Speech [Significance and influence of the movement of the Doyen of the Martyrs (`a)]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

I thank the theologians of Azarbayjan, the men of learning of that region, the theologians of Tehran and the theologian brothers of the Sunni sect and pray to the Almighty God for the health and prosperity of all. On the eve of the lunar month of Muharram, a sorrow has been dealt to all of us, which is the martyrdom of this eighty-year-old man. «1» This man spent his noble life in the path of Islam and service to the people and spiritual purification of the society. Our nation has sacrificed from a six-month-old infant to an eighty-year-old man in the path of God- and this is emulation of the great man of history, His Holiness the Doyen of the Martyrs (s).

His Holiness the Doyen of the Martyrs (s) taught all of us what we must do in the face of oppression, in the face of injustice; in the face of tyrannical rulers. Despite, he knew ahead of time that the path he was treading was a path on which he must sacrifice all his companions, his family and sacrifice much-loved individuals for the sake of Islam and he knew of its aftermath. If this movement was not present- the movement of Husayn (`a) - Yazid and his followers would have been shown the abrogated image of Islam abrogated in a different light to the people. From the beginning, they had no faith in Islam, were envious, and despised the saints of Islam. In addition to defeating them with this sacrifice, after a while the Doyen of the Martyrs made the people to realize what a tragedy and what a sorrow had befallen them. Moreover, this same sorrow resulted in the decline of the Umayyad dynasty. In addition, he taught in the course of history that this was the true path. Do not be afraid of the numerical superiority; numbers are not important; it is the quality- the quality of the sacred struggle- it is that which does the job. It is possible that the individuals are many in numbers but in terms of quality, they are flawed or hollow. It is also possible that the individuals may be few in numbers but potent and honorable in terms of quality.

History will not forget this movement of Iran and this Revolution; and it will not forget the self-sacrifices that are present in all the strata of the Islamic nation in Iran. The unity that is present among all the strata of the nation and among all the classes, between the brothers belonging to the Sunni sect and the Shi`ite sect has been materialized. This Islamic fraternity shall not be forgotten and this Revolution by the Will of the Blessed and Almighty God shall not be defeated. Even if all the great superpowers of the world and those that are in the East and West blocs are hostile towards this Revolution; even if all the mass media of the world spread lies and write against this movement; that which is the reality shall make known itself and will be revealed. On the day when they martyred His Holiness, the Doyen of the Martyrs, unjustly, some introduced him as being a Khariji, one who had revolted against the contemporary rightful regime; but the light of God shines and will shine and fill the universe with light.

What is our duty on the eve of the month of Muharram al-Haram? What are the duties of the eminent theologians and the revered clergy? What are the duties of the rest of the strata of the nation in this month of Muharram? The Doyen of the Martyrs, his companions and household have taught the duties: sacrifice in the battlefield and propagation outside the battlefield. To the same extent that the sacrifice of His Holiness is valued in the presence of the Blessed and Almighty God; and has helped to move forward the movement of Husayn (s), the sermons of His Holiness Sajjad and Her Holiness Zaynab also have been effective to the same extent or almost to the same extent.

They taught us that opposite the tyrant, opposite a tyrannical rule, the women must not be afraid, the men must not fear. Her Holiness Zaynab confronted Yazid; Her Holiness Zaynab (s) stood up and humiliated him in a manner that the Umayyad had not been humiliated before in that fashion. The speeches that they delivered on the way, in Koufah and Damascus and the sermon that His Holiness Sajjad (`a) delivered and made it evident that the issue was not one of confrontation of wrong with right; meaning that they had been misrepresented. They wanted to introduce the Doyen of the Martyrs as a person that was resisting the rulers of the time- the Caliph of the Prophet of God. His Holiness Sajjad revealed the truth at a gathering and so did Her Holiness Zaynab.

Today, our country is also in this manner. Amnesty International, which should be renamed" International Fraud Organization"," International Lie Organization" in a statement that issued has leveled the same defamatory charges that were leveled at the advent of Islam against the Prophet of God, his progeny and his followers- they have blamed this country far worse charges than what they intensified at him. The same lies that the followers of Yazid would spread; today this same so-called Amnesty International circulates such lies. A person is ashamed to utter that he is living in one such country and on one such planet whose mass media are these; and these are its Amnesty International and other organizations. A person feels abashed to say that he is living in an era in which all values has been sacrificed in favor of the powerful; have been sacrificed for material interests and has no regard for any value except the material interests. Today we are afflicted in this manner.

They kill that aged, devout and righteous old man and those immoral individuals and hypocrite munafiqin claim that they have killed him because he was directly involved in the tortures and killings! How disgraceful of them! What kind of upbringing have they had! On the one hand, all that slander against the Islamic Republic; on the other hand, such heinous crimes against individuals who pass the nights in the worship of God and engage in holy struggle of Jihad during the daytime. His Holiness the Doyen of the Martyrs has clarified our duty; in the field of battle do not be scared of numerical superiority and do not be afraid of martyrdom.

To the extent that the objective and ideology of a human being is lofty, to the same extent he must tolerate hardship. We again cannot understand the magnitude of this victory. The world shall understand later that this victory of the Iranian nation is of what magnitude; correspondingly, the hardships must also be of a greater level. We must not expect that all the powers whose hands have been cut off from watching their interests here and God willing, from the region, not to deal us any blow. We must not expect that throughout all these victories, we shall remain unscathed in this way. We should be keeping on the same way now that we were previously. It is the duty of the clergy, whether those of them who go to the pulpit or those who are Friday and congregational prayer' leaders- and whoever is involved with the people and speaks to them- which he should make the people understand correctly the circumstances of uprising of His Holiness, the Doyen of the Martyrs. For what purpose he rose up, what it was, with what number he revolted, and with what tragedies that uprising reached its conclusion- that it shall never be ended.

All the speakers must pay attention to this and we should all be focused on this objective that if the uprising of His Holiness, the Doyen of the Martyrs (`a) was not existed, today, we, too could not have been victorious. All this unity of expression, which was the source of our victory, was because of these mourning and grieving ceremonies and these propagation gatherings grounded for the promotion of Islam. The Doyen of the oppressed made available the means for our nation that without being an inconvenience for the nation, the people congregate. Islam has made the mosques to be trenches and they became a means for the nation so that from these very mosques, from these very congregations, from these very gatherings, from these very Fridays and social gatherings, all the affairs that would move Islam forward and carrying out of the uprising were facilitated. From his actions, the Doyen of the Martyrs has especially taught us that what should be the position on the battlefield and what should be the position outside the battlefield; and how must those who are armed combatants should engage in combat; and how those, who are providing backing for the frontlines, engage in preaching and publicizing. The way and mode of the struggle in the sense that how one should engage in combat as a smaller group versus a large gathering; The mode and the way may be adopted for the uprising with a limited number against an oppressive regime that has a hold everywhere. His Holiness, the Doyen of the Martyrs, his honorable household and his noble offspring taught us and nation these matters and what must be done after the occurrence of such tragedy. Should a person surrender? Should one compromise while engaged in holy struggle? Alternatively, stand should be taken in similar way of Zaynab (s) as subsequent to the great tragedy of such kind that" tragedies appear insignificant before it" resisted and confronted the faithless and spoke against the hypocrisy. She spoke on the issue wherever it was possible for her and so did His Holiness `Ali ibn Husayn (`a) despite his indisposition that he did preach in a preeminent way.

Today, we are confronted with a great deal of propaganda in the world that is being waged against us; confronted with the print media; confronted with the radio broadcasting; confronted with speeches; confronted with organizations. We are confronted with them and we have harmed their interests and have cut off their hands from our country; and we must strive for the perpetuation of this movement. This is a blessing and we must safeguard this blessing, which God has bestowed upon us. Islam was on the verge of destruction during the inauspicious reign of the Pahlavi regime. We caused a return of Islam and removed the one who was its enemy and today we must safeguard this blessing. It is the duty of all of us that in gratitude for this blessing, which the Blessed and Almighty God has bestowed, to engage in a sacred struggle in order to safeguard this blessing. Praise be to God that the soldiers of Islam, from the army, the Guards Corps, the Basij and the tribes who are assisting them in fulfilling their duties splendidly and pushing back the enemy day by day and hour by hour on the frontlines. Furthermore, we who are at the back of frontlines must act similar to the masses that are backing frontlines from behind. The eminent theologians, speakers, revered sermonizers must also engage in holy struggle Jihad which is to do preaching. Their Jihad is to educate on the magnitude of this victory, and to justify the action for which you have done a revolution and the ideology for which you have arisen. It is to make the nations and the nation to understand the extent of this victory and what must be done to safeguard it. In the same way, that victory was achieved with the presence of all the strata on sight and with the participation of all in the battle and behind the frontline of battlefield. The safeguarding of this great Divine blessing also necessitates that our youth be prepared to move out and defend Islam whenever they are called upon to do so.

Islam is an issue for which the Prophets, the honorable Prophet, the progeny of the honorable Prophet and the devoted followers of the honorable Prophet have striven with their lives and have endured hardships for it. Islam is something that has come from God and must be safeguarded. You must know that Islam will not be able to raise its head for centuries if God forbid, the victory that has been achieved by you subsequent to the Revolution, is defeated because of your negligence, weakness of our propagation and lack of involvement of the people. The duty is great and we must all accept this great responsibility. The final consequence is martyrdom, union with God and presence in the company of His Holiness; the Doyen of the Martyrs and his resembling which is the ultimate aspiration of individuals who have affection for God. We are witnessing on the frontlines as they narrate to us about the frontlines of battle and what much-loved youth have an atmosphere on the fronts in the nights; how much they pray, supplicate, establish prayers and with what spirited morale they move towards the frontlines at daytime. This is something that has been bestowed by the Blessed and Almighty God. Safeguard this blessing.

You all the clergymen that are in the country have a duty to safeguard this blessing of God, this Divine gift and be grateful for it, and show their gratitude by propagating it. What the Doyen of the Martyrs carried out, the ideology that he had, the path that he traversed, and the victory that he attained for Islam after martyrdom, should be made clear for the people. They should all be made to understand that sacred struggle in the path of Islam is what he had done. He knew that he could not confront such a tyrant who possessed everything in the material sense with a small group numbering less than a hundred persons but he knew that it was the martyrdom that made Islam victorious and revived it. It is these very martyrdoms of these aged men of the altar of worship; right from Madani «2» - may his soul rest in peace- to this recent martyr of ours; it is the martyrdoms that ensures victory. Such martyrdoms bring disgrace to our enemy in the world, even if the whole world supports them. This same Amnesty International, which has spread so many lies, also has proper documentary evidence. Its documentary evidence is what the munafiqin say; the document is what the writings of the munafiqin mention. Those who are the enemies of Islam; the enemies of the nation; the enemies of the Muslims; those who have become insane because they have not attained their objectives- and such kind of dictatorship was even worse than the dictatorship of Muhammad-Rida over this country.

Gentlemen, you must propagate! It is the month of Muharram. Keep this Muharram alive. Whatever that we have is from this Muharram and these gatherings. Our propagation gatherings are also from Muharram; from the slaying of the Doyen of the Martyrs and his martyrdom. We must approach to the depth of this martyrdom and pay attention to its impact in the world and emphasize that his influence pervades even today. If these eulogizing meetings, sermonizing, mourning, and grieving gatherings were not present, our country would not have triumphed. All revolted under the banner of Imam Husayn- may God's peace be upon him. Now also you are witnessing that all of them are enthused at the frontline for the love of Imam Hussayn whenever they show them at the frontlines. Honorable propagators, the eminent theologians and the respected sermonizers must determine the issues of the day including the political, social issues and the duty of the people at such a time when we are faced with so many enemies in the gatherings that are organized during the months of Muharram and Safar and the rest of the times. They must make the people to understand that we are in the middle of the way and we must, God willing, traverse the path until the end of the way. If we move ahead with the order that has existed so far, we shall ultimately attain total victory. Our country and its people have by the grace of God, been ready with this order. However, we must not become lethargic.

The country of ours that revolted, right from the beginning of the uprising, has announced to the world that it wants an Islamic republic and total independence with a policy of" neither East nor West". Right from the beginning it announced that we are neither under the protection of America nor the protection of the Soviet Union and nor the protection of any other power; we are alone and under the favors of the Blessed and Almighty God and the banner of monotheism which is the same banner of Imam Husayn (`a). When you announced this to the world, it is obvious that the world will rise up against you following this announcement. From the beginning, you must pay attention to the fact that we, too, like the Doyen of the Martyrs who revolted against so many soldiers and weapons that they had until he was martyred; likewise, we too are prepared for martyrdom. Now also you are seeing that at the same time that they have assassinated a number of the prominent Friday prayer leaders and those who are present now, all of them announce with zeal that they are occupying this position and are ready until attainment of martyrdom. All must be like this.

If your movement and your uprising were like other uprisings that were undertaken for some worldly material purposes; if you had revolted for having worldly goods aplenty; if you had revolted for cheaper prices; if you had revolted for material comforts; if you had revolted for organizing lavish parties; if you had revolted for these things, then those who want to complain have a right to complain. However, the masses of the people have no complaints; those that have are the ones who were remnants of those lavish parties. However, the masses that revolted did so for the sake of God. From the beginning, too, they had no aspiration or wishes except that they revolted for the sake of Islam and an Islamic republic. This nation is indefatigable. This nation is not the one to say that now we have not attained those things, so let us get back to our job. This nation is seeing that they have attained. Now the reverberations of your movement and your revolution have spread throughout the world. This tide of your victory has encompassed the whole world. An Iran that was inconsequential in the world gatherings except that it was a member from among the servant members of America, today those who are fair all over the world testify that this Islamic Republic is victorious and it shall continue to be victorious.

Dear brethren, do not despair." Do not despair of the blessing of God," «3» of the things that God has favored you with; and do not despair of those Divine favors- and you are not despairing. You are victorious and honorable in the world. You are a nation that is combative. If you were an impotent nation, you would have gone into isolation and given up, then neither America would oppose you nor the Soviet Union and nor the rest of the powers. Just as in the previous regime, they had put the people to sleep like sheep; and they had attacked this sheep and cut it into pieces. Yes, things were plentiful for a certain group; but what about the deprived? Go and count the number of deprived people in those times. Our nation is not just a single group who should be at the disposal of the superpowers and stand to get benefit from it. The majority of our nation are these deprived that are all over the country and for whom nothing at all was done in those days. Today, although this was not your objective yet in this short time much more has been done for them than was done while they were in power. These are of the secondary things. What you wanted was Islam. What you wanted was an Islamic republic. What you wanted was," neither East nor West"- and this has been achieved. Safeguard this. Now there are individuals who are of the opinion that we must again change over to the other side. However, our nation will not accept it any more. Our nation revolted right from the beginning for an Islamic republic that did not smell of the odor of the East or the West. Now that it has sacrificed so many youths, given so much of blood and sacrificed so many beloved, it is improper to say that thank you very much for killing all of us, come and help yourselves! We shall resist until the very end and last breath; and our nation shall resist and by the grace of God, it is moving ahead with strength.

You have shown your strength to the world. Do not be negligent of this power. All these enemies exist because of this power, which is opposite to the whole world, and they are confounded as to what must be done with this power. You have shown a power to the world the like of which no small numbers have so far been able to establish this power against the large populations. You must safeguard it. You have revived Islam; you must perpetuate its existence. Its perpetuation is the responsibility of all, from the person who is the number one of the clergy who is the source of emulation to the young student who is studying at the seminary. The sermonizers have a duty to enlighten the people with their sermons and speeches and to protect them. The theologians and the Friday prayer and congregational leaders must protect the people in the trenches that they occupy. The people themselves also by the grace of God are prepared and we must be thankful to them; and in all fairness, we are indebted to the honorable masses that sacrifice all of their properties and demand nothing. From the aged women who donate their life's savings for Islam to those individuals who donate their collections for Islam. I cannot describe this nation and I cannot praise them enough. We leave it to the Blessed and Almighty God to grant His exclusive favors to them. May God protect all of you; and sustain you in these solid trenches; and God willing we safeguard the ceremonies, the mourning ceremonies and the processions in an ideal and suitable manner.

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