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12/20/2007
Iran's Ayatollah Khamenei
On Tuesday, Dec. 18, Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali
Khamenei addressed the audience at the Hajj in Saudi Arabia,
through his representative. I’ve always believed in reading what
the other side is saying so I thought I’d pass along his remarks,
courtesy of the Islamic Republic News Agency.
The purpose of this exercise on my part is to just lay it all out
there. You can draw your own conclusions, while I’ll reserve
any of my own for my “Week in Review” commentary.
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Ayatollah Khamenei
[After a general greeting to the faithful]
Each and every corner of Hajj is the embodiment of unity and
solidarity among the believers where natural and contractual
differences fade away and the significance of the true and
monotheistic unity and brotherhood is upheld.
These are the lessons that we, the Muslims, from all parts of the
world, have to learn; lessons on which bases we have to plan our
lives and futures.
The Holy Quran refers to the strong stand against the enemies,
compassion and kindness among the believers as well as courtesy
and obedience to God as the three indications of an Islamic
society.
Muhammad is the Messenger of God, and his followers should
be solid of heart against the disbelievers, but most compassionate
amongst themselves; you see them bowing down, prostrating,
imploring Grace from God.
These are the three basic pillars necessary for the establishment
of the glorious and dignified body of the Muslim Ummah.
[Ed. “Ummah” is the community of believers.]
Bearing in mind this fact, all the Muslim people can
appropriately identify the ailments of the present Muslim world.
Today, the treacherous enemies of the Muslim Ummah are the
organizers of the hegemonic centers and expansionist and
aggressive powers which consider the Islamic awakening as a
great threat to their illegitimate interests and their oppressive
domination over the Muslim world. All the Muslim nations led
by their political and religious authorities, intellectuals and
national leaders need to form a united Islamic front against this
invading enemy with full strength.
They need to muster all the elements of power within themselves
and properly strengthen the Muslim Ummah. Knowledge and
insight, resourcefulness and vigilance, responsibility and
commitment, confidence and hope in divine promises, refraining
from petty and trivial wants in order to attain the consent of God
and abiding by the duties are all the basic elements contributing
to the sovereignty of the Islamic Ummah leading it to dignity,
independence and material and spiritual progress and preventing
the enemies from the attainment of their unlawful wishes.
Compassion among the believers is the second pillar and another
indication for the desired status of the Muslim Ummah. Disunity
and conflict among parts of the Muslim Ummah are dangerous
diseases which must be treated with all might. Our enemies have
long been making great efforts in this area. Today, those who
have become terrified due to the Islamic awakening have
intensified their efforts.
All that the caring people are saying is that the differences must
not turn into conflicts and that plurality should not lead to
belligerence.
The Iranian nation has named this year as the year of Islamic
solidarity. This naming was used due to the awareness of the
intensified plots hatched in order to sow the seeds of discord
among our brothers. These plots proved to be effective in
Palestine, Lebanon, Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan and some people
in these Islamic countries were instigated to oppose some of their
own countrymen and to spill their blood. The traces of this
conspiracy were visible in all these bitter and tragic incidents and
people with keen sights noticed the hands of the enemy in them.
The command of ‘being compassionate amongst themselves’ in
the Holy Quran is tantamount to the extirpation of such
pugnacities. In these glorious days and during the various rituals
of Hajj, one may see Muslims from all over the world and from
various faiths going around one single house, praying in the
direction of one Qibla, stoning in unison the symbol of the
rejected Satan, acting in the same way to sacrifice the carnal
desires and passions and, in unison, practicing supplication
during the Arafat and Mashar gathering places.
The same closeness and togetherness is also visible among all the
Islamic faiths in terms of the most basic religious precepts,
regulations and beliefs. Therefore, why should the prejudices
and prejudgments be allowed to kindle fire among them and why
should the treacherous hands of enemies be allowed to stoke this
ravaging fire? Today there are some who, under false pretexts
and due to their narrow-mindedness and lack of prudence,
consider a great number of Muslims as infidels and even
consider spilling their blood as lawful.
Whether they are aware of it or not, they are in the servitude of
idolatry, unbelief and arrogance. Many a person who used the
term of infidelity for the reverence of the holy shrines of
Mohammad the Great Prophet of Islam, the Pious and the Imams
which is actually honoring religion and religiousness, became the
servants of infidels and oppressors and collaborated with them in
attaining their wicked goals.
The real religious figures and scholars, committed intellectuals
and sincere authorities must combat such perilous phenomena.
Today, Islamic unity and solidarity are definite religious duties
which may be materialized and practiced through cooperation
among the wise and caring people.
Formation of a fortified front against the arrogant powers on one
hand and compassion and convergence on the other are the two
pillars of dignity. Accompanied by the third pillar which is
comprised of the courtesy and obedience to God, these pillars
enable the Muslim Ummah to tread steadfastly on the same path
which led to the pinnacle of glory and dignity for Muslims
during the very outset of Islam.
Consequently, the Muslim Ummah will be saved from the
humiliating backwardness which has been imposed on it in
recent centuries. The precursor of this great move has emerged
and the awakening waves are more or less on the move in the
Muslim world. The media and propaganda belonging to the
enemies try to attribute any freedom and justice seeking
movement in any part of the world to Iran or Shi’ism. They try
to hold Iran, which was the first flagbearer of the victory of the
Islamic awakening, responsible for the blows dealt to them by
the zealots in the Muslim countries in the areas of politics or
culture.
The peerless epic of Hizbullah created in the 33-Day War, the
prudent resistance of the Iraqi nation which led to the formation
of a parliament and a government not favored by the occupiers,
the astonishing patience and perseverance of the legal
government of Palestine and its self-sacrificing people and many
other signs of the revival of Islam in Muslim countries are all
accused of being linked to Iranism or Shi’ism in order to impede
the unanimous support of the Muslim world. However, such a
ruse will not be able to withstand the divine tradition which
heralds the victory for the strugglers in the cause of God and the
victory-bearers of the religion of God. The future belongs to the
Muslim Ummah and each and every one of us may contribute to
the nearness of that future proportionate to the amount of
responsibility or capability we have.
Hajj rituals are a great opportunity for you fortunate Hajjis to
prepare yourselves for this cause more than before.
I hope the divine aid and the blessing of Hazrat Al-Mahdi, May
God hasten His arrival, will be with you in this great aim.
Sayyed Ali Al-Hosseini Al-Khamenei
For the record Khamenei wrote this Dec. 15, to be read Dec.
18 as noted above.
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The next Hot Spots will not be until Jan. 10.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.
Brian Trumbore
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