Speech [The Shah himself as the prime culprit behind all of the crimes in Iran]

Today, on October 26 [Aban 4], even Iran's own radio service has spoken of demonstrations and disturbances taking place in many of the cities in Iran; and according to reports, people in Qum, northern Tehran and certain other places have dressed in black clothing; black banners also being in evidence in some places.

There are different kinds of birthdays: one kind of birthday is something from which goodness springs; it is a source of blessings; it is something which leads to the oppressor being crushed and to the idol- and fire-temples being destroyed. This is the kind of birthday which pertains to the Holy Prophet (s). It has been said that the fire in the temple «1» at Pars was extinguished and that the columns of Taq-e Kasra (Khosroe's Palace) «2» tumbled to the ground. History has spoken of this demolition and extirpation, but the point to bear in mind is that at that time two powerful forces were in existence: one of them comprising the oppressive rulers of the day, and the other, the fire-worshipping clerical authorities, and with the birth of the Holy Prophet, because he had been brought into this world, these two forces were eventually destroyed. One of them being the awe-inspiring columns of Taq-e Kasra which served as a visible sign of these powerful forces came tumbling down.

`Anoushirvan the Just' «3» of whom some speak, is nothing but a myth! He was in fact a cruel tyrant of a man, but maybe he was called" just" in comparison to other kings, for otherwise how could he possibly be called" Anoushirvan the Just"?! It was with the birth of the Holy Prophet into this world that these columns of oppression collapsed. That is, the roots of oppression were eradicated and the flames of dualism, polytheism and fire-worship were extinguished because the Prophet came into the world; the foundations of both of the powerful forces which prevailed at that time were destroyed because of him. The following two basic principles then became widespread via the Holy Prophet, monotheism grew world-wide, and, God willing, still continues to grow; and the essential purpose of prophethood was actually realized, for the real purpose of prophethood is a prophet's mission to wipe out the roots of power held by those in authority who treat the people unfairly. Thus, the Prophet had come to wipe out these roots of oppression, to destroy these columns of oppression which were so impressive, these palace columns which were erected through the hard toil of these poor people, through the torment suffered by these poor people, through the exploitation of these poor powerless people. And at the same time, since that which really matters is the spread of monotheism, the Prophet destroyed those places from where fire and beings other than God were worshipped, and he extinguished the fires therein.

However, quite the opposite results from the births of certain other people, and October 26 is a case in point. Of course, I must beg the Holy Prophet's forgiveness for mentioning his birthday in conjunction with that of this despicable wretch (the Shah), but it is a case of wanting to compare light to darkness, of comparing a true human being to one who is inhuman. And it is this inauspicious birthday[ of the Shah ]which has led to the present state of affairs of which you are all aware. These two affairs concerning the signs of polytheism and oppression constituted the reason for the Holy Prophet's coming and indeed both of these signs were eventually wiped out by him, but the situation with regard to them both was reversed with the birth of this person! That is to say, the birth of this person has led to a situation where both fire worshippers and the worship of fire have gained strength and have been promoted, and where the roots of oppression have become increasingly firm. And this is especially the case in our own country of Iran. One side of the story in Iran concerns the fire worshippers who live in and around Yazd, «4» and who have been given so much encouragement and support, that according to the newspapers, these American fire worshippers even wrote to the Shah thanking him and stating that no one else had hitherto supported and honored their faith to the extent that he had. It was God's will that our people soon awoke. Even though they awoke after the fact, they nevertheless awoke in time and were thus able to prevent this person from following his plans through. The American fire worshippers and the wealthy among them had intended to impose their will upon him (the Shah), or perhaps it was also a case of him being found willing, but whatever, there was more to this affair than that which I have mentioned. There was much more involved than the issues I have pointed to and indeed these issues were of a more delicate nature.

It all began when he helped to promote some of the fire temples and changed the calendar whereby time was reckoned according to Zoroastrian history rather than that of Islam. God knows that this act of betrayal by him toward Islam and this affront to the Holy Prophet (s) constitute a crime of much more serious proportions than that of these killings which he has brought about. If we were to balance all these killings against this one deed which involved changing the official calendar of Islam, changing the symbol of monotheism, the symbol of humanity, into these things which relate to fire worshippers, into a fire worshippers' calendar, a calendar for the Zoroastrians, then we would see that this crime outweighs all of the other crimes that he has committed against us. This person wanted to ruin Islam's reputation and worth; he wanted to destroy the symbol of Islam. He has sent our oil to them, taking it and giving it away to them. These are things which matter in material terms only but which nevertheless clearly constitute a crime. Giving a country's reserves away to foreigners constitutes a crime against a nation, but changing the calendar constitutes an affront to the reputation of Islam. And this is exactly what this person has done. Indeed, if it were not for that punch which the nation gave him in the mouth, thus compelling him to bring back the Islamic calendar and dispose with the Zoroastrian calendar, then this affair would have developed even further. Basically, they had intended to return things to the way they were before the Holy Prophet of Islam, to the time of those tyrannical kings; those vicious murderers; and they had intentions of behaving as the latter had done and of bringing about the same state of affairs that had existed at the time of these kings.

" Pan-Iranianism" «5» is the belief that Iran must preserve its Iranian identity! But do the ancient kings mean everything to you? Are the ancient kings all that you can claim to have had in the past? Just look at what these kings did to the people. And the same goes for that group which comprised the Magi «6» and others like them, just look at how they treated the people of Iran.

As for the other side of the story, this concerns how the Holy Prophet behaved toward his own people when he came and called on them to believe in monotheism, and even how he behaved toward those infidels who paid tribute to the Islamic state, those people who were against religion. Hadrat Amir (Imam `Ali), may God's peace be upon him, once said that he had heard of an army of soldiers- apparently they had been Mu`awiyah's soldiers- arriving at a certain place and of them stealing, among other things, an anklet from the foot of a non-Muslim [dhimmi], «7» from the foot of a woman who was either Jewish or Christian. Accounts describe how Hadrat Amir then said:" Even if one died of grief because of this incident, this would not be an overreaction." This is the kind of person he was. This is the kind of ruler we seek. We seek the kind of regime whose ruler, whose king- indeed, it is impertinent of me to call Hadrat Amir" king"- whose ruler, whose leader, is like he who governed over a range of countries including the Hijaz, Iran, Egypt and so on; like he who showed concern for all of his subjects, including the person who was not of his own faith. On the very day that they swore allegiance to Hadrat Amir, accepting him as their sultan as it were, as their Imam and Caliph, once homage had been paid to him, he took up his pick and went to work, for he was someone who used to get things done himself, through his own toil. But why should he have done this- why did he dig the soil? Once he had in fact dug a well; someone came to him to congratulate him after which he replied:" It is the succeeding generations that you should congratulate." He then asked that a pen be brought to him and he endowed the place in question to the indigent. «8» Yes, we seek a ruler like Hadrat Amir, who would sit and reckon the accounts of the public treasury in the light emitted from one lamp, from one paraffin lamp or oil lamp or whatever kind of lamp they used at that time. In fact, on one occasion Hadrat Amir was busy making such calculations when somebody called on him to discuss something which bore no relation to the work in which the Hadrat was engaged at that moment. Imam `Ali therefore turned out the light saying:" Until this moment I was reckoning the accounts of the public treasury. This light is public property and I was using it to enable me to do work which relates to the people's property, but now that you wish to speak to me about something else, something which bears no relation to the public treasury, why should we continue to use the people's lamp? Of course no one can behave as Hadrat Amir did, no one in the world is capable of this, but the least we ask is that our ruler be someone who is not a thief! Now we have reached the stage where we will be content to have a ruler who at least does not steal to such an extent, a ruler who will not plunder the wealth of these people so, or oppress them in this way.

As I previously explained, the birth of the Most Noble Messenger (s), led to the fires in the fire-temples being or rather it can be said that he extinguished the fire-temples of oppression, but on the contrary, his (the Shah's) intention to relight the fires in such temples. According to what they say, he has actually given his approval and support to some of the fire temples which are located around Yazd. Furthermore, he changed the calendar and he had intended to continue with this line of action, putting such plans into effect one by one that is, of course, until the nation came to the rescue and caused the columns of Khosroe's Palace to tumble to the ground, meaning that oppression needs to be destroyed in the same way. Do you now see what he did to this nation? Do you see how he has oppressed and continues to oppress this nation? Yet even at this late hour, now that his number is up and his efforts are in vain, he has come up with certain ideas! From what they say, the regime has sent a certain group of people to Kerman, people who are supposedly kolis, people whom they call vagrants- now whether the regime paid these people to go there or not I do not know- but it is similar to what happened in the year when Faydiyyah Madrasah was stormed. On that occasion I was present; I was in Qum when those SAVAK agents and those commandos posing as" peasants" charged into Faydiyyah Madrasah, setting fire to the Qur'an, setting fire to turbans, flinging people to their deaths from the roof. And all this was supposedly done because the peasants no longer favored the akhound! It was claimed that these peasants no longer desired to follow the Qur'an, that they did not want the akhound! But is this really the case? Whenever the peasant is questioned as to what he desires, he replies that he desires both the Qur'an and Islam.

Those commandos and the others who you (the Shah) trained in order to crush Islam, are they really our peasants? Yes indeed, I was present to witness events and to see what they (the regime) did on that occasion. They even came to my home at that time, but the harsh reaction I showed toward them prevented them from fulfilling their intentions. The whole incident at Faydiyyah began during a gathering there. Certain speakers wished to speak at this gathering, and I had either already spoken or was due to speak when someone told me, and indeed I myself witnessed, that an uncalled for s alawat had been chanted. I then instructed a friend to announce that should anyone attempt to cause trouble at the gathering, then I would ascend the pulpit in the courtyard of the holy shrine of Hadrat Ma`soumah (r) and would speak out to the people there. Those agents present were not the sort of people to persist with such behavior knowing that it would bring about such consequences; and since they were at a loss as to what they should do, they left the gathering. It was on that same day that they poured into Faydiyyah Madrasah and went wild; it was on that very same afternoon that they committed those outrages in Faydiyyah Madrasah.

On that particular day it was in the guise of peasants that they ran riot and behaved so disgracefully and now they have started to claim that it is the kolis who are doing whatever. The regime's agents poured into the city of Kerman in the guise of kolis, and they have done the same elsewhere, in other cities, cities such as Hamedan where the people were so savagely attacked. It is said that the same has also happened in Zanjan. As for Qum, disturbances, shootings and killings have been going on for the past two or three days now, and the city has been in a state of unrest as have some parts of Tehran. Even today, I listened to a number of reports broadcast over Iranian radio which named many different places where there is unrest and so on. And so there we have the people's celebration for October 26, the day which commemorates his birthday! Black is being worn today. Yes, the radio mentioned one or two places- I think it was Maragheh or somewhere- where this and that had happened, and then the radio continued to give some account or other of events there. As for who did what, I do not know how valid their accounts are or who was actually involved in these events; but having said that, the fact remains that many cities have been quoted over the radio even though the truth is without doubt something other than that which they have been reporting. There is certainly more to it than this, and news of what actually occurred during these events will no doubt reach you later.

While two important events came to pass because of the Most Noble Messenger's birth, those being: the end of polytheistic and fire-worshipping tendencies, and the collapse of the columns of oppression, now his (the Shah's) birth has in fact served to rekindle fire-worshipping! If he had been given the chance he would have revived the principles of fire-worshipping, for we already saw how he had changed the calendar, and had erected those towers besetting oppression. It is such towers of oppression which give rise to these holocausts of fire. What exactly had those poor people who had gone to the cinema «9» done to warrant the Chief of Police going and closing the doors (while the cinema was ablaze) and refusing to allow the people to open them? Of course it must be said that the cinema in Iran is not really a place which one should frequent. This is one of the tragedies in Iran that the cinemas there serve to corrupt and ruin our youth. In spite of this fact certain people had indeed gone to the cinema on this occasion, but even so, why should they have been treated in this way? Evidently certain incendiary devices had been planted there with the intention of creating a fire, of burning those poor people alive, of turning them into ashes. And the whole purpose was to make others out to be terrorists! Surely though, there was no need to go so far as to commit such a terrorist act yourselves and then to place the blame on other supposed terrorists. But then these are the kind of people they are.

This is the kind of regime the Iranian people have to put up with. They (the regime) committed that shameful act in Kerman, storming the mosque there, suffocating a group of those present by means of certain gases, killing another group comprising men and women, adults and children, setting fire to everything in the mosque, in the Muslim's place of worship; and then they invaded the bazaar, looting it and setting it ablaze. Yet now, after all that, they say that they intend to send some people to discover who actually committed such a deed! But who does he intend to send to make enquiries? Does he mean to send the same people that he sent to discover who had caused the incident in Abadan (i.e. the Rex Cinema tragedy)?! Does" His Imperial Majesty" wish to punish the ruthless brutes who committed this act? He himself is that person! It is he who is the source of all the tyranny and misery suffered by the people.

If the people of Iran do not make a move and put an end to this soon, then there are many things which he intends to do. This nation must be rescued. Everyone, wherever they may be, must help these people; otherwise this man will destroy the very fabric of society. Now, having behaved so disgracefully in Kerman and having laid the blame on the kolis or whoever- no one being more of a koli than he (the Shah) himself- yes, now he has sent people to conduct a so-called public enquiry into who carried out such an act, who committed such an atrocious deed! But sir, the nation can no longer believe these things that you say. From the very beginning of events in Abadan, the people of that city took to the streets of their own volition for they realized that they (the regime) were the ones who were responsible for this crime. They realized this because it was evident that if someone or some trouble-maker had wanted to carry out this deed in such a smooth manner, if he had wanted to create a fire with such skill, to plant incendiary substances so effectively and then to close the cinema doors thus preventing anyone from leaving the cinema... there is no way that he could have achieved this. And this is why people began to make their voices heard (in protest), and why now, whenever such incidents occur, the people themselves are aware of who is to blame. Again, anti-regime protests were widely held when the people went to visit the cemetery. «10» And this is how things now are in Kerman; how they are in Hamedan; how they are in Zanjan. Now he (the Shah) has recently made the decision to silence the people in this way. The people all know that these acts of oppression are all performed on his orders. There is no way that a member of the police would set people on fire unless he had been given leave to do so by him (the Shah). Do you really think they would dare to kill someone without his permission- without his instructions, without his strict instructions?

On Khordad 15 (June 5), he himself was in command. From what they say he commanded the forces himself. He who is in command in all of these different places is this very man. This man's birth has been the source of all the sufferings of the people of Iran; God willing, this source of oppression will be removed (the audience cries," Amen"), may He cast this black flag to the ground (the audience cries,"Amen"); and soon so He shall, God willing. This is something which is about to take place. This kind of frantic action that we now see is that of an animal whose head has been severed and who now wants to make a last desperate struggle.

Be that as it may, we are all duty-bound, all of us. Those of us here all have a duty to perform. Each one of you, if possible, must pass on written material about Iran to the newspapers here, to the journals here, to your fellow students and to the universities here. Pass on information about the situation in Iran. Tell the people about Iran. Their propaganda is widespread.

Even now there may still be certain people who are not aware of what is really going on. Is America right in saying that the people are upset because they have been given freedom, because they have been given too much freedom too quickly? Have the Iranian people got indigestion because of the freedom that has been given to them?! Has the nation raised its voice because it has been given too much freedom?! Indeed, this is how Mr. Carter sees it! And the newspapers- either Kayhan or Ittila`at- have quoted him as saying that a quick democracy has been brought about, a sudden new-found freedom has been given, and that this is why the people are now opposing him (the Shah)! Is this really the case? Is it that he has granted freedom, and because of this the people still cry out:" We want freedom, we want freedom?!" Are they crying out because of the independence and the `great civilization' that they enjoy?! Again only today, this man (the Shah)- I do not know what he is made of- was talking about how everyone could see for themselves how much freedom there is in Iran; how everyone could see the freedom he had granted to this nation. Only today, October 26, did he say these things. I really can't figure out what makes these people tick! I am astonished! God knows there is indeed call to be astonished, firstly, at the kind of people they are.

And secondly, at the fear that has arisen among the Muslim people that, as the Shah puts it:" If it weren't for me the communists would take over." The world would in fact come to an end! Without him (the Shah) there is no Iran! Indeed, Iran is Muhammad Rida! Without him Iran would no longer exist! Thus, he argues that we Iranians wish to live in our own country, we wish to resolve our differences or whatever in our own country; but he says that if he were not there then there would no longer be an Iran! Those young people who shout slogans «11» such as these, slogans which are false and groundless; those people are presently assisting the regime. On the one hand they are assisting it by trying to make a group of people afraid of a possible communist takeover should the Shah leave- although in fact these kinds of remarks no longer frighten the people. On the other hand, these very differences of opinion which exist between us and between the young people themselves, this dichotomy which is to be found among the young people, serves to assist this regime whereby those of you who are under the impression that you are helping to bring the Shah down, are in fact, paradoxically strengthening the bases of his oppression. I regret the fact that these youngsters are assisting the regime in this way without even being aware of what they are doing. Those who ask you to chant these slogans are those who are actually allied to this very regime. These communists who belong to the officially recognized Toudeh Party, these leading communist figures, in actual fact serve his (the Shah's) regime and our children, our youngsters, will have been taken in if they go along with their game. The light of Islam still lies within these youngsters but they have been deceived. They ought to break away from these criminals, from those who urge them to join their outfit. These people in fact want to save the Shah and you are unaware of this. It makes no difference whether they are inside the country or abroad. Propaganda is being disseminated under various pretexts in order to save this person (the Shah). Whatever means possible are being resorted to so that this person can remain, and this affair (concerning the supposed threat of communism) is one such means. Wake up. These youngsters of ours are to pay close attention to what is currently going on for events which are now unfolding are crucial.

The defeat of communism in Iran

If what they say is true and one and a half thousand students have staged a pro-communist demonstration, then this itself is a sign of the defeat of communism in Iran. The very fact that a mere one and a half thousand people are standing in confrontation against a population of thirty million, all of whom have risen the banner (of Islam) and are crying out for the Qur'an, is itself proof that these (communists) have suffered a defeat in Iran. Hence, it is not the case that the communists would take over should he (the Shah) leave. If he should leave, not even a single communist would be found in Iran; for even if we suppose that instead of one and a half thousand people, five thousand people are now standing in confrontation against the rest of the population, these youngsters of ours in Qum alone could easily deal with them. There would be no need for those in Tehran to assist in any way, for our youngsters in Qum alone could deal with these communists. What on earth are the communists capable of doing? They have tricked you. Everything that they say is mere rhetoric. They wish to use you to the Shah's advantage. They have now exploited you; they have made fools of you.

Do not listen to what they have to say. Unite and cry out with one voice. Join the Muslims in their cries. If you were to cry out in unison, then it would be all over for him (the Shah). Do not sow discord. A house divided against itself cannot stand. Today, the presence of differences means suicide for the Muslims. Everyone must unite. Everyone must cry out in unison. Everyone must cry out for the same thing, they must all cry:" Death to this Shah and to this monarchy; death to those who support him, such as Carter and others like him." This is what we are crying out and this is what will make the people succeed. Do not be afraid of these things that they say and all this commotion that they make. Can a nation which has risen up to make a legitimate claim carry on living under oppression? We all saw for ourselves how the martial law governments were unable to do anything about the situation. In Qum for example, isn't martial law still in force there? Yet for the past three or four days now, anti-regime slogans have rung out in the city. Clashes have broken out there. Unrest prevails. And what about the situation in Tehran, is that any different? No indeed, the situation there is the same.

I beseech God, the Blessed and Exalted, to grant good health to all of those brethren both inside the country and abroad, who are making sacrifices for the sake of Islam. May God grant you all success. May He grant you all good health. Everyone must make an effort to assist this nation which has now risen up and is shedding its blood. Everyone must cooperate seriously with this nation so that, God willing, it may succeed. Right now, in order for you who are abroad to cooperate, you must propagate the nation's message. The people there in Iran are having to deal with commandos and those so-called" kolis"- who are in fact commandos also- and they are presently shedding their blood, whereas those of you who are here, abroad, must help your fellow countryman in whatever way possible by means of propagation (those present chant a s alawat).