Speech [Manner of revelation of the Qur'an in the heart of the Prophet of God, the crucial mission of the clergy]

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

I thank the respected theologians, the scholars and the sermonizers that have taken the trouble to come here. I cannot name all of them as it is not necessary and I appeal to all of them to pray for me in this blessed month of Ramadan and for the victory of Islam and for severance of the hands of aliens from Islamic lands.

In the month of Ramadan, an event has taken place whose dimensions and essence is shrouded in ambiguity until eternity for the likes of us- and that event is the revelation of the Qur'an. Revelation of the Qur'an in the heart of the Prophet of God on the night of Ordainment; the manner of the descent of the Qur'an and how it happened and how the Trusted Holy Spirit revealed it in the heart of the Prophet while on the other hand God commands that," Verily, we have revealed the Qur'an on the night of Qadr." «1» What was the manner of revelation in the heart of the Prophet on" Laylatul-Qadr"? I must say that except for the honorable Prophet himself and those that were reared in the bosom of the honorable Prophet and enjoyed the exclusive favors of the blessed and Almighty God, for others the question of its revelation is absolutely shrouded in ambiguity. What is revelation in the heart; what is the Holy Spirit; in what manner the Holy Spirit along with the Qur'an penetrated the heart of the Prophet of God; what is Laylatul-Qadr?

These are questions that on the surface appear easy and at times some statements are made but I tell you that the manner of the revelation of the Qur'an remains uncertain for the likes of us as does the manner of descent of the angels of God on Laylatul-Qadr and also the nature of Laylatul-Qadr.

What was the invitation that the Almighty and Exalted God based on the narrative of the honorable Prophet that" You have been invited to the feast of God" «2» and who accepted this feast? What were the preliminaries for its acceptance, this pilgrimage, this feast and what was the feast itself? I must say that except for the honorable Prophet- may God's peace be upon him and his household- no one has honored it like he had done.

An invitation has stages; its honoring also has stages. The sublime stage of its honoring is what culminated in the Blessed and Almighty God, after observance of preliminaries and undergoing self-abstinence that the Prophet of God- may God's peace be upon him- underwent, inviting him to the feast of revelation of the Qur'an.

Qur'an is that blessing of an invitation to the Prophet of God to a feast that is laid out from the beginning until eternity. The honorable Prophet benefited from it and its preliminaries are those for which he underwent long years of spiritual self-abstinence until he reached the point where he merited the feast- the important aspect being shunning the world.

The thing that admits a person to the place of feast of God is that he sets aside other than God and this is not possible for every person. It is possible only for a very limited number of individuals headed by the Prophet of God. That previous devotion to the Source of Light and avoidance of those besides Him has enabled him to merit the invitation to the Feast of God and to merit revelation of the Qur'an into his heart all at once and extensively. One of the probabilities of the blessed night is that it is the physical being of the honorable Prophet himself, which is the lamp of the Light of God while there are other possibilities, too. The important point is understanding of this subject that the stages of perfection of human beings for admission to the Feast of God are many and one must start from the preliminaries. The preliminaries are that one should not be devoted to other than Him and not to see other than Him and to see Him alone and not focus on anything other than Him. Here I must say that this objective is required of all people and if they want admission to the Feast of God, they must shun the world to the extent of their ability and turn away their hearts from the material world. However, for the society of the clergy that also includes sermonizers, there is another requirement.

In one of his statements that," The sourah Houd caused me to age", «3» the verse that has been mentioned in the sourah" Houd" has also been mentioned in the sourah" ash-Shawra'" with the exception of one word. Yet he states that the sourah" Houd" has caused him to become old. This is because therein the Prophet of God himself and his companions and followers were commanded to stand firm. It is this resistance of the nation that bore heavily upon the Prophet and made him anxious vis-a-vis their ability to endure lest his" ummah" not be able to endure. There is a strong possibility that it was this that caused him to make that remark. Resistance in every affair and this follows that a person focuses on the Blessed and Almighty God and the Prophets of God and especially the last Prophet, how they lived, and how they endured sorrows and tragedies. In the twenty-five years that the honorable Prophet of Islam was among the people, what tragedies he saw from these people and what tragedies he predicted. Thus, considering that he was the trustee of the affairs of this nation and the resistance of this nation was also demanded of him in the verse," ... so stand firm in the affair that you have been commanded and those that turn to God with you" «4» This is what caused the anxiety to the Prophet of God.

Today, if the society of the clergy throughout our country- whether the clergymen that are working on a job that is critical for the Islamic Republic and whether those that are not employed; whether the Friday Prayer leaders and whether the congregation prayer leaders; whether the theologians that are doing something else beside these two jobs and are engaged in enlightening the people and whether the respected sermonizers- Islam now is entrusted to them. The honorable Prophet is devoted to this nation. All the smallest of our deeds are being under scrutiny of the Blessed and Almighty God. The letter of our deeds according to the narratives are presented to the Imam of the Time- the Twelfth Imam- may God' peace be upon him- and he follows our actions and he follows the deeds of the clergy. Today, that Islam has been entrusted to them and all there are no excuses at all, they cannot say that we could not; they cannot say that we did not know; they cannot say that the monarchy regime did not allow us to do anything. All of these have been eliminated and Islam has been entrusted to you; to the clergy throughout the country and you are under scrutiny; you are under scrutiny of the Blessed and Almighty God and scrutiny of the angels that are assigned for this task as in this verse," God has control over them from all directions." «5» The month of Ramadan arrives and departs and the months go away one after another and the lifetimes also finish; what remains are the pages of your deeds that have been recorded in your heart- and perhaps this also is the Book of deeds. How was your heart in relation to the world? The day when you were incapable, you were pious and ascetic; the day you were capable, God forbid, were you quite the opposite? There is scrutiny involved. Today, the responsibility of the clergy and those that wear this sacred uniform is a responsibility that the clergy was never entrusted with throughout history. Throughout the history from the dawn of Islam until the present, the ultimatum that is on the clergy in this manner is unprecedented. Throughout history, such an opportunity has not been presented to any country; and Islam has been entrusted into your hands and it demands that you safeguard it. It has been entrusted to this nation and it demands that they safeguard it. You must reveal it in your propagations, in not paying attention to the glitters of the world- the important thing is sincere devotion. Possessing wealth, possessing homes and possessing things are not important. The important thing is these things take over the heart of human beings. The reason why accumulation of wealth and property are undesirable is that accumulation of wealth and affluence, their likes, and the glitters of the world attract the heart of a person towards other than God and deprive one of the feasts of God. It is impossible to attend the invitation of God to feast and be admitted to the feast of God without severing your hearts from this material world. What was important to the apostles of God was purification of the soul and turning away from other than God and full devotion to God. All the immoralities that occur in the world is because of this devotion to self in relation to devotion to God. All the perfections that were attained by the apostles of God and the Prophets of God was as a result of this rejection of all others and attachment to Him; and the manifestations of these matters becomes apparent in our deeds. In addition to being responsible for our self and personal responsibility in some form, we are also responsible for our nation. In the same way that the Sourah Houd commanded the Prophet that," ... so stand firm in the affair that you have been commanded and those that turn to God with you" it also tells you to be steadfast and make the people upright with your steadfastness. If the people see a wrong from us and if they turn away from the clergy because of the misdeeds of some of us, it is then not a personal responsibility, it is an Islamic responsibility; it is a communal responsibility.

If God forbid, we act in such a manner that this nation distances itself from us, and this nation raises a question mark and asks that today that you have a free hand, you are acting in a different manner and they distance themselves from you; this responsibility of Islam is on our shoulders. Islam shall be dragged to isolation and God forbid, those that are opposed to Islam take charge and come into power and this shall be our responsibility. The question is not a personal question so that a person says that I will do as I like and it is no one else's business- this is not the question. Previously also when a seminary student would do something they would generalize that all seminary students were like that. If God forbid, a clergyman would commit a wrong, they would say that all clergymen were like that. Now the issue is in this way that if Islam is defeated it shall be defeated by means of us. If you become straight, Islam shall not be defeated. With you following the straight path, the people will become straight; with your moral purification, the people shall become morally pure. If God forbid, you say something on the pulpit which you do not practice it yourself and preach something in the mosque that you yourself act contrary to it, the hearts of the people shall turn away from you and this shall gradually result in the defeat of Islam and this responsibility is of all of us. These immoralities that are present in the world and now this uproar that is in the world and they are fighting each other in this fashion is because they are focused only on themselves and pay no attention to God; they moral behavior is not divine; their behavior is animal-like and this animal-like behavior is increasing daily. If Iran gets involved in a war, it is not because they want to strengthen Islam that they are fighting Iran; it is because the carnal soul has grown to where it cannot see someone become powerful.

If the world is burning in the fire of these two superpowers, it is because of that same carnal spirit that the agents of these two superpowers and they themselves possess. If the Muslim countries are burning in the fire of these corruptions it is because those that are holding the reins of power possess the carnal spirit, are selfish, and want everything for themselves. Recently, I do not know whether you noticed that the president of America mentioned a subject while Saddam also mentioned a subject. The president of the United States said- meaning he proclaimed- that the nations under subjugation have one week for their people to earnestly strive to free themselves from the subjugation of those that have enslaved them and he has told them that he also agrees with them. I do not know for whom he has said these words. Is he saying it for the nations that are all under his hegemony? He knows the truth so who is he trying to deceive? Does he want to deceive the nation of America? The American people know in advance, what you have done to the world. Does he want to introduce the East bloc that are enslaving the people? All know that it is the two of you. He wants to say that the nations that are under subjugation are not his business. Well, perhaps the majority of these nations are under the hegemony of America, are they under hegemony of America? What does this man want to say? One week for the people under hegemony, it is asked that they must earnestly endeavor in this matter and if they want freedom, they must also want the freedom of others. What is he thinking? If the nations are under their hegemony- all of them or the vast majority are under your hegemony- who must liberate them? How must they be liberated? Should they be liberated with your backing? On the other side, Saddam has asked that in the blessed month of Ramadan, the war should be halted in order that he indulge in worship. This month- according to their interpretation- is the month of God; this month is the month of worship. Some of them also say that war is forbidden in this month. This is their knowledge. He says that the Prophet would give time even to the faithless; he would cease-fire. Would the honorable Prophet also give respite to the hypocrites? If the hypocrites would approach the honorable Prophet and ask for respite and say they have become Muslims and claim to be on his side and ask for respite in order to worship and so forth while he would see that they were plotting and use this respite to strengthen themselves and prepare for an attack, would the Prophet still give them respite? The Prophet would give respite to the faithless because the circumstance of the faithless was obvious; their file was open and clear. But the hypocrites who on the surface want to worship and like those that during the period of His Holiness Hdrat `Ali- may God's peace be upon him- had foreheads that had scars on worship on them, would he still give respite to such persons? Was he permitted to give respite to the conspirators for them to reequip and rearrange themselves for a bigger attack? We know these individuals, we know the Ba`ath Party; we know Saddam; we know that he has never extended his hands for reform. In the name of reform he wants to engage in evil; he wants to deceive us and to tell the world what a nice person he is and that he does not engage in war during the blessed month of fasting and prayer and month of obedience of God. At least we should not endanger the seas so that he can easily ship the crude oil and import armaments and no one should disturb him so that in the middle of that same month of Ramadan when he sees that he has become strong enough, he launches his attack. Which sane person would accept this? The nation that has sacrificed its youth, including those that were killed and martyred and disabled and has now reduced the other party to impotence and pleading should again be deceived and give you respite to reequip and reinforce yourselves for an attack and to create an Arabia and convert Khouzestan into" Arabia" and so forth? We must be alert and not be fooled by these deceptions; neither be deceived by the president of America and nor be deceived by these people. They too speak the same words and say that we want to liberate the nation under hegemony and asks the nations to cooperate with them. I do not know that the nation of Iran should cooperate with it. Is it in order to be liberated from their hegemony; that it is doing in Iraq; doing that in Lebanon; doing that in Palestine? Everywhere you have a hand and everywhere you are engaged in corruption and you are subjugating every one. While on that other side, the Soviet Union is sitting in wait and saying the same things that we are preparing ourselves for peace. That one also is saying that we are for peace. Of course, in one aspect, they are right because if any one of them shuts its eyes the other will swallow it; but they must not fool the other nations and we must not be fooled by these statements.

Today also, war is at the top of our issues; if we are neglectful for one day, he will attack and will destroy our everything. Unless those same issues that we mentioned at the start of the war are not realized, we are committed to firmly defending our positions. If we are negligent in these matters or if some of the deviant elements and the munafiqin get in the midst of the people and tell them that we should accept to end the war because he has asked to end the war and in this way attempt to weaken the resolve of the people, then know that Islam is faced with the danger of faithlessness. If today we retract from one word, if our nation allows its resolve to weaken and retreats, then its honor, wealth, lives and youth shall all be thrown to the wind of destruction.

We must advance forcefully and fight forcefully with all those that want to attack us and invade us. Death is a thousand times more honorable than for a person to live a dishonorable life and to live under subjugation.

I say to the nation of Iran, to all, to all strata, to the armed forces, to all strata of the armed forces, to be determined and be armed and to make your selves stronger day by day. The nation should be more determined day by day to support and defend Islam and be better prepared for war, which is in defense of Islam; it is defense of honor of Muslims; it is defense of the glorious Qur'an; it is defense of the nation of Iran and of other nations. We must resist strongly and not retreat at all.

I hope that in this blessed month all the sirs direct their efforts in keeping the people prepared and in equipping the people and sustain Islam with the help of the people. You also should call upon the people in the mosques, from the pulpits to arm themselves and call upon them to follow the issues and tell them that," ... so stand firm in the affair that you have been commanded and those that turn to God with you" which caused the Prophet to be worried. Know now that the apostles of God are taking notice and are worried that God forbid, this nation of ours should not became lethargic in the path that it has traversed. Thank God, until now all of you have been united and cohesive; and all the clergy are united with others; people are together and united with the clergy and I am optimistic that from now on, they stay cohesive and become more cohesive.

A word of advice to those that in the sermons, congregations that they hold, in the religious theatres and such things pay attention to the poor. Among the people, there are the sick; among the people, there are the weak; among the people there are individuals that are aged, old men, old women and the feeble, the sound should not be too loud to annoy the people. Keep the loudspeakers inside the mosques so that it does not happen that you want to obey God and God forbid, commit a wrong. One of the conventions of the month of Ramadan is to make the people calm. They want to fast; some among them want sleep early at night and fast the next day while some among them are indisposed, ill- the hospitals are filled with them. There are the disabled who could be annoyed by them. They should in these matters have some consideration for their coreligionist brethren. I hope that the various strata of the clergy wherever they are located remain united; it should not be such that the Friday Prayer leader makes his own arrangements and the Congregation Prayer leader also makes his own separate arrangement and the other clergy also their own.

Socialize with one another for you are brothers. You are the guardians of Islam and it is not possible to be the guardian of Islam and not be together. You should all be together; hold meetings; it is now the month of Ramadan. Hold sessions in the nights. Invite the people to attend these sessions and become familiar with them; hold sessions on the commandments; hold sessions of supplications. It is the month of supplication, the month of connecting to God. God willing you all succeed in insuring Islam in this month of Ramadan with your prayers and your tears and lamentations and the matters that you always observed for Islam and for the sermons that you would deliver with devotion. Sustain those traditional mourning sermons and keep alive those sermons of tragedies for it is from them that we receive the bounties; and we receive these bounties from Karbala. Keep alive Karbala and the blessed name of His Holiness the Doyen of the Martyrs for it was his life that kept alive Islam. All the strata that are in Iran should have fraternal ties with each other. They should take note of the fact that now there are individuals that are opposed to Islam and are spreading certain issues with the intent to create discord between the Shi`ite and the Sunni. They want neither the good of the Shi`ite nor the good of the Sunni. Together we must attack this common enemy and not allow them to God forbid, to infiltrate our ranks and create a rift.

May God grant success to all of you and enables you to be better equipped to serve Islam and be better prepared to serve the frontlines.

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