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

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 and prophet, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and his pure and chosen progeny, the infallible guides. O God, send blessings upon Fatimah and her father, her husband, and her children, and upon her and your angels and your saints.

I congratulate you on this blessed holiday and thank the dear brothers who performed the program; we truly benefited and enjoyed it. This song at the end of the session is an annual conclusion for this gathering, which Mr. Sazgar composes every year; this year it was performed very well, with good themes, concepts, lessons, teachings, and reminders.

In this session where you dear brothers are present - of course, esteemed sisters are also here - my address is mainly to you brothers who are honored to be eulogists and reciters of the Master of Martyrs (peace be upon him) and the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). Thanks be to God, the quantity of eulogists - especially the youth - in this field is very desirable and abundant, and the quality in some places is truly good. The phenomenon of eulogy in our country is unique; we do not have anything like it elsewhere. Of course, the specific characteristics of the Shia community and the unique aspects that do not exist in other Islamic and non-Islamic societies are numerous; the very essence of mourning, for instance, or the essence of lamentation for the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), which is usually accompanied by preaching, advice, and the expression of knowledge and contemporary issues, is among the specific characteristics of Shia Islam and has continued from the time of the Imams (peace be upon them) until today; it is not found elsewhere, and its absence is felt in other places. They feel the void in other places and try to fill it in some way, but it cannot be done. However, this phenomenon of eulogy and singing in praise and lamentation and remembrance is also one of the unique aspects; it does not exist in this form elsewhere, neither in this generality nor in this vastness - whether in terms of quantity or in terms of meanings and concepts. This phenomenon deserves scholarly work; it is truly worth it for our students, professors, and researchers to sit down and think about this phenomenon, to work on it; to interpret and analyze it, and to show us and teach us ways to scientifically expand it. We have, in fact, underestimated this phenomenon; it is a very important phenomenon. Well, thanks be to God, we have had the opportunity, this opportunity over the past thirty-some years, to hold this session with the eulogists every year like today. Perhaps among you, there are many whose lifespan is less than the lifespan of this session. This session has been ongoing for over thirty years. So, it is a good opportunity to talk a little about this phenomenon.

Regarding Lady Fatimah (peace be upon her) - I do not say this as a mere conventional statement - we are truly inadequate, we are too humble to speak of that magnificent status; our language, our expression, our understanding is too limited to discuss these matters. "God created you as lights and placed you around His Throne"; this is the matter of the lights of the infallible Imams (peace be upon them); what more can we say? However, in terms of the conduct of these great figures and their behaviors and their being role models as human beings, yes, there is much to say. Many things have been said; some of the brothers also referred to it in your poems today. There is plenty of room for discussion. In this regard, I will say a few sentences.

We must look at Lady Fatimah (peace be upon her) from this second perspective, that is, her being a role model and an example. God Almighty has mentioned two women in the Quran as examples for the believers and two women as examples for the disbelievers - "God has set forth an example for those who believe: the wife of Pharaoh" (Quran 66:11), and after one verse: "and Mary, the daughter of Imran" (Quran 66:12) - He has provided examples for the believers - not just for believing women; for men and women. With this perspective, we can look at these great figures as examples and learn from them. Well, Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) is the greatest of the truthful ones among the truthful; "greatest" means the greatest truthful one.

Now we want to learn from her; women should learn, men should learn; everyone - learned and ignorant - should learn. Let us see what is mentioned about this great figure in the words of the infallible Imams; what praises are mentioned. In the visitation of Imam Reza (peace be upon him), when it comes to Lady Fatimah for the salutation - that visitation which is full of salutations - it says: "O God, send blessings upon Fatimah, the daughter of Your Prophet"; this is one characteristic. Well, this is a very important characteristic; of course, it cannot be emulated; not everyone can be the daughter of the Prophet; however, the relationship to the Prophet as his daughter indicates the elevation of her status. "And the wife of Your Guardian"; this is the second; of course, this too cannot be attained, and not everyone can be the wife of God's Guardian; however, it shows the elevation of her status, her dignity, and her glory. "And the mother of the two grandsons, Hasan and Husayn, the masters of the youth of Paradise"; the practical aspect of this characteristic is more significant than the previous two attributes; the practical aspect of raising the two grandsons. The two grandsons who are "the masters of the youth of Paradise" have this great lady as their mother; it is her pure lap that has been able to raise them. This is what can be presented to us as a model, as an example.

Then, "the pure, the immaculate, the cleansed, the pious, the pure-hearted, the content, the virtuous" - all of these are practical; purity, with three expressions that, of course, these three expressions "pure", "immaculate", and "cleansed" have differences in meaning. Of course, all three expressions refer to purity and cleanliness: the purity of the soul, the purity of the heart, the purity of the mind, the purity of the life. Well, this is practical; this is a lesson for us; we must strive to purify ourselves, we must cleanse ourselves; without inner purity, one cannot attain ranks; one cannot reach the sanctity of these great figures; inner purity is necessary. Inner purity comes with piety, with caution, with constant consideration and vigilance; constant vigilance creates purity. Well, of course, humans are fallible and may have blemishes, but God has shown us the way to cleanse those blemishes: repentance, seeking forgiveness. We should seek forgiveness; seeking forgiveness means apologizing; "I seek forgiveness from God" means, O God, I apologize, I seek your pardon. Truly, from the bottom of my heart, we should sincerely apologize to God Almighty; this is seeking forgiveness, this cleanses the blemish and the stain. Well, "the pure, the immaculate, the cleansed". The piety, that is piety; the purity, that inner and heart purity; these are the characteristics of Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her). We must regard these as a model, as an example, and strive to draw closer to them.

Well, now you, as eulogists, when you want to speak about Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her), you must incorporate these into your statements, into your poetry, into your eulogies. Yes, when the spiritual ranks of the Imams (peace be upon them) and Fatimah al-Zahra (peace be upon her) are mentioned, the heart of the listener becomes illuminated; when you recite the spiritual ranks, the heart becomes illuminated, a state of presence is created, a state of humility arises, this is very good; these must be preserved and are necessary, but they are not enough. Now that a state of presence has been created, now that your hearts have been illuminated, we must learn; the lesson is in these practical sentences; that is, there must be an effort in every sermon - whether in Fatimah's days, in Ashura, or at other times - to include lessons from the Imams (peace be upon them), lessons on becoming human, lessons on perfection, lessons on drawing closer to God. We must learn, we must remember. Mere love is not enough. Of course, love is effective, but it is not sufficient; guardianship is necessary. Guardianship means taking the lead, following, clinging to them; the path they have taken must be followed by humans; this is necessary.

This is a point that I believe should be considered in the work of eulogy - especially for the speakers, meaning the poets who compose poetry: sometimes one sees that virtues are mentioned that do not exist in any narration or in any statement of the infallible, and in fact, are not virtues at all. It is said: "He who compares your form to the moon is mistaken"; in fact, it diminishes your value; comparing to the moon and the sun does not create value for that which is being compared, especially for these great figures whose spiritual ranks and divine statuses are such that they dazzle the eyes of the people of meaning, let alone us who do not even have that vision to understand. Sometimes generalities are mentioned that do not convey anything, and the listener gains nothing. So, my first sentence to you dear brothers is that in praising these great figures - whether Lady Fatimah (peace be upon her) or the guiding Imams (peace be upon them) - practical discussions that exist in their lives must be utilized.

Another point that fortunately today is somewhat prevalent in the community of eulogists is attention to current issues; you heard today in various sections regarding the defenders of the shrine and current issues; these are very important matters, these are fundamental issues; we should not think that these are outside the realm of our religiosity. Well, you see, the Prophet of Islam, who is the master of all creation and greater than whom no being has been created by God Almighty, and who brought this very religion and this very Islam that we today claim, in terms of the current political issues of his country - the same country that existed at that time and was a small country - how much effort he made, how much he struggled. The Prophet did not just sit down to teach the laws of prayer and fasting and attention and worship and night prayers to the people; no, he gathered the people in the mosque, invited them to jihad, invited them to unity, invited them to awareness against the enemy; the very words that are presented today for you and me. Current issues are not matters that can be overlooked.

You see; there exists a military system in the world: the system of global arrogance, the system of tyranny, the system of oppression; of course, such systems have existed since ancient times, but today they have modernized, equipped with new tools. The superior powers oppress nations; this oppression has no limits; if they have wealth, they take it; if they have capable human resources, they steal them; if there is talent in them that threatens them and creates competition, they stifle that talent; oppression has various forms. Today, this oppression exists in the world; the international system that is called the global community, meaning the system of oppression; otherwise, the term global community does not refer to the governments and nations of the world; the governments and nations of the world are disgusted by the form of these few superior powers that call themselves the global community. The global community means this: individuals whose basis of work is oppression against all nations and all countries. And we who are in the Islamic Republic, both before the Islamic Republic during the tyrannical regime and after the establishment of the Islamic Republic, have seen examples of it in one way or another; such a system exists in the world today. This system also has many dissatisfied people; many nations are dissatisfied; however, nothing can be done by the nations; the voices of the nations are not heard; they do not have media at their disposal, nor is their voice counted anywhere; now, even if, for example, ten thousand people gather in an electronic unit of electronic media and say something, or gather in the streets and walk; so what? In the case of the American attack on Iraq less than fifteen or sixteen years ago, demonstrations took place in all the streets of Paris and some other European countries against America; what effect did it have? Nations cannot do anything on their own; it is the governments that, if they have the support of their nations, can say something, and that statement can be raised in the world; such a government does not exist in the world; there are governments [but] they are afraid; they are dissatisfied [but] they are afraid. I think I mentioned this in my first speech of the year that the heads of the tyrannical regime were often dissatisfied with the actions of America. In the memoirs of their survivors, one sees that in some places they are very dissatisfied and they even speak ill of them in private, but they do not dare to oppose them; as a government, as a political unit and community management, they do not dare. Today, the world is like this; many are dissatisfied but do not dare to oppose.

A system has emerged in this chaos, in this mixed jungle of oppression and tyranny, which has foundations that are the exact opposite of what the global system is based on today; the opposite of oppression, the opposite of exploitation, the opposite of warmongering, the opposite of corruption; that system is the Islamic Republic. This system has been established based on Islam, based on religion, based on pure Islamic thoughts, and a group has been at the head of this system from the beginning whose nature is that they are not afraid of the great powers, and those are the clergy. This is what Western analysts and sociologists say today; they said it from the very beginning of the revolution; they said these clerics are not afraid of us. Of course, some of them may be dependent and are, but the nature of the clerical system in the Shia community is such. Now, coincidentally, these have been placed at the head of this system. The people also support them. The people are, firstly, talented people, and secondly, there are many youths among them - our population has increased from 35 million at the beginning of the revolution to nearly 80 million; that is, the population has suddenly increased; although they are working against it - there is much talent; they are brave, they are not afraid. Well, when there is a country where the people think like this, and the leaders of the government are also not afraid of the global hegemony, this poses a major threat to global arrogance, a completely significant threat. Therefore, a front is formed against it; just as a front has been formed against the Islamic Republic; not just now [but] from the very first day of the revolution, a front has been formed; an enemy front has emerged. At that time, it was the Soviet Union and America, which were opposites of each other, and [if] in a hundred issues - with some variations - they had disagreements, but in the matter of the Islamic Republic and opposition to the Islamic Republic, they were of one mind and one hand. That is, the nature of global arrogance is that it opposes such a system.

[So] they formed a front that still exists today and uses various methods; just as, for example, twenty years ago there was no internet, today there is; tools are becoming more advanced day by day. They are using the most tools and the widest and fastest tools against the Islamic Republic; the Islamic Republic must also prepare itself to use all tools. [The enemy] uses diplomatic tools. Diplomacy, political dialogue, political negotiation, political exchanges are one of the tools; they use that tool. I am not opposed to political dialogue; of course, not with everyone - there are exceptions - I have had a stance on global issues regarding political dialogue since the time of my presidency and have pursued it; do not make it seem as if we are completely opposed to dialogue and such; no, we are more in favor of it than this, and in some places, we know more than this; we also know how to act. The enemy also uses political dialogue. We must be vigilant.

So, they use negotiations, they use economic exchanges, they use economic sanctions, they use threats of war and weapons; in the face of all these, we must have defensive power.

That some come and say, "The future of the world is the future of negotiation, not of missiles," this statement, if said out of ignorance, is ignorance; if said out of awareness, it is treason. How is this possible? If the Islamic Republic pursues science, pursues technology, pursues political negotiation, pursues various commercial and economic activities - which all are necessary - but does not have defensive power, does not have the ability to defend, every insignificant and [every] worthless government threatens it that if you do not do such and such, we will launch missiles; well, if you do not have the means to defend, you will be forced to retreat.

The world powers that you see speaking in a loud voice, oppressing, making mistakes, saying bad things, and oppressing, do so based on the weapons they have; then, should we come in front of them and empty our hands? The IRGC, which shows its missile advancements, is not only a source of pride and glory for Iranians, but when these missiles are tested with such precision and beauty, many of the freedom-seeking nations around us, whose hearts are bleeding from America and the Zionist regime, become happy. When these are carried out, should we come and denounce them and say, "Today is no longer the day of missiles!" No, the day of missiles has not passed. The enemy is constantly updating and preparing itself, and then we here naively pull back and say no. Just like at the beginning of the revolution when they wanted to sell our F-14s and wanted to return them, and I did not allow it. I found out that one of the officials of the provisional government at that time said that these F-14s that the tyrannical regime bought are of no use to us; what do we want to do with these F-14s? Let’s return them to them. There, we stood up, made a fuss, gave interviews, and opposed it; they did not dare to do that; they wanted to return them. A little while later, the Iran-Iraq war occurred, and they attacked us, and it became clear how much we needed the very tools we have; the same F-14 and the same F-4 and similar ones. Today, some are taking the same tune that what is a missile, what do we want with missiles, this is not the time for missiles! So, what is the time for, sir?

[Today] is the time for everything. It is the time for negotiation; we must be strong in negotiation and negotiate in such a way that we do not get fooled later. That we negotiate, bring it to paper, write it down, sign it, and then they also do something on the surface, but the sanctions are not lifted and trade does not start, it is clear that there is a problem there; we must not allow these problems to arise, and we must also strengthen ourselves in that regard. In the economy within the country, it is the same; we said action and implementation. Saying is enough; "Two hundred statements are not worth half a deed." When we repeat it too much and keep saying resistant economy, it falls from our mouths; that is, when it becomes repetitive, it also becomes a tedious thing; we must act. The point is that the country needs it.

All of these are one side of the issue, and the work and effort that the enemy makes to change the beliefs of the people is another side of the issue. Here, you play a role, you find a role; an important role. When you defend the defenders of the shrine, it is a very valuable work. The very poems that were recited, the very words that were said, these are very valuable, there is no doubt about it - just as in the time of the sacred defense, the very poems that were recited and the very songs that were sung had a great impact; this undoubtedly has an impact today as well - but alongside this, there is a task that if its importance is not less, it is not less; and that is strengthening the beliefs of the youth. The enemy wants to change beliefs; belief in Islam, belief in the effectiveness of the Islamic system, belief in its sustainability. Contrary to the obvious, the enemy works and propagates; sometimes they act against something clear and seem to want to prove it with deception and trickery. The Islamic system has been under heavy attacks since the day it was born; heavy military, propaganda, sanctions, and similar attacks, and at the same time, the Islamic system has grown in these 37 years; that is, there has not been a day that it has stopped; it has grown in every aspect, gained power, and gained greatness. Today, the enemy looks and sees that the thin and delicate sapling that was created at the beginning of the revolution has now turned into a mighty tree that "bears its fruit at all times by the permission of its Lord"; they see this before their eyes. Well, this [system] that has such potential for survival, for expansion, and for becoming stronger, will continue to grow stronger, day by day. The things we have envisioned for the future are not fantasies; they are realities. A few years ago, I told the young students and scholars that you must work so that fifty years from now, if someone wants to access the new scientific developments of that day, they will have to learn Persian; this will happen, this is possible; just as in these ten to fifteen years, the scientific movement and scientific progress that we said would happen, has happened. When the youth strive, when those who have determination strive, all difficult tasks will become easy; we can move forward. At the same time, the enemy is affecting the beliefs of our youth: "What is the benefit, it is not possible, it has no benefit." These are the fields where the enemy's psychological warfare is taking place, and you, as eulogists, can have an effect; you can strengthen this youth intellectually.

The reason I sometimes express objections to some eulogies is that, for example, when one looks at the mourning of the days of Muharram - they sometimes bring the photos; now that these tools have become abundant; of course, I do not have them, but sometimes they bring them to show me these photos and such - one sees, for example, in a session, everyone is jumping up and down; well, what benefit does this have? What impact does this have? Where is the mourning in this? When I object, I am not upset about the excitement of the youth; well, the youth are energetic; the youth are a source of energy and always want to release their energy; I say this because these great responsibilities should not remain unfulfilled. When in a gathering, ten thousand youth or five thousand youth gather and give their hearts to you, you can, with an excellent, artistic, and meaningful performance, transform them into capable individuals who will pursue work; you can also turn them into careless, thoughtless, hopeless individuals, and spiritually impoverished; this can also be done. You should take advantage of this opportunity and choose the first option. This is my message.

Eulogy, while it is the praise of the best of creation in the world - its subject is the praise of the best of creation, which are the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), thus it has a high status and dignity; eulogy is naturally this - but you should look and see, for example, what a poet like Dabbal Khuzai says in the poem "Madaris Ayat"; that poem "Madaris Ayat" is the one that Imam Reza (peace be upon him) encouraged and rewarded him. This is a poem that fundamentally questions the existence of the Abbasid dynasty and condemns them; it is purely political; it is not just a mere lamentation; no, lamentation is necessary, but the same work that was done alongside lamentation has been of concern to the Imams (peace be upon them). The poem of Dabbal, the poem of Kumayt, various poems that poets of that time recited, others also read and recited, meaning like you who read with a voice, whether the poet himself or another, they would come and read them aloud for the people; the means of collective propaganda were these; today you can use these; benefit from collective propaganda tools and guide the people; this, in my opinion, is a very fundamental task.

It is well-known that it is said that the honor of every science depends on the honor of the subject of that science; every science whose subject has more honor, that science also has more honor. Now, if we extend this from science to occupations, the subject of your occupation and your work and your endeavor is the praise of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) and the awakening and enlightenment of the listeners; this is the highest of things, it is very valuable, utilize this value. Thanks be to God, the number of eulogists is also large; now this group that you have come here today is a considerable gathering, but the number of eulogists across the country is more than this; the number is very high everywhere; there are individuals who are interested and engage in this work; in any case, this is a very important mission, and this mission must be given importance. Of course, poets also play an important role; poets who compose poetry play an important role; however, poetry without good execution has less impact, and you, who perform excellently, have a good performance, then it has an impact.

We hope that God Almighty grants you success, grants us success, and that we can first recognize and understand what our duty is, and then, God willing, act upon it.

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