In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

All praise belongs to Allah, the Lord of the Two Worlds, and peace and greetings be upon the great and trustworthy Prophet, and upon his immaculate and chosen household and his blessed companions.

The season of hajj, which is full of mercy and blessings, has arrived and once again the fortunate people, who have been blessed with the opportunity to be present in this brilliant meeting place, are showered with divine grace. Here, time and space call each and every one of you hajj pilgrims to spiritual and material perfection. Here, Muslim men and women with their hearts and tongues accept the call of Allah the Exalted to righteousness and salvation. Here, everybody finds the opportunity to practice brotherhood, sincerity and piety.

This place is a camp for edification and learning. It is the exhibition of unity, greatness and diversity of the Islamic Ummah. It is the battlefield of fighting satan and taghut. Wise and Almighty Allah has made this place a site where believers will witness their interests. Once we open the eyes of wisdom and learning, these divine promises will spread into all parts of our personal and social lives. The characteristic of hajj rituals is that they connect this world to the next, and the individual to society.

Pure and glorious Ka’bah, tawaf of bodies and hearts around a firm and eternal center, constant and regular efforts from a starting point to a destination, collective migration to the otherworldly arenas of Arafat and Mash’ar, and the atmosphere that imbues hearts with sincerity and liveliness in this great otherworldly arena, a collective rush to confront the symbol of satan, and participation of all people from different places and races in this ceremony which is full of secrets, meanings and signs of guidance: these are the unique characteristics of this significant obligation.

It is such a ceremony that joins hearts to divine remembrance, enlightens the solitude of one’s heart with the light of piety and faith, brings individuals out of the walls they build around themselves and absorbs them into the diverse company of members of the Islamic Ummah, provides members of the Islamic Ummah with clothing which protects them against poisonous arrows of sins, and provokes in them the spirit of attacking satans and taghuts. It is in this place that hajj pilgrims witness with their own eyes examples of diversity of the Islamic Ummah, realize the capacity and potential of the Islamic Ummah, become hopeful about the future and feel prepared to play a role in it. They reaffirm their allegiance to the Great Prophet, enter into a firm covenant with dear Islam providing that they benefit from divine blessing and assistance, and develop in themselves a firm determination to reform themselves and the Islamic Ummah and to promote the word of Islam.

Both of these things – namely, reforming oneself and the Islamic Ummah – are two perpetual obligations. Thanks to their reflection on religious responsibilities and their wisdom and insight, it is not difficult for those who think and reflect to find ways of fulfilling these two responsibilities.

Reforming oneself starts from fighting satanic passions and making efforts to avoid sins. And reforming the Islamic Ummah starts from identifying the enemy and his plots, and making efforts to render his blows, deceptions and enmities ineffective. Efforts to reform oneself and the Islamic Ummah are organized by the bond between the hearts, hands and tongues of Muslims and Muslim nations.

At this juncture, one of the most important issues of the world of Islam, which is tied to the destiny of the Islamic Ummah, is the revolutionary events of North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, which has so far resulted in the overthrow of several corrupt regimes that took orders from America and were accomplices to the Zionists and which has shaken the foundations of other such regimes. Missing this great opportunity and failing to use it to reform the Islamic Ummah are a great loss for Muslims. Currently, all efforts of the aggressive and interfering arrogant powers have been focused on diverting these great Islamic movements from their original path.

In these great uprisings, Muslim men and women rose up against the tyranny of their rulers and the hegemony of America, which had resulted in humiliation of peoples and alliance with the criminal Zionist regime. They themselves believe that their savior in this life-and-death battle was Islam and its redeeming teachings and slogans, and they announced this in a clear voice. Defending the oppressed Palestinian nation and fighting the usurping regime were at the top of their list of demands. They extended a hand of friendship towards Muslim nations and demanded unity of the Islamic Ummah.

These are the essential pillars of popular uprisings in the countries that have raised the flag of freedom and reform over the past two years and have been present in the revolutionary arenas with their hearts and souls. And these are the things that can strengthen the essential pillars of reforming the great Islamic Ummah. Insistence on these fundamental principles is the necessary requirement for ultimate victory of the popular uprisings in these countries.

The enemy’s goal is to shake these fundamental pillars. Corrupt agents of America, NATO and Zionism – through using certain people’s lack of vigilance and superficial outlook – are trying to divert the flood-like movement of Muslim youth and turn them against each other in the name of Islam. They are trying to turn the anti-colonialism and anti-Zionism jihad into blind terrorism in the streets of the world of Islam so that Muslims shed each other’s blood and give the enemies of Islam an opportunity to save themselves from this dead end and tarnish the name and image of Islam and its soldiers.

After despairing of eliminating Islam and Islamic slogans, they have now turned to creating fitna among Islamic denominations and they are creating obstacles in the way of the unity of the Islamic Ummah through their plots to promote Shia- and Sunni-phobia.

With the help of their agents in the region, they create crises in Syria in order to divert the attention of peoples away from important issues of their countries and the dangers that threaten them, trying to focus peoples’ attention on the bloody event that they have caused on purpose. The civil war in Syria and the killing of Muslim youth at the hands of other Muslim youth are crimes that have been started by America, Zionism and governments that take orders from them and they fan the flames of this civil war. Who would believe that governments that support wicked dictatorships in Egypt, Tunisia and Libya, have now become supporters of the Syrian nation’s call for democracy? The issue of Syria is about taking revenge on a government that has single-handedly stood up against the Zionist regime for three decades and has defended resistance groups in Palestine and Lebanon.

We support the Syrian nation and we are opposed to any kind of foreign activity and interference in Syria. Any kind of reform in that country should be carried out by the Syrian people and through completely domestic methods. That international hegemons with the help of the obedient regional governments create crises in a country under certain pretexts and then use the existence of crises as an excuse to justify any crime they commit in that country, is a serious danger and if the regional governments fail to deal with it, they should expect that it will be their turn to suffer from this plot by the arrogant powers.

Brothers and sisters, the season of hajj is an opportunity to reflect on important issues of the world of Islam. The destiny of regional revolutions and the efforts that are made by powers which have been harmed by these revolutions in order to divert them, are among these issues. Treacherous plots to foment discord among Muslims and create suspicion between the risen countries and the Islamic Republic, the issue of Palestine and the efforts to isolate Palestinian combatants and extinguish Palestinian jihad, anti-Islam propaganda of western governments and their support for those who insult the Great Prophet (Allah’s greetings be upon him and his household), preparing the ground for civil wars and dissolution of certain Muslim countries, making the revolutionary peoples and governments fear opposing the domineering western powers, promoting the illusion that their future depends on surrendering to those aggressors and other such important and vital issues are among the important matters that should be reflected upon during the opportunity that has been provided thanks to hajj and the solidarity and unity of you hajj pilgrims.

Undoubtedly, divine guidance and assistance will show the safe paths to hardworking believers: “And those who struggle in Our way, We will certainly guide them to our paths.” [The Holy Quran, Sura al-Ankabut (29), Ayah 69]

Was-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh

Sayyid Ali Khamenei

Dhul Hijjah 5, 1433