Speech at the Meeting with the Praisers of the Ahl al-Bayt on the Blessed Birth of Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her)

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

Indeed, We have granted you al-Kawthar. So pray to your Lord and sacrifice. Indeed, your enemy is the one cut off.

Thanks be to God that on such a magnificent and auspicious day, we have once again been granted the opportunity to visit you, the praisers and admirers of the Household of Purity and Infallibility. We, who claim acquaintance and devotion to that Lady of the Two Worlds, have witnessed the blessings of Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) throughout our lives and in various aspects of life. God willing, we will continue to see and feel these blessings and favors throughout our lives and after death, and all friends and followers will benefit from those pure lights.

The blessings of Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) are not limited to a small group that is considered a limited gathering compared to humanity. If we look with a realistic and logical view, humanity as a whole is indebted to Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) - and this is not an exaggeration; it is a truth - just as humanity is indebted to Islam, the Quran, the teachings of the Prophets, and the Seal of the Prophets (peace be upon him and his family). This has always been the case throughout history, and it is the same today, and day by day, the light of Islam and the spirituality of Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) will become more apparent, and humanity will feel it.

Dear brothers! What we are obliged to do is to make ourselves worthy of being associated with that Household. Of course, being associated with the Household of Prophethood and being among their affiliates and those known for their guardianship is difficult. In the visitation, we read that we are known for our love and affection for you; this places an additional duty on our shoulders.

This abundant good that Almighty God promised to the Holy Prophet in the blessed Surah al-Kawthar, saying: 'Indeed, We have granted you al-Kawthar' - which is interpreted as Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) - is, in fact, the assembly of all the goods that day by day pour from the source of the prophetic religion upon all humanity and all creatures. Many have tried to conceal and deny it, but they could not; 'And God will perfect His light, even though the disbelievers dislike it.'

We must bring ourselves closer to this center of light; and approaching the center of light, its necessity and property, is to become illuminated. We must become illuminated through action, not just empty love; action that the same love, guardianship, and faith dictate to us and demand from us. With this action, we must become part of this Household and affiliated with this Household. It is not easy to become the servant at the door of Ali (peace be upon him). It is not easy to become 'Salman is from us, the Ahl al-Bayt.' We, the community of followers and Shiites of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them), expect those great ones to consider us among themselves and their peripheral members; 'So-and-so is among the corner-dwellers of our threshold.' We wish that the Ahl al-Bayt would judge us in this way; but this is not easy; this cannot be achieved by mere claim; this requires action, sacrifice, and emulation and adopting their morals.

Consider, this greatness that we sat with you today for an hour listening to the praises and virtues - what was said was a drop from the sea - at what age did she attain all these virtues? In what short lifespan did she manifest all this brilliance? In a short life; eighteen years, twenty years, twenty-five years; the narrations differ. All these virtues are not obtained in vain; 'God tested you before He created you and found you patient in what He tested you.' Almighty God tested Zahra the Pure - this chosen servant. The system of Almighty God is a system of calculation; what He grants, He grants with calculation. He knows the sacrifice, altruism, knowledge, and self-sacrifice of this special servant in the path of divine goals; therefore, He makes her the center of His blessings.

We must follow this path. We must also sacrifice, be altruistic, obey God, and worship. Do we not say that 'until her feet swelled'? She stood in the niche of worship of God so much! We must also stand in the niche of worship. We must also mention God. We must also increase divine love in our hearts day by day. Do we not say that she went to the mosque in a state of weakness to uphold a right? We must also strive in all situations to uphold the right. We must also fear no one. Do we not say that she stood alone against the great society of her time? We must also, as her noble husband said, 'Do not feel lonely on the path of guidance because of the fewness of its people,' not fear our small numbers against the world of oppression and global arrogance and strive. Do we not say that she did something that the Surah al-Dahr was revealed about her and her husband and children? Altruism towards the poor and helping the deprived, at the cost of enduring hunger themselves; 'And they give preference over themselves, even though they are in need.' We must also do these things.

It cannot be that we speak of love for Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her), while that great one, for the sake of the hungry, cut bread from her own throat and her loved ones - like Hassan and Hussein (peace be upon them) and their noble father (peace be upon him) - and gave it to the poor; not one day, not two days; three days! We say we are followers of such a person; but we not only do not cut bread from our own throat to give to the poor, if we can, we cut bread from the throat of the poor!

These narrations in the noble 'Kafi' and some other books about the signs of the Shiite are referring to this; that is, the Shiite must act in that way. We must display their life in our life - even if in a weak form. Where are we and those greater than us, and where is that high threshold? It is clear that we do not even reach the distant boundaries of it; but we must emulate. It is not possible to move in the opposite direction of the life of the Ahl al-Bayt and yet claim that we are among the followers of the Ahl al-Bayt! Is such a thing possible? Suppose someone in the time of our great Imam followed the enemies of this nation - whom the Imam constantly spoke against - could he say I am a follower of the Imam?! If such a thing were uttered by someone, would you not laugh?! The same issue applies to the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them).

We must prove our worthiness. Do we not say that the dowry of that great one was such that when one hears it, tears flow? Do we not say that this noble woman placed no value on the world and its adornments? How can it be that day by day we increase ceremonies and luxury and the trappings of life and increase the dowry of our daughters?!

In the early days, when sometimes some people set the dowry of the marriage a little high, we joked and said if you want to set, for example, such and such amount of coins, then just say 72 coins! But now we see that setting expensive dowries has become a reality! Really, what is going on? You who are the father of that girl, can you claim that you are a follower of the father of Fatemeh (peace be upon her)? It cannot be like this; we must think about our situation.

Now, why did I say these things to you? Because you are the praisers and you must go and say these things in your praises in the gatherings of Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) to the people; otherwise, it is clear what your situation is. Say these about Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her). With your talent, art, beautiful voice, desirable tone, and attractive quality of your singing, make the hearts of us listeners closer to these truths. If we assume that we recite verses in the spiritual stations of Fatemeh Zahra (peace be upon her) that our listener does not understand or comprehend, it is not clear that it will bring him closer to Fatemeh Zahra. It is necessary for us to become closer to this family day by day. Our nation will be able to fulfill its mission in this way. This nation can deliver that great message to the world in this way.

Today you see how the world is. These high and very ornate palaces, but with foundations of cardboard, are collapsing one after another. This Soviet Union was a great so-called socialist and worker empire; but it collapsed and crumbled in such a way! It cannot be said it collapsed; it was completely destroyed and crushed! A similar process is now taking place in some other parts of the world; however, it takes some time for it to become apparent. These civilizations and anti-truth adornments are being crushed.

The edifice of truth must be elevated. Do not think that if falsehood disappears due to its perishability, truth will automatically and without effort be raised in the world - absolutely not - another falsehood will take its place; unless truth presents itself as it is. These falsehoods keep coming and going; they keep being created and disappearing. The nature of falsehood is to perish and disappear. Do not think that if falsehood disappears, Islam or truth can replace falsehoods in the world without effort and struggle, without definition and explanation, without the effort of you and me; no, it depends on what you and I do.

Therefore, we must continue to learn from the Ahl al-Bayt; continue to give these lessons to the people; continue to educate; so that as a result of these efforts, the pure truth can replace falsehoods.

O Lord! By the right of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, hasten the appearance of Your guardian. O Lord! Convey our congratulations today to that holy existence. O Lord! Make his holy heart pleased with us. O Lord! Make us among his helpers and close ones and those who struggle in his path and those who fall in blood before him. O Lord! By the right of Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, make us more acquainted with Muhammad and the family of Muhammad day by day.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings