In his annual message to the Muslim pilgrims performing the Hajj, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei highlighted the importance of unity and spirituality as the main foundations of the Islamic message. He also addressed the challenges and opportunities that the Islamic world faces in the light of the recent developments in the Middle East region.
The Supreme Leader began his message by referring to the universal invitation of Prophet Abraham to all human beings to perform the Hajj, which he described as a source of spiritual and moral elevation for humanity. He said that the Kaaba, as the focal point and the main focus of attention of all Muslims, and also the Hajj ritual as a small example of the extensive diversity of the Islamic world, can serve to elevate human society and improve the health and security of all people.
He then warned against the plots of the Arrogant Powers and Zionism, which he said aim to undermine the moral values and dignity of humanity. He said that Hajj can annul and render ineffectual all their plans, but only if Muslims themselves properly hear and implement the life-giving message of Hajj.
The Supreme Leader emphasized that unity and spirituality are the two main foundations of this message, and explained what they mean in practice. He said that unity means being connected both intellectually and in practice, and having a synergy in science, experience, economy, politics, and culture. He said that unity also means working together against common enemies, and not allowing them to sow discord and division among Islamic denominations, nations, races, languages, and cultures.
He also urged Muslim nations to know each other through communication, dialogue, and interaction, and not through the enemy’s seditious descriptions. He called for cooperation among the scientists, universities, scholars, and intellectual elites of the Islamic world, and for promoting coexistence and brotherhood among the people.
He further stressed that unity also means that political and cultural leaders in Islamic countries should prepare themselves for the situation that will exist in the upcoming world order, which he said is filled with opportunities and threats. He said that they should determine with their own hands and by their own will the proper place for the Islamic Ummah in the new global experience. He warned against repeating the bitter experience of the political and territorial engineering of West Asia at the hands of Western governments after WWI.
As for spirituality, he said that it means advancing religious ethics, which he contrasted with the unrestrained collapse of ethics in the West. He said that spirituality and ethics should be learned from the Hajj rituals, which teach simplicity, humility, charity, purity, peace, and monotheism.
He concluded his message by praying for God’s blessings and guidance for all Muslims, especially those performing the Hajj. He also expressed his hope that God would remove all obstacles and difficulties from their path. He asked God to accept their Hajj as a sincere act of worship.
News ID : 2150