[In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful]
Vague future and the heavy burden of responsibility
Gentlemen, you must be aware of how grim the future looks and how heavy our responsibility has become as a result of the recent turn of events. The events which are now occurring threaten the very basis of Islam with destruction. A calculated conspiracy has been organized against Islam, the nation of Islam and the independence of Iran. You are to realize that this event cannot be compared to the former disturbance (concerning the Provincial and District Councils Bill) nor can we respond to it in the same way.
Our opponent is the Shah himself
On the face of things that disturbance concerned the government; it was the government to which we directed our opposition; and it was the government which was seen as having been defeated. But the defeat or even the fall of a government in a system of rule is not something of great importance. It is not something which would destroy the basis of a regime. Indeed, on occasion a regime purposely resorts to overthrowing the government in order to consolidate and secure the regime's position. In this case, however, that with which we are now confronted and against which we are directing our grievances and opposition is the Shah himself- someone who now finds his life hanging in the balance; and as he himself stated, to succumb on this occasion would mean his downfall and ruin. Therefore, he has no choice but to succeed in implementing this proposed policy no matter what it takes. Not only will he not surrender and do away with his plans, but he will fight against any opposition with all of his might and with the utmost fierceness. Hence, we must not expect the system to surrender as it did last time. Moreover, it is a bounden duty for us to fight in opposition since the danger which now threatens the people cannot be ignored or taken lightly.
Our duty in facing the imperialist trap
In order to delude and mislead the nation, the government has set an elaborate trap, and has engaged in a series of deceptive, misleading moves. If we fail to awaken and inform the masses before they fall into the colonial trap, which has been set for them, the nation of Islam will find itself on the verge of destruction. It will be deceived and led astray and if that happens not only will the `ulama' and the clergymen of Islam also inevitably follow a deviated path, which, God forbid, will lead to their extirpation, but they will be answerable before God Almighty as to why, having seen the trap, they did not warn the blind and thus prevent them from falling into it. If only we could make the people aware of the Shah's schemes and conspiracies and keep them from being deceived and influenced by this deceptive plan of his, then without doubt, we would overpower him and make him face defeat. When we do not wish to engage in a war with tanks and cannons- which he reckons we are incapable of doing anyway- and when fists are no match for what he has to fight with, then what are we to do? The best thing we can do is to make the people aware of what is happening; and should we succeed in this, then the formidable force we represent will become apparent. We shall constitute a force which is indestructible even when confronted by tanks and cannons. In the meantime, as I said earlier, a difficult and dangerous path lies before us. Those who believe that they have a duty to fight, must consider the consequences and see to what extent they are able to endure the hardships and difficulties that they are likely to be subject to along this chosen path and ...