Statements at the Meeting with System Officials, Ambassadors of Islamic Countries, and Guests of the Unity Conference

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 and his chosen companions, and those who follow them with goodness until the Day of Judgment.

I extend my warm welcome to all dear brothers and sisters and guests of the Unity Week and representatives of Islamic countries in Tehran, and I congratulate the birth of the greatest prophet (peace be upon him and his family) and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him). We hope, God willing, that the Almighty God makes this day a blessed holiday for the Iranian nation and all the Islamic Ummah and Muslims around the world. I thank our esteemed President for articulating the main and important point of today in his excellent remarks; the issue of "Islamic unity," which I will also touch upon, God willing.

The day of the prophet's birth (peace be upon him and his family) is an exceptional day in history. The reason is that the birth of the noble prophet is a necessary and essential prelude to the final prophethood, and the final prophethood is, in fact, the ultimate and complete version for the happiness and elevation of humanity; therefore, the day of birth is a very important day.

Let me say a word about this general movement of the prophets. If we liken the general movement of human history to a caravan that is moving along a path, and humanity is progressing in this historical movement through time, the leaders and guides of this caravan are the divine prophets. The divine prophets not only show the way but also strengthen the ability to discern direction in individuals. It is not merely about showing the way; they elevate the capacity and ability to discern in all of humanity. As Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) says: "To remind them of the covenant of their innate nature and to remind them of the forgotten blessings... and to bring forth the hidden treasures of intellect." They behave with people in this manner: they awaken the innate nature, activate the power of reasoning and thought, and through this means, humanity can move forward. Of course, throughout history, at certain times, individuals in this caravan, meaning the people, listened to the prophets, followed the path they showed, and saw the results; at other times, conversely, they stood against the prophets, ignored their words, and disregarded their guidance, and there they also observed the negative consequences; these fluctuations in human history, where sometimes some have been guided and others have not, have created the phenomena of human history; that is, the divisions, conflicts, truths and falsehoods, beliefs and disbeliefs.

The prophets carried out this guidance and care for humanity and this invitation through various methods; the Quran has articulated all these methods in different sections. Now, let me mention a few examples. In one place, it says: "And our duty is only to convey clearly." (Quran 36:17) [It states] that the prophet's duty is "to convey"; nothing else; "and our duty is nothing but this"; in certain circumstances, it is like this; but in other circumstances, it says: "We did not send any messenger except that he should be obeyed by the permission of God"; (Quran 4:64) he must be obeyed; that is, he must establish a political organization, move the society, and they are obliged to listen and obey. In another place, it says: "Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good admonition, and argue with them in a way that is best;" (Quran 16:125) this is the method of invitation; in another place, it says: "And how many a prophet fought alongside him many religious scholars, and they did not weaken in the face of what befell them in the way of God." (Quran 3:146) Until the end. In one place, the approach is gentle, in another, it is military power; it depends on the circumstances. Or in another place, it says: "So by mercy from God, you were lenient with them, and if you had been rude in speech and harsh in heart, they would have disbanded from around you." (Quran 3:159) The term "harshness" is used here: "harsh in heart"; if it were like this, you would not have been able to carry out this movement. In another place, it says: "Strive against the disbelievers and the hypocrites and be harsh with them;" (Quran 9:73) it recommends the same "harshness." Therefore, the method of invitation is not uniform. The method of the prophets' invitation varies in different conditions, times, and places. When we say they elevate human intellect and enhance discernment, it means that at any time, they should see how they can propagate this invitation and advance it.

Well, what we have mentioned is a description. In this great caravan of human history, we said that the prophets are the leaders; among this series of guides and caravan leaders, without a doubt, the true, final, and primary leader is the sacred existence of Prophet Muhammad al-Mustafa (peace be upon him and his family). As that great mystic said: In this path, the prophets are like caravan drivers, They are the guides and leaders of the caravan, And among them, our master became the leader, He is both the first and the last in this work.

He is the "first" because he stands at the forefront of the ranks of divine prophets; he is the "last" because he presents the most complete and final divine program to humanity.

Well, the day of the prophet's birth is naturally the day of the rising of this sun, the day of unveiling this unparalleled gem of existence; therefore, it is a great day, an important day. We should not underestimate the day of the prophet's birth. We must learn lessons; mere description and praise are not sufficient. The lesson of the prophet is a complete, comprehensive, and all-encompassing lesson that applies to all of life; each aspect of it can be elaborated and described extensively.

One of these life lessons from the prophet and his invitation — which perhaps is one of the greatest prophetic lessons for us — I will mention, and that is: nation-building; the formation of the "Islamic Ummah." The thirteen-year struggles in Mecca culminated in the migration, which laid the foundation of the Islamic Ummah. The Islamic Ummah was initiated with the migration, continuing through hardships, difficulties, hunger, and the struggles of the people of Suffa and the people of Medina — where the migrants faced one type of hardship, and the helpers faced another — it continued; through struggles, sacrifices, the Islamic Ummah was solidified; with the sacrifices made during the blessed life of the prophet and the sacrifices and selflessness that occurred after the passing of that great man, this Ummah remained steadfast. Of course, it could have been managed better, but the Islamic Ummah, as a nation founded by the noble prophet in Medina with a limited population, remained. Today, we need this lesson; today we lack an Islamic Ummah. There are many Islamic countries, nearly two billion Muslims live in the world, but the title of "Ummah" cannot be applied to this collection; because they are not coordinated, because they are not united.

An Ummah means a collection of individuals who move in one direction, towards one goal, with one motivation; we are not like this; we are scattered. The result of this scattering is the domination of the enemies of Islam; the result of this scattering is that a certain Islamic country feels that if it wants to maintain itself, it must rely on America; if we were not scattered, this need would not be felt. We could have stood behind one another, hand in hand, utilizing each other's resources, helping one another, forming a "unit"; this unit could have been stronger than all the powers of the world today. Just as it once was; despite all the flaws and shortcomings that existed in that situation, nonetheless, because they were united, they were considered powerful; we are not like this today. This is our greatest lesson today; we must come closer together.

Today, we need to form an Islamic Ummah; that is, we must pursue this. Who can help in this regard? Governments can have an impact; of course, the motivation in governments is not very strong. Those who can strengthen this motivation are the influential figures in the Islamic world; that is, you: politicians, scholars, scientists, academics, influential classes and thinkers, poets, writers, political and social analysts; these can have an impact. Suppose for ten years all the media of the Islamic world focus on the unity of Muslims, write articles, poets compose poems, analysts analyze, university professors explain, religious scholars issue rulings; undoubtedly, over these ten years, the situation will completely change; when the nations awaken, when the nations become interested, governments will inevitably have to move in that direction. The influential figures can accomplish this; this is our duty.

Of course, the point I am making — creating this unity and forming the Islamic Ummah — has enemies; enemies of Islam; think about the "enemies of Islam," focus on them; the enemy of a certain country is not important; there are those who are enemies of Islam, even if they superficially approach a part of the Muslims to destroy another part, but in reality, they are enemies of Islam; they do not want this Islamic Ummah to be formed; they do not want this unity to come into existence; they activate the religious fault lines within the Islamic world.

One of the most problematic fault lines between communities is the ideological and religious fault line, like earthquake fault lines. If this fault becomes active, it is not easy to extinguish it. The Crusades lasted two hundred years and were truly crusades; they were genuinely religious wars and were carried out based on religious prejudices. They do not allow it; they do not want to allow it. We must overcome the enemy's demands. This is why our great Imam (may his soul be sanctified) emphasized the unity of the Islamic world and the unity of Shia and Sunni so much before the victory of the revolution; because the power of the Islamic world stems from unity, and the enemy wants the opposite and acts contrary to this and strives against it. This is our lesson today from the Imam.

Of course, we ourselves and the people of our country should keep in mind that if we want our message, our message of unity, to be sincerely received in the world, we must create this unity among ourselves. Differences in taste, differences in opinion, and political disagreements should not affect the cooperation, solidarity, and unity of the nation; we must pursue genuine goals. If this happens, then the enemy will no longer be able to allow a corrupt, vile regime like the Zionist regime to commit such atrocities in this region. Today, see what the Zionist regime is doing! The atrocities they commit are shamelessly and openly done; in Gaza in one way, in the West Bank in another way, in Lebanon in one way, in Syria in another way; they commit crimes in the true sense of the word. Their opponents are not warriors; their opponents are ordinary people. In Palestine, they could not inflict damage on the warriors, so they unleashed their ignorant and malicious rage on small children, on patients in hospitals, on schools of innocent children. This is because we do not utilize our inner strength; we must use it. This inner strength can remove the Zionist regime, this malignant cancer from the heart of the Islamic community, namely Palestine, and eliminate the arrogant interference and domination of America in this region; we can.

Today, the first step and the initial task in uniting the Islamic world against this criminal gang and the terrorist band that governs Palestine and bombarded the land of Palestine is that Islamic countries completely cut their economic ties with this criminal gang; this is the least they can do; this must be done. They must sever economic ties, weaken political connections, strengthen media attacks, and explicitly express and show that they stand with the oppressed people of Palestine.

We hope, God willing, that the Almighty God guides all of us; governments, nations, influential figures, and active groups, so that we can fulfill this duty.

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