In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

I welcome you dear brethren and sisters and congratulate the auspicious days of [the lunar month of] Sha’ban and the whole of this month, which is a month for mentioning [God] and worship and attention and supplication, to all brethren and sisters. These opportunities – the opportunity of the month of Sha’ban, the opportunity of the month of Ramadan, [and] the opportunity of the month of Rajab – are good opportunities; especially for us and you officials. In the Islamic Establishment, the main essence of the Islamic society is worship, faith and good deed by the entire nation; just as you saw in these verses [of the Quran] which our very good reciter recited here; this issue is the essence. The thing that prompts divine angels to tell human beings that “We are your protectors in this life and in the Hereafter,” – that is, we are in agreement and cooperate with you both in this world and the Hereafter – and is very important, is this: faith, worship and [doing] good deeds by all people. However, officials are more important addressees of this announcement. The heavier is the responsibility, this announcement to them is more serious, more stern and heavier. We must create this in ourselves; that is, being a member of the Majlis [Iranian parliament], having responsibility in the administration, having responsibility in the armed forces, [and] having responsibility in the Judiciary are all among those things that the first duty that they create for us is the duty to establish a stronger link and connection with the Almighty God; [and] to be more refined and better servants [for God]; this issue must not be overlooked.

Yes, when we are given a responsibility, the sphere of that responsibility is the sphere of our basic duty and we must pursue [fulfillment of that duty]; however, before that and even along with that and at its end, the thing that must be important to us and be considered by us is that what we must do to have fulfilled our divine duty; to have realized our worship [of God], our devotion, our action, [and] our pious action. This is the duty to which [state] officials must pay a lot of attention.

Well, these months offer a great opportunity; the month of Sha’ban, [and] the month of Ramadan, are great opportunities. These prayers that have been recommended for these months, open the way for us. If I and you want to talk to the Almighty God and ask him for something, request something from God, we indeed don’t know how to do this properly. These prayers [which have been compiled] with the most eloquent language, teach us what to ask from the Almighty God and how to talk to God. This very honorable Sha’baniyeh prayer, [and] the items that exist from the beginning to the end of [this] prayer, every one of them is a sea of knowledge. In addition, they teach us how to talk to God and what to ask Him. “O God! Give me a heart that would be eager to get close to you and a tongue whose honesty is accepted by you and a [kind of] look that would get close to you because of its righteousness. Look! There are three key basic points in a short item of this prayer. O God! Give me a heart that would get close to you out of eagerness; this eagerness must be created in one’s heart. Our [soul’s] contamination with material interests, our contamination with sin, our contamination with various kinds of avarice and greed, will kill this eagerness in the [human] heart.

Our intimacy with the Quran, our intimacy with prayer, our intimacy with non-obligatory forms of worship, [and] acting upon obligations in a correct way will stir and kindle this eagerness in the heart. [Give me a heart that] would get close to you out of eagerness; then this eagerness will get [our] heart closer to God. And a tongue whose honesty is accepted by you; an honest tongue, [and] honest words. These honest words will ascent toward God. “Toward Him ascent (all) Words of Purity: It is He Who exalts each Deed of Righteousness.” Good words, honest words, sincere words, words that are devoid of the impurity of material interests, and selfishness, and the love of self, and such things, [they are] the words that ascend toward God. “And a look that would get close to you because of its righteousness.” A look that is mingled with truth and is mixed with truth. Truthful look at all issues, not a biased look, not a capricious look, not a businesslike look; [it advises us to] see issues through a truthful look, by taking sides with truth, [and] following suit with truth. It is then that the heart gets close to God. See, they teach us how to talk to God; they tell us what to ask God.

The duty is heavy, if we want to fulfill these duties, we need this strength of connection [with God]. We must strengthen the connection; this connection must be maintained day by day. This is the purpose of constant mentioning [of God]; [the fact] that prayers have been scheduled on a daily basis and in alternative bouts, is for the purpose that we would not be overrun by negligence. One of the greatest blessings of God, is that prayers have become obligatory for us. If prayers were not obligatory, we would have submerged in negligence; in the morning, when you wake up from sleep, you mention the God; at noon, which is the middle of the occupation with life and livelihood, [you have to] mention God; at the evening, at the end of a day during which you have endeavored and worked, [you have to] mention God.

I went to bed while thinking about your beauty,

And woke up aspiring to have you.

This is the order and program that have been considered for us. Do we act [according to that program]? If we do [act upon it], then we could be sure that [God will] “take me out of this world safe and sound;” – this is in our prayers. We could be sure that we would get out of this [world] safe and sound. A prayer in Sahifey-e Sajjadiyeh [a book of prayers] says [o God!] take our life in a way that we would exit this world as guided ones; take our life in such a way that we would be willing and eager to enter that world [the Afterlife]. Infidels are not like this; the corrupt persons are not like this. Angels come to them and [tell them] with pressure and force “get out of your bodies.” But [this is] not [true about] the faithful. The faithful’s minds are in peace about the other side and go there quite willing and eager. They close their eyes to perishable things, but all of a sudden, they open their eyes to surprising amenities that [will make them] forget [this world].

In a pleasant trip that you make, for example, you may lose the sight of your child, [or] your brother in front of the garage [and] this would make you anxious. However, when you start the trip, [and see] these exquisite vistas, this good life, diversity and the likes of them, [they make] you forget [that anxiety] all at once. When you enter there [the Afterlife] through divine consent, divine forgiveness, divine reward – [as Quran says] “a hospitable gift from one Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful,” the verses [of Quran] they recited right now – when one is faced with this, we will forget all those things that were here and were temporary and to which we were attached and for which we killed ourselves; a person [must] get out of this world in this way. This is our duty. Of course, these words are first and foremost addressed to myself; my burden is heavier than yours and my problems are more numerous than yours. But all of us must pay attention. This is the first things that is important.

Well, three years have passed from the tenure of this responsibility and this opportunity that you had. This is the last meeting between me and the group [of lawmakers] from your parliament – the fourth meeting and the last meeting. That is, you don’t have more than a year, you have no more opportunity to render services [to your people]. Three years were an opportunity; these three-year opportunity has come to an end. Now it is the time for being accountable. When a task is assigned to a person, [and] it is finished and [that person] leaves [the office], now he/she must say what they have done; [this is how a] heavy responsibility [is]. [You have to answer] the question; not people’s question [because] one can answer it one way or another. No; [the important question is] the question of the Divine Realm; the question of those, “from Whom is not hidden the least little atom in the heavens or on earth.” The question [posed] by He Who governs our hearts [and] knows it all, let alone our actions; this will start; [we] must get ready to be accountable; we must prepare ourselves to give answers; [we must] endeavor. Now, after all, the Almighty God is both forgiving and merciful, but this forgiveness and mercy is very unlikely to include lazy people, those who do not pay attention, [and] those who do not care; [it] is for somebody who takes trouble, [and] makes effort. After all:

Going into the wilderness is better than sitting idle,

‘cause if I don’t achieve my goal, at least I strive as far as I can.

Know the value of this [last] year [of your tenure]; another year of this opportunity still remains; you don’t know and I don’t know whether this opportunity will be offered to me and you again or not. This one year that you have opportunity – the opportunity apparently exists; now, there is also death, whose time is determined by God – [we must] know its value, must strive, must work, [and] must take trouble. We must move according to these standards, [and] to these criteria, [in accordance] with the scale of observing the divine right, honest words, the truthful look, [and] the eager heart; [we] must move according to these scales.

Thank God, good steps were taken in these three years, which were mentioned by the esteemed speaker of the Majlis in his report – [which was read out] during today’s speech. I had already seen the written report; good steps have been taken, which God willing, have been taken with honest and pure intention and with the intention to get close [to God]. [They are] certainly accepted by the Almighty and I hope that God willing, the steps you have taken, promises you have given, laws that you have passed in favor of people, in favor of country, [and] in favor of Islam and Muslims would be lasting laws and [would be] acted upon [in order to] show their impact in the society; [and] people would, God willing, feel the impact of your work. This is the hope that I have. The main part of my remarks were these things that I already said; that is, in fact, by advising you, I advised myself so that perhaps, God willing, our hearts would be affected by these words and we would be able to do what we have to do. I have a few recommendations as well:

One recommendation is about your demeanor – gentlemen and ladies – in this last year [of your tenure]; take care that the factor of the elections [that are scheduled to be held] at the end of the year would not affect the way you do your job during this year; this is very important. What you do, what you say, confirmation that you give, opposition that you show, [and] speech that you make, must not be affected by the factor of year-end elections; assume that such elections do not exist, [and] take the truth as your [main] standard in this one year that has remained; this is the first recommendation.

The second recommendation is about the sixth [economic, social, and cultural development] plan. The sixth plan – whose policies are in final stages [of formulation] and, God willing, will be notified to various organs soon – must be taken into account with due care. The last year of responsibility is sometimes usually afflicted with the problem of impatience – this is not special to you; the administration is also like this –; at the end of the tenure, [officials] are afflicted with some form of impatience; take care not to allow this problem affect [the formulation] of the sixth plan. The sixth plan is important; in [formulating] the sixth plan, you are passing laws for the next five years of the country. At that time, you may be member of the parliament, [or] you may not be, but your laws will be there; administrations will have to follow them, [and] people will be affected by them. Formulate this law – the law of the sixth plan – with this view in mind. In all sectors: economic sectors; cultural sectors; service sectors; health and treatment; defense and security sectors; and the likes of them do not show impatience when formulating the law of the sixth plan.

Another recommendation is the issue of interaction; interaction with other powers, especially with the administration. Well, the administration [is responsible for] standing in the middle [of the political arena]. Those who do traditional sports are well aware what I am talking about. Well, other people are also working out, but their eyes are riveted on the one person who stands in the middle. If the government’s function is strong and good and successful, other organs one way or another will make a good move; this is the status of the administration. Therefore, interaction with the administration, in my opinion, is an imperative. Interaction with all powers, with all various organs in the country, especially with the Executive power and the administration [is necessary because] this interaction is the real manifestation of what I told all the people and you at the beginning of the [current Iranian] year: “empathy and common language.” Of course, I recommend this to the administration as well; this recommendation is not just for you; I also recommend this to the respectable president and ministers; however, you are certainly needed to [make] this interaction [with other powers].

Well, if we want this interaction to take place, there are two or three points about this interaction that I mention here: one [point] is that this interaction depends on optimism. If you were suspicious of each other, there would be no interaction. If two people who are supposed to cooperate, one of them supposes from the very beginning that the other side wants to stab him in the back, well, this would not lead to interaction; interaction is not possible on the basis of suspicion; you must be optimistic. Interaction must be accompanied with optimism. Without optimism and good thinking about the other side, this would not be possible. Of course, optimism does not mean being simplistic; does not mean to be deceived. We must be careful; one must be always, in all places and in all cases careful. I do not recommend anybody to show simplicity; no; however, suspicion must not be taken as basis [for interaction]. That we accuse the other side from the outset that he is bent on doing a certain illegal activity – or he is bent on compromise, or is bent on treachery, or is bent on making personal gains – then it would not be possible [to interact]. With this approach, interaction would not be possible; [interaction must be made possible] through a positive approach. This is another point about the issue of interaction.

The next point is that interaction must not amount to tug of war. Look, there is a fine line here; you know, I have also been in the parliament, [and] I have been a representative [in the Majlis] as well and I share your experience; I have also been in the administration and have the experience of [working in the] administration as well. When I say interaction, it doesn’t mean that there must be a kind of tug of war between the [Majlis] representative and [a] minister. For example, they [must not] say, “Let go, so I would let go.” It must not be like this. Both – the Majlis deputy and minister – must focus on their legal duty and the country’s expediencies and be aware that the Almighty God is seeing us; interaction [must take place] on this basis; this is another point. So, interaction must not be mistaken for tug of war.

The next point about interaction is that in the Majlis, especially in [parliamentary] commissions, ministers must not be insulted. Some of the esteemed ministers complain to me that ‘we go to [a Majlis] commission, [and they treat us] with an insulting tone [of voice]’. Of course, I believe that all [lawmakers and ministers] are brethren; that is, we must not have a royal attitude and, for example, say “we are members of the administration, we are like this, [and] everybody must supplicate before us.” This is certainly not the case. However, on the other hand, an attitude of humiliation and insult and “your fate is in my hands,” and “I will make you pay,” must not exist [among lawmakers]. This attitude is not a correct attitude; we must deal [with each other] with respect, we must behave with politeness; politeness is necessary in all stages. This is [enough] about this [recommendation]. Well, so the third recommendation was the issue of interaction.

The fourth recommendation is about the important issue of resistance economy. As for the resistance economy, fortunately, there is a common language [used] in the country, [but] our problem is with empathy; one is afraid lest there might be a common language, but not empathy. 

Many a Hindu and Turk use the same language,

Many two Turks treat each other like strangers,

So, the language of empathy is a different language,

[and] empathy is better than common language.

Well, the common language exists, [but] empathy must also exist. I mean the issue of the resistance economy must be whole-heartedly accepted; we must believe that the key to country’s problems is inside [the country]; [and] its main axis is strengthening domestic production; now, this step you have taken – [passing] the law for removing obstacles to production – is a good step and I [have] heard [of it] – as it was reported to me – it is a well-studied [and] good step; these [kinds of measures] must continue to be followed; everybody must believe this. I personally believe that if we could strengthen domestic production, if we could take advantage of domestic capacities in true sense of the word, resolving external issues would be made easy; resolving the nuclear issue would become easy.

Well, the nuclear issue has turned into a [Gordian] knot; this [issue] has its own solutions, [but] those solutions depend on our internal strength; if we strengthen [ourselves] from within, that task would become easier. Apart from the nuclear issue, other series [of issues] are also awaiting us; it is not [true] that all our issues with the West, with America, with Zionism, [and] with economic bullies of the world are only [limited to] this nuclear issue; this is not our sole issue; it would be followed by various issues – human rights and the likes of that and the likes of that. Resolution of all these issues would become easy; I do not mean that they would be resolved spontaneously; no; effort is needed; however, resolution of those issues would become easy, if we could resolve this internal issue [of resistance economy]. You must pay complete attention to this issue of the resistance economy in the sixth plan law; [and] you must [also] pay complete attention to it in the budget law for the [Iranian calendar] year [13]95 (May 21, 2016-May 20, 2017).

Of course, those policies have been notified. State organs have taken many steps. Many steps have been taken, but look which part of this table is incomplete. After all, when they prescribe a medication, which is final remedy of a given disease and assuming that this medication, for example, has five components, if one component of those five components is not there, this is not a true medicine even if the other four components exist. All these components must exist so that one could expect remedy and result. Look and see what part of this table – [or] as put by Western-minded people, this puzzle – is empty and must be filled; find it. In the [sixth] plan law [and] in the [13]95’s budget law, carefully look at this [issue].

 Well, of course, I know this, [and] our brethren in the administration keep repeating that ‘[the fact] that you always repeat this and that’, well we are facing shortage of resources. Yes, I also know that we are facing shortage of resources and sanctions have been influential in this shortage of resources; I have no doubt about this. However, when one is faced with shortage of resources, what they have got to do? Do they have to sit and do nothing? Do they have to mourn? No, [go] and find the remedy. There is remedy; saving is one of those remedies; start saving. When dividing and distributing domestic resources, observe the priorities; this is the remedy. There is no deadlock. Shortage of resources is our problem, not a knot that cannot be cut; it is a problem, [and] this problem must be eliminated; well, this has [its own] solution. At present we are sometimes spending money in places that it must not be spent in those places.

I know about some organs – I know one of those organs up-close – which have increased their services several times without a dime having been added to their budget; [this has been made possible] through correct management, through correct approach, through reduction of surplus expenses; which this [issue], of course, encompasses the administration as well, the Majlis as well, [and] the armed forces as well. There are [certain] cases apart from the armed forces, but in part of the armed forces, I have seen certain cases [in which] they have doubled their abilities and functions without any increase in their budget; so, this is quite possible to do. Therefore, this shortage of resources must not become an excuse for us to say this cannot be done; no, if there is financial discipline, everything can be resolved. This issues can be also resolved. Of course, I repeat that financial discipline is not special to the administration; it is the same about the Majlis; it is the same about other places; all [organs] must observe financial discipline.

Another point that I mention here is about principled positions taken by the Islamic Consultative Assembly [the Majlis]. Thank God, principled positions of the Majlis are good. The esteemed speaker of the Majlis also pointed [to this issue], [and] it is true; I also hear, see, [and] observe when basic and principled issues and those things that are main fundaments of the Establishment and the Islamic Revolution are at stake, positions of the Majlis are acceptable, positive and in some cases, completely progressive positions; it must be like that; this must be the case in all [terms] of the Majlis. The standard for the Islamic Consultative Assembly should be the lofty edifice of principled positions. The criterion is the words of Imam [Khomeini] and the last will of the Imam and these twenty-odd volumes of the remarks made by the Imam; this is the criterion. Just look and see what kind of behavior, what orientation for the revolution and for the Islamic Republic Establishment has been delineated in the collection of Imam’s remarks; these positions must be insisted on; this must be the standard for the Majlis. If this [goal] is realized, then we would never face the frightening precipice of falling into [the clutches of] the [world’s] hegemonic system; we would not fall off such a formidable precipice; if this [goal] is not realized, there would be many risks [facing us] in this regard.

The last point is that with regard to nuclear issues, [my] positions are the same things that I have announced publicly; the same things that I have said. Of course, there are certain things that one cannot express in public, [but] expresses them in private – there are such instances; not everything [can be said publicly]; “not everything that is known can be said [publicly] – but those things that have been announced publicly are exactly the same things that have been told the officials; [they have been] said both orally, and also in writing; these are basic positions of the Establishment. And I believe that our brethren are busy working, busy endeavoring, are really breaking a sweat, are working in these fields. They must, God willing, by putting their hope in God and by putting their trust in the Almighty God, insist on these positions and be able to, God willing, realize that goal, which would be expedient for the country and expedient for the Establishment.

I hope the Almighty God would make you succeed and that, God willing, you would take advantage of this good opportunity to obtain the divine satisfaction [of God].

Peace be unto you and so may the mercy of Allah and His blessings.