Statements of the Supreme Leader in Meeting with Members of the 'Election Oversight Committee' Nationwide

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

I also extend my congratulations on the blessed birth of Imam Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha (peace be upon him) to all of you, dear brothers and sisters, esteemed attendees, and to the entire beloved nation of Iran and the Shia and Muslims of the world.

On this very important subject of elections, I feel obliged to thank our great nation for their faithful, serious, and widespread participation in the elections—both in the first and second stages—and to tell them that it is this spirit of faith and presence in the essential and vital arenas of the country that has preserved the country, the revolution, Islam, and your dignity and honor in the world. As long as the Iranian nation maintains this enlightened faith and serious and selfless presence in the various arenas of the revolution, no enemy or ill-wisher will be able to harm the movement of this country and this nation, the construction of this country, and the continuity of this revolution, and God is with you.

I also feel it is my duty to sincerely thank you, the hardworking, devoted, and dear organizers of these elections. You truly accomplished a great task, and you did it well and with integrity. How much effort was made to tarnish the face of the elections! These foreign media and spiteful individuals whose thoughts and words flow into the country from those media, how much they tried to discourage the nation from conducting a good election! You organizers on one side and our dear and brave nation on the other, you thwarted all these conspiracies. I am obliged to sincerely thank each and every one of you, dear brothers and sisters and esteemed officials—whether in the Ministry of Interior and the honorable Minister of Interior; the honorable Guardian Council and its supervisors; the forces executing the elections; the supporting and service-providing forces for this task; those present in this meeting and those who are not—and to pray that Almighty God may sustain His grace, mercy, and favor upon you and that the sacred heart of the Imam of the Age (may our souls be sacrificed for him) be pleased with you.

Regarding the truths that have been embodied and manifested in the lives of the Imams (peace be upon them), both in action and in words, this famous saying of Imam Ali ibn Musa al-Ridha (peace be upon him) is one of the prominent ones, which according to a well-known narration, he quoted from his noble forefathers and said: 'The phrase 'There is no god but God' is My fortress; whoever enters My fortress is safe from My punishment.' It has always been this way, and the criterion and standard are the same. We must strive to make ourselves, our country, and our nation an example of this luminous phrase that 'the phrase 'There is no god but God' is My fortress. Whoever enters My fortress is protected from My punishment.' This is what the Eighth Imam (peace be upon him) narrates from his forefathers and from the words of Almighty God.

Some may think that entering the fortress of 'There is no god but God' is not that troublesome! We say the phrase 'There is no god but God,' and we enter the fortress! But the matter is not that simple. The fortress of 'There is no god but God' is the fortress of monotheistic sovereignty; it is the sovereignty of God; it is the exclusive sovereignty of God. This is 'There is no god but God'! 'There is no god but God' is not just the affirmation of God's existence. Alongside affirming God's existence, it is the negation of God's partners; it is the negation of idols; and 'the mother of idols is your own ego.' Of all the idols, the most dangerous is this idol that is within us. This selfishness, this desire and passion, these carnal desires that are contrary to God's command, if we obey them, we have become captives of our own ego, and this is incompatible with being in the fortress of God's monotheism. Entering God's fortress means entering with all one's being. It is not about writing the name of God's fortress on one's chest or uttering it with one's tongue. As the saying goes, by merely saying 'halva, halva,' one's mouth does not become sweet! By saying 'There is no god but God'—by bringing the name of this fortress—one does not enter the fortress! One must enter. Entering means placing oneself under God's sovereignty, placing oneself under God's control, listening to God's command, and moving according to God's order; not according to the commands of devils, tyrants, unjust rulers, or infidels, or according to one's own ego, for if any of these occur, one is outside the fortress of 'There is no god but God.'

The factor that leads nations to corruption, weakness, humiliation, and ultimately to dissolution and annihilation is the same factor that this hadith warns people against. Our nation was also in that state. Therefore, it was in weakness. The phrase 'There is no god but God' was on people's tongues; it was even on the country's forehead. For example, at that time, it was in the constitution that 'the official religion of the country is Islam.' These things existed, but this was the appearance of the matter. The name of Islam and 'There is no god but God' existed, but not its form and reality. The parliament of that day was not in the business of approving God's laws; rather, it acted against God's laws. The statesmen of that day did not intend to govern according to divine laws; they governed against divine laws. They promoted corruption, they promoted disbelief, they fought against divine laws; but the name of Islam was also there. The name of Islam is of no benefit! Of course, some individuals among the people have always been truly faithful and sincere. But the actions of individuals do not affect the fate of a nation. The fate of a nation is determined by the general movement and the majority of the people. Otherwise, if there are a number of good people in society, that is not enough! At that time, it was like this; there was weakness, there was corruption, there was misery, there was the domination of America, at one time there was the domination of Britain, at another time there was the domination of Russia! This nation never achieved the dignity and honor it deserved. From the day this nation entered the field of monotheism, it decided to act according to divine laws and shape its country and establish its government. Therefore, it stepped onto the ladder of dignity and honor. It is true that today the great powers are plotting, deceiving, pressuring, and showing hostility towards the Iranian nation; but even they consider this nation to be a dear and honorable nation. It is a nation that has embarked on the path of building its country and is moving to develop this country. It has decided not to be under the yoke of foreigners; not to take its life, goals, and path from America and others; to decide and act for itself. This is what will elevate any nation to the peak of progress. This decision will save our country and nation.

The first years after the victory of the revolution are naturally difficult years. By God's grace, as time passes, the determination of you people and the honesty and trustworthiness of the country's officials, God willing, will make life better and better, the country more prosperous, and the enemy more disappointed. The condition is that the nation is always present on the scene. The people should always consider themselves in the same front and faction with their government, their parliament, and their officials. The condition is that the government, statesmen, and officials never abandon the path of God, Islam, and monotheism and do not deviate from this path even by a hair's breadth. They should consider the people; they should consider the weak classes; they should consider those who have always had a share in the revolution and will continue to have a share. The condition is that the people's representatives, after this effort and endeavor that, thanks be to God, was made in the elections, consider themselves the attorneys and representatives of the people and think for the people, speak for the people, and work for the people. They should pursue the interests of the country and the path of Islam and nothing else. They should not think of anything else.

I ask the honorable representatives who have been elected to consider this election as a divine blessing. The trust of the people is a divine blessing and is not a small thing. The trust of the people is not easily gained; but if, God forbid, they are negligent, it will be easily lost. They must respect the people's desire, which is the same Islamic faith and the desire to reform the country's affairs, and move only for this purpose. I also ask them that in their electoral districts, where naturally two, three, five, ten candidates were present and one or two were elected, the brother who was elected should not, God forbid, belittle the other brother or consider him outside the country's affairs; no. These are not the words. The people have decided and chosen a brother or a sister. It does not mean that the one who was not elected is outside the scope of work. It is not so. He is also a faithful brother or a capable sister. Among those who were not elected, we know good faces; capable and dignified individuals. The brother who was elected should not consider them outside the scope of the country's and revolution's affairs or belittle them, or if they had supporters among the people, God forbid, hold a grudge against them! To those brothers and sisters who were not elected, I say: the people's vote is respected. We must all follow what they have decided and acted upon. The country's laws are also like this. In parliament, the majority approves something. Some are not in favor, but they submit. Everyone submits to the vote. The people's vote is an important value. The criterion of affairs is the people's vote, and it must be submitted to. The one who was not elected should not be heartbroken and consider himself outside the scope of the country's affairs, politics, and various activities; no. We are all here, and we all work together. Everyone is in a place. One is in parliament; one is in executive bodies; one is in the field of culture, teaching, and education; one is in the university; one is in the seminary; and one is in economic affairs. Everyone is somewhere. We must all work together.

The Imam, on the day he arrived in Tehran, said in Behesht Zahra: 'If for twenty years, the individuals of this nation cooperate, they might be able to rectify these ruins.' At that time, the ruins of war were not yet there; the ruins of bombings were not yet there. Therefore, everyone must cooperate to advance and save the country. They should pay attention that these events—such as being elected or not elected, winning or not winning—should not separate brothers from each other. Everyone must be present, and everyone must serve. Some are in parliament today, some were there before and are not today, some are there today and will not be later.

Whoever is in any position and place should not hold a grudge, resentment, or complaint against anyone. They should not consider anything a position and want to belittle others. The Imam, that great and wise sage, truly felt with all his being that these nominal positions are nothing. He looked at his own great position, which was the position of leadership and before which the world was humble, with small eyes and said: it is nothing. Now these things we are dealing with are in their place! Truly, what importance do these positions or these apparent names and titles have? The main thing is to see how much one can serve. Everyone must serve; everyone must work; everyone must seek success from Almighty God and ask for success to take a step for the country.

We hope that Almighty God will grant all of you brothers and sisters and all the elected representatives of the nation and all individuals of the nation this grace, mercy, and success so that we can correctly recognize our duty and, God willing, perform it, and that the basis of our actions will be the cause of God's pleasure and satisfaction; for this is the most important thing for our world and the hereafter.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings