Statements in Meeting with Members of the National Congress Commemorating 3,400 Martyrs of Ardabil Province

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 family, especially the remainder of God on earth (may our souls be sacrificed for him).

Welcome. Our memory of Ardabil and the people of Ardabil and the spirit of the Ardabilis has, thanks to your visit and the comprehensive and sufficient statements of these gentlemen, been renewed, God willing. Our minds have always been accompanied by the spirit of the people of Ardabil and their sincere activities, thanks be to God, through multiple observations.

I will present two or three points: one point is about this issue of Ardabil. I insist on mentioning the highlights of each region, city, or province during my meetings with the people so that everyone hears, all the people of Iran understand, and the people themselves appreciate these characteristics. Ardabil is one of those places that has significant highlights in our history; Ardabil has a great right over Iran. In my meeting with the people of Ardabil a few years ago, I mentioned to the brothers and sisters that the Ardabilis have done two great things for Iran; one is a national task, and the other is a religious task.

The national task was the unity of the country; that is, this integrity and unity that you see today in Iran is the work of the Safavids; it started from Ardabil, from the time of Shah Ismail. Before the Safavid era, Iran was a land of feudal lords, with each corner under someone’s control. This collection known as Iran, which at that time had a greater extent and expansion than today, did not exist in this united and integrated form. The Safavids rose from Ardabil and unified this country, which remains to this day. Therefore, we owe the unity of our country today to this national and historical task that was accomplished by Ardabil.

The religious task was the propagation of the religion of the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them). Of course, Iranians have historically had affection for the Ahl al-Bayt, but the religion of the Ahl al-Bayt was not widespread; it was in a state of estrangement. It existed in some parts of the country but was absent in many areas. The great service that the Safavids rendered to the country was that they spread the religion of the Ahl al-Bayt throughout Iran. The love you have today for the Ahl al-Bayt, the devotion you have, and the lessons we learn from the school of the Ahl al-Bayt in all political, social, religious, and other fields are thanks to them.

Therefore, from a historical perspective, it is clear that there are two prominent and important points in the interaction of the people of your region with Iran: one is national, and the other is Islamic. This has continued in the same manner; that is, from the time of the Safavids, when a great scholar like the Muhaqqiq Ardabili (may God be pleased with him) became the center of knowledge and jurisprudence in Najaf, where great scholars from distant lands, from the Levant and elsewhere, would come to study under him, and the late Aqa Baqir Behbahani (may God be pleased with him), who is one of the prominent figures in the history of Shia jurisprudence, referred to him as "Sheikh al-Ta'ifah" — "Sheikh al-Ta'ifah" is a term used for Sheikh Tusi; the late Aqa Baqir Behbahani calls the Muhaqqiq Ardabili "Sheikh al-Ta'ifah"; this expression is used regarding him — up until a short time before us, there were many great and prominent scholars in Ardabil, such as the late Amirza Ali Akbar Ardabili, a prominent and active cleric, whose mosque is well-known and still exists today, and up to our time, in our Mashhad, the late Aqa Younes Ardabili, who was a source of emulation and a first-rate scholar in Mashhad — there were many scholars, but the one who was at the head of all was the late Aqa Younes Ardabili — and likewise, various scholars were present in different sectors.

In the matter of jihad and presence in the field of struggle, the Ardabilis are indeed among the front lines, as the gentlemen have pointed out. The fact that about 35,000 warriors from Ardabil were sent to the fronts is a good number; it is a high figure. This region has given about 3,400 or more martyrs and has many disabled veterans and the esteemed families of martyrs; these must be preserved; this is the identity of Ardabil. In recognizing our cities and provinces, we cannot limit ourselves to geographical boundaries and climatic issues and other matters; these are the main points; the identity of Ardabil is these: scientific history, history of jihad, history of martyrdom, and presence in the fields where national life has been renewed, whether political, jihadist, independence, and so on, and whether scientific life; these are very important.

One sentence that Mr. Ameli pointed out was that "we do not stop at commemorating the martyrs in this session and similar events"; yes, that is correct. The work you are doing — I will mention it shortly — is necessary and very important, but what these works are a prelude to is that we must follow the path of the martyrs, learn the lessons of the martyrs, and act accordingly; this is important. Regarding the issue of martyrdom, indeed our language is inadequate to express the rank of martyrdom and the status of the martyrs. The verses that were recited: Indeed, God has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties in exchange for Paradise for them, [indicates that] this is a transaction with God. They fight in the way of God, and they kill and are killed; both — destroying the enemy and being killed in this way — are valuable; this is a transaction with the Almighty God. The martyr has given his life and has attained the pleasure of God, which is the highest value in the existence of the world, the pleasure of God. Then the Almighty God says: A promise upon Him, a truth in the Torah, the Gospel, and the Quran; that is, this is part of the common teachings of all divine religions, not exclusive to Islam. In all divine religions, sacrifice in the way of God, giving one’s life in the way of God, holds this high value. This verse is from Surah Al-Tawbah, and the verse from Surah Al-Imran is also very important: And do not think that those who were killed in the way of God are dead. A similar verse exists in Surah Al-Baqarah: And do not say of those who are killed in the way of God that they are dead; however, the emphasis in this noble verse — do not think — is very clear, meaning it expresses very firmly. Firstly, it uses the verb "thought" [indicating] do not even imagine, do not let it cross your mind that the martyrs are dead; secondly, it emphasizes with the letter of emphasis. Rather, they are alive. God has not explained the type of life they have for us, but [He says:] "They are alive with their Lord"; they are in the sanctuary of divinity, in the realm of divinity. This is beyond what we can comprehend about being alive; it is something beyond and higher than these words. It shows their rank that "Rather, they are alive with their Lord, receiving sustenance"; this divine sustenance reaches them. What is this divine sustenance? Well, there are sustenances for the believers in Paradise, and this is in the Quran; however, this "they are receiving sustenance" is different from those; a person understands that it is a different sustenance, a higher sustenance. One issue is that it shows their rank, and then it conveys their message that "And they rejoice in those who have not yet joined them from behind them, that there is no fear upon them, nor shall they grieve"; in this path, there is no fear or sorrow; this path is the path of joy, the path of openness, the path of satisfaction and happiness. This is their message; that is, the martyrs encourage us, they tell us to follow us in this path we have taken, to move forward. The status of the martyrs is like this, and if a person reflects on the verses of the Quran regarding the hardships of the Day of Resurrection and Barzakh, considers them — those regrets, those hardships, those pressures — then they understand how important this divine sustenance and presence in the realm of divinity is, how valuable it is!

Now, I would like to mention just one point to you dear brothers and sisters. We were contemporaneous with the martyrs; we saw the martyrs up close; we witnessed both their jihad and their martyrdom. You saw this thirteen or fourteen-year-old youth; you witnessed his martyrdom, you recognized him, you understood, everything is before your eyes. The next generation does not see this issue with such clarity and obviousness; we must think of them. We saw how the martyrs were able to untie great knots; we saw that all the active and advanced military powers of the world gathered and attacked a country that had just undergone a revolution, was facing numerous problems, and the bitter legacies of the era of tyranny were everywhere, to destroy and annihilate it, and the martyrs were able to stand against this and neutralize this all-out attack; this is no joke; this is a very important issue. This eight-year Sacred Defense revealed the role of our warriors, the role of our struggles and our martyrs in untying knots. After that, it has continued to this day; after the war, after the eight-year defense period, our military war ended, but the cognitive war, the intellectual war, the economic war, the political war, and the security war have intensified day by day, up to today. All of these have been neutralized thanks to steadfastness, thanks to resistance, thanks to martyrdom.

Therefore, the path is clear for us. The path is the path of struggle, the path of steadfastness, the path of perseverance. This is the path we must strive to pave, to think about; scholars in one way, intellectuals in another way, university people in another way, and holders of various government positions each in their own way must strive. This is the work we must do; the Almighty God will also bless it, just as He blessed the blood of the martyrs. You observe, for example, consider a martyr like Martyr Soleimani who was martyred in the way of God; a nation is stirred, a nation moves, and all these illusory lines that exist among the people are shattered, and the nation unites and sets out; this is the blessing that God has given to the blood of the martyr. The most prominent example is the pure blood of Abu Abdullah (peace be upon him); this year the enemy made every effort to perhaps diminish the fervor of Muharram; they could not, and on the contrary, what they wanted did not happen. This year, Muharram and the days of Ashura were warmer, more fervent, more meaningful, and more enlightening than all previous years; this is the work of God, that the event of Karbala, which took place in a desert, almost in half a day or a day, continues to ignite more and more in history, and the love for Hussain knows no Muslim or non-Muslim. You now see various Muslim sects expressing love for Imam Hussain; non-Muslims [similarly]; Christians, Zoroastrians, Hindus. Observe the Arbaeen pilgrimage and see! All of these are indicative of God's valuing of martyrdom and the blood of the martyr and the path of the martyrs; this must be preserved, this must be maintained. In fact, today your responsibility, as you are doing this great work and reviving the name of the martyrs, is similar to the work of Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him) and Lady Zainab. They also preserved, maintained, and established the event of Ashura in history; they did not allow it to be erased or wiped from the pages of history; you are doing the same work; that is, the value of your work in preserving the legacy of the martyrs is this.

We hope, God willing, that the Almighty God grants you success in preserving the name of the martyrs, the memory of the martyrs, the events of their martyrdom, their stories, and all the necessary methods; most importantly, artistic methods; utilize artistic approaches as much as possible. God willing, the Almighty God will reward you, and this path will continue.

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