Statements of the Meeting with Participants of the International Quran Competitions

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

I extend my warm welcome to all esteemed attendees, dear brothers and sisters, especially the respected reciters of the Holy Quran and the honored guests who have come from Islamic countries. Today was a very good session. I enjoyed seeing you, the reciters of the Quran and lovers of the Quran, and we benefited from the excellent recitation performed by these esteemed reciters here.

Let us strive to ensure that our benefit is not merely auditory and visual; our hearts must also benefit. The Quran is for action. The Quran is for understanding and contemplation. Why is there so much hardship in the Islamic world? Why is the Islamic Ummah, with all its greatness, weak? Why? Why are the hearts and hands of Muslim brothers around the world not united? Why? Has not this Quran said: "And hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of God, and do not be divided"? Has not this Quran stated: "And to God belongs the might and to His Messenger and to the believers"? Why does the Islamic Ummah not possess the dignity it deserves in the world today? Why? Why are we lagging in knowledge? In the realm of politics and managing global issues, why is the Islamic Ummah behind? The reason is that they do not act according to the Quran; the reason is that the Quran—contrary to our claims—is not the criterion and axis of our knowledge and action. The more we act according to the Quran, the more we will see its effects.

In the Islamic Republic of Iran, we have tried to act according to the teachings of the Quran; we have been somewhat successful. To that extent, the Almighty God has shown us the effects of this action. In God's work, there is no failure to fulfill promises: "And who is more truthful than God in statement?" If the Almighty God promises victory to the believers, promises succession on the earth, promises dignity, these promises are true. The reason we do not see these promises in our lives is that we do not act according to divine conditions; "And fulfill My covenant, I will fulfill your covenant"; you act according to My command, and I will act according to that covenant; God has said it this way. This is our great lesson.

Our goal from these Quranic sessions, from these Quranic gatherings, from these Quranic competitions, from this invitation to Quranic individuals across the country, is to draw closer to these objectives; we want to get closer to the Quran; closeness in knowledge and closeness in action; this should be our endeavor. Today, the Islamic world is thirsty for action according to the Quran; and the enemies of Islam do not want this. It is evident that the enemies of Islam do not explicitly say we are enemies of the Quran or enemies of Islam—"They deceive God and those who believe"; they deceive God and deceive God's servants—they say we are supporters of Islam, but they attack precisely at the point where Islam demands from us.

Today, you see in some Islamic countries, raising the issue of jihad is a crime; the issue of jihad should not be mentioned in textbooks, in the discussions of those who are somehow connected to government agencies, the names of jihad and martyrdom should not be mentioned. They attack these things and our actions. They strike at Islamic unity, sow distrust among hearts, the issue of Sunni and Shia, the issue of various sects among Shia, the issue of various sects among Sunnis; these are the subjects of the enemies of Islam's work. They do not say I oppose the Quran, but they oppose what is the axis of Quranic education and training, which is exemplified by this example of unity. How many well-wishers strive to create unity among brothers in the Islamic world, and then we see a bomb explodes from one side—an anti-unity bomb—either from that side or this side; it does not matter.

These are the things that we must be vigilant about, we must be aware. We, the people of Iran, are the same. What we say is not for others; first and foremost, it is for ourselves. We too must maintain unity. Look at the very verses that have just been recited: "And remember the favor of God upon you when you were enemies, and He brought your hearts together, and by His favor you became brothers—and you were on the brink of a pit of fire, and He saved you from it"; Islam saved you from the fire of division. Have you forgotten? One keeps criticizing the other, and the other keeps criticizing this one; we prioritize the branches and forget the roots, and we keep falling into disputes. The Quran says: "And hold fast, all of you together, to the rope of God"; this "all" is not at the same level; some have stronger faith, some have weaker faith, some have better actions, some have average actions; nonetheless, the Almighty God addresses everyone. He says to hold fast to the rope of God together. If you say I held fast to the rope of God separately and the other did not; the other says I held fast to the rope of God separately, and not this side; that cannot be. Tolerate each other. There are principles, there are axes; the main thing is that we should be united in these principles. It is possible that in a hundred branches, individuals may have disagreements with each other; that is fine; this does not contradict unity, gathering, and coming together; these should be the criteria. In our speech, we must be careful. Rejecting others, excluding others, absolutely on secondary issues, is not expedient. Today, the Iranian nation is a united nation; it is a united nation; this unity must be appreciated. We must not create discord.

I see that in the recent events of the past three or four days, some still want to increase the differences and rifts; no, discord should not arise; everyone is brothers, everyone must cooperate; everyone must help each other in building the country. No one should be falsely accused; no one should be negated for one matter from all those things that are considered qualifications. We must be fair; we must act with fairness; we must speak with fairness. The Almighty God says about the enemies: "And let not the hatred of a people incite you to not be just. Be just; that is nearer to piety"; if you are enemies with someone, let not this enmity lead you to injustice, to unfairness; even towards the enemy; now, the one who is not an enemy. Let all injustices be set aside; let all unfairness be set aside; let everyone gather under the banner of the Islamic system and the Islamic Republic; there are principles, and everyone should declare their commitment to those principles. They should be together, even if there are differences of opinion. What is the problem? There have always been differences of opinion. In various periods, wherever these differences of opinion and interpretations mixed with human desires, things go wrong. We must be very careful about desires. We should be suspicious of ourselves in being deceived by our desires. Let us look and see where it is desire and our carnal desires; where it is truly a sense of duty; and in feeling a sense of duty, we must be careful not to step outside the bounds of duty; we must not overdo it. Then God's grace will be with us. Just as until today, by God's grace, by God's power, God's grace has been with the Iranian nation; after this, God willing, it will continue.

Everyone should fulfill their duties; strive. Strive. When we say everyone should fulfill their duties, it does not mean that we ourselves fulfill all our duties; no, "And I do not absolve myself"; we must strive; our effort should be this; piety is this. Piety means striving and being vigilant in fulfilling duties; this is the meaning of piety. Let us have this effort, and if a slip occurs, then God Almighty will forgive; God Almighty will overlook our slips; when we are vigilant.

We hope that the Almighty God grants blessings to these gatherings, these sessions, these recitations, these listenings, these speeches, and these hearings; may He awaken all of us; grant us success so that, God willing, we can fulfill our duties.

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