights in acts and movements that are manifestations of coexistence and order and harmony, its first apparent effect is the injection of the feeling of unity and congregation into each of them and showing them the grandeur and majesty of the gathering of Muslims and quenching the mind of each of them with the feeling of greatness. With this feeling of greatness, a Muslim, even if living alone in the crevice of a mountain, does not feel alone. With this feeling of truth, Muslims in each of the Islamic countries find the courage to confront the camp of opposition to Islam, which is the same political and economic domination of the capitalist world and its agents and its deceit and intrigue, and the spell of humiliation - which has always been the first weapon of Western colonizers against the nations they attack - does not affect them. With this feeling of greatness, Muslim governments, relying on their own people, feel independent of relying on foreign powers, and this disastrous distance between Muslim nations and the ruling apparatuses over them does not arise. With this feeling of unity and congregation, the colonial trick of yesterday and today - namely, the revival of extreme nationalist sentiments - does not create this vast and deep distance between Muslim nations, and Arab, Persian, Turkish, African, and Asian ethnicity, instead of being a rival and opponent of their single Islamic identity, becomes a part of it and indicative of its existential breadth, and instead of each ethnicity being a means and excuse for denying and belittling other ethnicities, it becomes a means for the transfer and exchange of positive historical, racial, and geographical characteristics of each ethnicity to other Islamic ethnicities.

Hajj, with its scenes and rituals and symbols, must revive this spirit of unity and harmony and congregation and greatness in Muslims from all corners of the world and create a single community from the various peoples and tribes and guide that single community to the safe valley of absolute servitude to God and prepare the grounds for the realization of the great saying of God: 'Indeed this, your community, is one community, and I am your Lord, so worship Me.' (Quran 21:92)

The formation of a single community that bows its head in servitude at the threshold of Lordship and Oneness is the great aspiration of Islam, and it is in the shadow of this that the attainment of all individual and collective perfections of Muslims becomes possible, and it is the goal for which Islamic jihad has been legislated, and each of the Islamic acts of worship and obligations prepares and secures a part of it.

The Abrahamic and Muhammadan Hajj (peace be upon them) is undoubtedly one of the greatest preliminaries and pillars of these two great goals. Therefore, in this great arena, while the remembrance of God: 'Then remember God as you remember your forefathers or with greater remembrance.' (Quran 2:200) and the declaration of disavowal from the polytheists: 'And a proclamation from God and His Messenger to the people on the day of the great Hajj that God is free from obligation to the polytheists and so is His Messenger.' (Quran 9:3) is considered a pillar of Hajj, sensitivity to any movement that creates separation and enmity among brothers - that is, the components of this single community - is also at its highest; to the extent that even the argument between two Muslim brothers, which in ordinary life does not seem so important, is forbidden and prohibited in Hajj; 'There is to be no sexual relations and no disobedience and no disputing during Hajj.' (Quran 2:197). Yes, the same scene in which disavowal from the polytheists - that is, the fundamental enemies of the single monotheistic community - becomes necessary, disputing with Muslim brothers - that is, the fundamental components of the single monotheistic community - becomes forbidden and prohibited, and thus the message of unity and congregation in Hajj becomes more explicit.

The secrets and mysteries of Hajj are far more than what has been mentioned here, and reflection on these secrets - all of which are aimed at reviving the personality of the individual and the Muslim community and combating the factors of its destruction - opens a new horizon before the pilgrim and draws him into a world full of effort and movement and never-ending. The first duty of each of the pilgrims is to reflect on these secrets and mysteries and to exchange views and seek the thread of action from all this, and also to reflect on why certain hands and apparatuses try to present Hajj devoid of all its political and collective concepts and only as a one-dimensional act of worship that only has individual properties, and why the pseudo-religious figures who sell religion for the world, whose name and religious status dictate that they acquaint people with these secrets and move their bodies and souls towards its goals, on the contrary, oppose and antagonize any enlightenment in this regard and insist on concealing the truths? And why is it repeatedly announced in loudspeakers that politics should not interfere in Hajj? Is Islam and its luminous laws not for the administration and guidance of the material and spiritual life of humans? And is religion in Islam not intertwined with politics? This is among the great pains of the Islamic world that stagnation and short-sightedness and worldliness of a group always serve the malice and calculations of another group, and the pens and tongues that should have been used in the service of Islam and in the direction of explaining its truths become tools in the hands of the vigilant and conspiratorial enemies of Islam. This is the same calamity that the departed Imam (may God sanctify his soul) has bitterly spoken of and lamented many times, and it is time for the wise of the community to acquaint the general public with it and to distinguish the boundary between the sincere scholars and the mercenary world-sellers of religion for them.

2) The second issue that is worthy of consideration, especially in this time and place, is the issue of the connection of the Islamic community with its history and also with the destiny it must determine for itself. The past of the Islamic community is something that colonialism, since its entry into Asia and Africa, has endeavored to obscure and consign to oblivion. The domination over the material and human resources in Islamic countries and the control of the destiny of Muslim nations - which has been the goal of colonialists, directly and indirectly, from the late eighteenth century onwards - naturally required that the pride and personality of Muslim nations be broken and they be completely cut off from their glorious past, and thus abandon their culture and ethics and be ready to accept Western culture and colonial teachings. And this trick, in the completely favorable ground provided by the dominance of corrupt and despotic governments in Islamic countries, took effect, and the flood of Western invading culture and all the concepts that colonialism deemed necessary to spread among Muslim nations to secure its political and economic domination over those nations was set in motion, and the result was that over two hundred years, Islamic countries became entirely a wide and unimpeded table for Western plunderers, and they advanced from direct rule to ownership of underground wealth and changing script or language and even complete occupation of an Islamic country like Palestine and the humiliation of Islamic sanctities and so on, and deprived Muslims of all the blessings of political, economic, and cultural independence - among which is scientific and cultural growth.

A look at the cultural, social, economic, and military situation of Muslim countries today and observing its spiritual and material weakness and scrutinizing the political systems and the state of the governments of most of these countries, in which everything indicates a sense of inferiority and incapacity, makes it clear that one of the most important causes of this situation is the alienation and severance of these countries and nations from their historical past and the glory and greatness that can, from beyond the centuries, drive every weak and hopeless human to hopeful movement and effort. That historical glory was initially established by rising for God and sincere jihad for God and acting upon the liberating and life-giving laws of Islam and by the blessing of the movement of Muslims in the early days of Islam and in the solitude of the days of Mecca and the jihad of the era of Medina. The blessed offspring called the 'Islamic community' was able, by the blessing of the jihad and struggle of the Hejaz, to become a powerful and intelligent youth and then, over the centuries, was able to spread the torch of knowledge and understanding and the banner of power and politics over the heads of the world. That greatness originated from the greatness of the struggle of Mecca and Medina.

Now here - Mecca and Medina - is the base of revelation and the place of the descent of divine blessings upon a believing and resistant community, which, by the blessing of faith and acting upon the divine verses, was able to rise from the dust of humiliation they were resting on, stand tall, and prepare the worthy freedom of man for themselves and raise the flag of human freedom and salvation from the domination of the empires of gold and power of that era and, with the light of knowledge that emanated from the Quran, create a great base of human knowledge and themselves, for centuries, stand on the high pulpit of human knowledge and understanding and generously teach all humanity and produce the most valuable scientific works over the centuries and determine the fate of the world of humanity with their knowledge and politics and culture. All these are from the blessings of the pure teachings of Islam and the divine government in the era of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and a period of the early Islam that, despite the dominance and growth of the evil tree of monarchical governments and the regression from the monotheistic era, still bore its fruits for centuries to Muslims and made them and all humanity successful. Every inch of this land and this territory is reminiscent of a memory from the era of the Prophet of God (peace be upon him and his family) and his devoted and luminous companions. It was in this land that Islam rose, the flag of jihad was raised, and the freedom of humanity from all the chains of ignorance was determined.

Today, as Muslim nations, after several centuries of decline and stagnation and humiliation, have turned to awakening and rising for God in the four corners of the Islamic world, and the fragrance of freedom and independence and return to Islam and the Quran has spread in the atmosphere of many Islamic countries, Muslims need more than ever to strengthen their connection with that luminous and miraculous past, with the era of rising for God and the Islamic struggle of the early days of Islam. Islamic memories in this land, for every thoughtful Muslim, serve as a healing medicine that saves him from weakness and humiliation and despair and pessimism and shows him the way to achieve the goals of Islam - which has always been the goal of life and effort for every person endowed with depth and wisdom.

It was here that the great Prophet, with his sincere companions, endured all hardships for thirteen years and bore the bitterness so that the sapling of Islam could take root. And it was here that after the years of the calamitous life in the valley of Abu Talib, after the torture of companions like Bilal and Ammar and Yasir and Sumayyah and Abdullah ibn Mas'ud and others, after the long and arduous and fruitless march of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) among the tribes of Mecca and Taif, the pledge of Aqabah with the people of Yathrib took place, and the blessed migration to Medina of the Messenger (peace be upon him and his family) occurred, and the Islamic state was established. It was here that the victory of Badr and the defeat of Uhud and the ordeal of the trench and the test of Hudaybiyyah took place. Here, sincerity and jihad brought victory, and love of wealth and seeking spoils brought failure. Here, verse by verse, the Quran was revealed, and brick by brick, the building of Islamic culture and civilization and the good life was laid. The Muslim, by reflecting on this past and living in every moment of it, finds a constructive connection with the future, recognizes the path of life and its goal, becomes aware of the dangers of the path, sees the tomorrow of this movement with his own eyes, prepares himself to traverse it, and overcomes the doubt arising from the feeling of weakness and inferiority and fear of the enemy; and all this is from the blessings of Hajj.

From what we have said, it can be understood why the colonialists of yesterday and the leaders of global arrogance today are so fearful and at odds with the intellectual and emotional connection of Muslims with their past. Yes, it is this connection with the past that determines the present and the future.

After the victory of the Islamic Revolution and the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran and the announcement that the Iranian nation intends to build a society based on Islamic values and implement Islamic regulations, the wave of propaganda from the propaganda horns of the East and West and their affiliates fiercely attacked the Islamic Republic by calling it fundamentalist and backward-looking and past-oriented and titles like these, and criticized the Islamic Iran for wanting to adhere to past traditions in the name of modernity; and this was and is while the reactionary and despotic systems and those adhering to rotten traditions that have never smelled the concepts of modernity like freedom and democracy and human rights and are not few in the East and West of the world, have never been subjected to those names in propaganda attacks! And it is instructive that the radios of regimes where there is no news of the most basic political modernity customs and something called a national assembly and free elections and non-governmental publications is considered a legend, also called a country where a people's government is in power by the rule of Islam and Islamic law is enacted in a parliament composed of people's representatives and implemented by a government elected by the people and people are actively present in its most sensitive matters, reactionary and made the wise of the world laugh at their ridiculous imitation!

Yes, global arrogance and its news and propaganda gang and its mercenary pens and horns are not worried at all if a country sinks into the depths of backwardness and a nation remains in the atmosphere of its ignorant traditions, but opens the doors of its material treasures to them and submits to their greed and domination and accepts the culture of corruption and immorality and consumerism and drunkenness and debauchery from them, but they are very pleased! They are displeased and alarmed and fearful of the return of nations to a past that reminds them of honor and greatness, opens the way of jihad and martyrdom to them, returns human dignity to them, cuts off the hands of the arrogant from plundering and looting their wealth and honor, teaches them the verse 'And never will God give the disbelievers over the believers a way [to overcome them].' (Quran 4:141), recites to them the verse 'And to God belongs [all] honor, and to His Messenger, and to the believers.' (Quran 63:8), brings to their ears and hearts the address 'And what is [the matter] with you that you fight not in the cause of God and [for] the oppressed among men, women, and children.' (Quran 4:75), implements the command 'Legislation is not but for God.' (Quran 12:40) in their lives, and in short, makes God and religion and the Quran the axis of their lives and cuts off the hands of the arrogant and despotic and domineering powers from their lives, they are displeased and alarmed and fearful of a return to such a past and a connection with such a history and therefore want to prevent it at any cost.

Muslims, especially the societies where the breeze of freedom and rising for God has blown, and especially their scholars and intellectuals and pioneers, must be careful not to fall into this trap; not to fear the title of fundamentalism; not to be disturbed by the accusation of reaction and traditionalism; not to disavow their Islamic principles, the luminous laws of Islam, the explicit declaration of the goals of the religious society and the monotheistic system to please the malicious and calculating enemies, and to listen to the word of God: 'And never will the Jews or the Christians approve of you until you follow their religion.' (Quran 2:120) and 'Say, O People of the Scripture, do you resent us except [for the fact] that we have believed in God and what was revealed to us and what was revealed before, and because most of you are defiantly disobedient?' (Quran 5:59) and 'Then would you possibly leave [out] some of what is revealed to you, or is your breast constrained by it because they say, Why has there not been sent down to him a treasure or come with him an angel?' (Quran 11:12) and 'And they resented them not except because they believed in God, the Exalted in Might, the Praiseworthy.' (Quran 85:8).

In Hajj, in Medina and Mecca, in Uhud and Mina and Hira, in this land where the blessed feet of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him and his family) and his noble companions have trodden and witnessed those hardships and wanderings and struggles and heartaches, and in every step of the land of revelation and jihad and the Quran and tradition, reflect on those pasts; connect yourself with them; in their light, find the path and direction; with their experience, see the result and outcome of the path; and with the help and power of God and by relying on Him and hoping for His victory and trusting in your own ability, step on that path and towards that goal; 'And God is with you and will never deprive you of [the reward of] your deeds.' (Quran 47:35).

3) Another important issue that the pilgrims of the House of God should address as part of the goal of Hajj is the important and current issues of the Islamic world. If Hajj is the great annual congress of Muslims from all over the world, then undoubtedly the most immediate order of this congress is the current issues of Muslims in every part of the world. These issues are presented in the propaganda of global arrogance in such a way that no lesson or experience or hope is transferred to Muslims all over the world, and if in that incident the ill-intent and ill-action of global arrogance has been effective, no criminal is exposed and no truth is revealed, or it is not presented at all. Hajj is the place where this propaganda betrayal should be exposed, and the truth should be revealed, and the grounds for general awareness of Muslims should be provided.

Now I present a list of important events in the Islamic world to my Muslim brothers and sisters:

A: The most important issue today is the issue of Palestine, which has always been the most important issue of the Islamic world and perhaps the most important issue of humanity in the last half-century. Here, the talk is about the suffering and displacement and oppression of a nation; the talk is about the usurpation of a country; the talk is about the creation of a cancerous tumor in the heart of Islamic countries and at the point of convergence of the East and West of the Islamic world with each other; here, the talk is about a continuous oppression that has now engulfed two successive generations of the Muslim nation of Palestine. Today, when the bloody Islamic uprising relying on the masses of people in the land of Palestine warns the conscienceless and inhuman occupiers and those unrestrained by crime of a real and serious danger, the methods of the enemy are more complex and alarming than ever, and Muslims all over the world must take the issue more seriously than ever and think and act for it. ... and this is the fresh news of today.

Now the chaotic situation of the Islamic world and the increasing dependence of the countries of the region on the unbridled power of America has provided a favorable ground for the hostile aggression of the usurping state, which, with the backing of the support of the great Satan - which is truly the most dangerous enemy of Islam and Muslims - openly pursues goals that it has never even tried much to hide: the transfer of Soviet Jews, which is part of the price of Western aid to that former superpower; the transfer of Ethiopian Falashas, who are supposed to serve the usurping American and European Zionists of Palestine, and recently Indian Jews; settlement construction in the recently usurped parts of Palestine and possibly even in the occupied part of Lebanon; increasing military equipment and weapons of mass destruction while America raises the clamor of banning the export of such weapons to the Middle East; daily and intermittent air raids on southern Lebanon and the bombing of Palestinian and Lebanese civilians; increasing pressure on Arab Palestinian citizens - that is, the rightful owners of that land - and committing the most criminal and brutal police actions against the people, and at the same time, in the political arena, taking an aggressive stance in the face of the daily retreat of Arab governments and the PLO and the cowardly weakness shown by some Arab politicians, and even rejecting the idea of forming an international or regional conference in any way, and finally, explicitly and decisively rejecting the proposal to form a Palestinian state in a corner of the land of Palestine, which was the product of the retreat and humiliation of the Palestinian parties. These are a collection of the policies and actions of the Zionist anti-humanists, and certainly alongside these, there are many times more hidden activities in the direction of conspiracy and terror and kidnapping and psychological warfare and poisonous propaganda and recognized and unrecognized crimes that are only conceivable and possible from the Zionists and their collaborators.

Global arrogance and colonial governments, from the beginning until today, have created and stored the usurping regime of Israel as a lever of pressure on the Arab governments and then the Islamic governments of the region, and they intend to always keep this poisoned dagger in the side of the Islamic world; and today the great Satan holds the reins of this trained dog. Therefore, it is no wonder that repeated violations of international laws, continuous violations of human rights - and that too in the most atrocious form - repeated aggression against neighboring countries, terrorist operations and kidnapping in an open manner, the increasing preparation of nuclear weapons and the like - each of which in any of the countries of the world that does not have a master-servant relationship with America and other great powers would be considered a great incident - are acceptable from the Zionists and do not provoke any serious objection from the global arrogance network, especially the great Satan.

Thus, today the usurping Zionist state is the greatest danger to the present and future of the Islamic world, and it is incumbent upon Muslims to seek a remedy and solution for this danger and to remove such a great oppression. Unfortunately, the behavior and words of most of the leaders of Islamic countries do not indicate any determination to remedy this great danger - which is nothing but the elimination of the racist Zionist regime - but on the contrary, signs of the expansion of Camp David and the completion of the betrayal of 'Sadat' are also seen in some Arab governments; and I do not know what answer these governments have prepared for their nations and also in the presence of God with this disgraceful behavior and shameful submission in the face of the stubborn enemy of Muslims and Arabs?

The real remedy for this danger is in the hands of Muslims. They can strengthen and intensify the uprising within the country of Palestine with genuine support for the Muslim fighters, and they can also, in various ways, prevent the governments of the region from following the will and imposition of America and compromising with Israel. The self-sacrificing and chivalrous actions of the proud Muslims of Lebanon, which have repeatedly placed the arrogant Zionists and their supporters in a position of weakness and passivity, are a true testament to the fact that nations and faithful youth are capable of doing many great things.

B: Another issue is the Islamic movements in some Arab and African countries. This is one of the most promising events in the Islamic world that a nation, with its youth, with its intellectuals, with its people of the street and market, has the claim of implementing Islamic laws and establishing an Islamic government and moves in that direction. Since the rise of the great Islamic Revolution in Iran and the establishment of the Islamic Republic, this expectation and hope for friends, and this intense fear and anxiety for the camp of global arrogance and at its head America, existed that the Islamic Revolution of Iran would be the harbinger of the victories of Muslims in other parts of the Islamic world.

Our Muslim brothers and sisters everywhere in the world should know that a significant part of the joint pressure of the East and West on Islamic Iran, both during the imposed war and before and after it, was with the vain thought that by defeating the Islamic Republic in Iran, the experience of the Islamic movement would appear unsuccessful in the eyes of Muslims in other countries, and the spark of hope that the victory of the revolution in Iran had lit in their hearts would not employ their energy in this blessed path. Today, too, the extensive propaganda of the horns of global arrogance, which wants to portray the Islamic Revolution in Iran as stagnant and stopped and at a dead end, and the Islamic Republic system as turning away from the line of the revolution and its great Imam (may God sanctify his soul) and seeking reconciliation with the treacherous America, has no other goal. These are the same horns that during the life of the departed Imam (may God sanctify his soul) repeatedly and shamelessly accused Islamic Iran - which is the most serious enemy of the Zionist regime - of having relations with Israel and buying weapons from it and selling oil to it.

Thanks be to God that none of the arrogant efforts - whether practical or propaganda - worked, and the flame of hope that with the victory of the Islamic Revolution and its determined and unyielding face, had shone on the Islamic world and the souls of Muslims, did its work, and the result is that today in a number of Islamic countries, it is observed in the form of great popular movements in demand of an Islamic government. However, I, as a caring and experienced brother, feel it my duty to remind these nations and especially their leaders and intellectuals and religious scholars:

Firstly, in this path, which is threatened by many dangers from impatience or lack of insight, emphasize more than anything else on the two elements of patience and insight.

Secondly, the Islamic movement and the Islamic revolution are a rebellion against the ignorant values and tyrannical systems that have enslaved humanity and caused oppression and corruption and class and racial discrimination and public immorality and the acceptance of oppression by the masses and other miseries of nations and have sacrificed everything for more profit and more oppressive rule of the owners of gold and power. Therefore, the correct Islamic movement is a lineup between two value systems and a struggle between two cultures: the culture of enslaving humanity and the culture of saving humanity. Therefore, every Islamic movement must prepare itself for resistance against all the powerful of the world and not be caught off guard.

Thirdly, the enemy tries to warn you against the name of the Islamic government and the Islamic system with propaganda and deceitful tricks, and perhaps some simple-minded people may think that to avoid making America and Western governments sensitive, it is better to avoid the name of the Islamic government in public statements. My recommendation is to seriously avoid this expediency against expediency. State the goal of establishing an Islamic system and the rule of the Quran and Islam explicitly and repeatedly and in all conditions and do not let the enemy be tempted by abandoning the sacred name of Islam and do not make the goal ambiguous and obscure.

Fourthly, Islam and Islamic movements have always suffered more from hypocrisy than from explicit disbelief. Today, the danger of American Islam - that is, where the name and title of Islam are in the service of tyrants and in the direction of the goals of America and other arrogant powers - is no less and more than the danger of America's military and political tools. Beware of the standard-bearers of American Islam, whether in the guise of a religious scholar or in the position of a politician, and accuse them in their words and hints and orientations and never seek their help.

Fifthly, do not remain unaware of the experiences of other Islamic movements in other countries and their current situation and establish contact with them despite the will of global arrogance.

And finally, sixthly, always remember the noble verse 'And hold firmly to the rope of God all together and do not become divided.' (Quran 3:103), which recommends adherence to religion and maintaining unity, and keep both of its recommendations in mind and beware of the enemy's plot in this regard.

C: Another current issue in the Islamic world is the issue of Iraq and the tragic and tearful situation of a nation that, due to the ill-intent and mismanagement of its rulers, in addition to severe oppression and a police state, and after being forced into an unjust war with its neighbors for the past ten years and due to the foolish and ambitious policies of its leaders, thousands of men and women and children and old and young have been killed in bombings and destructions, or have been bereaved or injured and disabled and homeless, and a large part of its national and historical wealth has been destroyed, is now directly threatened by the same rulers who have been the cause of all these calamities and is being massacred and displaced and hopeless of life with bombings and collective and chemical weapons.

When the Iraqi army, to satisfy the ambition and greed of the leaders of that country's regime, attacked and occupied Kuwait and gave America a ready excuse for an unprecedented military presence and consequently a sinister political and economic influence in the Persian Gulf region, and the Persian Gulf region was set on fire from both sides - the Iraqi regime and the Western allies - some Muslims, mostly out of naive goodwill, and perhaps a few out of malice and calculation, persistently suggested to the Islamic Republic to rush to the aid of the Baathist regime of Iraq and, to its share, expand the dimensions of the war. This view, of course, was contrary to the established principles of Islam, which considers jihad obligatory only in the way of spreading the religion of God, or defending oppressed nations, or defending the Islamic state; and not in defense of an aggressive and occupying and power-seeking regime, especially with the ideology of the Baath Party, which openly and explicitly denies and opposes religion and spirituality, especially a regime with a record of oppression and corruption and oppression and genocide in which the Iraqi regime has an exceptional position, and especially a regime whose record of submission and obedience to the domineering powers has been well understood by Iranians during the eight-year war imposed on the Islamic system at the behest of global arrogance and with all-round weapons and support.

Yes, Islam does not consider defense of such a regime as jihad and does not permit it; but these proposers, some under the influence of the hypocritical and opportunistic statements of the officials of the destruction of Iraq, who for a short period, to attract the attention of the simple-minded, falsely spoke of Islam and religious sanctities, and some, while acknowledging the malice and corruption and oppression of the leaders of that regime, considered the defense of the oppressed people of Iraq as their motivation for this proposal, we reminded them that helping the oppressed people of Iraq is obligatory, but entering the war in favor of the Iraqi regime and strengthening its rule is not helping the people of Iraq; rather, it is helping the anti-people regime of Iraq and oppressing the people of Iraq, who have been subjected to an unwanted war by that cursed regime for ten years.

Now, with the disgraceful surrender and flight of the regime and the Iraqi army in the face of America and the Western allies and the acceptance of all the conditions of the arrogant, that regime has managed to secure itself for an indefinite period on the throne of a dishonorable government and a humiliating power; and in this situation, again the people of Iraq - this oppressed nation that has been hostage to a brutal and oppressive and corrupt and torturous regime for years - must, in addition to the cost of a war that was imposed on them solely for the ambition of the regime's leaders, also pay the price of the defeat and humiliation and the complexes of inferiority of that regime.

The same regime and army that could not fight and fear death for more than a hundred hours against external enemies who had come into their home, have now, for more than a hundred days, attacked the people of Iraq, destroying homes, bombing cities, desecrating holy shrines, displacing people from their homeland, arresting scholars and elders, torturing many, and massacring the people. In the north, they killed and beat and displaced and mourned the Kurds and in the south, the Arabs in such a way that we have not heard or imagined such behavior from any of the known criminals in recent times. They treated the people of Iraq in a way that conscientious humans do not treat animals.

The Kurds of northern Iraq, due to the frown and threat of America and Western governments, currently have a better situation, until what happens later; but the Shiites of the south, who for various reasons, are the object of America's hatred and resentment - and the main reason is that they have the claim of Islam and the establishment of an Islamic government - are still in constant threat and are constantly afflicted by the anti-religious and rebellious and genocidal regime of Iraq. This is a simple picture of the situation in Iraq that was said; a nation oppressed and helpless and empty-handed in the face of a very brutal government indifferent to all Islamic and human and international standards and fearless in shedding the blood of people and oppressing people. ... and the cry of 'O Muslims' of those people is loud. And in these few days, clear signs of a siege and a bloody attack on hundreds of thousands of refugees who have taken refuge in the marshes between Basra and Amarah and Nasiriyah out of fear of the army, and women and men and sick children and - according to the news - some with cholera and suffering from contagious diseases, have been observed. The West and especially America, apart from reporting some news, and that too briefly and without attraction, have not provided any help, and their only hope is in God and the Muslim masses, who can at least help them in the form of protest against these actions.

D: The next issue is the situation of Muslims in Kashmir. The Indian government, taking advantage of the Islamic world's preoccupation with the acute issues of recent months, which has led to general neglect of the situation of those separated and oppressed brothers, has exerted the maximum pressure it could on those people and has attacked their lives and property and even - according to reports - their honor. I am not currently in a position to judge the nature of the Kashmir issue - and those informed know that this is one of the old wounds that the colonial British inflicted on the subcontinent when they were forced to leave India and took revenge on the Muslims of Greater India through it - our point is that the Indian government, in dealing with this issue, has used harsh and inappropriate tools and, confident that the great powers and organizations claiming human rights will not provide any real defense of Muslims, has resorted to inhumane methods.

Muslim nations should know that the Kashmiri Muslim expects them to defend him, and this is the Islamic and brotherly duty of Muslims, and if the Indian government thinks that it can keep that large number of Muslims under pressure forever without any reaction from the Muslims of the world, it is undoubtedly mistaken.

Here it is necessary to mention the Muslim minorities in some countries, including European countries, where the pressure on Muslims who wish to maintain their Islamic identity reveals the nature of the democracy and freedom that the West constantly talks about! The sensitivities that some European governments show or incite in people against building mosques, or forming Islamic gatherings, or observing Islamic dress and the like, should acquaint Muslims with the real positions of those governments towards Islam. These are among the important issues that Muslims of the world should think about and use to understand their duty in this era.

E: One of the important issues of this era is the sectarian differences among Muslims. This is, of course, not a new issue, and differences and disputes and sometimes clashes over theological and jurisprudential and sectarian issues have always existed since the first century of Islam; but the new point in this regard is that after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the spread of its thought throughout the Islamic horizons, one of the tricks of global arrogance in confronting this all-encompassing Islamic wave has been to introduce the Islamic Revolution of Iran as a Shiite movement in its sectarian sense - and not Islamic in its general sense - and on the other hand, to make a great effort to create discord and division between Shia and Sunni. From the beginning, with attention to this satanic plot, we have always insisted on the unity of the Muslim sects and have tried to neutralize this sedition, and thanks be to God, with divine grace, we have had many successes, one of the latest of which is the formation of the World Assembly for the Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought, and now throughout the Islamic world, scholars and intellectuals and poets and writers and the general public from all Islamic sects, side by side and with one voice and one breath, defend the Islamic Revolution and the Islamic Republic of Iran; but the enemy is equipped with a lot of money and plans and propaganda and malice, and unfortunately, in some parts of the world, it finds people who can be bribed and deceived and gain control over their minds and tongues. Therefore, from time to time in one country, a politician, and in another country, a pseudo-scholar or pseudo-revolutionary is heard to speak and write against the Shia or the Iranian nation - which has created the greatest contemporary revolution and defended it in an astonishing manner - and to attack the sanctities.

We attribute all these to America and its assistants and mercenaries and consider the skirts of nations and true Islamic scholars clean from it; but this is among the issues that must be solved with the vigilance of Muslims and not allow the enemies of Islam to have a field day.

F: The last point is the very important issue of the increasing domination of the great Satan over the resources of Islamic countries and its increasing political and economic and even military presence in these countries. This oppressive and domineering superpower, after the recent global developments that led to the collapse of the atheistic communist systems and the Soviet Union fell from its position of competition with America, is trying to turn the entire world and especially the resource-rich Islamic regions into its unchallenged sphere of influence and, after being freed from the so-called cold war, has girded itself for an all-out war with the Islamic awakening - which is a strong obstacle in the way of this domination.

This satanic government, according to its anti-natural and anti-human nature, is plagued with insoluble problems from within; but according to the same domineering and world-devouring nature, it tries to transfer its problems to the whole world and, by dominating all the sensitive and wealth-rich centers of the world, including the Middle East and especially the Persian Gulf, continue its life more powerfully than before. If this ominous dream comes true, a dark day will pass over the nations of this region that has not been seen in the past.

The American regime now uses every means to achieve that satanic goal, and unfortunately, the ignorance and arrogance and power-seeking of the rulers of Iraq - which was also facilitated by previous American and Western aid to Iraq - have created a situation in this region whose bitter and painful consequences are known to all to some extent; and among its consequences is that America has become the main decision-maker in an important part of this region and has intimidated the governments of the region; and this is a great threat to the Islamic existence, rather the human existence in this region and in any region of the world where such an event occurs.

Today, apart from Islam and determined and faithful humans, there is no other point of hope to confront this great threat. And thanks be to God that today the life-giving sun of Islam has once again shone on the hearts and souls of humans, and many Muslim nations have begun the struggle to realize Islam in their lives and have started to fight against the factors that distance people from the religion of God. This is a blessed and hopeful movement, and with divine success, it is this that will break the chain of satanic domination of America and any other tyrannical power and will save everyone; 'God has decreed, I will surely overcome, I and My messengers.' (Quran 58:21).

Nations and governments are equally responsible for the spirit of inclination towards the pure Muhammadan Islam (peace be upon him and his family) - Islam whose headline is the cutting off of the influence of the great Satan and the rest of the devils from the lives of nations. If Islamic governments are interested in their country and nation, they should know that this is what ensures the life and honor and independence of nations and countries and the power of governments.

I ask the Almighty God for the awakening of all the Muslims of the world and their honor and dignity and liberation from the clutches of global arrogance and their victory in the confrontation with the enemies of God.

O Lord! Keep the light of the Quran and Islam shining on the hearts of Muslims and bestow Your mercy and grace upon them; support them and strengthen their hearts with hope and faith; make the heart of the guardian of God, the greatest, the awaited Mahdi (may our souls be sacrificed for him and may God hasten his reappearance) happy with us and accept his prayer in our favor; accept the Hajj of the pilgrims and the efforts of the strivers in Your path with goodness; bring the hearts of Muslims closer to each other day by day and destroy the factors of division; bestow Your mercy upon the pure souls of the martyrs of the path of truth and the body and soul of those harmed in this path. O Lord! Reward the great Imam Khomeini - that chosen and righteous servant of Yours - for every movement that is made throughout the world for the sovereignty of Your religion; Amen, Lord of the worlds.

Peace be upon all our Muslim brothers and God's mercy

Ali al-Husseini al-Khamenei

The third of Dhu al-Hijjah 1411 AH

Corresponding to the twenty-sixth of Khordad 1370 AH