Statements in Meeting with the Eulogists of the Ahl al-Bayt (Peace Be Upon Them)

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure, chosen, and infallible progeny, especially the Awaited One of God among the inhabitants of the earth. O God, send blessings upon Fatimah and her father, her husband, and her children, in accordance with the extent of Your knowledge.

We have greatly enjoyed, benefited, and derived blessings from this fruitful, meaningful, and profound gathering. The expression of truths intertwined with art, the articulation of virtues that surpass the intellect of a wise and knowledgeable person through the language of allusion, metaphor, and beautiful expressions pointing to that exalted meaning; this is the characteristic of poetry.

This blessed gathering has been held here - in the Hosseiniyah - on this day for many years. The blessings of this gathering, both in terms of spiritual and emotional benefits bestowed upon the hearts of the believers and supplicants, and in terms of significant and noteworthy social and political impacts, are considerable. We recognize the value of this gathering; we express our gratitude to God Almighty for granting us the opportunity to once again participate in this gathering, and we thank you, as well as the brothers who organized the program.

Regarding the Lady of the Women of the Worlds, the women of all realms and all eras, the words of someone like myself are not only inadequate and incomplete, but our language is also incapable of expressing even a part of them. Aside from the spiritual, celestial, and divine ranks - which no one can comprehend except for the infallibles (peace be upon them) - in terms of apparent and rational criteria, the Lady of the Women of the Worlds, Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her), possesses dimensions and aspects beyond our imagination. Well, we say that this great lady defended the Guardianship, sacrificed her life, spoke eloquently and persuasively, and so on; however, these are only expressed in words, and we cannot even begin to imagine that position.

If we can clarify and accurately conceive the situation in Medina after the Prophet's passing and the circumstances that arose, then we will understand what a monumental movement Fatimah al-Zahra undertook. Extremely difficult and incomprehensible conditions arise, even for the thoughts of the elite. Out of all the companions of the Prophet, only ten or twelve stood up in the mosque to defend Amir al-Mu'minin and his right. All these companions, all these great figures, all these reciters of the Quran, all these warriors of Badr and Hunayn, did not all harbor animosity; no, the matter was not clear enough for even the elite to understand correctly. Someone like Ammar wanted it, someone like Abu Dharr wanted it, someone like Zubair wanted it; these were the ones who stood up at the pulpit and defended the right of Amir al-Mu'minin; ten or twelve names recorded in history. Zubair was certainly among them; remember this. The conditions were such; then, in these circumstances, the Prophet's daughter comes to the mosque and delivers that magnificent sermon, that extraordinary expression, and articulates truths. Or that sermon she delivered to the women of Medina while on her deathbed, which has been recorded and is all available. These are not spiritual dimensions; these are the very dimensions we can comprehend. With this ordinary rational perspective, these can be understood, but they are so magnificent that they cannot be measured; that is, they cannot be compared to any other sacrifice. It is like asking how long and wide galaxies are in meters? Yes, they can be measured; their meters and centimeters can be determined; but who can? Who understands? Who is capable? These have a divine, spiritual, celestial, and heavenly aspect; they have a worldly aspect, but they are so magnificent that ordinary humans cannot comprehend; we say it, we recite its elegy, our hearts ache, we cry, but we cannot accurately conceive how magnificent this movement of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) is.

Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) is in the role of a true leader; just as Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) said that if Fatimah al-Zahra were a man, she would have been a Prophet. This is a very strange statement, a very significant statement, and only someone like Imam Khomeini, who was both a scholar, a jurist, and a mystic, could utter such a statement; however, he has said this. Fatimah al-Zahra is this; that is, a leader in every sense, like a Prophet, like a guide for all of humanity; to this extent and in this measure, the pure young Zahra appears; this is the woman of Islam.

Well, we keep praising and defining her, yes, the benefit is that mentioning the virtues of these great figures illuminates the heart, increases human belief, love, and affection; these are good, but there are various other truths beyond these. This is the status of women in Islamic logic. Now, a number of ignorant and uneducated people may arise to challenge Islam's view of women and bring forth the incomplete, flawed, and problematic words of the Westerners; how much deviation and how much error is this?

Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) is an Islamic woman, the woman at the highest level of Islamic womanhood, that is, at the level of a leader, but this woman, who could have been a Prophet in terms of virtues and merits, is also a mother, a wife, and a homemaker; see, these must be understood. Those who are captivated by the ignorant - what can one say? - empty words of the Westerners should not belittle homemaking. The meaning of a woman's homemaking is the upbringing of human beings, it means producing the highest and most valuable product and commodity of existence; that is, humanity. Homemaking means this.

On the day of the birth of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her), it is appropriate for us to correctly identify the status of the Muslim woman. Today has been designated as Women's Day and Mother's Day; this is very good; it could have been called Leader's Day, there would have been no problem; it could have been called the Day of the Greatest Human; however, today our society needs to understand what motherhood means? What does it mean to be a woman of the house? What does it mean to be a housekeeper? Fatimah al-Zahra, with that dignity and rank and greatness, is a homemaker; this does not belittle her; she, with that greatness, cannot be belittled; can this greatness be diminished? This greatness remains intact, but one of the aspects and one of the roles of this greatness is being a wife or a mother and being a homemaker; let us look at these concepts with this perspective.

A number of people, in the name of defending women's rights, say things that not only do not respect women [but] weaken women; I am referring to our own internal ones; otherwise, in the European Western culture, these actions are likely, and almost certainly, a conspiracy of the Zionists who want to disrupt and destroy human society; they want to present women as a commodity for men's pleasure; this is their conspiracy, we do not concern ourselves with them, their issue is another matter, but in our Islamic environment - whether in our country or in some other Islamic environments - to support women, they propose certain things, certain duties, certain expectations for women that belittle women, that diminish women. For example, they say why do you not allow women to work outside the home; firstly, who does not allow? What is wrong with that? Secondly, working outside the home, for instance, typing in a certain office, is a status for women that we should strive for? Is this what justice means? Justice means recognizing, valuing, and nurturing what God Almighty has placed in the essence of every being; this is justice.

God Almighty has created men and women alike in certain respects; in terms of ascending to spiritual ranks, there is no difference between them, an example is Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her); in terms of leadership ability, there is no difference between them, an example is Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her); in terms of the ability to guide humanity, there is no difference between them, an example is Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her); but in terms of the duties of managing life, there are differences, again an example is Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her). Those who want to defend women's rights, as the saying goes, are blowing the trumpet from the wrong end and do not understand what to say and what to defend about women; they say why should women not manage; is management an honor for a human being that one should pursue why management is [specific to men]? They call it gender justice; is this justice? Those who in the world have raised the issue of gender equality and pursued it have today faced so much misery and corruption from this aspect that they themselves regret it; of course, many do not explicitly admit it, many have grown up with this culture, do not understand what is happening; however, their thinkers do understand, their thinkers express concern. God willing, those who mention gender justice inside do not mean what has been proposed as gender equality. We hope that God willing, we all benefit from the blessings of this day, and benefit from the name of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her).

I would like to say a word regarding the issue of eulogizing. The eulogists of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) are, thanks be to God, numerous today - both in Tehran and in cities, you have seen today they came from various cities to perform programs and how beautiful and good they were - this is a phenomenon; a rare phenomenon. Of course, we had it in the past, it was also during my youth; however, firstly, it was very limited, secondly, in terms of the diversity of behaviors, recitations, contents, and forms, it was not comparable to today; today this phenomenon has grown and has spread remarkably throughout the country. Well, this phenomenon is a human phenomenon; in addition to that, it is a faith-based phenomenon; in addition to that, it is an artistic phenomenon; what should be done about this? How should it be utilized for the benefit of Islam and Muslims - which pleases God? I kindly ask you to think about this. The goal of all our movements and actions should be God; we mention the names of those who, in no circumstance, were ever neglectful of God and of feeling duty and movement for God; our work must be for God; that will be beneficial for us. This worldly commodity, this praise and admiration of the world, this benefit that a person derives in this phase of life and from such things, which has no value; we must please God Almighty, it is the pleasure of God that has value for a person.

Now, what should we do to align this with the pleasure of God? We have two things: one is form; one is content. The form is very good, eulogizing is a specific artistic method; try not to mix this method with other artistic reading methods. It should not be that we recite a poem in mourning or in praise, but the form of this poem is, for instance, the form of a song that a certain person, far from religion and spirituality and from these things you speak of, lives and is immersed in materialism and corruption [is recited]; be careful of this, this is important. What God Almighty has given you - that is, a pleasant voice, a warm throat, a suitable mind, motivation - is a blessing; this blessing must be appreciated.

The content section is the same. In the content section, firstly, the issue is the issue of the merits of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) and bringing hearts closer to their love and knowledge. We are honestly very behind in terms of the knowledge of the Ahl al-Bayt; the more we can gain knowledge, the more it is a virtue for every human being; therefore, make this your goal and make people knowledgeable; one of the tasks of the content is this. One of the tasks of the content is to familiarize people with their religious duties. Today, the poems that some of these brothers recited were just that. Looking at the world today, looking at duties, looking at the existing alignments, this [task] is within your capability. You can create discourse. What I expect from the eulogist community - which today, thanks be to God, are numerous, of quality, and valuable - is that you can create discourse in society, generate thought. Discourse means that thought, that practical idea that spreads among the people and becomes the common currency; this is discourse. In every period of time, it is necessary that a common currency be in the hands of all people; you can do this.

One day, it was the day of the Sacred Defense, it was necessary for people to prepare for defense or for support; our poets and eulogists played good roles at that time. Of course, some rolled up their skirts and sat aside; we had some of that too, but a number entered the field and made an impact. The fact that you speak of Fakka and Shalamcheh today, well, Fakka and Shalamcheh are from thirty years ago, but Fakka and Shalamcheh will not be forgotten and will remain in the history of this country; why? Because they played a role, because if today you have independence, if you have freedom, if you have dignity, if you have identity, if the enemy has not dominated you, if your honor is preserved, this is due to that Fakka and Shalamcheh. Poets and eulogists played a role in this regard. The discourse of that day was the discourse of presence in that defense. Every period of time has a cognitive need; this is different from political maneuvering and political games; this is looking at the needs of the country, look and see what your country needs, what your nation needs, what the need of this period of your history is, make that your goal.

Fortunately, today our religious poets who speak in elegy and praise - recently they brought me books; regarding monotheism, regarding Ashura, good works have been done in these areas - are eloquent, talented, and meaningful poets. Thanks be to God, there are also eloquent and warm eulogists; this is a great opportunity for our country and our nation; we must utilize this, do not let it go astray. In past years, I have made references to issues of eulogizing and some of the harms; I do not want to say more than that, but you, the eulogist community of the country, each and every one of you who stands on the pulpit of praising the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) and has this honor, should think; conduct a harm analysis and bring this into a complete commodity, and it will grow and develop day by day, and you will please God and the Ahl al-Bayt.

Serving Imam Hussein and the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) in the true sense of the word means that a person can expand their thoughts, their policies, their orientations in society day by day; and this [work] will dignify our country, our society, our system, and our people and will resolve problems. If we have a stable, dignified, well-managed nation endowed with independence and freedom, Islam will manifest its true self in our nation and the propagation of Islam will occur, which is much better and more than the propagations we do. This is one of the pillars of your work.

We ask God Almighty to grant you success, I thank all of you, I thank the organizers of the gathering, I thank those who played a role - whether those who recited poetry or those who conveyed and executed - and I pray for divine success and mercy and grace for all of you.

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