Delivering a speech to the fasting Muslims who had convened in the Imam Kadhim (a) seminary school in Qom on the night before Ramadan 21st, his eminence extended his condolences to all the Shiite Muslims all over the world and stated: “The way the fate of the people in the year to come is decided on the Night of Qadr can be likened to the way the governors, deputies and other officials are chosen by a government, in that the people’s fate is decided upon based on their worthiness and their good records, just as government officials are s e l e c ted based on their worthiness and good records”.
Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi, then, added: “the fate of the people is also determined on the Night of Qadr based on their competence, their worthiness and their repentance offered before Allah on this sacred night. Despite all this, the people are all free in their lives to choose their own paths and develop towards virtues and perfection the way they want. Therefore, the Night of Qadr can be defined as a time to increase one’s capacities and competence. Thus, one of the secrets behind keeping vigil on this night is to be endowed with a better fate”.
Calling the Night of Qadr one of the supreme blessings bestowed upon mankind because it is the night on which the holy Quran was revealed to the Prophet (s), his eminence stated: “it is because of the complete revelation of the entire contents of the Quran to the Prophet (s) on this night that this night has a value equal to more than eighty years”.
Referring to the last will of Imam Ali (a) which he made on the last days of his life, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi said: “on the night before Ramadan 19th we discussed the issue of the Unity of Allah and tonight we will discuss the second point made by Imam Ali (a) in his last will, i.e. the importance of acting in accordance with and safeguarding the Prophet’s (s) tradition”.
Islam has no flaws or shortcomings
His eminence, then, continued: “our legislators should realize that there are no shortcomings in the Islam and the Prophet’s tradition, as far as the elicitation of new laws is concerned. We should not seek assistance with the West with regard to the legislation of our laws. Islam and the Prophet’s (s) tradition contain all the laws that we need, from the most general law of Allah’s Unity, to the most detailed and specific laws of citizenship laws”.
He also added: “based on a tradition that we have at hand, on his last Hajj pilgrimage, the Prophet explained everything that would help the Muslims to achieve redemption, and he also warned us against the things that would prevent us from achieving that goal. I reiterate that all of our legislators must remember that we have everything we need in Islam and there is no gap in it regarding bases for legislation. As regards the plethora of new issues that were absent in the past, it must be noted that necessary laws regarding such issues can also be elicited from the Islamic references, and our needs for new laws can easily be met this way.”
Pointing out several instances as clear examples of disobeying the Prophet’s tradition in today’s world, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi stated: “making marriage a difficult issue for the young people, putting too much importance on the amount of marriage gift, and dowry are among the instances of disobeying the Prophet’s tradition. Based on a tradition, a girl or a woman who asks for a high amount of marriage gift from their husband brings no blessing to their marital life”.
Stating that, according the Islamic traditions, worshipping Allah has seventy different constituents, his eminence said: “prayers, fasting, Hajj pilgrimage and other similar acts of worship are considered to be one of the constituents of a perfect worship presented before Allah. According to the traditions, the other sixty nine constituent acts of worship are done during the time when one is trying to make decent and lawful money with which to cover the expenses of his family. Now is this what the people are doing in businesses today? Unfortunately businesses today are totally mixed with unlawful money, usury, fraud, trading contrabands, and unlawful businesses. This is also a sign of disrespecting and disobeying the Prophet’s (s) tradition”.
Referring to Imam Ali’s words in the 202nd sermon in Nahj al-Balaqeh, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi said: “Imam Ali (a) asked one of his brothers, who had a rather large house, to share his house with orphans and the poor and to feed them, and to invite his relatives to his house as guests so as to prepare himself for the hereafter this way; at the same time, Imam Ali (a) seriously censured another brother of his, who had chosen to seclude himself away from other people and to lead the life of an ascetic, and calls him his own enemy and one who is possessed by the Devil himself.”
Islam values hard work and balance simultaneously
His eminence, then continued: “some religions such as Christianity require some men and women to live in seclusion as monks and nuns in monasteries and dedicate their whole lives to acts of worship, but Islam is not like that. Islam values hard work, but it emphasizes balance at the same time. In response to his second brother, who objected to Imam Ali (a) that he was only following his footsteps in his clothing and food, Imam Ali (a) said: “I am the ruler of these people and it is my duty to live like the poorest people that I rule over. This way, the poor people, who cannot afford good clothing and good food, would suffer less knowing that their ruler lives in the same conditions as they do. But you do not have the responsibilities that I do, and you must not live the way that I do””.
His eminence further noted: “these remarks by Imam Ali (a) sends a message to our government officials in the present day. It tells them that they, too, must avoid living in large expensive houses in the best neighborhood of the city, and they, too, must refrain living the life of the wealthy people. They should all live a simple life, just as the ordinary people do, and they must keep in mind that this is an instruction by Imam Ali (a) to government officials of all times. Now one should ask, are the government officials living this way now? Has this tradition been honored and cherished? Everybody should be careful not to neglect the Prophet’s (s) tradition”.
Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi continued: “today, Imam Ali’s great name, enlightening tradition, and Nahj-al-Balaqeh are shining. I call for all Muslims and all Shiites to pay more attention to Nahj-al-Balaqeh and Imam Ali’s words in it. If we gather all the traditions that we have from the Prophet (a), they cannot match the sermon of Ashbaah, given by Imam Ali (a) regarding so many detailed teachings that it contains. In this sermon, Imam Ali (a) has attended even to the smallest details that one must know about the Unity of Allah. The same thing is also true about Imam Ali’s Ghasediyyeh sermon. As another example, take the Hammaam sermon; has any other companion of the Prophet (s) ever presented such profound and detailed des c r i p tion of true believes, as Imam Ali (a) did in his short sermon given to a number of his companions as well as Hamman, who was a pious and virtuous man? Has anyone among the companions of the Prophet’s narrated such a precious tradition from the Prophet?”
His eminence then said: “we are honored to be following an Imam, whose words and teachings are unique and unmatched in the world. Take the letter Imam Ali wrote to Malik Ashtar, for instance, which is nearly 1400 years old. One would think that such an old letter’s contents must be obsolete today. However, when it was first translated in to a number of different languages and distributed within the United Nations, everyone there was shocked at such a comprehensive and all-inclusive instruction and directive, given by Imam Ali (a), nearly 1400 years ago, to one of his governors regarding how best to run the region over which he was appointed as the ruler. We must now adhere to such an Imam, who is the source of pride for us all and whose martyrdom anniversary is tomorrow”.
Why has the world remained silent regarding the crimes and atrocities of the Saudi government in Yemen?
Referring to the countless afflictions of the Muslim world, his eminence said: “there were already so many problems in Iraq and Syria, and now look what has become of Yemen! It is now months that the unruly Saudi government is heavily bombing the innocent people of Yemen, and the world is dead silent about it! So where are the so-called supporters of human rights? Where are the so-called justice seekers? What has happened to the UN and the UN Security Council? It is now months that the Yemeni people are being incessantly bombed, even in prohibited months and the holy month of Ramadan. All their cities and infrastructure have been demolished and the world has kept completely silent. It is because of the Saudi-paid bribes that everyone is silent now. The Saudis have bribed everyone, even the great international media to turn a blind eye to their atrocities. This is the world we live in! It is a world where Imam Ali’s name and presence is much needed and his absence is conspicuous”.
At the end of his speech, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi prayed for all of the Muslims, including the great people of Iran.
