Statements of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution in Meeting with the Officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran

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 and prophet, Abu al-Qasim al-Mustafa Muhammad, and upon his pure and chosen progeny, especially the Awaited One among the inhabitants of the earth. God, the Wise, has said in His Book: "When those who disbelieved had put in their hearts pride, the pride of ignorance, then God sent down His tranquility upon His Messenger and upon the believers and made them adhere to the word of piety, and they were more deserving of it and worthy of it. And God is Knowing of all things."

This session is very fragrant and illuminated. Firstly, it is the blessed days of the month of Ramadan, which rains mercy upon the atmosphere of our lives; it washes away the pollutions, excesses, tarnishes, and filth that we have created ourselves in our living environment and in our hearts and souls, purifying the space and illuminating the hearts. Secondly, the members of this session are among those who have the fortune that, if God willing, their intentions are correct - which we hope they are - they will be ranked among the best of God's servants. The work you do is important. The impact you leave is profound and extensive. Therefore, if God willing, the intentions are as they should be, you cannot be compared to ordinary people; for the reasons mentioned. You are influential and faithful brothers and directors of the issues of this country and this system, gathered here in the atmosphere of Ramadan, with fasting mouths and breaths that today, in a meaningful sense, are fragrant with the perfume of spirituality and fasting. Thus, this session is important.

Last year, I spoke in this session about "tranquility". The effect of this tranquility - meaning assurance, calmness, lack of anxiety, and absence of turmoil - in the officials is that if a problem arises, they can make the right decision in the shadow of that calmness; they do not become flustered, anxious, or infatuated with events; they stand like a rock, rather like a mountain, against difficult and hard events, and if happiness, comfort, and relief come, they do not lose themselves. This is another danger for effective people, that as soon as they find themselves in a position and see a field in front of them and can make some gains and feel a sense of relief and comfort, they may lose themselves; make hasty decisions; belittle others; expand their own selfishness and give it room. If there is "tranquility" - meaning that divine dignity and assurance - it prevents this as well; it does not allow actions to arise from a person that are necessary and indicative of small-minded individuals; individuals who, like chaff, are moved by every breeze. In fact, a person who possesses this tranquility becomes, in this analogy, like a deep ocean that no breeze or gust of wind can make stormy. In poverty and wealth, in solitude and multitude, "tranquility" is beneficial for a person.

The Quran repeatedly speaks about "tranquility", and I also mentioned some sentences last year. This tranquility is for the officials, which incidentally has shown itself. This year - the year we are nearing the end of - we have had events in which the tranquility of the officials was effective. We had some economic income; we faced economic problems; we had political problems; we had security problems. You saw that the enemies created events in Tehran this summer. If people do not possess tranquility, calmness, reliance on God, trust in the future, and confidence in what they have from the foundations of truth, they become flustered in the face of such events; especially if a person knows that these events have been planned by the enemy; which is not unlikely and has indications. The enemy has designed a ten-year plan since the passing of Imam Khomeini (may his soul be sanctified) to bring it to fruition over ten years. Perhaps our economic issues - the drop in oil prices - political matters, some cultural issues, some economic troubles, and some security difficulties are not unrelated to these plans. If we assume this, there are evidences. This is about the tranquility of the officials - meaning you gentlemen and friends who are here - but what about the tranquility of the people? The nation also needs tranquility and calmness. How can this tranquility of the elite be overflowed to the general public? Of course, many people have good, clear, and transparent faith, and the general public has shown that they possess true authority in difficulties; an authority that stems from religion and faith; however, when a group takes on the responsibility of managing the affairs of the country and the nation, they cannot consider themselves detached from this matter. All our duties are not limited to economic and political responsibilities; we also have a responsibility towards the spirituality of the people. If the people experience a spiritual and moral regression, we cannot say that no one is responsible in society. Now, if someone is to be held responsible, who is responsible? Certainly, the officials of the country cannot consider themselves detached; each in their own way and to some extent has a responsibility. Therefore, the responsibility for the spirituality of the people also rests on the shoulders of the country's managers at various levels - from top to bottom.

Another element comes into play here, which I intended to refer to from the verse I recited, and that is piety. In this verse, a confrontation has been established between the camp of disbelief and the camp of faith. In this noble verse, for the camp of disbelief, a sense of pride and ignorant fanaticism has been created; this relates to the events of Hudaybiyyah and the events after Hudaybiyyah, which are among the very important, meaningful, and profound tests of the blessed life of the Prophet. After the Messenger of God and the Muslims went to Hudaybiyyah with the intention of going to Mecca and were halted at Hudaybiyyah, the enemy wanted to impose war upon them, but the divine wisdom of the Prophet did not allow it, and they returned without war, and the Prophet reached an agreement with the polytheists that was so important that according to some narrations, the Surah "Indeed, We have granted you a clear victory" was revealed regarding this Hudaybiyyah agreement and is referred to as a victory: "Indeed, We have granted you a clear victory" - meaning this Hudaybiyyah peace treaty - during which the Prophet clarifies the situation for the Muslims and specifies the fronts.

What must always be considered in the Islamic system is the specification of the fronts; the mixing of the camp of truth with the camp of falsehood must not occur. The camp of falsehood may be tolerated - that is not a problem - it may even be extended a hand of friendship in some places - that is not a problem in its place - but beware! The lines of distinction must not be blurred. It must be clear who is right and where they are, why, and what they intend to do - what their goal, method, strategy, and performance are - and who is false and why, what their goal is, and what they intend to do. These must not be neglected. Neglecting this demarcation and specification will not benefit any camp of truth. No one will praise the people of truth for not knowing why they are right and what they should do and who is against them; even their enemies will not praise them. The Prophet clarifies the borders and first specifies the status of the disbelievers; that is, the opposing camp, which the Prophet's very mission, his emergence, his system, and his jihad are for penetrating into them, pushing them back, and expanding the circle of his legitimacy. The camp of disbelief cannot be overlooked. The camp of disbelief, as those who stand against the call of truth, must be specified. It must be clear what the camp of truth has to do with the camp of disbelief; why does truth come into existence at all; why is the call of truth inspired and conveyed by God to the prophets, and why do they present it? If the emergence of the message of truth - which is the message of the salvation of humanity - has a philosophy, wisdom, and necessity, it places a responsibility on the bearers of that message - which is the Prophet and the continuers of the Prophet's path forever. Therefore, it must be understood what this camp of truth's goal is and how it intends to achieve that goal.

How will the salvation of humanity be achieved? It cannot be achieved merely through advice and exhortation. Thus, the camp of truth - meaning all the prophets - whenever they have found an opportunity and have been able to show themselves and take a step forward, what they have done is to realize the truths that humanity must know in order to approach salvation and success in the minds and lives of human beings. This is the work of the camp of truth; this is what necessitates struggle. Why? Because there are oppositions to the legitimacy of truth. If truth speaks of the salvation of humanity, there are those in the world who speak of the enslavement of humanity. If truth speaks of justice, there are those who oppose and are enemies of justice or are supporters of oppression. If truth speaks of the worship of God, there are those who claim divinity and deny the existence of God and submission to God. Naturally, all of these will become oppositions. In the face of opposition, without struggle, neither that message will advance nor will it be realized in minds and in reality.

The Prophet clarifies the status of the disbelievers; he also clarifies the status of the weak among the believers; that is, the half-hearted; whether hypocrites, or those who do not have hypocrisy in the strong sense and do not have duplicity; however, their nature is a shaky one. Islam wants to transform these into strong and faithful individuals. Some Muslims, out of fear, did not participate with the Prophet in the battle of Hudaybiyyah. They said if we go, the Prophet and all the Muslims with him will be annihilated by the disbelievers! When the Prophet returned, they came to him and said we could not come; we encountered difficulties; we became preoccupied; now ask God for forgiveness for us! While this very statement was a form of pretense. In reality, they were not seeking divine forgiveness; they thought they had been clever by not going. The verse of the Quran states: "The bedouins who remained behind will say to you, 'Our properties and our families occupied us, so ask forgiveness for us.' They say with their tongues what is not in their hearts." They say something with their tongues that is not in their hearts. It cannot be said that these are hypocrites and disbelievers and enemies; no, weak souls, weak hearts, weak individuals cannot play a role in difficulties. This is the spirituality that the Islamic system, the Islamic community, the Islamic official, and the Islamic manager are responsible for.

Dear friends; brothers and sisters! When can we play a role? When we "make them adhere to the word of piety"; we consider piety for ourselves as a fixed word, a word of truth, and a permanent duty. Piety must be considered in speech, in action, in decision-making, with subordinates, and with all those who work with us; for these are lessons for them; their behavior is also a lesson for the people.

Among the areas in which we have not been able to achieve a worthy progress since the revolution until today, despite all the efforts made, is the area of an administrative system commensurate with the goals of the Islamic Republic. The Islamic Republic wants the Iranian person, at least in the first degree, to attain salvation - spiritual salvation, social salvation, individual salvation, political salvation - and to be freed from enslavements and bonds; bonds that prevent him from progressing; on the contrary, he should have commitment and adherence to the limits and laws and constraints that assist him in this movement and progress. Prayer is also a constraint; however, it is "the ascension of the believer." This commitment and adherence elevate a person and purify them from sins and impurities. When will this salvation be achieved? How much can the administrative system responsible for the affairs of the country play a role? A lot. We cannot say that we have been negligent in this area - perhaps a lot has been done - but in any case, we have made little progress. Even now, although it is repeatedly said and everyone says it, one does not observe the necessary action and effort. This is one of our shortcomings; the relevant officials must work in this area. The part that relates to advice and reminder is what I am now saying; which of course is not enough; this is just advice and reminder to myself and to you.

Brothers and sisters! Wherever you are and in whatever responsibility you hold, you must be vigilant. Your one behavior, one speech, one action can leave a lasting impact; it can have wide-ranging effects on the lives of the people. For years, I have repeatedly reminded about the ceremonial lifestyle. This has two aspects: one aspect is regarding the principle of adherence to extravagance and ceremony, which is bad and beneath the dignity of a human being; that is, at one time a person becomes attached to something unnecessary that is beneath human dignity; moreover, it is wasteful; it involves the squandering of resources, the squandering of wealth, and the squandering of assets. This is one aspect of the matter that the principle of wastefulness is bad; the principle of extravagance accompanied by wastefulness and excess is bad; however, there is a second aspect that is no less important than the first aspect, and that is the reflection of your extravagance in the lives of the people. Some people overlook this. When you make the condition of your room, office, and living environment such in front of the eyes of the people, this is a practical lesson, and everyone who sees it will be affected by it. At the very least, this should be observed. Let us not create an atmosphere of extravagance and luxury; because today, if this spirit of extravagance spreads in our society - which unfortunately has spread to a considerable extent - many of the economic, social, and moral problems of the country will not be solved at all. Extravagance and the inclination towards elitism in life have many harms and dangers: social justice will never be achieved; the spirit of brotherhood, affection, and empathy - which is necessary for all countries and all communities, especially our community, like air and water - will not arise. This is the impact of my words and actions and performance on the spirit of the people. This greatly increases the importance of our piety. The reason I have repeatedly recommended the solidarity of officials with one another lately is so that the currents and lines and their followers know that the words exchanged among them are not just between officials. Officials also have differences of opinion - not that they do not - but a difference of opinion is one matter, and using a difference of opinion as an excuse for conflict is another matter. The latter makes life bitter for the people.

In any case, what we derive from this verse and from many verses is that piety is both a means and a remedy. It is not just a duty and obligation; it is not just that God, the Exalted, will question us about our piety on the Day of Judgment; which, of course, if we understand and pay attention, this is also a great matter. We who are responsible are heedless of divine accountability, of the severity of divine accountability, of the terror of the Day of Judgment, and the greater our responsibility, the heavier this danger is. We must know that if God, the Exalted, does not act with us according to His grace, mercy, and forgiveness, our work is very hard. The details of the expenditures we make, the details of the transactions we conduct, the details of the interactions and behaviors we have with our audiences and with the people, each of these has an account before God, the Exalted. In addition to the fact that we must think of divine accountability and divine retribution, we must know that piety also opens the way: "And whoever fears God, He will make for him a way out and will provide for him from where he does not expect." Piety causes you to find a way out in all dead ends - especially in social dead ends - the piety of the officials will create a way out for them in major dead ends: "And He will provide for him from where he does not expect." These calculations of ours are not always complete calculations. Therefore, the essence of the matter is piety. Our recommendation is also to piety; the fasting of this month also assists in piety. You must address the problems of the people based on this spirit of piety.

I was truly pleased to see that the President raised the issue of the economic problems and difficulties of the people with you officials in his statements. This is truly important. The people genuinely have economic problems; they are facing hardships; there are many deficiencies. There are many difficulties; the major danger is that you do not realize this, and I hope you do. I suspect that perhaps among our officials, there are some who do not pay proper attention to the difficulties and problems of the people, otherwise, more diligent efforts would have been made to resolve these issues. The more officials are preoccupied with disputes, the more they will remain distant from addressing these problems. Officials - it does not matter; government officials, legislative officials, judicial officials; that is, all those involved in the administration of the country - must attend to their responsibilities and dedicate themselves to it. Fortunately, the people are hopeful about Islam, the Islamic system, and the determination of the officials. God forbid that this hope should weaken or diminish; you must not allow it. It cannot all be done by mere words; it must be demonstrated in action. The same "economic organization plan" that has created hopes among the people must be pursued for implementation. The parts of the program that are more related to the lives of the people must be pursued for implementation. The third program has fortunately been approved; however, organizing the program, writing the program, and approving the program is one matter; the realization of the program is another matter. The emphasis placed on the issue of employment in the program must be realized. Everyone must join hands and strive to ensure that this matter is realized. Unemployment is truly a major dilemma and a huge problem. In any case, we hope that God, the Exalted, will assist.

I would also like to reiterate a sentence that I have repeatedly conveyed to the officials at the end of my remarks: You who are responsible and have a portion of the budget at your disposal must be very careful in the spending and allocation of the budget. One of the characteristics of your piety is this. It should not be that we do whatever action we want to take that entails a cost, and we suffice with the fact that this action is a beneficial one. This is not enough. The mere usefulness of this action is not sufficient for us to incur this expense. In our current circumstances, priority must be given. Without priority, spending is not permissible. Some people do certain things in their work environment and in their offices; they hold some seminars and some gatherings and invitations and parties and trips; undoubtedly, these have benefits; however, the mere fact that they are beneficial is not enough. While our revenues are limited and our needs are very high, we must observe priorities. In any case, I hope that God, the Exalted, grants me, the weak servant who bears a heavy responsibility and conveys these recommendations to you and also to each of you officials, from top to bottom and in all sectors, the success to be able to please Him. God willing, may your hearts be illuminated by the light of divine knowledge and by the shining lights of divine mercy, and may the blessings of the month of Ramadan penetrate and have an effect in your existence and in the depths of your thoughts and being, and may divine blessings encompass you and your management area, and God willing, may God, the Exalted, forgive our shortcomings and faults with His grace and kindness and bring us closer to the behavior and positions of the Prophet and Amir al-Mu'minin and His saints and the Mojahedin in the path of God with their wealth and souls.

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