Speech [The worth and status of sincerity]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Reciprocally, I congratulate all the gentlemen here and all nations and oppressed peoples of the world on the occasion of the great birth anniversary of Hadrat Fatimah (`a). I thank all the gentlemen, who have come here apparently in two or three groups, whether those coming from abroad or the gentlemen living here in Iran. Let me tell you that you should not expect people like me or any other human to praise you. As such praises cannot do justice. God Almighty is your client. You offered whatever you possessed, your precious life in the cause of God. Whether those who achieved the elevated rank of a martyrdom and ascended the heaven or you who are prepared for martyrdom, what counts is your presence in the scene.

You realized two subjects. With these two subjects no human being, excluding the saints of God and those who were inspired by God, can thank you. Firstly, you offered your greatest asset, life, and, secondly you offered it generously and sincerely. What counts is the sincerity that is manifest in you. With your sincerity and selflessness, you ensured the Islamic Republic. The victories that you have achieved, particularly, the Fath al-Mubin cannot be measured by any criterion, nor be adequately described in words. Nevertheless, what stands above all these is your sincerity and honesty before the court of God Almighty. What is most valuable in the sight of God your so selflessness out of sincerity, by which God Almighty describes the Immaculate Imams in the following words:" And feed the needy, the wretched, the orphans and the prisoner, for the love of Him." «1» Giving someone a loaf of bread is nothing; what counts is doing it for the love of Him.

What is valuable in the presence of God Almighty and no human being can describe, it is the sincerity and love in you. You sacrifice your life; there are many who do so in devious ways. The form of action is similar, but the meaning and content is different. The content of the action is the criterion and measure, not the form of action. The sword of `Ali (`a) and killing the enemy by it is something that happens everywhere and many have done and do so. This is not value. Value is what occurred in the heart of `Ali (`a) and the degree of his sincerity.

It is the degree of sincerity that describes one blow as being equal to acts of worship of the Thaqalayn and that of the Jinn and men. «2» It is this sincerity, seeking martyrdom and self-sacrifice in the cause of God that have accorded value to you. This value cannot be measured by any criterion. My dear children! Preserve this blessing. God has granted you such a blessing that has transformed you into sincere men who sacrifice your lives and everything in the cause of God thanks to His inherent grace and unseen hand." Lo! Allah hath bought from the believers their lives and their wealth." «3» The paradise that the customer offers you differs from the one that others find. I hope that this paradise is the paradise of proximity to God. I hope that your customer will receive you in His presence. The saints of God are not engaged with other than God even in the next world. They overlook and are directed towards God. You, who sacrifice you lives, join the battlefield with martyrdom in your mind, defend Islam, and disappoint all the countries casting a covetous eye on this country, are doing a valuable deed, but your sincerity and love and sacrifice in the cause of God are of the greatest value for you. It is sacrifice and sincerity that cannot be measured even in the scale of the unseen world. It can only be measured in the presence of God Almighty. We are honored to be living at such a juncture of time when the likes of you, dear ones, are living and we are breathing the air you are inhaling and exhaling. You have made self-sacrifices, you are sincere, you have overpowered your selves, but we are lagging behind. Do not consider it likely that your weapons, your machine guns and your rifles have made you victorious. Your enemy had more sophisticated ones. Yours were small in number and theirs great. Nevertheless, what made you triumphant is the faith and sincerity within you which is absent in your enemies. You enter the battlefield for God, and they for Satan. They are the army of the Satan's party and you of God's party. What made you victorious is the battle against the Satan of the internal battlefield. It was that sincerity and faith within you that made you victorious. You are the follower of the one who said:" If the entire world stands against me, I will stand by myself against them." It is faith that prompted him to stand against all so bravely. It is his sincerity and spirituality. You are his followers. I hope that of the spirituality and the magnanimity God has granted him and of the divine spirit that has been breathed into him by the Holy Spirit a part will be given to me and you and all.

Brothers, you are victorious, your martyrs are victorious and your nation is victorious. You have a nation which has no match in the entire world. The nation has you who have no match in the whole world. If your enemies volunteer for wars, they volunteer for Satan. They volunteer and you also volunteer. However, there is a difference between your voluntary act and sacrifice and those of the deviants. They enter the scene for the attainment of carnal desires and you for martyrdom and proximity to God. You are victorious whether you achieve spiritual martyrdom or, God willing, an outward victory. You emerged victorious in the battle against your selves, your inner Satan and destroyed the satanic temptations within you and purified your heart for God. You enter the battlefields with a pure heart, pure intention and firm resolution and you achieve the final victory. And final victory belongs to you. May God make you all, the combatants and the armed forces victorious! May God grant you final victory on both the inward and outward fronts! May God protect this country against the East and West! May God shower His unseen mercy upon you!

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