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.
Welcome my dear brothers and sisters. I would like to especially welcome the noble, honorable families of the martyrs, as well as the organizers of the Hajj pilgrimage, and our dear pilgrims. I would like to extend my condolences to all the honorable people who are present here today on the anniversary of the martyrdom of Imam Sadiq (pbuh).
Regarding Hajj, understanding the significance of Hajj is a fundamental principle for everyone, both for the pilgrims and the organizers. They should understand the significance of Hajj in the Islamic system and as a part of the overall worship acts that people perform. This is important. We must understand the importance of Hajj. There may be a time when a person goes on a trip. Well, this trip might be for a pilgrimage, going on a tour, or it might be for business. Or no, it could be something more than just a trip. It might be a global issue. It might be an international matter. It might be a civilizational issue in the Islamic teachings. Hajj should be viewed in this manner.
Now, there are numerous verses in the Quran about Hajj, each one covering a special point. But I have made a note here of two of these verses that refer to the benefits of Hajj that I will share with you. One is this verse from Surah Al-Maidah which states, “Allah has made the Kaaba, the Sacred House, a [means of] maintenance for mankind” (5:97). God regards the Kaaba as being the source of the [Islamic] community’s stability. This is a very important matter. “A [means of] maintenance for mankind.” In other words, if Hajj did not exist or if it were not carried out, the Islamic nation and the Islamic community would collapse. That is why jurists say that performing the Hajj pilgrimage is a collective obligation in certain cases. What this means is that if a day comes, God forbid, when there is no Hajj pilgrim from anywhere in the world, it is obligatory for you personally to perform the Hajj pilgrimage, even if you had previously made this trip ten times. This House [Kaaba], this main headquarters, this fundamental center, should never be left empty. “A [means of] maintenance for mankind.” This is a very important statement.
Another verse is the blessed verse in Surah Al-Hajj, “And proclaim the Hajj to all the people: they will come to you on foot and on lean camels, coming from distant places, that they may witness the benefits for them” (22:27-28). the people, the nation, the Islamic nation, should come to Hajj from all over the world so that they can see its benefits with their own eyes. “Witness” means they should watch, see, and be present in the place where these benefits exist. Imam Sadiq (pbuh) was asked if these benefits are benefits that one receives in the afterlife. He said that no, the benefits are for this world and the hereafter. The Islamic nation benefits from Hajj in a way that cannot be gained by any other factor like this international meeting. It is only possible with this global meeting. The worldly benefits from it include improvements in the Islamic world’s level of civilization due to the mutual understanding and harmony that exists in it. There are some things that are very apparent but remain hidden from human eyes. This is one of them.
The Sacred Lawmaker (God) [addresses] all the members of the Islamic Ummah, “And proclaim the Hajj to all the people” (Quran 22:27). There are also points to be understood in the word “people” that I do not wish to go into right now. Some verses of the Quran speak about “the people” instead of “the believers.” One of these verses is, “And proclaim the Hajj to all the people,” Hajj belongs to all of humanity. Prophet Abraham’s call was addressed to all of humankind. When the Almighty God revealed to Abraham (pbuh) that he should invite the people [to Hajj], Abraham went to Mount Abu Qubays and said, “O people!” He did not address only the believers or those who accepted him. He invited all of humankind to Hajj. Throughout history, throughout time, and as long as the world exists, Abraham’s invitation will remain. The Almighty God has invited all of humanity to gather together on certain days, in a certain period of time, and in a certain place. “… in the appointed days” has been mentioned in Surah Al-Baqarah, and “… during the known days” has been mentioned in Surah Al-Hajj. The Almighty God has invited all of humanity to come to a specific location.
Of course, it is clear that those who believe in this invitation will accept it, come, and act on it. Thus, they are the believers. It is for the Muslims. Those who do not agree with it will not accept this invitation and will be deprived of it. The fact that all the people from around the world gather together on a certain day, on a certain date, and in a certain place is not a coincidence. It is a calculated matter. It is clear that they are being invited for something.
You see, if an invitation is given to a certain group of people or to a certain city of a country or all the people of a country to be present on a certain day, in a certain place, and at a certain point, what is the meaning of this? It means that their presence is for a purpose and a goal. It does not mean that you should just go there and then leave. [It means], come here so that something can be done. Come, so a goal can be achieved. That is what Hajj is about.
The invitation had one goal. What is that goal? It is the advancement of the Islamic Ummah. It is to bring the hearts of the Islamic Ummah closer together. The goal is the unity of the Islamic Ummah. In facing what? In facing unbelief, oppression, Arrogance, and in the face of human and non-human idols. The goal is to stand up to all the things that Islam came to eliminate. The goal is for the Muslims to gather together and stand up to these things.
For example, the issue of Israel, the Zionist regime, is a matter of discussion today. The entire Islamic world should gather together, and their gathering should have a message in opposition to the Zionist regime. The problem in the world today is the influence of the Arrogant Powers. Everyone must gather together to show their presence and their strength and to stand up to the Arrogant Powers. This is the case. These are the worldly benefits [of Hajj]. Of course, [if] we want to count the worldly benefits, we need to write tens of pages about them. But I have just mentioned a few words about this.
As for the benefits [of Hajj] in the hereafter, the benefits in the hereafter are mixed with these worldly benefits. Hajj affects people’s hearts. It allows people to come closer to the Almighty God. It strengthens one’s relationship with the Almighty God. It brings sincerity to our actions. It cleanses the heart of everything that conflicts with the remembrance of God. Hajj is these things. These things need to take place. The rituals that are a part of Hajj — the Ihram, Tawaf, prayer, Sai, Arafat, Mashar, the rituals in Mina, and other such rituals — each one of these is a door, a window of enlightenment to the world of meaning and the unseen world, a window that your heart uses. This is how you should go to Hajj. This is how you should perform the Hajj rituals.
An important issue regarding Hajj is the global and extraterritorial outlook of all the Muslims. This should not be ignored. Islam has asked all Muslims to have an extraterritorial outlook. There is no doubt that people are naturally faced with long-term, short-term, and daily issues in their lives. There is no escaping this. But we should not be limited to this. While you are thinking about your personal life, your family life, your children, your future, your career, the future of your country, and the advancement of your country, you should also be thinking about the world. This is what Islam teaches. I have written down a quote here from Imam Sadiq (pbuh) which is about Hajj. Of course, the complete hadith is longer than this. This hadith is in the book Wasail in the chapters on “Wujub Al-Hajj.” Keep in mind that Imam Sadiq (pbuh) said these words about the wujub [obligation] of Hajj.
One of the sentences of this hadith is as follows, “If every community or nation only focuses on themselves, on the issues of their own country, and on the issues of their own city, if they rely only on themselves and only consider themselves important, they will perish.” If you do not know what is happening in the world, you will become weak. “They will perish” is the way that Imam Sadiq (pbuh) has said this. Your own country, the region you are in, will perish. It will be destroyed. There will also be a reduction in your nation’s income. You must know what is happening in the world. The hadith continues, “Or you will remain unaware of the world.” You need to look at the world. You need to see what is going on in the world.
This is why I keep repeating the subject of knowing the enemy. Know the enemy, their methods, the way they function, the extent of their progress, their weaknesses, and their strengths. What I am saying is not just directed to the country’s officials, but to everyone. If a country’s population, both the young and old people, the scholars, students, and merchants all pay attention to global issues, they will never be deceived. We have been deceived in many places in global affairs because we did not pay attention to global issues. [For example], what intention did the other party have when they entered the scene? What intention did they have when they said this and that? Why are they insisting on a certain issue? What are their problems? How much do we need something? How much do they need something? We need to know these things. If we know these things, we will not be deceived. Whenever we have been aware of these things and acted accordingly, we have made progress.
We are now making good progress at the global, international, and regional levels. What the US is mainly angry about is our progress. This progress was due to the fact that those who were responsible for the work that needed to be done were vigilant. They understood what was going on in the world. Hajj is the main place where you can find this.
In Hajj, people come from Europe and Africa. They come from all over Asia and from countries that are inclined toward certain policies. All kinds of people come [to take part in Hajj]. You have the means, you have the opportunity to get to know the world’s issues from close up, not through some bogus, lying newspaper or some mendacious, wicked news agency that distorts the truth and spreads such news and false rumors around the world. You can understand from close up. That is how Hajj is. Hajj should be viewed in this manner.
An important point about Hajj is that Islam shows in practice there that it does not accept these discriminations that exist in the world in different countries. It does not accept racial discrimination, geographical discrimination, discrimination between social classes, etc. This is a very important point. The countries that claim to be civilized yet, in my opinion, have no trace of civilization in them — the same countries that you know who consider themselves to be civilized and the rest of the world to be savages — are still caught up in the issue of black and white, European and non-European races. They are still caught up in the issue of migrants.
Even if thousands of migrants drown in the sea, they do not care at all about it. They don’t care. It is as though they don’t consider them to be human beings. They don’t consider them to be something significant. They value their pets more than they value a foreigner living next door. These are events that we see in the world on a daily basis. They are stuck. They have not been able to solve this problem. Islam has solved this problem. And not just in words. Now, the Holy Quran states in words, “The faithful are indeed brothers” (49:10), and there are other such verses. These kinds of words are also plentiful in the narrations and in the words of the great personages of Islam. But in practice, Islam is a language that eliminates discrimination in action. Where? In Hajj. There are black people, there are white people, there are people from all parts of the world there, from all civilizations, and from different parts of history. They all gather there together without any discrimination. There are no disparities between them. They walk together, they perform the Tawaf, they do the Sai together, and they stay [in Arafat] together. This is very important. These are some of the secrets of Hajj. These need to be done with understanding.
Now, about this matter that I would like to mention, and I have said these things many times before, I insist the respected Hajj officials create social norms in these areas. Work in such a way that when today’s young people hear the words “Hajj” or “the Holy Kaaba,” these concepts come to their mind: the concept of building civilization, the concept of global unity, the idea of having a transborder, international outlook, the concept of eliminating disparities. These things should come to their minds. Awareness needs to be created in these areas. This is the responsibility of the clerics who accompany the Hajj groups. This is the duty of the Hajj officials. This is the responsibility of the Bithah (Leader’s representative office in Hajj and Pilgrimage Organization) officials. It is everyone’s duty. Whoever can do so should spread awareness in these areas regarding Hajj. Do something so that people perform the Hajj with this intention.
If we are able to instill this in people’s minds, no one will be worried anymore about some pilgrims shopping for low-quality products as souvenirs. That is a worry that exists. It is one of the things that people worry about. If it becomes like that [where people have those correct concerns], we won’t have these worries anymore.
This is the reason the magnanimous Imam [Khomeini] insisted, and I am following him in insisting on this, that you should participate in the [congregational] prayers — the prayers with the Sunnis — in Masjid al-Haram. Otherwise, if a crowd numbering in the millions gathers together in Masjid al-Haram to pray and you pray with 50 other people in your hotel, that’s not good. Participate in gatherings, talk to each other, communicate with each other, and be in touch with each other.
Yes, there is opposition to these. I know that. There are hindrances. However, the one who is creating a hindrance is a human being, and you are a human being too. You can [talk]. You should gain these benefits. There are spiritual benefits, which consist of prayer and supplications. Pray as much as you can. Supplicate as much as you can. In Masjid al-Haram and in Medina [Masjid al-Nabawi], repeat and increase those deeds that the Almighty God loves, which is sincere action, sincere view, and beseeching God. “Oh God, feed me with Your love and the love of whomsoever loves You, and the love of all those actions that help me get closer to You” (Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 91, 149). Those actions are the ones that bring us closer to God, like beseeching God, paying attention to God, and the supplications that have been narrated. Or there are the supplications that are not specific to those places [Masjid al-Haram and Masjid al-Nabawi], such as the Kumayl Supplication. It is very good to read the Kumayl Supplication together in a group. Our respected officials should talk with the officials in that country [Saudi Arabia] and come to an agreement with them in order to ensure that this is done. This getting closer to God is the positive part. There is also the Disavowal of the Polytheists ritual, which is a huge movement [in Hajj]. It must continue.
One of the things that the Islamic Republic takes pride in is that it has recognized these capacities. Now, that is not to say that we have completely revived this ritual. We have not revived it completely, but we should. However, we have succeeded in informing people about this potential. Prior to the [Islamic] Revolution, these things were not discussed. Neither the people nor the clerics like myself who preached to the people were aware of these things. We were not aware of these things either. It was the Revolution and the revolutionary movement that taught us these things. It showed us the great potential of Hajj. So we should introduce these capacities to the people and then try to act accordingly.
May God grant you success and accept your Hajj pilgrimage. May God accept the Hajj of all the pilgrims from all over the world, grant them success, and give them honor and respect. May God bless the pure soul of Imam [Khomeini] and the souls of our dear martyrs.
May God’s greetings, mercy, and blessings be upon you.
