Speech [Qur'anic and Islamic uprising]

I seek refuge in God from the accursed Satan

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Praise be to the martyrs of the path of freedom! Peace be upon the martyrs from all over Iran! Praise be to the martyrs of the city of Qum! Praise be to you, the chivalrous youth! Praise be to the dauntless ladies and youth of Qum! Praise be to the ladies and youth throughout Iran! I was separated from you at a time when the majority of today's youth were still children and I have come back to serve you at a time when we have lost many of them (to the Revolution). Many of those youths whom we have not seen and now we can see their pictures around (pasted on the walls), were martyred and attained the honor of martyrdom in the path of Islam, in the path of the glorious Qur'an, in the path of freedom and independence and in the path of the great Islamic goal and the just Islamic government, that is, the Islamic republic. You, the powerful youth of Iran, the dynamic youth of Qum, have acquired the right to the esteemed (religion of) Islam. We are all indebted to Islam, but Islam is not indebted to us. I am indebted to you; I am indebted to the Iranian nation and the esteemed people of Qum. You were the ones who brought this Islamic movement to fruition. It was you, the great Iranian nation and the residents of Qum, who triumphed over the tanks, cannons and machine-guns with your fists.

We are not worried that the pure blood of our youth is shed in the Islamic path. We are not worried by the fact that our beloved ones have attained martyrdom. This is a laudable practice of the Shi`ah of Amir al-Mu'minin, which existed since the advent of Islam. Islam has always been identified with the epics of the Shi`ah. In the early days of Islam, Amir al-Mu'minin- may God's peace be upon him- the magnificent man of Islam and of the world, flourished and blossomed Islam by his great endeavors. With his honorable Shi`ah (followers), he was in the vanguard of the great battles (in the cause) of Islam. His infallible progeny, such as the Doyen of the Martyrs- may God's peace be upon him- sacrificed his life in the cause of Islam. The rest of the (infallible) Imams promoted Islam and gave credence to Qur'an clandestinely. Subsequently, the only group that confronted and fought incumbent tyrants and dictators of the time were the Shi`ah of `Ali, may God's peace be upon him. Since then, successive uprisings up until recent times have been staged by the Shi`ah of `Ali (`a), who rose and stood up to the tyrants of their time. In our own time, the only group that resisted dictators and stood against the superpowers and prevailed over tanks and cannons with their clenched fists, was you, the great Shi`ah of Islam. Islam has been kept alive by the Shi`ah faith. Successive uprisings staged by the Shi`ah of `Ali, may God's peace be upon him, have revived Islam.

This uprising, which started on Khordad 15 [June 5, (1963)], and persisted up to now and we hope will go on until all the objectives of the Islamic community are realized, is an Islamic one. It is an uprising of faith; it does not follow any other uprisings. We all know that June 5 was the beginning of a turning point in the history; it did not take after any other movements or uprisings. The slogan" this is not a nationalist uprising; it is a Qur'anic uprising, an Islamic uprising," should be preserved, because it is not a" national" uprising. It is an Islamic uprising. A weak nation without any (arms) confronted and prevailed over the superpowers and the satanic power, which had everything, and were armed to the teeth. Such powers cannot be defeated by nationalism. This nation triumphed because martyrdom was its wish. Some of our youth would ask me to pray for their martyrdom and would even make me swear for it. Women who sacrificed their youths would take pride in having done so, and would say that they were willing to offer their other sons. This could not have been engendered by the power of nationalism; this is the power of faith; it is the power of Islam. It should not be misconstrued. It is Islam, which defeated the superpowers. It is Islam, which brings up followers who are predisposed to martyrdom. It is this power of faith, which mobilized the people throughout Iran. It was the invisible Divine Hand that made the people all over Iran, from that primary school pupil to the sick old man in the hospital, united in expression and united in purpose. No front could have ever achieved this; no human being could have ever mobilized a whole nation and no nation could have ever been mobilized in such a way. It was the power of faith, the power of Islam and the spiritual power of the nation that facilitated this victory. We are indebted to the Exalted and Blessed God. We are indebted to the Imam of the Time, who supported us.

There should not be any ambiguities in our affairs. If ever any ambiguities set into our affairs, or elements intend to divert our Islamic movement, this movement will meet with defeat. It is a betrayal of the nation, a betrayal of Islam. Those who have it in their mind to divert this movement from its Islamic nature should know that they are traitors to Islam and the nation. Today, the slogans should be the same Islamic slogans:" Islamic Republic." Those who insist that the word" Islam" be deleted from the word" Republic" are traitors who want to cause differences among the nation. Those who want to append the term" democratic" to this phrase are obsessed with the West and do not know what they are talking about.

Those who talk of democracy in their writings are either ignorant or do not understand what they are doing, or, are premeditating conspirators and traitors. The press should think twice when writing their articles. Those who wield the pen should reconsider their writings. They should allow the nation to carry on treading the path, the same route that led to victory, and tread it to its ultimate fruition. Are they enemies of Islam?! Are they enemies of the Islamic nation?! Are they enemies of their own country that they wish to cause deviation?! The Iranian nation will never be deviated.

O the beloved nation! Safeguard your own movement! Great nation! Safeguard this great uprising with the same (original) name (it had been given, that is, Islamic republic) Safeguard this slogan. Do not let the hands of foreigners and their advocates influence your slogan. I feel sorry for those individuals who lay claim to nationalism and oppose the nation's desires. Those who stab the nation in the back in the name of nationalism and love for the people should wake up and realize that their leaders are all handpicked by the foreign powers, and they wish to take the situation back to the way it was at the beginning, or shove it toward the left or to the right. These people should awaken. We should advise them. If they do not heed our advice, we can resort to other measures. Those who want to hatch plots, those who want to mislead our nation, those who want to sow seeds of discord among the people, are all conspirators. But, we will not sit quiet; we will thwart their plots.

We say" yes" to freedom, but" no" to conspiracy. There is freedom of expression. Everyone is free to express what he wants. From the outset, Islam has had the power to refute all unjustified statements and mendacities (hurled against it). That power stands valid; the same holds true concerning (Islamic) reasoning. We have our logical reasoning; we have proofs. We are not to be daunted by statements made by certain people. Everyone can say what he wants but we will not condone any conspiracy. We will not consent to treachery against the nation, as we have not allowed it before. Our nation has so far been the victim of so many treacheries that it will not countenance any further treachery.

Our nation has offered sacrifices for an Islamic republic to materialize, not a republic or a democratic republic, which is a Western type of republic, which is the promiscuity of the West. Shun this act of imitating (the West); shun this obsession with the West. Let the nation tread the path it has taken and achieve its independence, and it will, God willing.

You, the Iranian people, the great Iranian nation! The beloved residents of Qum, the beloved nation of Qum! Be aware, vigilant and alert! Neutralize the conspiracies. They (anti-revolutionaries) wish to undermine the Islamic government and weaken the provisional Islamic government so that the nation will not be able to vote for which it had made sacrifices. Nevertheless, it is wishful thinking. We have sacrificed our youth, the people gave their lives, and our youth were tortured and suffered considerably in prisons. Our nation will not allow all these sacrifices to be wasted. Our nation will not let these sacrifices go to waste just because of the nonsense of a handful of dastardly people. The people have given their lives for the sake of freedom and independence. We will not sit by for the foreign agents to perpetrate their previous machinations once again.

Support your government. I am its supporter and you, too, must patronize it so that it is able to carry out its affairs peacefully, hold the referendum, ratify the new constitution through the nation's vote and establish the Islamic republic. They (the anti-revolutionaries) have gone into a state of frenzy to forestall the holding of a referendum or, not to let it be held properly. However, all this is whimsical thinking. They do not want the Islamic constitution to be ratified based on the Twelve-Imam Shi`ah school of thought. They think they can do it, but these are all futile thoughts. They would like to see a flawed Islamic republic. An" absolute republic," a" democratic republic" or a" democratic Islamic republic," all these are wrong (terms).(We want) only an" Islamic republic!"

I will vote for an Islamic republic, and I am asking the nation not to let the blood of the youth to have been shed in vain and foreign interests gain access (to the country); not to let the independence it has achieved be lost and the freedom it has attained be transformed into repression. We want an Islamic government, an Islamic republic, not a word more and not a word less. Anyone who wants to follow another path is free to do so, but conspiracy is forbidden; treachery is forbidden; voting, however, is free. Everyone is free to express what he wants. We are the nation's well-wishers. We are the followers of Islam and want the good of all factions. We are the well-wishers of the respected women. We do not want the women to be dragged into prostitution. We do not want them to be playthings in the hands of the profligate youth. We suggest that they abandon their previous way, the crooked way that they (ex-regime) had suggested for them to take, pushing many of our youth and beloved ones into debauchery. Eschew all these (unchaste practices). We want your well-being. We must efface this deviation by giving the people advice, making recommendations, begging and requesting them. We must crush the bedrock of this fifty-odd years of corruption that had taken root (in this country).

I am the servant of the Iranian nation and of the Iranian youth. I am the servant of the Iranian women, of the respectable residents of Qum. I am at your service from now on and for the remaining few days I am here on earth. I implore the Exalted and Blessed God for the greatness of Islam and the nation of Islam, and the independence of the Islamic country. I implore the Exalted and Blessed God for the grandeur of the Islamic countries and Islamic nations wherever they are. I advise all the nations to make use of this key, by which victory was gained in Iran over the superpowers. Unity, reliance on God, strengthening of faith, reliance on the glorious Qur'an and Islam and unity of expression (constituted the key to victory). The key to our victory is unity of expression and reliance on God, the Exalted and Blessed. We cried out in unison," independence, freedom, Islamic republic"!

Oh, God! Safeguard the unity of expression among the Islamic nations and among the Iranians. Oh, God! Sever the hands of the foreigners off Islamic countries. Oh, God! Grant us independence and freedom. Oh, God! Awaken Islamic nations. Oh, God! Guide the deviated ones. Oh, God! Guide those who want to sow seeds of discord among the nation. Oh, God! Bless

our martyrs. Oh, God! Grant patience and fortitude to the bereaved mothers and fathers who have lost their children (to this Revolution).

May God's peace, mercy and blessings be upon you.