Statements at the Meeting with Hajj Officials

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Thanks be to God, the Lord of the worlds, and peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his pure family, especially the Remaining One of God on earth, may our souls be sacrificed for him.

Welcome, dear brothers and sisters, officials of this great divine and Islamic movement of Hajj this year. It is a great glad tidings that after two years of suspension, the Almighty God has reopened this door for Iranian pilgrims, eager Iranians, and other brothers in different countries. This is a divine invitation that opens the door and paves the way for you; this is not a favor from anyone; this is the acceptance of your eagerness and the esteemed pilgrims by the Lord of the worlds. God willing, may you have a good Hajj and return safely and securely, with your prayers answered and, God willing, with divine favors in abundance. I also thank these two dear brothers for their statements and the valuable actions they mentioned.

I would like to say a brief word about Hajj. Hajj is a well-planned divine program. All divine programs are well-planned, but this program, with its dimensions, characteristics, and scope, differs from all other programs. This indicates the scientific mastery of the Almighty (may His glory be exalted) over human existence, over the human heart, over human needs, and not just one individual human, but the human community, and not just in one generation, but throughout successive generations. This scientific mastery has led the Almighty to provide this program for humanity in accordance with human needs and the various dimensions of these needs, giving individuals the opportunity to benefit from it; Hajj is such a program. Therefore, you observe that the Almighty in Surah Al-Ma'idah, after stating some of the rulings of Hajj, says: "This is so that you may know that God knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth, and that God is All-Knowing of everything"; (2) these things that We have made obligatory upon you, this Ka'bah and this Hadi (3) and these Qala'id (4) and similar things, are for you to understand, to gain knowledge of the scientific mastery of the Lord; to know how the Almighty is familiar with the secrets and details of your lives, and based on them, He legislates for you.

So how do we understand? Through contemplation; it is not the case that just by looking, everything becomes clear; no, one must think, reflect, contemplate, and utilize knowledge and thought to understand what impact this Hadi that is sacrificed there, this Tawaf that is performed, this standing in Arafat or Muzdalifah, and similar acts have on human life. In other words, Hajj is such a program that the Almighty, with knowledge of the dimensions of human needs, has determined this program with all its branches and details for humanity, and it will continue in this manner; it is not the case that it exists one year and not the next; no, it will continuously exist throughout all these years, and this program will, God willing, continue forever. Well, if we can engage in the necessary contemplation in this regard, then we will understand how much humanity benefits from Hajj, and how these benefits encompass a vast range of human life.

The Holy Quran has summarized almost all the wisdom of Hajj in a short sentence, which if we can think about, utilize the statements of the infallibles, and contemplate the Quran, we can understand many things from this one word. In the same Surah Al-Ma'idah, it says: "God has made the Ka'bah, the Sacred House, a standing place for people"; (5) [of course] it is not just the Ka'bah; then [it mentions] the Sacred City, Hadi, and Qala'id, and similar things — which want to express the entirety of Hajj, not just the noble Ka'bah — all of these are for what? A standing place for people. "Standing" here is not in the verbal sense. The experts in language and interpretation have defined standing and say that standing here means "what supports the thing"; [that is] a building relies on a pillar; this is called "standing"; that pillar is the standing. Here, the Almighty says that Hajj is the pillar of human life; this is very important. "A standing place for people"; it belongs to people; it belongs to you and me and this and that, not just a few, not just a generation, not just a population, it belongs to humanity, it is a standing for humans. This word "standing" has been used twice in the Quran; this word standing has been used twice in the Quran: once regarding national wealth: "Do not give your wealth, which God has made a means of standing for you, to the foolish"; (6) this is only here. Wealth, property in society, the Almighty has made it a means of standing for society, and that is indeed the reality; without wealth and property, society cannot move. It needs wealth; from the material aspect, humanity requires it. The other instance is here: "God has made the Ka'bah, the Sacred House, a standing place for people"; here too, it is standing.

Well, this standing does not only have a material aspect; of course, it has a material aspect: "So that they may witness benefits for themselves"; (7) those benefits include material benefits, but more than that, they are spiritual benefits, behavioral benefits, ethical benefits, teaching a way of life; this is Hajj. What you do in Hajj — that is, in these acts of Hajj, the total acts of Hajj — teaches you, that is, to generations that are connected to each other, how to choose the pillars of their lives; at one point there is movement, at another point there is stillness, at one point there is avoidance, [and at another point] there is teaching coexistence.

One of the most important issues in Hajj is "coexistence". Individuals who have no acquaintance with each other, from different cultures, from different places, different colors, different languages, must coexist here. "There should be no obscenity, no wrongdoing, and no arguing in Hajj"; (8) that is, you have no right to get into conflicts, to have problems with each other; you must coexist; do you see? One aspect, this coexistence. Now, what are the problems of humanity — not just the problems of Muslims — in the world? It is that they do not know how to coexist; they bully each other, speak ill of each other, encroach on each other's space, and harm each other. Hajj teaches coexistence; in a limited period, it shows you a sample of coexistence, saying this is how you should live.

Another example is the teaching of "simplicity". Ihram is a symbol of simplicity; that is, there are no excessive clothes in Ihram; just what covers your body; this is simplicity. It is not obligatory for you to dress like this in all of life and live in Ihram; no, but it wants to say that you should learn this; learn that simplicity can be practiced and must be promoted. This is again like the previous topic [that is] coexistence. If you look, many of the misfortunes and problems of the world are due to these excesses, ostentation, and materialism; a large portion of the world's wealth is being spent on these things; [of course] everywhere, now in our country, unfortunately, it is the same — in other places, it is dozens of times, hundreds of times more being spent on these things — [but] here you are obliged to simplicity; that is, the characteristic of Hajj is that when it wants to teach, it teaches in this manner; that is, you must have this simplicity for these few days. This is also a teaching, a way of life.

[The next point] is the practice of "avoidance". There are some things we must avoid in the world, in life. Humanity is greedy; it does not know how to avoid; here is the lesson of avoidance; we must avoid; avoid the prohibitions of Ihram. All the things you must avoid in Ihram are ordinary things, but you must avoid them. You must learn that if an insect is on your body, do not harm it; this is very hard. You must get used to not looking in the mirror for decoration; you must learn this; this is an avoidance that is not prohibited in ordinary times, but this teaches avoidance, learn to avoid. We must learn that there are some things we must avoid in life, we must practice this; this practice is in Hajj. See; these are very important aspects in human life; both coexistence, simplicity, and this practice of avoidance.

Another point is the practice of "not using things that are at your disposal". Some of us are like this; we have considerations, we do not touch someone else's property and so on, but sometimes something comes into our possession — it is public property; it comes into our possession — we make some justification, we take something from this public property in some way and with some justification; something has come into our possession that we would not have done before. This is one of the calamities; this is one of the calamities of human life that when something is available to him, avoiding it and resisting against the desires of the self regarding it becomes difficult; like various issues, for example, suppose you consider relationships with non-mahrams, sexual matters, and so on. Something comes into your possession, you must learn that now that it is in your possession, it does not mean it is permissible; this is what the Quran teaches us in Hajj: "O you who have believed, God will surely test you with something of the game that your hands and spears can reach"; (9) during Hajj, since hunting is prohibited, wild animals come easily into your possession; they know they will not be hunted, they come into your possession; if you wanted to hunt this deer or mountain goat under normal circumstances, it would be very laborious, but now, no; now your hand reaches it, your spear reaches it, [but] you must avoid. "God will surely test you"; the Almighty tests you with a kind of hunting. Of course, the discussion is about hunting that is not prohibited; some types of hunting are absolutely prohibited under normal circumstances, but this is for that hunting which is not prohibited under normal circumstances, but is prohibited in Ihram during Hajj. God uses this to test you; that is, practicing that you learn when something is available to you, just because no one is paying attention, do not reach for it. Of course, these are examples; there are many such instances.

I have spoken a lot about Tawaf and standing and similar matters in previous years; others have spoken more than us and better than us in these areas; I wanted to present these few brief points. "A standing place for people" means this; life relies on Hajj. Many fundamental issues of life, the main lines of life and way of life, emerge for you in Hajj; that is, with contemplation and reflection in Hajj and attention in Hajj, you can learn these; and this is not just for this generation, it belongs to all generations; for over fourteen hundred years, this has existed, and after this, by God's grace, it will exist for thousands of years until the Day of Resurrection; this is Hajj. The Almighty has summarized these in one word: "God has made the Ka'bah, the Sacred House, a standing place for people."

Well, let me make a few recommendations for the esteemed pilgrims and Hajj officials. First, you Hajj officials should greatly value this work; each of you, in whatever way, whether in the representation section, the management of Hajj and the Hajj organization, or the sections that cooperate, the health section, the security section, the Red Crescent section, the promotional sections, the media, and others who cooperate, all should know that they are engaged in an important task; that is, they are participating in an important matter. "Cooperate in righteousness and piety"; (11) this is truly cooperation in righteousness and piety; value this work. Well; now what does "value it" mean? It means to do it well. What does doing it well mean? First, it means to do it with the intention of drawing closer to God; because the Almighty has commanded it, do it. Then, strive to do the work in the best manner, accurately, firmly, with innovation, God willing. And value this work; it is very valuable; your work is truly valuable.

One recommendation to the esteemed pilgrims is that they prepare themselves to benefit from this spiritual atmosphere. A person is not always prepared; see, when we want to pray, we are told before that we should take ablution, say the call to prayer, and say the Iqamah; none of these are part of the prayer, but they prepare us to enter the sacred realm of prayer, softening our hearts; we must be prepared. A Hajj that is without preparation may turn out to be of little benefit; in some of the rulings of Hajj, there are hints to this; for example, suppose in your first Hajj trip, you must shave your head; shaving is obligatory. It is recommended that you do not cut your hair for a while beforehand so that it grows well, and then shave it there; this is preparing yourself for Hajj. When your hair grows, it is more beautiful, better, so detaching from it has greater reward. Prepare yourselves for this atmosphere; with the recitation of the Quran, with the remembrance of the verses of Hajj, with attention to the concepts present in Hajj, with eagerness for the Ka'bah, with eagerness for [visiting] the pure grave of the Prophet and the graves of the infallible saints that complement Hajj. This is one point regarding preparing yourself and your heart for entering the sacred realm of Hajj.

Another recommendation is to value every moment of this journey. I have, of course, repeatedly said that wandering in the markets is a flaw; no matter what intention you go to wander in the markets, it is a flaw; for example — we make excuses — say: no, this case is necessary, a person must [buy]; no, it is not necessary. Instead of spending your time in those problematic markets — which now I do not want to use harsher expressions, as there is truly room for harsher expressions — instead of spending [time] in those markets and shop wandering, for the one you want to buy a souvenir for, go pray two units of prayer in the Sacred Mosque; go perform a Tawaf around the Ka'bah for him, go there and pray for him, go read half a page of the Quran for him; this is the true souvenir. What you prepare there as a souvenir — which is more expensive than the goods inside; the goods inside in many cases are much better than that; both better and cheaper — prepare this here. If you want to give someone a gift — a good gift is not a flaw — prepare it here; why prepare it there? Helping whom? And at what price? What spiritual and moral price, apart from the material and monetary price! This is another recommendation.

Another matter is the issue of unity; unity. Hajj is a manifestation of the unity of the Islamic Ummah; strive to ensure this unity is not disrupted; strive to ensure this unity is not disrupted. The Imams (peace be upon them) used to participate in the congregational prayers led by the Imam in the Sacred Mosque; Imam Sadiq would go to participate; he had the intention to participate and be seen. Why is this? Why do we forget these words? We repeat them a hundred times, [but] still, one from that side raises their voice regarding the issue of Shia and Sunni and differences and rifts; why do they do this? Why do they work in favor of the enemy? Do they not know that the British are skilled at creating discord, and one of the rifts that the British have always exploited is the rift between Shia and Sunni? Gradually, others have learned too, and now you see in these think tanks in America — political think tanks and the like — in their analyses; [they say:] certain individuals are Shia, certain places are Shia, certain places are Sunni; they have also reached Shia and Sunni. Do not do it! Do not! Live brotherly with each other. Yes, there are differences of opinion, there are differences in beliefs, there are differences in convictions, but there are also commonalities; we have so many commonalities; we have so many areas of agreement; should we completely ignore these and go after differences? Do not allow it! Do not allow it! Imam (may God’s peace be upon him) prohibited congregational prayers within the caravans. At that time, he said, "Do not do it." Go pray there, go pray in the mosque. This is for the same unity. Increase this unity as much as you can.

One of the things that can promote unity is good and clarifying contacts; contact is good. One of the things that can be a source of unity is the use of these esteemed reciters. I have heard that a number of reciters, thank God, are going this year; this is very good. These esteemed reciters should go, recite, and the listeners should enjoy the recitation of the words of God, just as I truly enjoy hearing their recitation. One of the things that creates unity is this. The Quran is a source of unity among Muslims. And similar actions.

One issue is the issue of the Zionists; that is, today the calamity of Zionism for the Islamic world is an immediate and pressing calamity. They have always been a calamity, even before the formation of the fake state of the Zionist regime; at that time, too, Zionist capitalists were a calamity for the lives of all, but now they are especially a calamity for the Islamic world. This must be exposed, it must be said; now in whatever way you can, in whatever way you can. These people and these governments — the Arab governments — that have shaken hands with the Zionists, embraced them, and held meetings, will gain no benefit from this; none; only harm will come to them. First, their nations are opposed; Arabs and non-Arabs; now I said Arabs, non-Arabs have also done some of this. Their nations are opposed, while they sit there drinking coffee together, their nations below are clenching their fists against them and chanting slogans. So this is to their detriment. Moreover, the Zionist regime sucks them dry, exploits them; they do not realize it, they do not understand; of course, after a while they will understand, and we hope that by then it will not be too late. This must be exposed. The only thing that compels these governments [to do this] is the will of America; they want to act according to the will of America; because America wants it, they want to act; because of American pressure, they want to act; that is all; otherwise, it truly has no benefit for them.

One last point is the responsibility of the host government; they have heavy responsibilities on their shoulders. Mecca does not belong to them; Mecca belongs to all people: "Indeed, the first house [of worship] established for people"; (12) it has been established for people; "equally for the resident therein and the visitor"; (13) those who reside there and those who come from outside are all equal; it belongs to everyone; it does not belong to this government; now a government has taken control there and has taken charge of affairs there, it must act according to the interests of the Islamic world, not according to its own interests. These things that have been reported about increasing some costs and similar matters are actions that must be reconsidered. Furthermore, they must ensure the security of the pilgrims; I demand the security of all pilgrims of the Islamic world and especially the security of Iranian pilgrims be taken seriously; they are obliged; they are obliged to maintain this security and not allow the tragedies of the past to be repeated.

One last point is that you Hajj officials see if you can shorten the duration of Hajj; [this] is truly one of the important issues. Now it takes about twenty-some days. See if something can be done; after all, there is no such thing as impossible; the way must be found. Look for a way to see if it is possible to shorten the duration of Hajj. Now when you shorten the time, someone may want to stay longer, to visit more, well, they can stay, but if someone wants to return earlier, they should be able to return; see if you can pursue this; of course, it is not an easy task, it is a difficult task; I know, but at the same time, it can be pursued and thought about.

We hope, God willing, that the Almighty God grants you all success, helps you to carry out this great, sensitive, and important duty in the best possible manner.

Peace be upon you and God's mercy and blessings.