Statements [Abolition of the Provincial and District Councils Bill]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful" Hast thou not seen how thy Lord dealt with the owners of the Elephant? Did he not bring their stratagem to naught and send against them swarms of flying creatures which pelted them with stones of the baked clay and made them like green crops devoured (by cattle) ?" «2»

After being informed that the administration has passed an enactment maintaining that the Provincial and Districts Councils Bill is not appropriate to be executed, I made sure that the issue is resolved; however, I feared again that the government was trying to deceive us and was trying to persuade the `ulama' somehow to stop them from holding the important religious session in Sayyid `Azizullah Mosque, and I am still suspicious because the administration did not keep its promise with regard to announcing the enactment in the radio and the press. They were just afraid of that session which was to be held in Tehran. They think holding such a session takes us a lot of money, just like when they want to organize an embarrassing meeting for themselves they have to expend thousands of tumans «3» to gather a few people. No, that is not the case.

All the people abide by their `ulama' and if the `ulama' summon the Muslims to gather on the outskirts of Tehran, they would obey and leave their businesses. Muslims would not leave the Qur'an for worldly offices and endanger the religion of God.

We have so far advised the administration and meant peace, but they deceive us. They should know that the `ulama' of Islam are informed men and a discerning religious person cannot keep quiet when he sees the Qur'an and religion in danger. Any Muslim who has the faintest suspicion- even one in a thousand- that the Qur'an is in danger should not keep calm. People were robbed of their resources, and endured; they were deprived of material belongings, and bore it; but now they are encroaching on the Qur'an and the Muslims' reputation. The provinces of this country should be directed and maintained by Muslims. They wanted to surrender the destiny of the Muslims to the non-Muslims, such as the Jewish Baha'is, by passing the Provincial and District Councils Bill and eliminating the prerequisite condition of `Islam' for the voters and the elected. If the provinces of the country are surrendered to the non-Muslims, it is not improbable that you would hear vocalizations other than the Qur'an from their cursed throats and that would be the day we are prone to great dangers. Not only will Islam and the Qur'an be maintained, but also you will lose all your dignity. The economy, the business and the resources of the country will all be ruined. Beware, O the faithful! The foreigners are dreaming of ruining Iran and the Muslim nation. There is no hindrance to them except the Qur'an. They have ordered their agents to eliminate the Qur'an in any way they can. They are unaware of the sacred blood and invaluable lives it has cost the Muslims to protect it. It is Friday today and anyone who is listening should communicate it to the others and make people informed so that they might tell the government:" We will not readily hand over the provinces of this country to the Jews disguised as Baha'is." Beware! Great is the danger and grave is the duty. We owe a lot to the Qur'an and the religion of Islam; it would not be easy to repay. Anyway, the enemies of the religion and country should understand that they encounter a nation that possesses discerning scholars, economically educated traders, and doctors, and they will never be deceived; but they will defend Islam and their country with all their power.

My faithful brothers! They have made a plaything of our national and religious sanctities. They force the press to write articles against the religion and the public interests. You can observe the newspapers are writing about the scandalous and shameful acts of Dey 17 that has sparked the corruption everywhere. They allocate a whole page to advertising alcoholic drinks. They display symbols of sex and obscenity everywhere in their newspapers and magazines and lead the Muslim society to immorality and indecency, but they do not include in them even a word about the Islamic laws and the public feelings.

In order to ruin the clergymen's reputation, they dress a number of their fellows as members of the clergy and the Intelligence Organization forces the press to print their pictures and introduce them as drug dealers and malefactors so that they could discredit the clergymen. But the public and even they themselves (the government) know better that the clergymen make their own frugal living and defend Islam, independence, the reputation of Islam and Muslims and consequently they continue to be honorable in front of God and the Prophet and among themselves. Dishonorable and ashamed in front of God and the people are those who build multi-story palaces after a few days being in office and ministry and bring misery to the nation. Shame deserves those few whose «4» is celebrated by the nation, I do not know what the nation will do out of happiness when they fall.

Anyway, the `ulama' of Islam will not mean any harm. We are on our way to protect Qur'an and the nation and will not spare any needed efforts. I have been told by a number of people that they were ready to be killed. I told them if we see that our Qur'an is in danger, we ourselves will step forward and will not let the people volunteer. Let us be killed before our Qur'an is destroyed[ the audience weeps ]. We will not readily watch the honor of clergymen and Islam shattered in front of our eyes by the rule of just a few persons, or our religion and the Holy Qur'an destroyed. We are fully prepared. We should join hands and not let this ship sink. We should not permit the traitors against religion and clergymen to freely do whatever they wish; we will not, God willing; just as they have tried before many times to conspire for achieving their evil ends, but they failed. First in Qum and once again in Mashhad they ordered their agents to tell people that the issue was resolved, to stop people from uprising, but they failed.

So far, we have been amiable toward them and confined ourselves to advice and admonition, and did not allow the people to get furious but if someday the nation will leave their homes in fury, things will be quite different then. At that time, the soldiers will throw their bayonets away and the gendarmes will reject their rifles. The day comes when neither the palaces of `Alam nor the places higher than that would be saved. I have no correspondence with the Shah, so I send him the verbal message that the country is in danger. He had better order `Alam to take notice of the nation's requests or just keep aside, letting us to negotiate with them ourselves; and if he wants to be obstinate, he should know that a group of few can not spite a whole nation.

At the end, I have to notify you of the point that the foreigners and enemies of the religion and nation who seek their interests in the elimination of the Qur'an and religiosity, mistakenly believed that they were free to achieve their vile ends and there was no force to stop them. Yet, this movement taught them that the `ulama' of Islam and the Muslims are alive and awake and will powerfully prevent their intrusions. They are like an injured snake now, waiting for the opportunity to find the Muslims negligent in order to bite Islam and Muslims. You should be vigilant. Strengthen your unity and set protecting the Qur'an as one of your daily concerns. Beware! The Qur'an is the trust of God and the Prophet, and it has been handed down to us at the price of the Prophet's beloved and holy person's blood and we should protect this trust strongly and hand it to the Muslims after us. We are in the Presence of God. If we fall short, we are guilty in front of the Exalted Truth. You are like our brothers and children and we mean good to you. You are uncomfortable and our house is small. You took the trouble and I could not even entertain you as my guests. I pray for you and all the Muslims in this Friday evening. May the Lord offer you all good in this world and in the hereafter! O God! Grant glory to Islam and its followers and bring despise to atheism and its followers. O God! Bring disgrace to whoever disgraces Islam and the Muslims. O God! Bring their stratagem to naught. O God! Send against them swarms of flying creatures, and pelt them with stones of baked clay. O God! Make them like green crop devoured (by cattle) . «5»