Speech [Foreign conspiracy to undermine Islam and Islamic leaders]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

I would like to thank the gentlemen for their kindness and the trouble they have taken of coming here to congratulate the Iranian nation.

Foreign agents tarnished the image of Islam in the world. Those who wanted to loot the Muslims' resources made efforts to divest Islam of its power and strove to deface Islam and other religions, saying that these religions were created by capitalists and power-mongers, who considered them as the opium of the masses, to induce a state of lethargy among the masses of people. Their propaganda reached levels that among Muslims, especially the young, who were ignorant of the truth about Islam and did not know anything about it, were deceived and this deception led them to be inclined toward deviated ideologies. This did not suffice and foreign powers went on to introduce Islamic leaders as supporters of the powerful and the rich, making them lose their credibility in their own community, and in the eyes of the youth, thereby divesting them of their leadership. Nevertheless, this adverse propaganda has had an impact on the Islamic societies. On the other hand, they exerted efforts in a bid to create disparity among Muslims and Islamic governments and nations through the extant racial and regional differences. And since Muslim leaders were negligent of, or they intentionally neglected this issue, a disparity consequently emerged between nations and between governments that prompted foreign powers to take advantage of Islamic countries up to the hilt with the Muslims not being able to stand up to them.

It is incumbent upon Muslims to present Islam in its true form to human societies. If Islam is put forth in its true form, everybody will be drawn to it. They (foreign powers) presented Islam in a distorted form and confined it within the walls of the mosque and schools of traditional sciences, which had been cooped up in some Islamic books. All these have been perpetrated through adverse propaganda since hundred years ago, when the foreigners first set foot in Islamic countries. They concocted these stratagems by presenting Islam in a bad light causing Muslims to develop revulsion for it. Likewise, the clergy and religious leaders, who were to propagate and introduce Islam and make it progress, were so discredited in the eyes of the society during these many years, that a gap has arisen between the Islamic states, even in their own internal environment and between the university people and the clergy, between the bazaar and the offices, between the army and the nation, between the workers and employees. They coercively pitted them against each other. Through extensive propaganda, they aggravated this discord and inculcated these differences among the people in order to take advantage of them.

We, the Muslims, are duty-bound to present Islam to the world as it really is. We should all be under one party and that is, the" Party of God". There should not be different parties or factions. The `ulama' of each nation should enlighten its people regarding the conspiracies that foreigners and the colonialists have hatched to sow discord. It is binding on all religious leaders to carry out this duty. Throughout history our nation has been under the yoke of monarchial oppression, had recently become worse than before. And while the nation was under the yoke of oppressors and plunderers, who also divested it of its independence, other governments interfered in the country's affairs. The nation was subjected to so much oppression, pillaging, treacheries and crimes that its endurance snapped and it realized that there was no value in a life of ignobility. A Muslim must not undergo a life of abjectness and adversity. Because of all this, the nation gallantly staged a divine uprising, which included people from all strata, and the entire nation became a single party. Barefooted and armed with the power of faith and the assistance of the Exalted God, this divine party succeeded in triumphing over the great powers which were armed to the teeth with all sorts of weapons. It was this divine power of God and faith that made this nation succeed and gain victory. Now, we are afflicted with problems they (enemies) have created for us. The former Shah reduced this country to ruins and impoverished us in all respects. But with reliance upon the Exalted and Blessed God, we will overcome all the difficulties. We hope all Islamic nations will learn a lesson from the brave Iranian nation and emancipate themselves from the yoke of oppression and tyranny. I implore the Exalted and Blessed God to grant you all success.