Speech [Duty of the heads of Muslim countries and the responsibility of the `ulama' in introducing Islamic programs]

«۱»- " Word" in the Qur'an has been used for various meanings, among them: the promise of truth; monotheism; Islamic call. Refer to the translation of the commentary of Al-Mizan, vol.۶, p.۹۱ and vol.۱۴, p.۱۸۸. «۲»- Heraclius the First (circa ۵۷۵-۶۴۱ CE) defeated Phocas the Byzantine (Eastern Roman Empire) emperor in ۶۱۰ CE and succeeded him as emperor. Initially, Heraclius was defeated in his war with the Persians and lost Syria, Palestine and Egypt. However, he mustered his army and once again attacked the Persians and retrieved his lost lands. The war between the Sasanian (Sassanid) and Byzantine empires ended with the death of Chosroes Parviz, the Persian king. In the last years of his reign, Heraclius remained in his palace eventually dying in ۶۴۱ CE.After the rise of Islam, in ۶۲۸ and ۶۲۹ CE, the Prophet began to disseminate the message of Islam outside of Arabia and to invite the kings and leaders of the neighboring countries to Islam. For example, the Most Noble Messenger in the letters that he wrote to the Byzantine emperor and the king of Persia asked them to free the servants of God and allow them to worship the one God who has no partner and is the True Monarch. The letter that the Prophet sent to the emperor Heraclius read thus:" In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. From Muhammad the Prophet of God to Heraclius the Great Emperor of Rome. Greetings to him who is the follower of righteous guidance. Verily, I bid you to hear the divine call of Islam. Turn to Islam so that you may be saved and God rewards you both in this world and the Hereafter." Say: O People of the Book! Come to common terms as between us and you that we worship none but God and ascribe no partner unto Him and that none of us shall take others for lords besides Him. And if they turn away then say: `Bear witness that we are they who have surrendered unto Him'."[Italics are from Sourah Al-i `Imran (The Family of `Imran) ۳:۶۴. Refer to Tarikh-e Ya`qoubi, p.۴۴۳]. «۳»- The third Muslim century saw the compilation of the various Sunni collections of hadiths (sayings or traditions of the Prophet) into six books recognized as containing authentic or" sound" hadiths and which have since become standard. Of these six collections, referred to as as-Sihah as-Sittah, the" Six Authentic Collections", the most famous and most authoritative is that of Muhammad ibn Isma`il al-Bukhari (۸۱۰-۷۰ CE), Sahih al-Bukhari. Bukhari, who was a Persian, selected out of the ۶۰۰,۰۰۰ traditions he collected from ۱,۰۰۰ shaykhs in the course of sixteen years of travel and labor in Persia, Iraq, Syria, the Hijaz and Egypt some ۷۳۹۷ traditions which he classified according to subject-matter such as prayer, pilgrimage and jihad. Bukhari's tomb outside of Samarqand is still visited by pilgrims today. «۴»- After the conclusion of the Treaty of al-Hudaybiyyah which ensured a period of peace between the Muslims and their enemies, the Prophet of Islam sent letters to the kings and rulers inviting them to embrace Islam. The letters of the Prophet were divided into several categories. One category contains his letters to the kings and princes of different countries, amongst them the four letters of the Prophet of Islam to the rulers of the day: Chosroes Parviz, the Shah of Persia; Heraclius, the Roman Emperor; the Negus (Najashi) of Abyssinia; and Cyrus (al-Muqawqis) the Egyptian ruler. «۵»- In Turkey there are two museums called Istanbul Museum and Ankara Museum which were established in ۱۸۴۶ and ۱۹۲۳, respectively. They contain many historical artifacts and works of art. In ۱۹۶۴, Imam visited these two museums. When he first arrived in Turkey, Imam began to learn the Turkish language by the teach-yourself method and on the third day of his exile he visited the mosques, historical centers and other parts of Ankara. Imam's visits were made under the watchful eye of the Iranian and Turkish security agents. Toward the end of his period of exile in Turkey and while visiting some parts of the city of Izmir, Imam Khomeini saw the graves of forty clergymen. When he asked his Turkish companion the reason for their deaths, he was told that these clergymen were executed on the orders of Ataturk because they opposed his policies and defended Islam. Imam refers to this subject in his later speeches. «۶»- Takwini: meaning" ontological command". Philosophers and theologians distinguish this, which refers to the laws of creation and which all must obey by the very nature of things, from the" legislative [tashri`i] command," which refers to the laws set down by God in revelation and which man can obey or disobey according to his own free will. The" ontological command" is referred to in such verses as:" His command, when He desires a thing, is to say to it" Be" and it is." Sourah Ya-Sin ۳۶:۸۱. «۷»- The abbreviation,"s", stands for the Arabic invocative phrase, s allallahu `alayhi wa alihi wa sallam [may God's salutation and peace be upon him and his progeny], which is used after the name of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (s). «۸»- Seven hundred million is the estimated number of Muslims in the world at the time of the speech. The exact number of Muslims in the world is not known. Statistics on this are in no way accurate because in some countries the Muslim population has not yet been counted; in some other countries people cannot reveal their religious convictions; in a number of countries the enumerators try to present the number of Muslims as being less than it really is for political or ideological reasons. In Europe and America only the sex, age and occupation of the people in the census are often taken into consideration, no interest being shown in their religious convictions. Therefore, it cannot be said with certainty how many Muslims live in those countries. In countries like America and India, converts to Islam are also not considered in the census. Whatever, the number of Muslims in the world exceeds one billion and without a doubt over the past decade that figure has been on the rise. «۹»- Kashmir is situated in north-west India and neighbors Pakistan and Afghanistan. It is a mountainous region of great natural beauty and fertile land covering an area of ۲۴۲ square kilometers and with a population of about five million people. The majority of Kashmiris are Muslim and because they converse mostly in the Persian language Kashmir is also known as" Iran Minor". Before colonization by the British, Kashmir had an independent government, but at the time of the British assault on India, this country was also occupied and until ۱۹۴۷ was controlled by the British. After the division of the Indian subcontinent into two independent states of Pakistan (Muslim) and India (Hindu), the state of Kashmir with a ۷۰ Muslim population was supposed to be incorporated into Pakistan, however, India would not relinquish it and this annexation did not take place. Consequently, in ۱۹۴۹ Kashmir was partitioned, the north-west area becoming Azad Kashmir[ Free Kashmir ]controlled by Pakistan, and the remainder being incorporated into India as the State of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the dispute over Kashmir did not end with partition and both Pakistan and India continued to lay claim to the other's portion. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, against his moral inclinations, opposed the vote of the United Nations Security Council which recommended that the future of Kashmir be determined by a democratic referendum. Nehru approved the laws that the Parliament of Kashmir, which was an artificial Parliament, had ratified calling for union with India (۱۹۵۷). «۱۰»- Sourah Munafiqoun (The Hypocrites) ۶۳:۸.  «۱۱»- After the death of Jesus, many of his followers began to record accounts of his life and teachings and these were called Gospels. However, the only known surviving Gospel written by a disciple of Jesus, that is, by a man who spent most of his time in the actual company of Jesus during the three years in which he was delivering his message, is the Gospel of Barnabas. This Gospel was accepted as a canonical Gospel in the churches of Alexandria until ۳۲۵ CE when the famous Council of Nicea was held and the doctrine of the Trinity was declared to be the official doctrine of the Pauline Church. One of the consequences of this decision was that out of the three hundred or so Gospels extant at that time, four were chosen as the official Gospels of the Church; these were the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John which the Christians of today follow. The remaining Gospels, including the Gospel of Barnabas, were ordered to be destroyed completely. An edict was issued stating that anyone found in possession of an unauthorized Gospel would be put to death. This was the first well-organized attempt to remove all the records of Jesus' original teachings, whether in human or book form, which contradicted the doctrine of the Trinity. In the case of the Gospel of Barnabas, these attempts were not entirely successful and mention of its continued existence has been made up to the present day. It has been banned by the Popes over the centuries and is included in the list of Apocryphal[ hidden from the people ]and forbidden books. Those who have studied the Evangelium Barnabe remark on the fullness of its account of Jesus' life and teachings and how different this account is from that given in the four accepted Gospels. The Gospel of Barnabas declares the unity of God, foretells the coming of the Prophet of Islam and states that Christ was not crucified by the Romans but that Judas, the betrayer of Christ, was transformed by the Creator to resemble Jesus and was crucified in his stead. In the Gospels accepted today, many of the laws and injunctions are ignored, except for a few cases, and the main message contained in them is to obey God and His commandments, refrain from sin, to be kind and humble, not to be proud, to boast or be unjust. For more information on this subject, refer to The Gospel of Barnabas and Jesus, A Prophet of Islam by Muhammad `Ata ur-Rahim. «۱۲»- Some of the Islamic countries which have freed themselves from the direct domination of foreigners and have apparently regained their independence in the last half a century are listed: Algeria, Tunisia, Chad, Djibouti, Sudan, Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Morocco, Mauritania, Niger, from French colonialism; Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Gambia, Maldives, Sierra Leone, Oman, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nigeria, South Yemen, from British colonialism; Libya from Italian colonialism; and Somalia from British and Italian colonialism. «۱۳»- Khums: literally means one-fifth. According to the Shi`ah school of jurisprudence [fiqh], this one-fifth tax is obligatorily levied on every adult Muslim who is financially secure and has surplus in his income out of annual savings, net commercial profits, and all movable and immovable properties which are not commensurable with the needs and social standing of the person. Khums is divided into two equal parts: the Share of the Imam [sahm al-Imam] and the Share of the Sayyids/Sadat (descendants of the Prophet) [sahm as-Sadat]. Accordingly, the Share of the Imam is to be paid to the living Imam, and in the period of Occultation, to the most learned living mujtahid who is the giver's marja` at-taqlid [Source of Emulation]. The other half of the khums, the Share of the Sayyids/Sadat, is to be given to needy pious Sayyids who lack the resources for one's year respectable living in consonance with their various statuses. For more information, see Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi, Khums: An Islamic Tax, http://www.al-islam.org/beliefs/practices/khums.html. «۱۴»- Mafatih al-Jinan [Keys to the Gardens of Paradise]: the standard manual of Shi`i devotion containing the supplicatory prayers of the Imams, as well as formulae for recitation at particular times or during visitation of the tombs of the Imams. Its compiler, Shaykh `Abbas Qummi, was a scholar of vast learning who died in Najaf in ۱۹۴۰. «۱۵»- Refer to the biographies of people such as Muhammad ibn `Abdul Wahhab, the founder of Wahhabism; Shaykh Zaynuddin Ahmad Ihsa'i, the leader of the Shaykhi sect and Sayyid Kazim Rashti, his successor. «۱۶»- It refers to the hadith:" Knowledge is a light which God places in the heart of those He wishes." Al-Mahajjat al-Bayda', vol.۵, p.۴۵. «۱۷»- al-Islam Abou Hamid Muhammad ibn Ghazzali at-Tousi was born in Iran in ۱۰۵۸ at Tous, Khorasan, where he died in ۱۱۱۱. Al-Ghazzali is recognized by many as a great theologian of Islam and the final authority for Sunni orthodoxy. Starting his religious life as orthodox, al- Ghazzali soon turned to Sufism. He spent many years roaming from place to place before eventually going to Baghdad to preach and teach. It was there that he composed what many see as his masterpiece, Ihya' `Uloum ad-Din [The Revivification of the Sciences of Religion]. His other well-known works include: Fatihat al-`Uloum; Tahafut al-Falasifah; Al-Iqtisad fi'l-I`tiqad and Kimiya-ye Sa`adat [Alchemy of Happiness] which is Ihya' `Uloum ad-Din re-presented on a smaller scale for Persian readers. Al-Ghazzali was, however, among a number of classical Sunni authorities who attempted to legitimize both the hereditary caliphate and the usurpation of power by military dynasties, by means of their political theories. The influence of these theories has far outlived the circumstances that produced them and it continues to affect the political attitudes of Sunni Muslims, although it is now diminishing. «۱۸»- Al-Nu`man ibn Thabit (۶۶۹-۷۶۷ CE), also known as Abou Hanifah the founder of the Hanafi school of thought, was of Iranian origin and was born in Koufah. Although a merchant by profession, Abou Hanifah learnt Islamic jurisprudence [fiqh] in his youth and became an influential jurist. However, he regarded the Qur'an as being created and he did not attach special importance to the hadiths [sayings and traditions] of the Prophet rejecting many (about four hundred) and only accepting a few as being" sound" or correct and thus applicable. He insisted on the right of qiyas or analogical deduction in his teachings, leading to what we call legal fiction. In all fields, he exaggerated some points and ignored others. Abou Hanifah was a student of Imam Ja`far as-Sadiq (`a) for two years. One day Imam as-Sadiq found Abou Hanifah's answer to a question on Islamic jurisprudence to be incorrect. He reproached him and said:" Woe unto you. What is your reference? Fear God and do not apply analogical deduction based on your own reasoning." «۱۹»- Calling one's soul to account is examining one's deeds, one's thoughts and one's heart in order to purify one's soul. Imam Khomeini, in his ethical and mystical work, Sharh-e Chehel Hadith [An Exposition of Forty Hadiths], cites the examination of one's soul as well as binding oneself with the resolve not to do anything against God's commands [musharatah] and guarding against evil [muraqabah] as necessary acts of a seeker of truth who is battling with his self [mujahid]. «۲۰»- The word awliya' has been retained here because of the depth of its meaning. Normally translated as helpers, friends, guardians, administrators, Hamid Algar in his book Islam and Revolution p.۳۶۱, n.۲, informs us that the word awliya' also refers to those who possess the quality of intrinsic wilayah i. e. governance. In Shi`i belief, they are the foremost among the prophets and the Twelve Imams who succeeded Prophet Muhammad (s). The word awliya' indicates primarily their spiritual rank, whereas the word Imam designates their function of leadership. According to some theologians, the awliya' are those whose belief is sound, who perform their religious duties and who as a result have attained proximity to God. In the general sense that can be deduced from the Qur'an, ۱۰:۶۲-۶۳:" Verily the friends [awliya'] of God- those who believe and guard against evil- shall suffer no fear nor shall they grieve," it means" friends."