The following is the full text of the speech delivered on January 4, 2016 by Ayatollah Khamenei, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, in a meeting with Friday prayer leaders from throughout the country
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master and Prophet, Ab-al-Qassem al-Mustafa Muhammad and upon his pure and immaculate household, especially the one remaining with Allah on earth
It is a very good and interesting meeting for me, a meeting in which you dear brothers – the honorable Friday prayer leaders and the spiritual and cultural officials of the Revolution from throughout the country – are present. I wish that I could sit and speak to each and every one of you. It is a pity that my time and my physical condition do not allow me to sit and speak to each and every one of you and to listen to your statements. I wish that I could listen to your Friday prayer sermons every now and then. In the past, when I used to go to provincial cities, I committed myself to listening to the Friday prayer sermons which are broadcast on the radio. However, I travel less in the present time and therefore, I have fewer opportunities to do so.
In any case, this meeting is a valuable meeting for me because I have managed to meet with you. I listened to Mr. Taqavi’s report which was detailed, comprehensive and valuable. I would like to discuss two issues in this meeting. One issue is about Friday prayers which is the point of our concern and which is a very important issue. Another issue is to take a brief look at the issue of the elections that are coming up very soon. I will raise a few points about each of these two issues.
On the issue of Friday prayers, I should say that Friday prayers are a base: the base of faith, piety, insight and morality. We should not be intimidated by the term “base” just because this term is among military terms and because it connotes war and other similar concepts. Well, this war exists and it has been imposed on us, just like the one that was imposed on us during the eight-year Sacred Defense Era. We are engaged in a war. However, this is not a military war, rather it is a spiritual, ideological, religious and political one. At that time, we were not after waging a war with our neighbor. That war was imposed on us. It was they who launched an invasion on us. We are not the ones who attack first. When it is not necessary for us to defend, we do not defend either: “If you will stretch forth your hand towards me to slay me, I am not one to stretch forth my hand towards you to slay you. Surely I fear Allah, the Lord of the worlds” [The Holy Quran, 5: 28]. We are like this.
When defense is necessary, we enter the arena of defense. And thank God that the people of Iran, the forces of the Revolution and our late, great and dear Leader – whose name and path are thankfully alive – showed that they are capable in the arena of defense. We are engaged in such a battle. We are engaged in such a jihad. They are attacking the faith of our people. They are attacking the insight of our people. They are attacking our piety. They are attacking our morality and they are spreading various and dangerous viruses among us. Well, what should we do now? We should defend. This requires a base, just like the bases in the arena of war. Friday prayers are one of the most important bases. They are the base of faith and piety. We should look at Friday prayers like this. And you are the commanders of this base. The bases in the arena of war each have a commander. The commanders of the Friday prayer base are Friday prayer leaders.
Well, the main goal in this base is to clarify and to explain. The issue of clarification is the primary goal. The main goal of divine prophets was to clarify and to explain the truth. This is because the thing that makes people deviate from the straight path is lack of knowledge about the truth. Their main goal was this. There are also some people who know the truth, but who deny it. However, the main source of deviation is lack of knowledge about the truth. Divine prophets appeared to explain and to clarify the truth for the people so that they will do not have an excuses. The issue of clarification is this: “Ulama are the inheritors of prophets” [al-Kafi, Volume 1, page 32]. You are the inheritors of prophets including on this issue – the issue of clarification.
Friday prayers – as the name suggests – are a place of gathering and congregation. This is a great opportunity for clarification. Sometimes, you have to knock this and that door or benefit from some indirect means. Although the means of mass communication that exist today are common among everyone – the internet, social networks and other such means are very common – looking directly into someone’s eyes, the feeling of direct presence, and the very essence of listening and speaking among a group of people is something else. Gathering together is better. It is possible that several hundred thousand people receive a message through the internet and text messages, but this is completely different from gathering together in one place so that someone speaks to you.
Looking directly at someone exerts extraordinary influence because they are available to you and they can respond. This is very important. Those who do not know much about religion – foreigners and some poor individuals inside our own country who are deprived of this blessing – regret that they cannot do so and that they do not have any means with which they can gather the people together so that they can speak to them and exchange opinions. This is why they want to do this with different other means. However, they do not succeed as much.
Now that this is the case, Friday prayers are the cultural heart of every city. Friday prayers are the cultural heart of every city. Of course, there are certain requirements and conditions some of which I will mention later on. Friday prayers are a place where guidance is provided. I would like to stress that such guidance is not merely political guidance. It is both political and cultural. We should not think that if we let out a loud cry on such and such a political issue which is our point of concern and if we express our viewpoints in an articulate manner, the issue will be over. This is not the case. We consider cultural guidance as more fundamental than political guidance. Political guidance is absolutely necessary and we should not forget about it, but cultural guidance and the culture and morality of the people are more important.
Take the case of the issue of lifestyle that we brought up three, four years ago. This is a very important matter. Lifestyles are of different kinds. One of the most important goals of the enemies of the Iranian nation and the enemies of Islam is to change Muslims’ lifestyle and to make it similar to theirs. The realities of life influence one’s thoughts. Daily behavior influences the hearts and souls of people – both our souls and the souls of our audience and friends. They want to change this.
Islam has brought us a particular lifestyle. Take the case of one’s manners. One of the important tasks is to [promote] good manners. Westerners do not pay much attention to manners in their ordinary contacts with others. Since long ago, it has been well-known that we Iranians observe manners in our speeches and our contacts with other people. We respect the other side. However, they want to change this and unfortunately, they have succeeded in doing so in certain cases.
Imagine that you disagree with someone on a certain issue and you want to speak to others about him. There are two ways to do so: we can speak in a rude, disrespectful and vulgar manner and we can speak about that person by observing manners and tact. Notice that in the Holy Quran, when there is talk of the corrupt, kufar and malevolent people in the world, God says, “But most of them understand not” [The Holy Quran, 6: 37]. As you notice, He does not say, “all of them”. After all, there is a minority among them who are reasonable. The Holy Quran observes their right by saying, “most of them”.
One issue about lifestyle and good habits and methods in life is reading books. Of course, in the report that was delivered in the meeting, this was pointed out, but it is very important for us to encourage the people and youth to read books. Reading books is very important. You should introduce good books as well. I even think that it is a good idea to turn Friday prayer places into centers of presenting good, up-to-date and ideal books so that the people come and see that such books exist and so that they get them from the same or other such places. Of course, the gentlemen in charge should examine the different dimensions of this. We should encourage the people to read books and we should encourage outstanding personalities to produce books. These are measures that are necessary. Well, these were some of the issues that I wanted to discuss.
One of the important issues about Friday prayers is attracting the young society of the country. Despite the fact that in the present time, we have less youth compared to 1360s and early 1370s, our society is thankfully a young society. We have many youth. You should attract youth to Friday prayers. By merely saying, “Youth, you should come to Friday prayers” they are not attracted. We should draw youth to Friday prayers through attracting their hearts and raising their understanding. One of the things that attracts youth to Friday prayers is speaking in an articulate and accurate manner. Unsound and unreasonable statements – whether in political or cultural areas – will not attract the people who are present there and the youth who are looking for reasonable statements.
Of course, there are some people who are used to attending Friday prayers and they come there out of habit. You should say new things: “You should say new things because there is a special sweetness in novelty” [from a poem by Farrokhi Sistani]. “New words and statements” does not mean unorthodox viewpoints. I do not mean this, rather I mean that you should present new ideas and opinions. You should think and work hard so that you find new and attractive ideas for youth. If you do so, youth will come. They will come and participate in Friday prayer gatherings. They themselves will participate without you asking them to do so.
Dear brothers, one of the things that attracts youth is producing a feeling of friendliness and closeness. Youth are emotional. You can accomplish many tasks by guiding feelings and emotions. If they feel comfortable, if they feel that they are treated in a kind manner and if they feel that there is sincerity, they will come. If they feel that you and I are arrogant and that we are behaving in an arrogant and hypocritical manner, they will not come. These things should be corrected. If this is done, they will come. And when they come, you are in fact feeding the engine of the country and the force that pulls the country forward. Youth are the force that pulls the country forward. So, you are feeding such a force.
In my opinion, one of the issues that is important regarding Friday prayer leaders – this is a continuation of the previous statement – is seminarian behavior, not bureaucratic behavior. The apparatus of Friday prayer leadership is a seminarian and akhundi apparatus, not a bureaucratic apparatus. Therefore, we should not give it a bureaucratic form. It is not managerial presence that works on the issue of Friday prayers, rather it is seminarian and akhundi presence that works. Our behavior should not be “bossy”, rather it should be that of a seminarian and cleric. It should be fatherly, brotherly and friendly behavior because this is the way that the clergy behave.
Another issue is observing the issue of [saying what is] right. I sometimes see that some of the individuals who have fairly big minbars observe the wishes of their audience when they want to address an issue. The audience wants you to speak in a particular manner and you do so. However, this is wrong. Before the Revolution too, we used to have such people. Among the individuals who were eloquent and who were good at innovative and philosophical discussions, there were some people who looked at their audience to see what they liked. If their audience liked a particular issue, they used to address it even if it was wrong. You should not act like this because it is wrong. You should say what is correct even if the audience does not like it. Besides, by speaking in a reasonable manner and by using eloquent and sweet language, you can sweeten those ideas and issues which may have a bitter taste to your audience.
Another issue is the issue of respecting Friday prayer leaders. Friday prayer leaders should be respected by themselves, the people and the central office in Tehran. Showing respect does not mean observing formalities. It does not mean spreading a red carpet, rather it means appreciating the value of the other side. That you – as Friday prayer leaders – should appreciate your own value and that you should respect yourselves means that you should prevent your religious robes from becoming dirty – things that make humans corrupt. These are important things that should receive attention.
In any case, the opportunity to lead and to say Friday prayers in our country is really a great opportunity. In some Islamic countries, it is common for governmental organizations to write Friday prayer sermons on a piece of paper and then they give it to Friday prayer leaders so that they go and read it on their minbar. In our opinion, this is not a real Friday prayer, nor is it a real Friday prayer sermon. This is merely reading the directive issued by such and such an office. Such and such an office in charge of religious affairs writes something and says, “Sir, go there and read this” and that mister goes there and reads it.
Friday prayer sermons are not this. Friday prayer sermons are things that bubble from the hearts and active brains of Friday prayer leaders. They are things that Friday prayer leaders produce on their own and they convey them to people in an articulate and eloquent manner and on the basis of people’s needs. Whenever there is a gap and whenever there is a need, you should identify it. You should also identify the thing that satisfies this need. You should find the psychological and philosophical medicine and food that satisfies the other side’s needs and you should present it to him by using eloquent language. In my opinion, this is the necessary point on the issue of Friday prayer leadership.
In any case, we are thankful for Friday prayers. We are really thankful to Allah the Exalted as well. Once, I and a number of Friday prayer leaders went to visit Imam (r.a.). This is related to the first years of the Revolution when Friday prayers had just been established and when Imam (r.a.) bestowed on me the honor of leading Friday prayers in Tehran. Friday prayer leaders and I paid a visit to Imam (r.a.) and I said something there. What I said – which had bubbled from my heart – was this: I said as Allah the Exalted offered the Night of Qadr to people, but they were deprived of it during the Umayyad Caliphate, we too were deprived of Friday prayers during the time of taghut’s rule. The Umayyad Caliphate lasted a thousand months, but during those thousand months, the people were deprived of the Night of Qadr. This exists in our narrations.
In some of our cities, based on the traditional method, rulers used to appoint someone as a Friday prayer leader. Of course, in some cities like Mashhad, there were honorable and respectable Friday prayer leaders – such as the late Aqa Hajj Sheikh Gholam Hussein Tabrizi who was a very knowledgeable, pious and religious man. He had nothing to do with the regime. So, we used to have such individuals as well, but in many other cities, Friday prayer leaders used to be appointed by taghuti regimes. This was why the people did not attend and pay any attention to them.
The kind of Friday prayer that is organized by taghuti rulers is not interesting to the people and for this reason, the people did not attend them. In that meeting, I said we used to be deprived of Friday prayers for many years and you gave them to us and the people of Iran. Friday prayers are really a great blessing. This was related to the issue of Friday prayer leadership.
Now, I would like to discuss the issue of elections. Of course, we still have some time until the upcoming elections. We have 40, 50 days left, but this is a good time for us to discuss our opinions with the people. I disagree with creating an electoral environment one, two years before elections. I disagree with this, but many people did so. This is wrong. When the environment becomes electoral, we should know that the requirement for such an environment is competitiveness, conflict – even if such conflict is verbal - and potentially, the exchange of all kinds of inappropriate and indecent words and statements. An electoral environment makes one ignore the ongoing realities and the real needs of society. This is not a good measure. I did not deem it necessary to speak about elections in advance. However, now is almost the season of elections and the message should be delivered home.
The primary issue is that the essence of elections is very important. This is a great blessing. As I said on the issue of Friday prayers, I would like to say that elections are a great blessing as well. This was also one of the blessings of the enlightened and deep outlook that our magnanimous Imam (r.a.) had. Even in those days, there were some people who believed that when the government is Islamic, holding elections is not necessary. However, Imam (r.a.) said no, elections should exist and they should play an important role. The people should be the decision-makers. They should be the ones who choose and what they want should happen. The result of this policy was that the people remained with the Revolution and stood in the center of the arena and this has thankfully been the case until today. This is because the people are the ones who are making choices and who are taking the decisions. Elections are a great blessing.
Elections are among the phenomena that thankfully exist in the Islamic Republic. We have had so many elections, but this did not prevent our enemies from saying that the Islamic Republic is a dictatorial system. This is while the dictators in the region are their own friends and they eat from the same bowl when it comes to looting the wealth of nations. They do not say anything to them – the governments that you witness and that you are aware of – but they accuse the Islamic Republic. If elections did not exist, this would not remain an accusation, rather it would become a reality. If this right had been taken away from the people, the enemy’s allegation would have been proved to be right. Thankfully, this right has been given to the people. Elections exist and they are thankfully free elections.
The existence of elections inside the country gives a feeling of independence and identity to the people. They feel that everything belongs to them. And this is the reality of the issue. The people are the owners of the country. They are the ones who make the decisions and who take action including in the executive and legislative branches and indirectly about the Leadership and the other cases that elections cover. Moreover, elections are a source of dignity and credibility outside the country. At an international level, elections are really a source of credibility and reputation. Therefore, elections in themselves are a very important matter and a great blessing.
Elections should not be damaged. Some people like to hit on the drum of the elections’ invalidity when an election is coming up. It seems as though they have gotten used to this. This is a very bad habit and a disease. Why? Our elections are healthy elections. It is possible that in every election, a wrongdoing is committed in a corner of the country. This has always been the case. Well, we ourselves may make some mistakes and commit wrongdoings in our personal, public and private affairs. However, the kind of wrongdoing that changes the result of elections does not exist in any way. Organized wrongdoings do not exist in any way. Negligence by the governmental and non-governmental officials of elections does not exist in any way. This has been the case from the beginning of the Revolution until today. Officials have always attended to the issues of elections in a responsible manner and all administrations that have existed until today have acted in the same manner.
Some of the administrations that have come and gone had 180-degree different viewpoints from each other in terms of politics, but all of them behaved in a completely correct manner on the issue of elections. No one should claim that such and such an election has been rigged. Once – I might have said this before – there was great uproar and tumult about an election in Tehran. Some people insisted that it should be annulled. I said, you should investigate. In Tehran, two, three million people have come and participated in the elections. Should we annul their votes completely? What are you saying? We should investigate the case and see what is going on. We carried out investigation and it became clear that this was not the case. We carried out extensive investigations.
In those years, I said in a writing to the Guardian Council that the elections should not be changed. Elections are the people’s right. They belong to the people and we cannot accuse an election of being this and that. Our elections have been healthy in all terms and by Allah’s favor, this will be the case from now on too. The framework of rules and regulations and the existence of individuals who are careful, watchful and responsible will not allow elections to witness such problems. This is one issue.
As I said, elections are one of the people’s rights [“Haqul nas”]. The very essence of this right is an important matter. Well, it is frequently repeated that such and such a person has said that elections are the people’s right and this is being said over and over again. However, we should get to the depth of this concept. “Haqul nas” does not mean that the person who is sitting at ballot boxes takes care not to allow votes to be changed and to be increased or decreased. This is only one of the dimensions of haqul nas. Another dimension is observing the rights of candidates. One of the rights of the people is to observe the rights of the candidates who enter the arena and who run for candidacy.
If they are righteous people, we should not eliminate them. Instead, we should allow them to enter the arena. The opposite should be observed as well. If they are not competent and righteous individuals, we should not allow them to enter the arena. If there is a person- whether in the Assembly of Experts, in the Islamic Consultative Majlis or any other organization for which there is an election– who does not have the legal competence and eligibility to enter the arena and if we ignore and forget about this matter, this is also violating and spoiling the rights of the people. This is also acting against haqul nas.
Another dimension of observing haqul nas is trustworthiness. Those people who collect, count, record and report the votes and in sum, those individuals who are in charge of handling ballot boxes should be completely reliable and trustworthy. The slightest wrongdoing in such areas is abusing the people’s trust.
Another dimension of observing the people’s right is to accept the result of our legal elections. When elections produce a particular result and when legal centers confirm it, accepting the result is part of haqul nas. This is contrary to what was done in the year 1388. Well, in the year 1388, some people brought up a wrong and unacceptable idea. They said that the election has been rigged and that it should be canceled. Now, how many people participated in it? Forty million! Forty million people participated in an election and voted in favor of different candidates, but those gentlemen said those things, alleging that the elections have been rigged.
Of course, I tolerated and went along with many of them. If I want to say what efforts were carried out, tit would require a long discussion. We went along with them and we said that they can go and re-examine ballot boxes in whatever numbers that they liked. However, they did not pay attention and they were not supposed to listen to this reasonable and legitimate point. They did not accept this reasonable offer and they brought about unnecessary costs for the country. I do not know when the losses that were imposed on us in the year 1388 are going to be made up for. I really do not know. They have not been made up for yet. This is another issue: everyone should accept the result of elections.
Another issue is adopting a fair-minded outlook about the list of names that is offered: the list in which the names of possible candidates are mentioned. Those people who present such lists should really be fair-minded. They should not involve favoritism, partisan issues and the like. They should look and see who really is eligible and then they should introduce such candidates to the people. This is another part and dimension of observing the people’s rights.
Another dimension is that the people who want to vote should trust those organizations that are really trustworthy. There are some who are not trustworthy: “Like one whom the evil ones have made into a fool, wandering bewildered through the earth” [The Holy Quran, 6: 71]. Sometimes, it is not the case that such people present a list out of sincerity, truth and interest in the Revolution – the Revolution is the basis of our work - rather they present a list with other purposes which are sometimes corrupt. The people should pay attention and see where such lists come from and who has presented them. They should vote for those candidates who are trustworthy and reliable. This is another issue. Therefore, the issue of haqul nas has such dimensions. Of course, it has other dimensions as well, but I do not want to enlarge on this issue. Haqul nas really has such a meaning and significance.
An important issue about elections is the maximum presence of the people. I will speak more about the maximum presence of the people in the future if I live long enough. The more people participate in the elections, the stronger the system will become and the higher the credibility of the country will be. The more people participate, the higher the credibility of the system will become. This is because the Islamic Republic is a popular system and the truth of the issue is that it is reliant on the feelings, emotions, choices and requests of the people. I have had the same viewpoint about the maximum presence of the people since long ago and I have always placed great emphasis on it. I would like to emphasize it this time as well and by Allah’s favor, I will speak about this issue more in the future.
Another issue is the issue of penetration. We brought up the issue of penetration during and after JCPOA. This is a very astonishing and important issue. Those who have access to information about different matters know very well what a snare they have laid or want to lay in order to penetrate the stronghold of the Iranian nation’s willpower, thoughts and decisions with all kinds of measures, policies and plots. This is an ongoing situation. The people should pay careful attention to this matter when it comes to elections. If the agents of penetration somehow manage to enter the Islamic Consultative Majlis, the Assembly of Experts or the other foundations of the Islamic Republic, they will weaken the bases of the system and will eat them from the inside like termites. The issue is like this. So, the issue of penetration is very important. By Allah’s favor, I will enlarge on the matter later on.
Of course, clarification in this regard is necessary, but such clarification should be done without making accusations and pointing the finger at others. Nonetheless, enlightening the minds of the people is a necessary task. Notice that one of the things that the Holy Quran says to its opponents and to the Jews of the time and one of the criticisms that it makes is, “You People of the Book, why do you clothe truth with falsehood, and conceal the truth, while you have knowledge?” [The Holy Quran, 3: 71]. One of the criticisms that it makes is that they mix falsehood and the truth together. “Labasa” means mistaking one thing for another. “Talbesoun” means making the truth and falsehood look similar to each other: “And conceal the truth.” You [the Jews of those days] cover up and conceal the truth. So, the truth should be explained and this is our responsibility.
Dear brothers, today is a sensitive day. The present era is an extraordinarily sensitive era. A persistent apparatus and an all-embracing front is busy working against the Islamic Revolution. They bring money, weapons and plots to the market. They have- as they call them- “think tanks” and they are working in a constant manner. The reason is that they are sensing danger. They are right and they should really sense danger. This is because Islamic ideology and mentality has spread far beyond the borders of the Islamic Revolution. It has spread on its own. I have given this example many times: I have said that this is like pleasant weather, a gentle wind and the smell of flowers. The smell of flowers cannot be confined to a garden. It moves around and it is spread in the surrounding environment as well. I am speaking about original revolutionary and Islamic thinking, the kind of Islamic thinking that enjoys authority, not the kind of Islam which merely talks, which is respected superficially and hypocritically by others and which is not implemented at all. I am speaking about the kind of Islam that is a source of influence in building and shaping society.
This is an ideology that has been promoted in the world of Islam today and in certain places, it has built and cultivated powerful and competent individuals. This is why they feel that they are in danger. And they think that the center of this great and comprehensive Islamic movement is the Islamic Republic and that they should bombard it with ideological and political thoughts and they are doing so in the present time. They are adopting all kinds of measures: they spend money, they hatch plots and they behave in a desperate manner at different levels in order to see what they should do to Islamic Iran. They are doing everything that is possible for them - we are aware of this and what I am saying is not an analysis, rather it is based on solid information – ranging from making domestic moves, provoking malevolent individuals, spending money and laying moral snares. They are adopting all sorts of measures in order to accomplish this penetration. This issue should receive attention because it is very important.
The Americans have cast their greedy eyes on these elections. They are after a transformation in Iran and we too are after a transformation. I have said many times that society cannot remain stagnant. We should move forward and bring about a transformation and a change. However, our transformation is directed towards becoming completely Islamic. In the present time, we are referred to as “Islamic people” but we have a long way ahead of us until we become completely Islamic. We should constantly move forward and get close – on a daily basis – to the goals that the Holy Prophet (God’s greetings be upon him and his household) has portrayed and illustrated for the Islamic community. We should try hard.
We too believe in a transformation, but their transformation is against ours. That they want a transformation in Iran means that they want us to constantly drift away from these goals. If we get close to these goals, they want us to drift away from them, to move back and to head towards the path that they want. They have cast their greedy eyes on all the domestic events of our country. Whenever two outstanding people have differences of opinion, they cast their greedy eyes on them. They have also cast their greedy eyes on elections. Despite the wishes of the enemies, the people of Iran should launch their movement – whether in the upcoming elections or on any other important social issue – exactly against the wishes of the enemy and they should strike him on the mouth.
Well, this much is enough for today. By Allah’s favor, if I live long enough, if an opportunity arises and if I have the necessary energy and capability, I have some points about the issue of elections which I will discuss with our people in the future. Now, it is almost noon and the time for adhan and saying prayers. I hope that Allah the Exalted will consider us to be among those who say prayers.
Greetings be upon you and Allah’s mercy and blessings
Comment