Speech [Complete retribution of good and evil deeds in the hereafter]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Of course, there is a difference between hearing and seeing. Of the recent crimes perpetrated, we heard of the sufferings that were inflicted upon our youth and upon our children. We would hear from afar, and you would be eyewitnesses- and this makes a lot of difference. We would render verbal service from abroad while you would take practical steps. You were present in the arena, and would do your job and executed your responsibilities; and in this way, your actions were superior to ours.

However, we too, during the era of the former Shah, when we were young, did witness certain things, but, recently you all saw what befell this nation. And now, you are sensing and feeling more agitated at those that want to stir up trouble and wish to bring back the same regime albeit in a different form- not the monarchial regime but with a different appearance- so that the same problems be created and our nation goes through the same events that you saw.

You are better aware of the crimes perpetrated by these sections who want to create trouble from abroad; of those who have plundered us; those that spilled the blood of our youth with their plots. You must feel more troubled because you saw what they have done, and we heard of what they did. They did whatever they were commissioned to accomplish and went away. And God willing, they will pay for their evil deeds both in this world and in the hereafter which is the place of retribution.

There are certain deeds whose retributions do not take place in this world and are impossible to receive due punishment. Every tyrant is a single human being and like the rest of the people, have a single soul and a single life. Should this tyrant have killed ten thousand people, and we want to punish him for having killed ten-thousand people, how can we render punishment?

A tyrant who has tortured a hundred people in the manner that you all know and have heard of the methods he used to torture them, now that we want to punish him for that, how can we do it? It is not possible, he has a single life, the most we can do is to kill him; the most we can do is, let us assume, torture him to death. Whereas, he has not tortured one person; he has not killed just one person to seek retribution by killing one person or torture him for the torture of one person. Torturers who were given training abroad, tortured people in droves! Those that have killed our youth- some of them killed and destroyed a large number of our youth- the amount that we can torture them and we can grant them punishment is a negligible affair.

However, there is also another place in which there are tortures that we cannot perceive. That is from our very deeds. It is not as it is over here that a torturer comes from abroad and does his job. The very deed of a person should it be good, is given to him over there, and should the deed be impious it will be granted to him." Thus, whoever does evil to the weight of a grain, he will see it. And whoever does good to the weight of a grain will see it." «1» Every bit of deed that a human being commits has a supernatural face to it. Here, a person lashes out his tongue and verbally abuses or backbites a Muslim; a pious believer who, let us suppose, is living in America. Here, you abuse him verbally or gossip behind his back. This tongue has lengthened to this extent over here and you slander a person far away. In the hereafter, this very tongue will lengthen and traverse all the way up to there!

It is mentioned in the narrative that lashing out at another in this world takes that form over there. The tortures that they committed in a cowardly manner on our youth- each torture has an appearance over there. They will be burnt there for every burning that they did here. This very deed will take a form over there. This very deed of torturing will be recompensed over there.

These humanitarian deeds that you performed and at such a time when everybody was in suffering and torture, and at such a juncture you performed a humanitarian act and took the injured to the hospitals for treatment, «2» these very deeds have an appearance in the hereafter, this very act of yours takes a form in the supernatural world that we cannot comprehend the supernatural world now. The prophets were able to perceive and informed us by the Sublime and Almighty God. Therefore, whatever deed you perform and whatever deed that we perform- whether good or evil- we shall witness them. It is not that it will be hidden from a place or from a person. The very deed that we perform takes a form in the hereafter. One takes a good appearance while another takes an ugly one; a bad form. It is these very deeds that take a form; a reality over there. In the soul of a human being, there is a characteristic; the characteristic of treason. Apparently, his basic nature is one of betrayal. In this world when a human being is born here, everything is incorporated in him in a potential form. In other words, it is not physically present but has the potential to be realized.

This child that is born in this world has the potential to incorporate virtuous characteristics as well as has the potential to incorporate sinful characteristics. If it strives toward sinful behavior, gradually those characteristics will find fruition and the inner self of a human being will become a sinful creature. At times, human beings do such things that are more appropriate with some sort of animal behavior, and are brutal, even if the brutality is simply verbal and by means of which he indulges in verbal abuse and by such means disgraces the people. These are ferociousness. A form will be born within a human being that has the feature of brutality. When a human being is transferred from here to a transcendental world, that same form of brutality will take on an appearance commensurate with this form, and will take the form of a ferocious animal so that it will have the same ferociousness as that animal, and will be transformed into that form. It is said that at times a human being will have several forms in the metaphysical world that are varied. It is the same with regard to good deeds.

Virtuous deeds are those that are compatible with the souls of human beings. The soul of the human being has been created to be happy. In other words, the potentiality to be prosperous is present in him, and the inner nature of human being is one of prosperity.

A virtuous deed is one that is compatible with this nature. An evil deed is one that is incompatible with the nature of a human being. These deeds that you performed for your brothers, is compatible with that nature. It is the nature of a human being to be on friendly terms with his brothers. Enmity is a secondary nature that is formed in a human being. Friendship is the nature of a human being. A small child that is born manifests this compassion and fraternity in him. Gradually, events cause him either to fall from these virtues, or for these virtuous deeds to be strengthened in him. You should not be under the impression that these deeds, which you performed for your brothers, have been forfeited by you. No. These acts in fact accrue in your pockets. It is these deeds whose forms you shall see in the future- and how beautiful they are! You will witness their effects- and how beautiful are their effects! And on that day, you will see in what a predicament those who tortured are. It has been mentioned in the glorious Qur'an that they will see those vicious people. Sometimes, the virtuous people will surround them when they see those people. Those vicious people will ask these people for some water or some food. «3» The very people who perhaps caused our youth to go thirsty will witness their own deeds in the hereafter; and their deeds will accompany them. Hell is created by our own deeds. Heaven too is created by our own deeds. All are our deeds. Strive to perform virtuous deeds that are compatible with nature and constitution.

We cannot ascertain a value for these very deeds that you have performed. In a battlefield, in which bullets are raining all around, and the enemy has attacked with field guns and tanks, if a person risks his life to save another human being and rescues him, we will not be able to fix a value for this act in this world. It is not the matter of rescuing a human being. It is the matter of the morale of this person who goes with that spiritual condition and performs this deed. This deed of yours is precious in the sight of God, and you should perpetuate this deed. May there, God willing, be no need for such acts but well there are accidents, there are disasters; there are diseases; all these are there.

Your profession is a noble and invaluable one. You have physical contact with those afflicted brothers; take care that you perform your job well. Behave in a kind manner with them. A person who is now in trouble, and for example, has had an accident with a car, or is injured or is the victim of an earthquake and so forth, is in far greater need of kindness than of treatment to cure him. The individual whom you go and save, whom you nurse, or you as a doctor diagnoses him is in greater need of being shown kindness and compassion than of being treated. This is a spiritual compassion, whereas that is a physical affliction. You must be very careful to behave in such a manner with those with who you are in contact and with those that have problems so that the burden of their troubles be lightened. When you behave well with them, it is like a father who wants to save his child or the mother whose child has a problem, and she wants to save him, she needs to show affection in order to calm down the child, whereas the treatment itself is not as effective. This child now needs something to tranquilize his soul. The mother calms his soul; the father calms his soul. Behave in such a manner with those that have been stricken or are stricken, like a father behaves with his offspring; like a mother behaves with her child. This has great value and that too is valuable but this is of greater value.

May God grant all of you good health and happiness. And may we all God willing, succeed in the performance of the duties assigned to us- our humanitarian duties and our Islamic duties. And May God bestow His favors on all of you.