In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
All praise is due to God, Lord of the Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon our Master, Muhammad, and upon his Pure Progeny, particularly the Vestige of God remaining on earth.
My expectation from this meeting was that the talks would be well-founded and presented using a proper literature, and praise God, this is what has happened. I might not agree with some of the things you have said, but I am very happy with the quality of your talks and the organization of the content, and I am thankful to God for this. Well, it is the end of the month of Ramadan. You have had the opportunity to sit down, think, study, and organize your content. If there were time, I wouldn’t mind if another ten people spoke too. However, we are gradually approaching the time for breaking the fast, and the things I have to say in our meeting would be left unfinished.
Before I begin, I would like to say a couple of things about the same things that you spoke about. First of all, a number of people sent their greetings to me. I would like to ask you to send my greetings to the brothers and sisters who asked you to send their greetings to me, especially the families of the martyrs. As for my birthday, it really isn’t worthy of consideration. It is a very small, insignificant event.
Some matters were stated as complaints, problems, and recommendations, which should be discussed. So where should these things be discussed? They are not very clear or definite. They can be broken down and discussed. It seems to me that if we transfer your suggestions to the Planning and Budget Organization — in which some new activity has started — so they can attend to them, this would be a good approach. You can convey what has been said to them, or we can. Our office can act as a mediator and convey these talks to them and ask you to go there and discuss things with them. God willing, you will come to an acceptable, common conclusion.
Regarding the issue of privatization which some friends mentioned here and which was repeated, and the same is being said outside, the logic that you used is incorrect. They took some wrong actions. Well, yes, any good law can be applied incorrectly. If we hand over the country’s facilities, its production facilities, its factories, all these things that were operating smoothly, if we hand them over to the government, the government will not be able to manage production facilities and large production companies. The government cannot do that. There will be problems. There will be corruption. These things have frequently happened over the past few years. The only solution to these problems has been privatization. There truly was no other option. And this was not done suddenly. It took place based on thinking, studies, and predictions, and after hours of discussion.
Yes, I know that the expectation I had from privatization has not yet been fulfilled, but good things have been done. When you say that the government enterprises that have been given to the private sector will not return their dollars to the government, such a thing is not true. The ones that are not returning dollars are the organizations that are currently operating under the government. This is a problem that I myself recently told the government officials. I have repeated this and brought it up several times. It is the government enterprises that do business and deal with foreign countries that do not return their dollars to the Central Bank. So this is not related to the private sector. Of course, the private sector has its own problems. It needs to be supervised, and it requires attention and observance. These things are required, and there is no doubt about this.
Regarding the economic meeting of the heads of the executive branches, first of all, this is not a permanent matter. It is temporary. Secondly, the meeting is for special purposes. I identified four issues, which I told them. One is the issue of the budget — arranging the budget and reforming the budget structure, because one of our biggest problems is the issue of the budget structure. And there were three other issues. That was the purpose behind this meeting. Of course, things have not developed as they should have, but shutting things down is not the solution. The solution is to pursue the tasks until they are completed. There are some issues that are a problem due to a lack of agreement among high-level officials. So how do we solve these? The solution is for you to sit together, discuss things, make a unified decision, and take action. This is why a council has been formed.
In any case, I hope that God willing, as for what you want and what you are saying — I know that it is coming from your heart and that what you are saying is what you truly believe in — may God grant me the success of being able to carry out that which I am responsible for and, God willing, may the officials complete that which they are responsible for. The literature used in today’s speeches was excellent. It was truly good and well-thought-out. I emphasize the issue of “expressing matters using appropriate words.” This has an impact.
Well, the month of Ramadan is the springtime of spirituality and worship, and it is coming to an end. But, God willing, you have many other months of Ramadan before you. You young people have tens of months of Ramadan before you. You should take advantage of them. They are a springtime for spirituality, a springtime for worship. Youthhood is also a springtime, it is the springtime of life. Thus, a young person has an extra springtime in the month of Ramadan — a spring within a spring. Take advantage of this. There is a big difference between what you can gain from the Qadr Night compared to what someone at my age can gain. You can benefit much more from it. Treasure it.
This beautiful coupling, that is, a coming together of two springs was seen somewhere else as well, during the Holy Defense when the two opportunities of exaltation and ascension existed alongside each other. Well, being present in the front of defense means being in a front where you give your life. It means that the person who goes there is usually prepared to offer his life or health. This is truly a great sacrifice. Whoever becomes involved in this sacrifice is exalted by the battlefield, and they attain a spiritual peak. But those who departed (due to martyrdom) — mostly the youth — it was a different matter for them.
The young men who entered the battlefield, their movement, and their growth, were such that a person like the late magnanimous Imam [Khomeini], who had experienced many years of spiritual journeying and mysticism, envied them. I don’t know whether you read the biographies of the martyrs. I read them and shed tears, and I benefit from them. I truly benefit from them. I think that one of the things you should do is to read the biographies of these dear martyrs, especially some of them who were very spiritual. They made use of it. I believe you should make use of the month of Ramadan. Now, there are only two or three days left, but, God willing, you have many years ahead of you in the future. Prepare yourselves for the next month of Ramadan from now.
I have made this recommendation on numerous occasions, and fortunately, I saw that a couple of our friends who spoke here [today] repeated this — which I fully approve of — and that is that the student community and the student associations need a solid, underlying thought. This is something they definitely need. This has always been my recommendation, and I would like to emphasize this again. If the knowledge base of a young person, especially a young student, is solid, he will be assured, his steps will be steady, and he will remain persistent in his movement. There will no longer be any fatigue. Assurance in one’s heart causes one’s faith to increase, and faith itself brings assurance. Assurance and composure in one’s heart increase a person’s faith, “It is He who sent down composure into the hearts of the faithful that they might grow in their faith” (Quran 48:4). They were already believers, but when the Almighty God gives them this calmness in their heart because of their reliance on spiritual and divine realities, this faith increases.
So, what are these foundations in understanding? In Islam, there are personal, heartfelt, social, political, and international foundations in understanding. These all exist in Islam. The subject of freedom is one of the foundations in understanding that has been spoken about in Islam. The subject of justice is one of the most important issues in understanding. These matters need to be solved. Our young university students should think about these things. They need to work on them until they attain depth. [You need to] read books. Read the Nahj al-Balaghah. Ponder over the [verses of] the Quran when it is recited.
Now, consider justice as an example. Of course, an important example of justice is the elimination of economic and social inequalities and the like, but this is not the only thing. It is one of its major features. Justice begins from our personal judgments. Justice begins with our personal actions, our words, and our judgments about other people and about work, “… and ill feeling for a people should never lead you to be unfair. Be fair” (Quran 5:8). Even if we disagree with someone, if we feel an enmity toward them, or if we don’t think in the same manner, we should not be cruel toward them. The most tragic thing that can happen is if an unbeliever grabs me by the collar on Judgment Day saying, “Sir, you oppressed me in such and such a place.” There really is nothing more difficult than that. Or if one of God’s enemies has a right on me and they grab me by the collar on Judgment Day telling me that I have wronged them. Justice is like this. About international justice, this fight against the Arrogant Powers, which I keep repeating, is one of the most important examples of justice. Some people seek justice, but they don’t believe that the fight against the Arrogant Powers, the US, and Zionism are also examples of seeking justice. But they are. This is how it is.
Freedom. Freedom is very important. The most important part of the theory of freedom in Islam is freedom from this framework of matter. The materialistic viewpoint says that you were born one day, you will live for a few years, and then you will stop to exist. We are all doomed to perish. They will give you some types of freedom in this material cage, [such as] the freedom of lust, the freedom of anger, and freedom for oppression — all kinds of freedom. [But] that is not freedom. The freedom of Islam is freedom. Islam does not confine us in the framework of materialism. “You were created to remain, not to perish” (Shia Creeds 47). We will not stop to exist.
[As the Persian poet,] Rumi says:
The time has arrived to pass away and to bridge the stream
Every created thing shall perish, except His face.
Dying is not the end. Dying is the beginning of a new stage, [in fact] the main stage. When you look at it in this way, that’s when you can soar, and your movement, your progress, and your transcendence will no longer be limited. That is freedom. All the freedoms in life, including personal freedom, freedom of opinion, being freed from the captivity of immobility, stagnation, lethargy, all kinds of backwardness, meaningless prejudices, and freedom from the captivity of the superpowers and dictators are all the result of the foundations of Islamic freedom. You need to think about these and work on them. The solution is not for me to come and talk to you about these things for half an hour for instance. You need to work on these yourselves. You need to think. You need to read books.
Or consider the concept of “awaiting the Reappearance of Imam Mahdi (aj).” This awaiting the Savior is one of the important foundations of our intellectual and religious principles. Awaiting the Savior means that all difficulties can be eliminated and removed. This does not mean one should merely sit around and wait. [Rather,] you need to be alert. In the story of Prophet Moses (pbuh), his mother was told, “We will return him to you and make him one of the Messengers” (Quran 28:7). We will return this child to you, make him one of the Messengers, and he will save you. This strengthened the Israelites. The Israelites practiced resistance in Egypt under Pharaoh for many years. Of course, they ruined everything later on, but they resisted for many years. It was this resistance that brought Moses to them. He started his movement, and they followed him. This led to the destruction of Pharaoh and the Pharaohs. This is what awaiting the Reappearance of the Savior is about. Awaiting the Reappearance means anticipating the removal of all the lacks that you just mentioned. The number of lacks that exist is ten times more than this, but you didn’t mention all of them. This is what awaiting the Reappearance means. It means being prepared, it means you need to think, and it means not imagining yourself to be at a dead end. This imagining that you are at a dead end is a very bad thing. This is the meaning behind “awaiting the Reappearance of Imam Mahdi.” You need to keep these things in mind.
Of course, the Almighty God has repeatedly said in the Quran, “Allah has ordained that, ‘I shall surely prevail, I and My Messengers’” (Quran 58:21). “Allah has ordained” means that it is definite in God’s law that the way of the prophets will prevail. There is no room for discussion on this. “Allah will indeed defend those who have faith” (Quran 22:38). God will defend the believers. There is no doubt about this. “We desired to show favor to those who were abased in the land, and to make them imams” (Quran 28:5). No doubt exists in this. It is the promise of Almighty God. We have seen these realities ourselves. Now, there was a time when we used to quote these things from the Quran, Nahj al-Balaghah, and Sahifah Sajjadiyah, but now we have seen these in our own lives.
Now, you are all still very young. God willing, when you have lived to be ten or twenty years more than I am now, you shall see many things. Me, at this age, I have seen this myself. I witnessed the victory of the Revolution. It was a victory of truth over falsehood. No one thought or imagined that it could succeed. The late Mr. Taleghani told me, “The day when Imam [Khomeini] said ‘the Shah must go,’ I thought, ‘What is he talking about?’” Now, [Mahmoud] Taleghani was no ordinary person. In other words, someone like the late Ayatollah Taleghani, a profound fighter with all the great history that he had, was not optimistic about this. But it happened. The Revolution was victorious. “I shall surely prevail, I and My Messengers.”
Or the Imposed War [of Iraq on Iran]. You weren’t around then. You didn’t see it. The Imposed War was a strange event. Everyone was against us — the US was against us, the Soviet Union was against us, NATO was against us, Muslim countries were against us, our neighbor, Turkey, was against us — everyone. [But] we were victorious. In such a war where everyone was against us, we were victorious. Therefore, our experience shows us the same thing.
This is what awaiting the Reappearance of the Savior is about. Awaiting the Reappearance does not mean that we should just sit around waiting and praying that God will send Imam Mahdi (aj) to us. Nevertheless, praying for his Reappearance is something obligatory that we must do. We need to pray. We must want this. We need to pursue it. But that’s not enough. Awaiting the Reappearance means that whenever there is a problem in the things we are doing, we need to believe that the time of the Reappearance that we are awaiting will come. A person needs to have this expectation. Of course, there are certain necessary conditions. We need to make an effort. Awaiting the Savior means that when you want to eat bread, you need to go to the bakery and buy the bread first. The bread is not going to come to you if you just sit at home and wait for it. Action needs to be taken for the Reappearance to occur. These are the principles that require work. There are many such principles. Or there is the principle of monotheism. A sovereign other than God is forbidden. Monotheism means the negation of the sovereignty of other than God, and there are numerous other similar examples. Your associations particularly need to work on these principles. And don’t focus on a small, limited point. Widen your perspective. Look at all the issues.
\In my opinion, it was good to see you mentioning the names of the late Martyr Motahhari, Martyr Beheshti, the late Misbah Yazdi, and others like them. Their books are good, and the experiences that our youth have had are also good. Now, let’s say, for example, that a young Basiji near Tehran, such as Martyr Mostafa Sadrzadeh, is active and making an effort. A couple of books have been written about him that I have read. [In these books] you see how much he strived to work hard and move forward. We should see these things and move forward. This was the first point that I wanted to make.
I would like to say a few things about university students. (I must talk about this quickly so that we can cover everything.) The first point is this. You need to know that this is my definite opinion. The student activities, like the students themselves, are an opportunity for the country. Some people might feel threatened by some of the student activities or any kind of activity — of course, healthy activities. I will talk about some of the problems with these soon. They are mistaken. Student activities are an opportunity for the country. The demands of students are an opportunity. A student’s language is an opportunity. The sense of responsibility that students feel with regard to the events taking place in their country is an opportunity. The fact that you put in effort to come here with exuberance and excitement, and you cite such and such problems, this is an opportunity for the country. This is something valuable for the country. The enthusiasm that the student community and young students have for solving problems is an opportunity. The sensational presence of students in various events, whether in natural events or in political events such as the Quds Day March, the walk on the 22nd of Bahman, and the like are all important opportunities. The opinions expressed regarding political matters, economic issues, and some decisions, these are opportunities. These opinions are opportunities. I’m not saying they are correct. Pay attention to this. Some of them may be correct; others may not be. But the act of expressing your opinion and thinking about a problem, this is an opportunity for the country. Of course, it is possible for there to be damages associated with it. Student activities should not suffer from deviations. Be careful. Of course, young people find it hard to believe that elderly people were young at one time too. But we have experienced youthhood too, and we know what it’s like to be young.
The probability of making errors and mistakes while young is high. Various things happen. Be careful. We need to overcome the deviations in student activities. We need to create a healthy environment.
Don’t create bipolarities. Student activities should not polarize the student community or the country. This is one of the most important issues. The enemy wants this kind of polarization.
[Student activities] should be realistic. Now, for example, you come here and make a recommendation. This recommendation may need time or be expensive. It may not be possible to pay the costs to do it. It may not be within reach. You need to pay attention to these things. So student activities and demands must be realistic.
They should be accompanied by the presentation of a scientific, practical solution as much as possible. First of all, a scientific solution means that it should be academic and well thought out. Secondly, when we talk about a practical solution, this means that it should not just be written on paper. It should be something that is possible to do. If anyone here enters into the field of action, his/her opinion will change from what it is now. Now, some of you have made some requests. You asked why they don’t bring the youth to get involved. Of course, they must do this. But your opinion will change because you will see the realities, you will see the problems, and you will see the difficulties associated with doing the work.
Someone approached Imam [Khomeini] during his blessed life. They complained to him about the government. Imam Khomeini listened to what the person had to say — as he told us — and in response to that person he just said one thing. He said, “Sir! Running the country is difficult.” It truly is difficult. (We won’t get anywhere if we keep arguing like this.) They need to listen to the people. What do the people talk about? Well, people don’t have things to say about every single issue. Furthermore, their opinions are not all the same. They need to think and study matters. There is a mechanism for people’s words. What people say is what we are seeing now. That is, they elect someone as their president — that is the words of the people. They elect some individuals to be representatives in the Parliament. That is the words of the people. This is how we know what people want.
Now, one of the brothers here spoke about referendums. He said that if we had held referendums on all the issues that came up from the beginning, there wouldn’t have been such sensitivity over the issue of referendums now. Where in the world do they do this? Can all the various issues of the country be put to a referendum? Do all the people who should and will take part in a referendum have the ability to analyze all the issues? How can you say such a thing? How can you hold a referendum on an issue where propaganda can be used or it can be discussed from all different angles? They get a country caught up in debates, arguments, discussions, and polarization for six months in order to hold a referendum on an issue. Should we hold referendums on all matters? It is not something that you can just pass by very easily.
One problem is acting hastily. You should not act hastily. A student’s talk should not just be for announcing the problems. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t talk about the problems that exist, but don’t just talk about the problems. There are [also] good, shining points in the country. The students should mention them as well. They should mention both. In other words, they should not merely act as spreaders of these things [and problems]. They should not be hot-tempered or look at matters superficially. They should not nationalize a local problem. For example, sometimes an incident occurs in a corner of the country. Some student organization turns this into a national issue. This is wrong. It is detrimental to the country. This is not running away from the problem or responding to the problem. It is to the detriment of the country to turn a local problem into a national problem.
A student’s intention should not be seeking fame. Look, I emphasize this. Neither an individual student nor a student association should say things just to be seen. It will take the blessings away from the things you do and speak of. It will minimize the effect of what you say. And of course, it is harmful.
[Students] should not drown themselves in the internet. Well, the internet does exist in the country despite all the things that are said here and there. Social media exists and the internet exists. Some people sit around waiting to be flooded with analyses, news, and content from the internet. That’s wrong. You need to seize control of the social media. You should be the ones to direct it, your thoughts, news, and analyses should go out on the internet, not the other way around. These are things that plague student activities. Sometimes caring, faithful students ask us what their duty is. Sometimes they write to me, or at times they come to our office and talk with our friends there. You can sense their concern and their willingness to do something. One of their important duties is to remove the impurities from important student activities, which are a great opportunity and something valuable for the country.
One more topic about students. I don’t wish to answer your questions now with the things that I am saying. I mean this is not what I am trying to do now. I can’t do this in this limited time. I want you to have a basis for your movement. In other words, organize your movement by looking at the long horizons ahead of you. You are seeking progress. The best youth in our country are mainly our university students, and you pious students want to move forward. I want this goal to be reached. Look at the distant horizon.
They ask me, “In your opinion, what is the duty of an ideal, ambitious student who is thinking about the future?” This is my answer. The first thing is to bring about a change in the thinking and reality of your society, and then to bring about a change in the thinking and reality of the world. Does it surprise you that a student can change the reality of the world? It’s not surprising at all. You are students today.
But tomorrow, today’s students will become directors in politics, and they will administer an important part of the country. The country’s officials today used to be students like you, and now they are busy running the country’s affairs. They are busy with managing the country’s politics, economy, and diplomacy. Today's student is tomorrow's philosopher; he/she is tomorrow's researcher. Today’s student is someone who will be active in the fields of culture and the media tomorrow. Today’s student is tomorrow's leader, mastermind, and an influential element. People don’t stay young and aren’t students forever. Today, you can prepare the ground in such a way that when tomorrow comes and you become one of the elements that I mentioned, you will be able to have an impact in the true sense of the word. You can change both the thinking and the reality of your society.
Today, everyone is saying this. I have said it and others are saying it too. The world is undergoing a transformation. Who is creating this transformation? Masterminds, people who are active [in different fields], and those who are involved in big projects are the ones who are creating this transformation. You are among them. You are students today. Tomorrow you will be the ones who can bring about changes. Thus, I expect you to look to the future in this manner.
Of course, the person who can make a change tomorrow is not necessarily a pious, outstanding, faithful believer. Sometimes some people deviate. You should try to avoid deviation. You need to try and move on the straight path of God. You are moving toward that kind of a tomorrow. Strengthen your foundations — your intellectual foundation, your foundation in faith, your foundation in being rational — from today so that you can be ready for that kind of tomorrow. It seems to me that there are four points here: religion, wisdom, science, and determination. These four things are necessary. Religious foundations, scientific foundations, intellectual foundations, and foundations in determination — unwavering determination, unwavering resoluteness. You need to strengthen these in yourselves. Whoever is able to work on self-improvement more in these areas will be more influential in the future. Some will reach the peak. Some may not reach the top, but they will make an impact to some degree. It all depends on how much you have prepared yourselves. This is another point.
Another matter is regarding student groups. When we talk about students, the word “student” brings a chain of characteristics before our eyes and into our minds. When we say “student,” we think of seeking knowledge; being young and active; being dynamic, creative, and inventive; having humanitarian feelings like fighting corruption and injustice; and the like. Above all, I believe having an intellectual foundation is the most important factor, which I previously mentioned. You should strengthen and reinforce your intellectual foundation.
You see, I am not suggesting that you should put aside other plans and focus on thinking and studying. These things can be done simultaneously. In other words, studying, thinking, and self-improvement while working at the same time has a much higher chance of success for moving forward compared to simply sitting, canceling all plans, and canceling all student activities in order to just read a few good books. Be connected with religious sources and be in contact with trustworthy, deep thinkers. We have many good people among our intellectuals and scholars today.
Something else I have made a note of is that we must be up-to-date about the enemy’s plans and strategies. All of us need to be up-to-date. There are some people who get frustrated when I say the word “enemy.” They say that we blame everything on the foreign enemies! They think that when we say, “We have enemies,” we are trying to deny our own flaws and weaknesses. That is not the case. These problems exist, but this matter must not be forgotten either. We have enemies, whether we like it or not. Whether we know it or not, our enemies exist and they are working hard. They are constantly working.
They are spending money, providing facilities, and working against the front of truth. Even if we are neglectful, they will not neglect us. The Commander of the Faithful (pbuh) has said in Nahj al-Balaghah, “He who neglects the enemy will not be neglected by the enemy” (letter 62). If you fall asleep in the trench, that does not mean that your enemy has fallen asleep as well. They might be well awake while you are sleeping. So the enemy exists and we cannot deny this.
The enemy’s strategy is for us to become pessimistic about ourselves. Now, one of the brothers here talked about the issue of hope. It was a good talk and I don’t reject what was said, but I don’t agree that despair is mainly due to internal sources. Yes, there are definitely problems inside. We know these problems. But these problems do not dishearten a motivated, young student. A motivated, young student becomes disappointed due to other things. A professor or, for example, a person who feels no commitment [to his/her country] sits and talks with a young person privately, and of course, the same thing also happens in a different way and in a collective, broader sense, “With what hope are you studying here? Just quit and leave. What hope do you have?” They tell you who are young and resistant, “What hope do you have with this [high] dollar price and this [high] inflation rate over the years? What do you have hope in for studying here?” This is how despair comes in. This will have an effect. Of course, for a faithful, resistant, knowledgeable, intelligent young person the response is clear and to the point, “Yes, there are problems. I am studying in my country because I intend to live in this country for decades, and my children, my grandchildren, my descendants, and my countrymen will live in this country for hundreds of years. I want to correct the problems. I study to solve the problems. I struggle to solve the problems.” This is the young Muslim’s response, but that one [the skeptic] does what he/she is doing and [negatively] affects people. He affects some people. Now, this is one example.
Another example about trying to make us pessimistic about ourselves is the existence of all kinds of malicious media outlets that insist on proving that the Iranian nation has turned away from religious beliefs and that it has turned away from revolutionary sentiments. They insist on this. They say this over and over again, and they have some followers here who say the same thing. They repeat in the social media, in newspapers, and in various discussions that people have turned away from religion. Well, they repeat this. If a person is negligent and not thinking, he/she will accept and believe in this. But suddenly, you see that the Qadr Night arrives, and this year’s gatherings are more energetic than last year. Beseeching God, crying, imploring Him, as well as the presence of young people and their tears in these gatherings were more than last year. Quds Day arrives, and it’s more crowded than last year. The 22nd of Bahman arrives and the crowd is double that of last year. This means that the opposite of what they say is true, but they tempt others. I said [from the Quran], “… against the evil of the temptations of the satans, who whisper into the hearts of human beings, from among the jinn and human beings” (114:4-6). The human beings who are referred to here are these people. They are always tempting others.
As another example, imagine a few investors and entrepreneurs leave the country with their money and move to another country. Some people say, “See! Why do you have hope that you can carry out any kind of economic activity here? They are leaving!” Well, yes, if there are four people leaving, there are another 40 people staying and running their businesses. There are thousands of knowledge-based companies being created that are employing our youth. This is the truth of our society, but the enemies try their best to eliminate everyone’s hope. That is the enemy’s strategy. So keep in mind that the enemy’s plan today is to cause us to lose hope in ourselves. They want us to lose hope in ourselves, lose hope in the government, lose hope in student environments, and to lose hope in our people. But no, the country is making progress, and it is progressing well.
We have some flaws. I may expect more from some of you and object more as well. Sometimes there is no need to say things publicly, but I do talk and state my objections. We can see that we are making progress. Thankfully the country is moving forward. We did not have this many religious, active, motivated, smart young people in the country before, but we do today, praise God. This was another point.
Another point is that our enemies hold a grudge against our youth. I want you to know this. I want our youth to know this. I want you and all the youth in our country to pay attention to this. The enemy, Global Arrogance, and the Zionist cartels that control Europe and America definitely do not like the officials of the Islamic Republic. They would tear them apart if they had the chance. But they are even worse with our youth. Why? Because if it weren’t for the active youth and their motivation, the country’s officials could not do anything. The fact is that the youth are doing the work. Our movement and developments are thanks to our youth. That is why they hold a grudge against our young people. Since the beginning of the Revolution and continuing up until today, it has been the young people who are doing the greatest work in different fields and areas and who are taking on responsibilities and making progress. I am saying this mainly for the country’s officials to keep this in mind, and thankfully they do. They make use of our youth but they should use them even more. The youth in Iran have worked in various fields.
I have made a note here. In the field of government administration — as government administrators — we have had young people such as Martyr Musa Kalantari and Martyr Tondgooyan. They were ministers [in the administration], all at a young age. Or there were Martyr Qandi and Martyr Abbaspour. They were all martyred. They were young, all of them — the ones that I am mentioning. I will mention a few others as well. They were in their 20s or 30s. That is, they were between the ages of 20 and 39 or 40. They were active in the field of government administration. The late Musa Kalantari related, “I was sitting in the second or third row of the Friday prayer. Someone was sitting next to me. Martyr Abbaspour, who was one of the ministers and was martyred later, was sitting in the front row. The person who was sitting next to me pointed to Martyr Abbaspour and told me, ‘Look, the minister has come and is sitting in the lines for the group prayers! Look where we have gotten to.’” It was during the early days of the Revolution. Martyr Kalantari, who had a beautiful Turkish accent, turned to him and said, “Let me tell you something that’s even stranger. I am one of the ministers too!” They were good ministers. They were good managers.
In the military field, we had people like Martyr Hemmat, Martyr Kharrazi, Martyr Babaei, Martyr Hassan Baqeri, Martyr Shiroudi, Martyr Ardestani, and Martyr Sayyad Shirazi. Of course, Sayyad was older when he was martyred, but he was at the age that I mentioned when he was fighting in the war. These men changed the reality of the war. They turned it into the strength of the Islamic Republic against all the allies of reactionism and arrogance.
In the fields of the arts and literature, there were Martyr [Morteza] Avini, the late [Farajollah] Salahshoor, and the late [Nader] Talebzadeh. Of course, they were older when they passed away, but they had done many things at a young age, and there are many others who were like them. In the field of science and research, there were Martyr Tehrani Moghaddam, the late Kazemi Ashtiani, Martyr Majid Shahriari, Martyr Rezaeinejad, and Martyr Ahmadi Roshan. Our youth are these people. This chain has continued up until today, the contemporary period that you are in. There have been Martyr Hojaji, Mostafa Sadrzadeh, Arman Aliverdi, and Ruhollah Ajamian. They are outstanding individuals. They truly are outstanding figures. There are thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of young, responsible Iranians today. They are the driving force. They are the propelling force of the country and the government’s movement, each in a different field.
That is how each and every one of you should be. I am not saying that you should get martyred. I pray to God that you don’t get martyred. Of course, it’s fine if you do when you’re at an old age. But wait until you’re 70 or 80 years old and then get martyred. We need you now while you’re still young. Don’t get martyred, but live like a martyr. Live like these people and take action like them. The evil powers are very much against this group.
My dear young people, follow the clear path with determination. Follow the clear path of the Revolution, Islam, the country, the system, and the like with determination. Our country needs you. You need ideals. One of the few things that is truly needed on this path is idealism. You need hope, you need rationality. You need these. Idealism means [looking at] distant horizons as I mentioned. [Movement] is not possible without this. “Idealism” is the propelling force for movement. “Hope” is the fuel of this engine. Without hope, this engine will not move. It will keep thinking and worrying about idealism if there is no hope. And “rationality” is the steering wheel for this engine. You must think rationally, act wisely, and move forward.
As for universities, I have much to say about them. You also spoke about them, and what you said is correct. The problems you mentioned exist. What I want to say is that the lack of a truly comprehensive scientific plan is a great shortcoming in our universities today. We don’t know what basis is used for the distribution of students in various scientific fields of study. These scientific courses of study should be in fields that are needed in the country, they must benefit the country. How many students do we need in a certain field? These matters should be considered and work needs to be done on this. I would like to ask the honorable Minister of Science — he is probably among us here — to pursue this matter. It is one of the important tasks that you need to do.
There are some fields of study that aren’t even needed in Iran. There aren’t any jobs in these fields either. Well, what’s the point? There is no point in carrying out certain academic activities or attending certain academic courses. Perhaps we have several hundreds of thousands of high school graduates who are able to work in different sectors right now. [But instead], we bring them into the university environment, and after a while, we turn over a few hundred thousand angry, demanding, unemployed people with a Bachelor’s or a Master’s degree to the country. Let’s think about what we need and take action according to our needs. If we have a university graduate who doesn’t have a job, you should know that there is a problem with our educational system. If someone studies a field of study in order to be able to benefit his/her country, their job must be ready. If we have a graduate, but he does not have a job, it is clear that this student’s enrollment was not done systematically based on correct calculations.
Well, our time is up and there is still much to be said. I like you and I pray for you.
May God’s greetings, mercy, and blessings be upon you.
