Statements of the Supreme Leader in Meeting with Scholars and Clergy on the Eve of Muharram

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful I express my gratitude to the Almighty God for granting me the opportunity to meet with you, esteemed scholars, orators, preachers, and honorable individuals, once again on the occasion of the blessed and great month of Muharram, the month of the triumph of blood over the sword, the month of the revival of Islam, and the month of the Master of Martyrs, may peace be upon him.

This is a very good session. It is spiritual and adorned with the signs and manifestations of spirituality and piety, and we hope that God grants us the opportunity to derive benefit from this session - from these discussions, listening, sitting, and rising - God willing, for the benefit of Islam and Muslims.

The issue of propagation is one of the fundamental matters in social life and is not limited to a specific period. Propagation, which is referred to in the Quran as "بلاغ" (conveyance), "بیان" (expression), "تبیین" (clarification), and similar terms, is one of the sacred duties, the duty of the prophets, the duty of scholars, thinkers, and reformers. Propagation means conveying. Conveying what? Conveying those truths to the minds and hearts of the audience that, without them, they will suffer loss. This is what elevates the value of propagation. Propagation has a human aspect. The propagation that Islam commands and which Islamic scholars and the Shia clergy have adhered to throughout history is a duty that has both a divine aspect - "لتبینّنه للنّاس و لاتکتمونه" (You must convey it to the people and not conceal it) - and a human aspect; as it involves assisting hearts and minds of those who are afflicted by ignorance, doubt, and ignorance. This duty must be viewed with this perspective.

Thanks be to God, the Islamic clergy has adhered to this matter over the past few centuries and has not allowed the bright torch of propagating religion, ethics, and spirituality to be extinguished. Before the victory of the revolution, the immense role that propagation played is completely evident and clear to those who are informed. After the victory of the revolution, when the enemies attempted through various means to cause stagnation, discord, and tension in society, the role of religious propagators in cities, villages, major centers of the country, and in various pulpits was a decisive and very important role.

Today, propagation still holds that immense role. Let no one think that with the existence of radio, television, video, and these modern tools, the pulpit has no role anymore. What role does the propagation of religion have? No; the impact that the words of a person have in a gathering - face to face, with the selection of the audience, with the choice of the necessary content - is entirely different from any other type of propagation. This is a type of propagation that has divine blessings; it has the effects of human interaction. It is very important.

I am not here to explain the importance of propagating religion to you; as this matter is apparently clear to you and you are committed to it; therefore, we will skip this topic. In summary, I would like to say that traditional propagation, meaning the presence of clergy in various gatherings of people and the use of the pulpit for propagation, is one of the most important tools and blessings that the Almighty God has placed at your disposal. For God and in the way of God, you must make the utmost and best use of it.

What I want to convey today is a reminder about how this propagation should be conducted; especially in the current period of our revolution. The point is that in propagation, two things must be given maximum attention: one is the selection of the audience and the other is the selection of content.

The audience may consist of various segments of the people. When a person is speaking in a gathering, if they know who their audience is and choose their audience, they will naturally select the content according to the needs of that audience. Thus, these two are interconnected and related to each other.

Regarding the selection of the audience, I want to say that it may be necessary today that the majority, close to all, of the audience of our propagative pulpits should be young people - the youth - for several reasons:

Firstly, because today the youth constitute the majority in our country. In some countries, the youth are a minority, but in our country, due to specific reasons, the youth are the majority today; meaning more than two-thirds of our people are young. You yourselves are young; most of you belong to this generation. Therefore, they should be addressed more than anyone else. This is one reason.

Secondly, the enemies of this country, the enemies of this revolution, and the enemies of religion have long been planning for the youth audience, considering this reality. We may have been negligent; however, our enemy has not been negligent! They are trying to capture the hearts and minds of the youth through radios, pamphlets, tools, and methods that are compatible with the nature of youth and the desires of certain segments of the youth. This is another reason why you should pay more attention to the youth.

The third reason is that the youth are easily influenced and receptive; because their hearts are pure. They have not yet been polluted to the extent of individuals like myself who have aged beyond them, and they have not hardened. They are pure; they can easily understand the truth and come to listen to it and accept it. This is another reason for selecting this segment.

Therefore, from the very beginning, when you think about propagation and want to select topics to express religion, ethics, and everything that needs to be said, aim to address the youth. This will influence the type of content.

What content is important today? What should we convey in the propagative pulpit for the people? It can be summed up in one word: discussions that strengthen and solidify their religious beliefs; however, this statement is open to interpretation and explanation. Some beliefs are not subject to doubt and anxiety. The one who wants to guide their audience must first see where their ignorance lies and which part of their mind is vulnerable. They must recognize the waves that are working to destroy the minds of your audience, so that they know what the youth need to hear. It should not be the case that dozens of questions exist in the minds of our audience, and instead of answering those questions and inquiries, we bring up another topic that is not even a question for them.

What I am saying is not only related to this year's Muharram and the present gathering; this should be the foundation of our propagation work. If we are propagating in universities; if we are propagating in the armed forces or in various segments and communities - wherever we encounter our audience - we must first know what the questions and inquiries in the minds of the youth are.

Of course, there are also cases where the questions and inquiries in their minds are of little importance, and you prefer to tell them something more important. You should act accordingly; however, today, when various doubts, questions, and inquiries are injected into the minds of different segments - especially the youth - the religious propagator must recognize that doubt, that destructive and harmful wave, to know what pain they want to remedy and which void they want to fill.

Another fundamental point is that today, in addition to addressing the doctrinal issues of Islam and solidifying belief in Islam in the minds and hearts, belief in the governance of Islam must also be solidified. This matter is clear. This is something that Muslims around the world have pursued for centuries, especially great thinkers in the recent century - from Seyyed Jamal al-Din Asadabadi to Iqbal Lahori, to great thinkers and scholars in our own country - who have sought to establish the governance of God's religion, and this has been a continuation of the path of the prophets. Today, hands, tongues, writings, and propaganda waves create doubts about this matter and raise questions about it. You must solidify this in the minds. They must know that the governance of Islam means the governance of justice, knowledge, and fairness over all humanity. A governance that can cultivate both the bodies of humans and their hearts, emotions, ethics, and their real and spiritual lives, as well as their worldly and otherworldly lives. This is what the governance of religion means.

The governance of religion is in opposition to the governance of tyranny; which "اذا تولی سعی فی الارض لیفسد فیها و یهلک الحرث والنسل" (when he takes power, he strives to corrupt the earth and destroy crops and progeny). The governance of tyranny is the governance of corruption and the governance of wasting religion and the world - not just religion - as we have witnessed closely in our own country in the past, and those who experienced that era felt it all. The governance of God means the salvation and happiness of humanity. The governance of God's religion means responding to the fundamental needs of humanity. Every need that humans have - spiritual needs, material needs, individual, social, worldly, and otherworldly needs - is fulfilled under the governance of God's religion.

You must explain these to the people, especially to the youth. Although our nation, thanks be to God, firmly believes in this aspect of the matter, has accepted it, and has defended it with all their being, shedding their blood for the governance of God's religion during the eight years of sacred defense, and it remains the same today; however, we must not be oblivious to the plots of the enemy. We must not be oblivious to the enemy's efforts. They are working to benefit from it in the long term; to utilize it.

Among the things that must be conveyed to the youth, it is necessary to guide them towards thinking, reasoning, Islamic ethics, patience, avoiding haste and rush in matters, and avoiding harshness and the application of violence. In an Islamic environment, the truths can penetrate the depths of hearts when there is a gentle tongue, thoughtful and wise behavior, and patience.

Patience is the capacity to endure - as the general public would say - having composure and not becoming angry in various matters; when it comes to exercising anger, applying it, which any wise person does in wars and when confronting enemies. However, in daily life, the foundation of the Islamic community's work is contemplation, reflection, thinking, seeing the aspects, facing issues wisely and fairly, and not being hasty in judgment.

Teach these to the youth. Raise the youth as the nurtured and cultivated individuals of the Islamic community and Islamic ethics. These are necessary. Among the points that must be conveyed to the people - especially to the youth - is the great blessing that the Almighty God has granted us through the great and unparalleled leader and the great movement of the Iranian nation in this great revolution. Today's youth did not witness the pre-revolution era, are not familiar with it, and do not know what existed in this country and what humiliation was imposed on the Iranian nation! In the last fifty years before the revolution, two individuals ruled this country - a father and son - both of whom were brought to power by foreigners. The British found Reza Khan among the Cossack Brigade - they needed a bold and reckless bully - brought him in and armed him! They supported him, brought him to the throne, and then implemented their objectives through him! The blow they wanted to inflict on religion, on the clergy, on the ancient and national traditions of this country, and on the religious and ideological foundations of this country was inflicted through him. Because he was a bold and audacious person, he served their purposes! The British had long been looking for a means of influence in this country - even before the Constitutional Revolution - but they could not succeed. Most of the clergy were obstacles to their influence. This man was someone they knew would be bold and reckless in dealing with the clergy. They brought him to power, and he did whatever they wanted through him! Then, when they saw that politically he was leaning towards another direction, they removed him and placed his son in his place!

For a nation - for the Iranian nation - there is no greater disgrace than having the rulers, governors, politicians, and leaders of the country brought in and taken away by the British through their embassy! What greater disgrace could there be for a nation than this?! Read the memoirs written by elements of the Pahlavi era! After Reza Khan was removed in 1941, his son Mohammad Reza did not know for several days whether he would be king or not! He sent someone to the British embassy, and they said yes, it is fine for him to be king, provided he does not do this and does that! He was pleased. These are the truths of this country.

The fifty years of Iran's rule, which was dictatorial, monarchical, tyrannical, corrupt, and so forth, was carried out by two individuals who were brought to power by foreigners, and the people had no role. Before that, there was the Qajar rule and the rule of the sultans. Look at the history of these sultans! The people were nothing; the people were not even worth mentioning to them! The officials of the government, from the prime minister down, were considered their servants, and they would say to them, "You are among our servants, such and such!" Such governments have ruled this country!

For the first time in centuries, thanks to the revolution in this country, governments are coming to power where the criteria for the officials of the governments are knowledge, piety, justice, love for the people, and the selection of the people. They are with the people; for the people and in the service of the people; they are not exploiters, thieves, or subservient to the enemy. These truths have not been present in the long history of Iran for centuries. Islam and the revolution granted these to this nation. These must be explained to the younger generation; they must know what Iran was and what it has become! From where it came to where it is now! Today, the remnants of the same corrupt, subservient, and disgraceful regimes are sitting in the lap of the same masters who used to pay them money! Today, they are still paying them money, giving them microphones, interviewing them, broadcasting them, creating radios and newspapers; at that time, they criticize a point of the Islamic Republic - a corner of the vast system and apparatus of the Islamic government - and they magnify it and broadcast it on their radios! The youth must know these things; these are important points. Today, the propagation of religion and the clarification of truths must also encompass these matters. Among the important things that must be emphasized in propaganda is the issue of unity and the solidarity of the nation.

My dear ones! Today, when I look at the propaganda waves of the enemies and also at what some oblivious or malicious individuals promote in their wake, the same line of division, the line of creating tension and conflict among the people, and magnifying small issues is evident. Let no one in public pulpits, where religion and ethics should be propagated, raise divisive issues and magnify differences! The enemy tries to exaggerate small differences. This has been the case since the beginning of the revolution, and it is not just today. Since the beginning of the revolution, even before the war, during the presence of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified), it has always been like this. They tried to present something small as evidence of division and schism, using psychological propaganda techniques, to make anyone listening think that there is chaos of fighting and oppression in the country; while there was nothing like that; nor is there now.

Unfortunately, some of our own media also unwittingly follow this line! While today, the officials of the country and the serving government need a calm atmosphere to address the major issues of the country, to organize the economy, and to resolve problems and knots. Of course, governments are there to untie knots, and they are making every effort; however, this requires a calm atmosphere and harmony among the people. Some pens cannot remain calm! Sometimes, even under the pretext of supporting the government, they create more tension and agitation! These are important issues.

The propagation of religion and the clarification of truths, which is the duty of the great scholars and propagators of Islam, today encompasses all of these. If we reach the highest level in terms of economy and multiply the power and dignity we have today in politics, but the ethics of our people are not Islamic ethics; if among us there is no forgiveness, patience, forbearance, and optimism, the foundation of work will be destroyed. The foundation of work is ethics. All of these are prerequisites for good ethics - "بعثت لاتمّم مکارم الاخلاق" (I was sent to perfect good morals) - the Islamic government is meant to cultivate humans in this atmosphere, to elevate their ethics, to bring them closer to God, and to seek proximity to Him. Politics also requires seeking proximity. Political matters also require seeking proximity. The one who speaks about political matters and the one who writes; the one who analyzes and the one who decides must be able to seek proximity. When is seeking proximity possible? When you study and examine, see if God's pleasure is in this action? If you see God's pleasure in this action, you can seek proximity. Therefore, first, ascertaining God's pleasure is necessary. See how clear the line is and how some do not pay attention!

We hope that the Almighty God grants you success so that, God willing, by the blessing of this month - the month of Imam Hussein (may peace be upon him), the month of sacrifice and martyrdom, the month of the highest manifestations of ethics - you can advance our society and people one step towards their perfection and development with solid, firm, and necessary content for various segments of the people, and earn God's pleasure.

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