In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
His Eminence Hujjat al-Islam Sayyid Hamid Rouhani (Ziyarati) - may his graces last,
With gratitude for your efforts in bringing to fruition the Islamic Revolution and for your appreciative endeavor in writing the history of the Islamic Revolution: I hope that you would be able to precisely record the history of the epic-making and unique Islamic Revolution of the heroic people of Iran as it is.
As a historian, you should bear in mind what a grandiose task you are shouldering. Most of the historians are writing the history as they like or as what has been dictated to them; it is not as what it has happened. From the beginning, they know what result it is support to have, and in the end it will reach that result.
I ask you to try your best to clarify the objective of the people's uprising because historians are always sacrificing the objectives of revolutions before the altar of their own whims or that of their masters. Today, as in the constant history of revolutions, some, who are subservient to the East and the West, are busy writing the glorious history of the Islamic Revolution. The history of the world is replete with admiration and abuse of a particular group for or against another group, or did not discuss the reality. If you can document the history with sound and film containing the various subjects of the Revolution in the words of the oppressed masses of people, then you have done an excellent and outstanding job in the history of Iran. The foundations of the history of the Islamic Revolution, like the Revolution itself, should be on the shoulder of the barefooted to the chagrin of the powers and superpowers.
You have to show how the people rose up against tyranny and oppression, intransigence and retrogression, and how they replaced the idea of the monarchial Islam, the Islam of capitalism, iltiqat (the eclectic) Islam, and in a single word, the American Islam, with the pure Muhammadan (s).
You should show that at the stringency of the religious seminary at that time when every movement had been accused by them of being a communist or British movement, some of the ``ulama' (distinguished religious scholars) faithful to the religion took the hands of the people of the alleys and bazaars and poor and tortured people, and put themselves on fire and blood, and through this, they came out triumphant.
You have to unequivocally write that in 1341 AHS (circa 1962/3), the commencement year of the Islamic Revolution and the struggle of the noble clergy at the slaughterhouse of intransigence and sanctimoniousness, what oppressions were perpetrated against a number of pure clerics, what painful groaning they had, what blood of the hearts they had taken; they were accused of espionage and infidelity but through reliance on God Almighty they made up their mind; they were not frightened by the calumny and abuse, drew themselves toward the storm of affliction; and in the unequal war of faith and disbelief, knowledge and superstition, enlightenment and intransigence, they emerged with laurels of success though drown in the blood of their friends and companions.
There are many things to be said but I cannot write more than this. May God grant you, whom I am fond of and yourself one of those who suffered for this Revolution, the opportunity to be His true servant so that by focusing attention to Him, the Blessed and Sublime, you would be able to record the realities for the future generation. I will pray for you and thank the Cultural Unit of the Martyrs' Foundation for helping you to accomplish your work, God willing. Peace be upon you.
Rouhullah al-Mousawi al-Khomeini
Dey 25,1367 AHS