The Late Imam - Ayathullah Sayyid Ruhullah Musawi al-Khomeini (re)

============ EDITORIAL ============

When we speak of the greatness of a human being there is always a danger. Firstly, we know that greatness belongs to Allah alone. Second, if we call Imam Khomeini " great " this simply inserts him into a long list of figures who have exercised an important role in development of humanity. Speaking of the greatness of Imam, I wish to avoid both of these danger of attributing greatness to other than Allah and assuming Imam to be simply one more influential personality among others in recent history. When searching for an Ayat from the Holly Quran with which to open the presentation, entirely by chance I opened the Quran at the following:
O you who believe! If there are those among you who should turn away from their religion then Allah will bring forth a people whom He loves and who love Him, and they are humble to the believers and powerful and harsh towards the unbelievers. They struggle on the path of Allah and they fear not the censure of any censure. This is the super abundance of Allah that He grants to whom He wills, and Allah is all encompassing, all knowing. (5:54)
It seems to me that this Ayat is, indeed the most appropriate of all possible Ayat of the Holly Quran with which to begin an evocation of the specific greatness of Imam. It's true that the verse refers to the plural(people), but Imam may be regarded as a supreme example of the category mentioned in our present stage. It immediately struck me, upon seeing the Ayat, that we have here an enumeration of many of the characteristics of the Imam. The first and foremost one is that his whole being was permeated by love of Allah. A love which enabled him to dispense with the illusions, the fears and the deficiencies that halt many of us in this world. The same love which is mentioned in the Ayat. Next, the Imam was indeed among those who was gentle and humble towards the believers. The Imam, on one hand, was a manifestation of the power of Allah, one who brought about, by Allah's permission a tremendous transformation, which was none other than a manifestation of the Divine Power. Yes, at the same time he was a man who, in his behavior, in his comportment, was indeed humble before the believers and at the same time he was among those who were firm, powerful and unafraid with respect to the unbelievers. In fact, we may say that Imam also manifested the quality expressed in the Ayat were Allah says:
Muhammad, the Messenger, and those who are with him are extremely firm against the unbelievers, kind and merciful among themselves.(48:29)
Imam was among those who were very firm against the unbelievers and merciful in dealing with the believers. The first Ayat, we mentioned speaks of Jihad. The word Jihad has had numerous misuses in the present age. We see recently, for example, the trainer, yasser arafat, speaking in a mosque in Johannesburg of a Jihad to recover himself at the same time himself was signing a treaty of surrender to the zionists who are continuing to kill our young men right now as we speak. The reality of Jihad, in the present age, is extremely rare. It's reality is, of course, a multifaceted reality. it's reality begins with an inner dimension. The inner Jihad, the Jihad Imam spoke of in the celebrated lecture delivered in Najaf, was clearly exemplified by him in his own person. Beyond that he declared jihad against the outward enemy and not necessarily a Jihad that involves recourse to weapons; but a Jihad definitely on occasion if necessary included that. Thus we find in the person of Imam one who practiced Jihad in all its comprehensive forms. The description of these people whom Allah shall bring forth continues:
"And the fear not the censure of any censurer."(5:54).
This is another necessary corollary of that first attribute that Allah has mentioned. "He loves them and they love Him", in other words there is a firm primary relationship of love between Allah and those of His chosen servants that are mentioned here. Once that a firm relationship of love is in existence, it follows that the believer should not fear the censure of any censurer. Out of fearlessness of any man comes a total disregard for reproaches of any kind from the enemies of Allah. This is, of course, another very clear and outstanding attribute of Imam Khomeini. "And that is none other than the super abundance, the generosity of Allah." This combination of unique attributes is none other than the generosity of Allah, and it is, moreover, given by Him. He gives it, He bestows it, upon whomever He wills. It's not something to be acquired by efforts, which brings me to what I call, hesitantly and with reservations, the greatness of Imam. If we speak of the greatness of Imam, it is precisely because we see manifested in him qualities which were indeed the result of a divine gift. It is not a question of exertion on his part, although without doubt he was one whose whole life was devoted to conscientious effort and struggle. But in a certain sense we may say that the greatness of Imam was precisely a reflection of the greatness of Allah Himself. I hope this does not sound like an exaggerated form of expression to you. Let me clarify what I mean by examining two further Ayah: First, Allah says:
"To Allah belongs power and glory and to His Messenger and to the believers. however, the hypocrites d not know." (63:8)
And in another Ayat, also referring to the hypocrites, Allah says:
"Those who take the unbelievers as friends and protectors in preference to the believers do they expect to find power and glory?" (4:139)
Certainly, power and glory is to be found with Allah exclusively. How do you reconcile these two Ayats? The second one concludes by saying "Ezzat" belongs exclusively to Allah while the first says it belongs to Allah and to his Messenger and to the believers. Clearly what is meant here, is that power and glory as a matter of principal and in essence do indeed belong to Allah. However, insofar as the Messenger(s) is the instrument of Allah, then in them too is a reflection of the Divine Power. Taking this into account, I think when one speaks of the greatness of Imam, it is the greatness of Allah reflected in him in a certain fashion. But it is not his greatness it is the greatness of Allah manifested in the form of a choice human being. It struck me often, when studying the history of the Ulama of the Shi'a, how, in the twentieth century, titles have become extremely common. For example, the title Ayatollah and the title Hujjatul Islam. As these titles became more common and easily applied, their value and meaning has not necessarily tended to decline. But, if one think of the true underlying meanings of these terms, I think we have a key to understanding what the role of Imam was, what the true nature of his personality was, and how we should understand his historical impact. Of course we refer to him as the Imam because he transcended by far, what is implied conventionally in terms of Ayatollah or still more Hujjatul Islam. Nonetheless, if one looks at the true sense of these two terms, one may say that the Imam is among those few people to whom the literal sense of those words applied. Ayatollah means a sign of Allah. It may be said that, potentially all human beings are signs of Allah,in that Allah manifested His attributes most comprehensively in man, but few human beings actually and practically are in the state of being a sign of Allah. Allah manifested His attributes in man in the mode of his functioning his action as a vicegerent on earth bearing the responsibility of free will, and knowledge of right and wrong; all of these qualities make each man or woman a potential sign of Allah. However, that state remains, for the majority, merely potential and when one looks at such a people(including most of us), one sees a falling away from perfection, a failure to realize this potential. There are those individuals in whom the divinely accorded function of vicegerency and instrument of Divine Will is realized, and it seems that Imam was one of those persons. He was a sign of Allah, who was emptied and purified of any individual volition, who was motivated and determined by the love of Allah. By his desire to serve Allah, by his wish to submerge himself in obedience to Allah, he achieved this high state. There is an experience which many had who had the honor to meet with Imam Khomeini. What I relate t you here is not only a personal experience which, Alhamdolleh, I was fortunate to have more than once, but it is also confirmed by many others who had similar experiences. When coming into the presence of Imam, even before he uttered a single word, one in whom there is any degree any atom of faith felt simultaneously humble and exalted. Humble because one realizes how far the distance is that he himself has to travel towards any degree of complete obedience to Allah when one gazes upon he in whom the divine attributes are indeed manifest. Yet, at the same time, one feels exalted precisely because before him is one in whom nobility, dignity, compassion, love, and justice are apparent. These qualities of Imam are an effect which many have experienced upon meeting him. This brings us to another dimension of the Imam in his having a very wide appeal to numerous senses. It is obvious that within Iranian society, more than any other figure in modern times or even pre-modern times, he was able to address a wide section of the people. he had the unique ability t express himself in accordance with the needs of any given audience. It was as if he had instinctive ability to follow the injunction which is sometimes attributed to the Holly Prophet(s) and sometimes to Imam Ali('a), that is, "Speak to the people in accordance to their intelligence". This was a gift manifested in Imam Khomeini. More importantly, I think it was the fact that Imam was an Ayatollah, and the first person, for an extremely long time in Islamic history, to touch a resonant chord in the heart of Muslims throughout the world. In other words, he was a person who was able, without effort or conscious decision, (but simply by being what he was), to transcend the differences between Sunni and Shi'i, and to present himself also as Hujjatul Islam, ( a proof of Islam). If we look at the origin of the term, Hujjatul Islam, and its essential meaning, it is an extremely high rank an not one to be applied easily to any scholar. It is the rank of one whose very being a proof of Islam, that in all of these respects, he is a living proof of the reality and the veracity of the message of Islam. This, of course, was recognized by Muslim across the world in the Imam. In the years immediately following the revolution in Iran I had the opportunity t travel to a wide verity of Muslim countries in Asia and Africa. Places as far apart as Manila and Mobasa, Istanbul and Singapore. I would see, on the walls of Muslim quarters, pictures of Imam and encounter great excitement on the part of everyone who heard that I had met with him and been to Iran. This is extremely important to understand. Imam should not be regarded simply as a figure who inaugurated a turning point in Iranian history. He is a figure who belongs to the collective memory of the entire Ummah, and who contributed to the ongoing awakening despite the very harsh conditions we now face. This contribution toward awakening was considerable. We come now to another extremely important dimension of Imam, that is, that we see in him one who exemplified all the dimensions of Islam simultaneously. We have had, both in Iran and in other Islamic countries in recent history, prominent Fugaha. We have also had political strugglers and those who are devoted to the study of Tasawwof and mysticism. We have had those who have been eloquent speakers and preachers. However, very few, if any, are the individuals who united all these qualities within their person. In this respect it seems to me that Imam is unique. He was able to do all of this and, at the same time, he was a Fagih and an Aref. He was an implementer of the Shari'at, and one who walked upon the Tarigat. He was, at the same time, one who was submerged in contemplation of the divine reality at all times. He also struggled on the political plane. We cannot assign these qualities and attributes to a simple versatility or a high degree of personal accomplishment. It seems to me that the matter must be sought beyond this. It is, rather, that the Imam had penetrated the inner core of Islam and having come to the heart of it, having internalized it and settled himself in it, he necessarily automatically participated in all the dimensions we have mentioned. These are purely analytical distinctions which appear to we who have not realized that degree of integration in the totality of Islam. For Imam, however, these distinctions clearly did not exist; the one implied the other. Particularly important is that we try to examine the connection between Imam's political Jihad and activity and his contribution to what is called Erfan or mysticism. Mysticism have been defined as turning away from this world; and of course, in many cases, it has been that. But in the case of Imam we see it correlated with a high degree of practical activity in the world. In fact, a degree of practical activity in the world, yielding a success far greater than that which has yet been obtained by any other Muslim movement. How do we explain this? The following points occur to me: Firstly, that the one who has not attained the station of understanding that Imam had obviously attained tends to see the existing circumstances of the world as real, as unchangeable reality, or if they are changeable then they can be changed only with difficulty. We may accept the reality of historical change. We may accept that all things ultimately are dependent on the will of Allah. But, as a matter of common perception we tend to accept the circumstance that surround us as being, in a sense, concrete, fixed, unchangeable. However, when the illusory view of the permanence of our material condition is overcome, then the circumstance no longer appear so fixed, so intimidating. It then becomes possible to understand that these circumstance are variable, they are changeable, and they are changeable, and they are bound to disappear. I think if we wish to understand the remarkable political insight that Imam demonstrated on a large number of occasions we will be doing ourselves an injustice if we rationalize to be simply some kind of political perspicacity. We should regard this on the contrary, a certain particular kind of vision that he attained. For example, his instance, from the Fall of 1978 onwards, that the movement in Iran should continue until the point of overthrow of the monarchy and explosion of american influence from Iran. This was at a time when the Iranian army still appeared to be solid in support of the position of the shah. American support also was unwavering and most significantly a large number of people from within Iran were convinced that this was an excessively ambitious goal. More than one hinted that Imam was out of touch. Having been abroad, in exile, for so many years, they said he was overtaxing the resources of the Iranian people. Yet, Imam never hesitated. He insisted that the movement had the potential of complete overthrow of the Iranian monarchy and of course this proved true. Another instance was Imam's confident prediction of the disappearance of communism and the breakup of the soviet union. It is true, of course, that at the time Imam made these remarks to Mr. gorbachev the soviet union was already in deep crisis. But not even the most well informed experts on soviet affairs were predicting that the soviet union itself would collapse and disintegrate and that marxism, as apolitical ideology, would be discredited around the world. Yet, Imam clearly and calmly made that prediction. There are many important instances of the interrelation between Erfan and political activity in Imam Khomeini and ultimately I think the unity of these two goes back to his penetration to what I call the innermost dimension of Islam. The earliest public political statement that Imam made was in a declaration that he issued in 1944. He cited the following Ayat:
Say! I enjoyed upon you one thing only, that you stand up for Allah in pairs or singly. (34:46)
This Ayat was repeated by Imam Khomeini numerous contexts, sometimes in context of a political nature as was the case here, to stand up for Allah meaning to stand up for the interests of Islam within Iranian society,and sometimes also in context of purely spiritual concern; that is, say standing up applied to the individual Muslim, he should raise himself from the state of lethargy and begin to walk in the path of spiritual purification towards Allah. Among other texts Imam recited throughout his life(and can be taken almost as a personal spiritual motto)is the following phrases from the Monajate Shabanniyyah. In fact, Imam carried out, by the permission of Allah, his successful revolution while reciting this Du'a with its contents clearly fixed in his mind and spirit and at the same time teaching us a great deal about what true political activity in Islam is. Part of the Du'a reads:
O Allah, Grant me total separation from other than you and brighten the vision of our hearts with the veil of light and attain the fountainhead of magnificence, and our spirits be suspended from the splendor of your sanctity.(Bahar Al-Anwar Vol. 91, p. 99.)
Can we think of any other leader, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, whose entire action and striving was directed toward this goal? Imam in his book on Islamic Government, cited a Hadith from Imam Musa Ibn Ja'afar('a)to the effect that: "Whenever a believer who is Fagih, died, the angels weep together with the ground where he engaged in the worship of God, and the gates of Heaven, which he enters by means of his good deeds. A crack will appear in the fortress of Islam that nothing can repair, for believers who are Fugaha are the fortress of Islam, like the walls protecting the city."
Now that the Imam has passed from us, a crack has appeared a crack in the fortress of Islam. From this point of view indeed we must mourn his passage. We mourn him with a sadness and sense of loss which is not lessened by the passage of time. However, at the same time we remember him with gratitude to Allah for the gift of his life to the Ummah. Hopefully, we do not limit this remembrance to a ritualistic fashion on a certain date in the calendar, but we remember him actively with consciousness. Let us remember some of the important lessons he taught. Let us remember the comprehensive Jihad that starts with our own persons and should also embrace our communal and political lives and if necessary go to the point of taking weapons in our hands to defeat the enemies of Islam. Let us also remember the insistence of Imam on unity among all Muslims, let us remember the clear analysis of the west that Imam gave us. He described the west as a collection of international bandits; nothing has changed, the international bandits are still there. Let us never forget the essential nature of the system, which has consolidated itself since Imam's death. This system remains the same. Let us also remember his insistence that the abominable genocide state of Israel completely disappear from the face of the globe. Let us also remember the achievement of Imam in the destruction of the taught in Iran. This was regarded as something impossible but he had the vision to see that it was possible. The new york times wrote in December 1978: 'The unthinkable become the inevitable." It should be aspiration and duty of all Muslims to make that which the kufar believes unthinkable to become inevitable. Allah says;
...you see the mountains and imagine them to be solid and fixed and yet they will pass away just as the cloud passes. (27:88)
The west looked at its position in Iran and thought it to be solid as mountains, and yet these mountains disappeared and crumbled and passed away as the cloud pass. Let us not only hope, but act and work so those mountains of tyranny, oppression, and genocide that surround the Muslims, by the will of Allah, will also crumble and pass away like the cloud. In conclusion, let me remark that we benefit by praying for Imam Khomeini that he be resurrected in the proximity of his noble ancestor, the best of humanity, and his pure progeny, and that we shall be resurrect with those who followed him and who strove to imitate his example.

Source:     Message of Thaqalayn, Vol. 1, No.4 p.49-57, October 1994
published by:   Ah al-beyt('a)World Assembly, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.