This session is very pleasant, beneficial and meaningful to me. Meeting the elites and intellectuals, which is always part of my visits to different provinces, has two aspects. First, it is a symbolic move indicating the Islamic Republic's respect and high regard for elites of various fields. Second, it provides an opportunity for us to hear the views of the intellectuals and elites of our society on various issues.
Hearing the views of elites and intellectuals is also of interest to the general public, who watch the program on television. Besides, I personally enjoy meeting our dear elites and intellectuals, and this also contributes to the motives for holding these sessions.
There is not much time for me to speak at this meeting. I would only like to make two points. The first point is that I have always admired Kerman Province, and today my admiration has been intensified by noticing so many elites and intellectuals of various fields such as scientists, artists, literati, writers and poets, experienced teachers, competent university instructors and professors, valorous commanders of the Sacred Defense era, esteemed clergymen, eloquent orators, and famous athletes and sportsmen. Fortunately, this province is capable of fostering the elites of various fields of art and science. To me, this is worthy of great praise and admiration.
The second point that I would like to mention is that elites are precious spiritual assets to our country. In many parts of the world, spiritual assets are evaluated in terms of how much money their scientific or artistic capabilities can bring in. However, from an Islamic perspective, spiritual assets possess a great intrinsic value, while the utilization of scientific, literary, artistic and cultural capabilities to make a living and improve material life is also regarded as permissible.
The elites of various branches of knowledge, government officials and all related organs should try to promote and disseminate the kind of culture in society which does not evaluate science and art based on the amount of money they can produce, but which considers science and art to possess intrinsic worth and merit. This is the kind of culture that can help the country achieve real progress and development.
If you take a look at the history of art and science, you will notice that a major portion of the most significant human achievements in the fields of science and art have been made by those scholars who not only did not receive any material gains for their achievements but were also despised and humiliated. Those scholars were inspired to persevere in their efforts only by spiritual motivation, enthusiasm and great interest in their work. Therefore, it is not always possible to evaluate science and art by using material criteria.
Before the Islamic Revolution, there was not a serious and deep-rooted outlook on science, research, progress, innovation and creativity in our country, at least over the past several decades. In fact, this new outlook has been the outcome and product of the Islamic Revolution in our country.
What happened in the Iranian history was that the continuity of our glorious past was disrupted by the aggressions of the colonial powers and their domination of our country. But the Islamic Revolution prepared the groundwork for reviving the Iranian nation's identity, and today we are trying to restore our historical identity. We are proud of our own identity.
Today, we feel proud that we are able to make progress in different areas of knowledge and introduce innovations in scientific and technological areas. This self-confidence and self-reliance did not exist in our country before the revolution. Even today there are some individuals in our society who do not have a strong belief in their capabilities.
When we talk about the need to open new horizons in science and technology, some may find it hard to accept that we are able to do so. When we say that we should attain such a high level of knowledge and scientific status that if a researcher or scientist in some other parts of the world needs to grasp a certain scientific or philosophical theory, he or she will find it necessary to learn the Persian language, some consider this remark with pessimism and skepticism.
I personally believe and also can see that achieving this objective is quite possible. If we persevere in our efforts, we will reach such a high scientific and technological status over the next two or three decades that the Iranian scholars and scientists will top the list of prominent luminaries in the fields of science and technology in the world.
We are capable of accomplishing this goal, since we have brilliant and talented youngsters. What we lacked and was given to us by the Islamic Revolution was self-confidence. Today, our talented young people have great self-confidence, and fortunately they are making considerable progress in various scientific fields.
During the early years in post-revolution era, we had to import most of our basic necessities from abroad. However, today, there are many people in the world who are using the products of the thought and labor of the Iranian nation. Therefore, the reality indicates that we have made considerable advances, mostly because of our self-confidence.
We should try to boost national self-confidence in the field of science, which is also in line with the Islamic teachings. God willing, we will continue to advance on the path of progress and development.
There is no more time for me to speak, since it is almost prayer time. Thus, I had better bring my words to an end.
Greetings be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings