Crescent International
Every year as leader of the Ummah, the Rahbar Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei delivers a message to the hujjaj (pilgrims) gathered in Arafat. This year’s message has special significance because of developments in the Muslim world whether in Makkah, Al-Quds, Yemen, Syria, Iraq, Bahrain, Burma or elsewhere.
Tehran, Crescent-online
Wednesday September 23, 2015, 08:07 DST
Below is the full text of the Rahbar’s message:
In the Name of Allah, the Merciful, the Mercy-Giving
Greetings to the holy Ka’aba, the base of Tawheed (monotheism), the place of pilgrimage of the faithful, and the place on which angels land.
Greetings to al-Masjid al-Haram; greetings to Arafat, and Mash’ar and Mina.
Greetings to the humble hearts and tongues that are busy in the dhikr (remembrance of Allah); and eyes that have opened with insight, and thoughts that have set examples to others.
Greetings to you blissful Hajj pilgrims, who have succeeded in answering positively to the divine call and are taking advantage of this bountiful occasion.
The first duty [of Hajj pilgrims] is to muse on this global and historical and eternal positive response [to the divine call]:
Labbayk Allahuma labbayk, Inn al-hamda, wa al-ne‘mata, la sharika lak. Labbayk Allahuma labbayk… (“I answer Your call [O Allah]. Verily all praises and blessings are Yours, as well as [absolute] rule; You have no partners; [and I] accept [Your call].”)
All eulogies and thanks belong to Him [Allah], all blessings come from Him, and all the rule and power belong to Him.
This is the viewpoint that is given to Hajj pilgrims at the first step of this rich and meaningful obligation and continuation of these rituals takes place in coordination with it and then, like a lasting teaching and an unforgettable lesson, is put in front of him and requires him to regulate his life plan on its basis.
Learning this great lesson and acting upon it is the same blessed spring which can impart vivacity and liveliness and dynamism to the lives of Muslims and relieve them from the problems with which they are grappling – both at this time and in all [other] times.
The idol of [human] proclivities and vanity and lust, the idol of seeking dominance [over others] and submission to dominance, the idol of the global arrogance, the idol of laziness and irresponsibility, and all idols that bring humiliation to the endeared human soul will be shattered with this Abrahamic outcry, when it comes from the bottom of one’s heart and turns into a life plan, and will substitute freedom and dignity and health for dependence and hardship and affliction.
Brothers and sisters who are performing the Hajj pilgrimage, from any nation and any country, think about this wise divine word and through a painstaking approach to problems facing the Islamic world, especially in West Asia and North Africa, define for yourself, in view of your personal and environmental capacities and potentialities, a duty and responsibility and [then] strive toward [fulfilling] it.
Today, the mischievous policies of America in this region, which are the source of war and bloodshed and devastation and homelessness as well as poverty and backwardness and ethnic and religious differences, on the one hand, and crimes [committed] by the Zionist regime, which has taken its usurping behavior in the country of Palestine to the ultimate degree of ruthlessness and evilness, in addition to repeated violations of the sacred sanctuary of al-Aqsa Mosque and trampling on the lives and property of the oppressed Palestinians, on the other hand, are the foremost problem for all of you Muslims.
You must reflect on these and realize your Islamic obligations. The ulama (religious scholars) and political and cultural elites must shoulder a much heavier responsibility, which is unfortunately often ignored by them.
The ulama, instead of fanning the flames of religious discord, and the politicians, instead of passivity in the face of the enemy, and the cultural elite, instead of being preoccupied with marginal issues, [must try to] know the great ailment of the Islamic world and accept their mission, which they are responsible to fulfill before Allah, and try to cope with it.
The regretful incidents in the region, [including] in Iraq and the Levant and Yemen and Bahrain, and in the West Bank and Gaza, and in some other Asian and African countries, are major problems of the Islamic Ummah in which the plotting hands of the global arrogance must be seen and for which a remedy must be sought.
People must demand this from their governments and governments must remain loyal to their heavy responsibility.
Hajj and its glorious gatherings are the loftiest place for the rise and exchange of this historic obligation. And the opportunity to denounce the mushriks, which must be valued through participation of all Hajj pilgrims from all places, is one of the most expressive political rituals in this overarching obligation.
This year, the bitter and devastating incident of al-Masjid al-Haram brought bitterness to [all] Hajj pilgrims and their nations. It is true that those who passed away in this incident, who went to meet their Lord while saying prayers and going around [the Ka‘aba] and worshipping [Allah], have achieved great bliss and are, insha’allah, resting in the sanctuary of divine safety and observance and mercy, and this could be a great source of consolation for their families, but this [issue] cannot reduce the heaviness of the responsibility of those people who are committed to [providing] security for the guests of the Beneficent God.
Acting upon this commitment and fulfilling this responsibility is our ultimate demand.
Seyyed Ali Khamenei
9th Dhul Hijjah, 1436 AH/23 September 2015 CE
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