I seek refuge in God from the accursed Satan
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful
A review of reasons for the uprising of the Doyen of the Martyrs (`a)
It has been related that the Doyen of the Martyrs delivered a sermon in which he mentioned the reason for his uprising against the government of the time. In this sermon, he addressed the people saying that the Most Noble Messenger had declared that when someone sees a tyrannical ruler making lawful that which God has prescribed to be unlawful, allowing that which God has made unlawful to be freely practiced, acting contrary to the traditions [sunnah] of the Prophet and breaking his promise to God, that person should not remain silent. If he does however, and does not try to change the situation through his words or deeds, if he does not try to stop the digression of this tyrannical ruler, then according to that which God the Blessed and Exalted has decreed, the abode in the afterlife of this person who remains silent in the face of such a ruler will be the same as that of the tyrannical ruler himself. «1»
So if a person sees that a tyrannical ruler possesses such attributes- namely he alters the traditions of the Most Noble Messenger, he breaks his promise to God, and that which God has made unlawful he makes lawful and freely allows, who is in other words a mustahill «2»- and yet remains silent, then even if this person carries out everything that he is not only obliged to do but also simply recommended to do; if he is the kind of person who recites his namaz every day; who goes to the mosque; who propagates all the laws of God; who acts in accordance with the will of God; whose deeds are always good deeds; who shuns all evil deeds; still on the basis of this sermon which was delivered by the Doyen of the Martyrs, upon whom be peace, if he remains silent before a tyrannical ruler, his abode in the Hereafter will be the same as that of the tyrannical ruler. Indeed, in his sermon the Doyen of the Martyrs gave his reason for rising up against the government of the time, and this was that he wanted to act upon the traditions of the Messenger of God so that he would not infringe these, and his abode in the afterlife would not be the same as that of the tyrannical ruler. So in other words, wherever this tyrannical ruler finds his abode in the levels of hell, this too will be the abode of he who remains silent in the face of this ruler's actions.
Resemblance between reigns of Shah and Yazid
Now we should consider this present government of ours, or rather this present ruler of ours, to see if he has the above-mentioned attributes. If he does possess these attributes and we remain silent, then the same can be said to apply to us. The Doyen of the Martyrs spoke of this matter at a time when he had risen up against the tyrannical ruler Yazid. With only a small number of followers behind him, he confronted Yazid's huge army, he confronted this superpower- for in those days all the positions of power were in Yazid's hands- and so deprived us of the excuse of saying that because we are few in number and our power is limited we cannot carry out such an action. He spoke of this matter at the time when he declared his intent to rise up against the tyrannical ruler of his day. He delivered a sermon to the people and explained that he would rise up against this person because he (Yazid) had broken his promise to God, he had infringed the traditions of the Prophet and had violated that which God the Exalted had made inviolable, and because the Prophet had said that whoever remains silent (before such a person) and does not change the situation his abode will be the same as that of Yazid in hell. So the place that Yazid occupies, he who remains silent will also occupy.
Now let us see what it was that Yazid had done to make the Doyen of the Martyrs, upon whom be peace, rise up against him and to speak of such a matter and set such an example. The matter about which the Doyen of the Martyrs spoke concerns everyone. It is a matter of general concern: man ra`a, «3» whoever sees that a tyrannical ruler possesses such attributes and yet remains silent before him, does not speak or act against him, then the abode of this person will be the same as that of the tyrannical ruler (in the Hereafter). Yazid was someone who on the surface seemed to adhere to Islam and who considered himself to be the Prophet's successor. He performed his namaz and did all the things that we do. But what else did he do? He was also a rebellious sinner. He acted contrary to the traditions of the Messenger of God; traditions which made clear how one should act toward the people, he acted in a manner contrary to these. He should have protected the lives of the Muslims, but instead he spilt their blood; the wealth of the Muslims should not be squandered, but he squandered it. He acted just like his father Mu`awiyah had done and against whom Amir al-Mu'minin had risen up, the only difference being that whereas Amir al-Mu'minin had had an army; the Doyen of the Martyrs faced a superpower with only a small number of followers.
So we should see if the same can be said to apply to our present ruler, and we should ask ourselves if he too does such deeds. Does this matter about which the Messenger of God spoke, also apply to him? Is he a ruler? Is he tyrannical? It is obvious that he has sovereign power. To be a `ruler' means to have sovereign power. He holds the reins of power and he is tyrannical as well. He himself may even accept the fact that he is a tyrant. Everyone else knows that he is. Has he not acted against the traditions of the Messenger of God? Has he done everything the Messenger of God has said he must do? Or has he (and his regime) not even considered the words of the Messenger of God? These people have never even taken account of his traditions. Granted, during his lifetime, and in order to deceive you and me, he once went to the shrine of Hadrat Rida where he recited a very short prayer. I don't know what his sentiments were when he did this! He recited the prayer and said a few words, but this was only to deceive you and me. Does he act upon the traditions of the Messenger of God? Is he an observer of these traditions? According to the traditions of the Messenger of God the lives of the Muslims should be protected; has he protected the lives of the Muslims? During these past few days, «4» we have received information to the effect that over the past two or three days fifty people have been killed in Isfahan, I don't know how many in another place and yet some more somewhere else. Are these carried out without his knowledge? No, he knows about them alright. Are they carried out without the knowledge of the government? No, it is aware of what is going on. Could they be carried out without the Shah's knowledge?! They can't do anything without the Shah's knowledge. «5»
It has been announced that tomorrow and the day after, the people will be free to hold mourning ceremonies and shout out religious slogans. «6» But I am worried about what will happen on these days because we have also heard, and God willing it is a lie- in fact I think that it is probably just a propaganda move but it could possibly happen- that they are planning something, they are planning to send a number of criminals into the arena to mix with the people pretending to be at one with them. The regime is going to send a number of their own criminals to accompany the people in these marches which the `ulama' and other sections of society intend to hold tomorrow in all cities and towns of Iran, and to create trouble so that they can say that this is not a peaceful demonstration and thus open fire on the people with machine-guns. Well, I think it is very possible that this is a rumor that the regime itself has started to try to persuade the people not to embark on the action they intend to take tomorrow. In other words, they (the Shah and his regime) hope to achieve their aim of stopping the people from taking part in this march so they can say they allowed it but the people themselves did not take part. It is possible that a devilish plot is involved here, and it is of course a cause of concern for me as to what may happen tomorrow.
Shah is a tyrant and one against God's decrees
However, to get back to the main point which is that a tyrannical ruler now holds sway over the people. He has an army and the support of superpowers; he is a despot who possesses all the attributes about which the Prophet spoke. God, the Blessed and Exalted, has forbidden anyone to seize the lives of the Muslims, to kill them; this is something that God has prohibited. Yet he (the Shah) gives permission, he even orders for them to be killed. The wealth of the Muslims should be preserved; the wealth of the Iranian nation should be preserved for the Iranian nation itself. The oil of Iran belongs to Iran; the pasturelands of Iran belong to Iran, they should be used for the benefit of Iran; the fisheries of Iran should benefit Iran, after all they belong to Iran. These forests belong to Iran, whatever subterranean reserves exist belong to Iran, the Iranians themselves should extract them and use them for their own benefit, for the benefit of the nation. But the Shah has destroyed all of these. It is forbidden to destroy the wealth of the Muslims, the wealth that belongs to a nation, or to sell it to the enemies of Islam such as Israel, which is presently at war with the Muslims. Yet it is said that most of Israel's oil is provided by Iran, and I have been told that many of our dead were killed by Israeli soldiers in lieu of payment for this oil.
The Shah is someone who permits that which God has decreed to be prohibited. He destroys both the lives of the Muslims and their wealth. He has given our pasturelands away to others; our forests he has given to foreign companies; it is said that thousands of people were killed before he could take the fisheries off the poor people and turn them over to foreigners! «7» And everyone knows what he is doing with our oil, such that in a few years time Iran will have nothing left. Everything Iran had has been plundered and taken (out of the country).
Plundering currency and jewelry by the Shah and his men
You have seen the list- I think they have made it available over here too- which shows how much of the wealth of Iran these plunderers have sent abroad. After they had done this and had taken all this wealth abroad, then the regime decided to announce that nobody should take anything out of the country! Just who else shouldn't take anything? They have taken this wealth and it is finished. He himself had just recently taken three thousand million (dollars), even more, three thousand and a few hundred million (dollars) abroad. God knows how much was taken previously. They (the Pahlavis) were stealing from us from the beginning (of their rule). Just before his expulsion from Iran by the Allies, Rida Shah filled his suitcases with the country's crown jewels. I was told this by someone who had heard it from an officer who had accompanied him on his journey into exile, and according to him, halfway through their journey, the ship carrying them stopped somewhere out at sea and a small ship, which, according to this person, was used for transporting cattle, drew up alongside them, and Rida Shah was told to board this ship. There and then his suitcases were taken off him, the British took them and that was an end to that! This is what he did during his time, in addition to the other things he stole and took out of the country. Once after returning from a journey, which had contained an element of danger, the late Mudarris, may God have mercy upon him, who in those days opposed Rida Shah and indeed gave his life for his opposition, told him:" I prayed for your safe return." Rida Shah was extremely pleased to hear this and asked him:" Did you really pray for me?" Mudarris replied that indeed he had as there was good reason for doing so which was that all the country's wealth would have been lost had Rida Shah died on this journey:" I wanted you to remain alive so that we could retrieve our wealth!"
This is what Rida Shah did in his time. Today, from when he (Muhammad Rida) first assumed the throne- and he had already gained much experience for he had learnt from the experiences of his father- he laid the groundwork for the transfer of the (country's) wealth into foreign banks. He has stored the wealth of this nation in the banks of America and other places, so that if anything happens, he can go there and get it.
Nation's duty to prevent Shah from escaping
The nation should not let him flee the country. He is planning something now. It is said that he has gone to the island of Kish. At first I was afraid that his leaving Iran or Tehran rather, at such a time meant that he had planned for heinous acts to be perpetrated, that he had ordered his army to kill the people while he was away. I thought, God forbid that he should have made such plans for tomorrow and the following day, but this is probably not the case, God willing. Some people say he has gone there to carry out his final act. He is certainly planning to flee the country and the nation of Iran must prevent him from doing so. To the extent that one is able...
Granted this man cannot be punished for all the deeds that he has done. Someone who has held sway over this nation for thirty-odd years, who has destroyed everything it had and who has plunged the mothers of this country into mourning for their children, cannot be punished for everything he has done. Only today someone told me about a woman who had lost all three of her children. How can one exact retribution for the mother and father who now are only two people instead of five when they sit down to eat? Is it possible for us to punish him in this world for this? When a person kills another we can only punish him to the extent that we take his life for the life he has taken, we can do nothing more than this. His blood is only that of one human being- if, of course, he can be said to be a human being- so is it possible for mankind to give him his due after he has ruled over this nation for thirty-odd years and has perpetrated such killings as he has, such killings and thieving, thieving and treachery, treachery and other crimes as he has committed? He has only one life which can be taken from him in punishment for his taking the life of one person.
Logic of those who compromise
The understanding of some people surprises me at times. Those people who say:" Well, he has come forward and has apologized, so we should accept this. He has come forward and has admitted that he made a mistake, so let's accept this."! What should we accept? Do you really think that God will accept this apology from him? God will not overlook what is man's right. If anyone it is man himself who should overlook it. The people themselves should overlook their right for God to overlook it. Do you think that God will overlook the people's right? Come; let's make our peace with him! Come, let's forgive him! One old gentleman with a white beard wrote me a long letter- he himself is a scholar, however, as far as his mental powers are concerned, he is somewhat deficient in intelligence!- in which he recalled that the Most Noble Messenger in such and such a place forgave so-and-so; somewhere else he forgave a certain infidel; and in such and such a place he forgave such and such a person. He wrote the history for me! As if I have the right to forgive him (the Shah)! What does it have to do with me? The children of that old lady were killed, am I the one who should forgive him for this? How can I forgive him for taking the lives of the youth of this nation? In all probability tonight a number of people will be killed. Only today we received information to the effect that people have been killed, so now should we just sit back and agree to him remaining" His Imperial Majesty"?! To him no longer ruling but remaining" His Imperial Majesty"?! What kind of logic is this? How could any right-minded person suggest such a thing? Come; let us abide by the constitutional law! Abiding by the constitutional law, which we have at present, means that he remains `king' but not `ruler'! Is this possible now? Could a right-minded person accept such a thing? Not even an animal would think of forgiving him! Who can forgive him? Who has the right to forgive him? Has he done something to me personally that I enjoy the right to forgive him for it? He has deprived the nation of its right; this man has spilt the blood of a nation. He is a violator of his promise to God. «8» God has taken a promise from all people that they will obey Him, and the Shah has broken this promise. He himself swore an oath in Parliament when he first usurped the throne. He went to the Parliament and swore that he would be loyal to the Shi`i faith; that he would promote this faith and he would not betray the nation. He has broken these promises too. He laid his hand on the Qur'an and swore an oath, calling on God as a witness. He made a solemn promise that he would not betray the nation, that he would propagate the Shi`i faith. You can all see how he has propagated it and how he has kept his promise! He opposes the traditions of the Messenger of God in every way imaginable.
Silence not consented
If someone remains quiet after seeing that Muhammad Rida Khan has these attributes, then his place in hell is the same as that of Muhammad Rida Khan. He may pray during the night, he may be an `alim or have spent the whole of his life in obedience to God, but if he remains silent in the face of such a person, then according to this tradition of the Messenger of God which the Doyen of the Martyrs related, his place in hell will be the same as that of Muhammad Rida Khan. How can a nation remain silent? No one has an excuse; there are no excuses. Even if there were only four of us, we would still have had to rise up, for this is the rule. Today, however, no one can say that he is alone, for the whole nation has risen. Today, the entire nation of Iran has stood up to this tyrannical king, this tyrannical ruler. The entire nation of Islam, the entire nation of Iran, has risen up. Even in the villages they have risen. The day before yesterday someone came to me who had been to visit some remote villages, and he said that even there demonstrations were held on a daily basis. He said that in these villages in the morning and afternoon the learned ones would lead the peasants and other people in demonstrations. At such a time when all the people have risen, no one is able to say that he cannot. No, you can rise up. Just as you have seen what you can do, you have seen that neither martial law nor a military government can do anything to stop you. The heads of this very same military government who made such a hullabaloo now see that when the people want to march, when people from all corners want to come together for a march, they cannot do anything about it, so they have given in and have announced that they are allowed to do so! They assume that if they don't give the people permission to march, they won't do so! What do they mean by saying they are" allowed" to march? Are they crazy or what?! The people are allowed to march! They have the permission to march! It was also said that" His Imperial Majesty" had given his permission. This is just ridiculous.
[One from the audience: They have even given their permission for congregational prayers to be held.]
[Imam:] Yes.
It is just ridiculous for him to say that he allows it, or for the government to say that it allows this march to take place! Who are you to do the allowing?! You have pointed your bayonets at the people, yet they have come forward and have turned their chests into a shield against your bayonets! Children have come forward, women have come forward; women with babes in arms have joined the ranks of the people. This is a divine act, God has done this. God has lit this fire and this is its brightness, which, like the sun, will remain until the conclusion of this affair, God willing.[The audience replies with God willing].
No one can make the excuse now that he is unable to act or that he is ignorant of the situation. Is there anyone in the whole of Iran who can say that he doesn't know that this man is a tyrannical ruler? Is there anyone who can say he doesn't know that this man has acted against the traditions of the Messenger of God? Is there anyone who doesn't know that this man has broken his promise to God, that he is a rebellious sinner who is oppressing the people and who has squandered their wealth?! No one can say that he didn't know this. I ask you, can any of us say now that we cannot do anything about it? All the power is on our side, so how is it not possible to do something? Everyone should voice their disapproval; they should mention the Shah by name and reveal his true character. How come some of the `ulama' in some of the cities are able to write about the Shah and say what kind of a man he really is, naming him explicitly, and no one does anything to them for this? Everyone should speak out and reveal the true nature of the Shah, the government and the regime. It is a mistake not to do this. Names should be mentioned, it should be said that it is the Shah who is doing these things. Disapproval should be voiced. You cannot make the excuse that you are unable to do anything. No, you can do something. If someone utters a word which encourages acceptance of this oppressor, which aids this oppressor, or which helps to retain this oppressor, then this is committing treason against Islam and the Muslims. This should not happen. There should be no talk of `constitutional law'... even if it is said that the article which Rida Khan included by force of the bayonet will be removed, the other articles are wrong too, so they are not worth committing such an outrage for.
Our duty to continue dissemination and struggle
There is no excuse for us today; none of us has an excuse, we who are over here, you gentlemen who are in these countries, are not without a duty to perform. Those who stand in the ranks of the people stand in the line of battle. Perhaps even at this moment the sound of gunfire, the sound of machine-gun fire, is ringing out in Tehran, Qum, Ahwaz and other places. For the people will not remain quiet, they have stood up to them (the regime). Those who stand against the people are waging war against them. However, the people are discharging their duty; they are acting upon the sayings of the Messenger of God; they are following the example of the Doyen of the Martyrs, upon whom be peace, and are performing their duty.
You who are over here must reveal the crimes that this man has committed in whatever way you can; you may be able to give interviews to the press or hold gatherings in which these matters are discussed. Wherever possible you must stand up and speak out on these matters to these friends and acquaintances that you have here abroad and who are of a different denomination or nationality than you, so that the people here will realize that the Iranians who have risen up against him are not just a gang of trouble-makers, but they are people who are speaking the truth and are seeking their rights. Freedom is the right of the people; it is the right of the inhabitants of a country to seek independence. It is a noble people who have risen up and who have spilt their blood in order to stop their wealth, the wealth of their country, from being dissipated, in order to stop the laws of Islam from being swept away or trampled underfoot. You must make the people over here understand this. In whatever language and through whatever means possible tell them that the people of Iran who have risen up against this man and this regime have done so because for the past fifty years this man and his father have betrayed them; for fifty years he and his father have committed outrages against them, have massacred them. His father perpetrated a massacre in the Goharshad «9» mosque, and as for this Shah, well; wherever you look he has carried out massacres! He is a true son of his father! Tell the people over here that this is the state of affairs, and those who have risen up are not merely a group of ruffians or hooligans, or are not just a few in number- recently that wretch «10» has been saying that only a" few" people have been making the rest unhappy and that now all the people want the Shah!! I don't know what is going on in his mind or for whom he is making such comments.
Tell the people over here that the Iranians who have risen up have done so for something that is obvious, for something that all of mankind agrees with and that is that they must be free, they must not be thrown into his jails or prevented from speaking out! They are seized by their throats and prevented from speaking out! Their pens are broken to stop them from writing! During these past fifty years, they (the Pahlavis) broke the people's pens, they shackled them. Over these past fifty years, the prisons have been full of those who sought freedom. Now the people have arisen and are seeking their national rights, rights which are clearly theirs to have, rights which constitute human rights and are considered to be the most basic of human rights that is freedom, independence and a just government. It is said that he spends one hundred million dollars every year on propaganda for himself; he pays them (the media) to glorify him and enhance his stature, and to accuse his opponents of whatever they want. You should thwart these actions. Tell the people whom you meet over here about the (true) state of affairs. This man (the Shah) takes the wealth of the nation and uses it against the nation, uses it against the interests of the nation.
May God assist you all. May you be successful, please God [The audience recites a s alawat].