Martyr Imam Khamenei’s selected statements regarding Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)

We Muslims only need to become familiar with the personality of the Holy Prophet (pbuh). Of course, we believe that the entire humanity should benefit from the Holy Prophet (pbuh) and they do, but we members of the Islamic Ummah should be the first to do so. Allah the Exalted prepared him for the greatest mission in the history of mankind... Allah the exalted educated him and helped him improve. He provided him with all the means that he required for this great and historic achievement and then He put this heavy responsibility and this heavy and historic mission on his shoulders. Therefore, maybe we can say that today which is the 17th of Rabi al-Awwal and the birthday anniversary of the Holy Prophet (pbuh) is the greatest Eid in the history of mankind, a day on which Allah the Exalted bestowed this great gift on humanity and on the history of mankind. And the Holy Prophet (pbuh) rose up relying on the tools he had been equipped with. (February 10, 2012) The greatness of the event of the birth of the Holy Prophet equals the greatness of his status. His great status in creation is such that from the beginning to the end of creation, the Exalted God has not created another being as great as the Holy Prophet. The responsibility that God placed on his shoulders is just as great. Because of this great responsibility, God says, “Allah did confer a great favor on the believers when He sent among them an apostle from among themselves.” [Quran, 3:164] God conferred a favor on humanity. Such is the greatness of the Holy Prophet. God, the Exalted, revealed the hidden book to the holy heart of the Prophet, uttered it through his pure tongue, entrusted him with the plan for humanity’s felicity in its entirety, and commissioned him to carry out this plan and to demand that his followers carry it out as well. (October 24, 2021) We know how the Holy Prophet (pbuh) lived during his childhood and youth and before his bi’tha. He was so trustworthy that all members of Quraysh and all the Arabs who knew him would refer to him as “Muhammad the Trustworthy”. He used to treat people so fairly that when the Arab tribes were fighting over who was more qualified to return Hajar al-Aswad to its original place in Kaaba, they decided that he should be the arbiter. This was while he was a young man. This shows that he used to treat people fairly and everybody knew this. Everybody considered him honest and trustworthy. This was how he lived during his youth. And when God appointed him as prophet, he engaged in selfless struggle and resistance like that. Everybody was against him at that time. All that pressure during the first 13 years of his prophethood in Mecca: what difficult years! The Holy Prophet (pbuh) stood firm and with his resistance, he trained Muslims to stand firm and not yield to any kind of pressure. These things are lessons for us. Later on, he established a civil society and he did not rule more than ten years, but he founded a society that remained the peak of human achievements in science, civilization, spiritual progress, ethical progress and wealth. (February 10, 2012) The Holy Prophet (pbuh) says to God in supplication, "Oh God, guide my people.” His people were the ones who used to beat, disown and threaten him. They used to cause serious trouble for him, but he says to Allah the Exalted in supplication, "Oh God, save, cure and guide these people.” (November 27, 2014) The auspicious existence of the Holy Prophet was mercy. It was mercy for all the worlds. This mercy is bestowed upon the followers of that great personality and those who accept his path and his guidance. They will benefit from divine mercy … Those who obey that great personality, follow his lead and accept his guidance will benefit from divine mercy. This is a divine promise which is irrevocable … The world of Islam and the Islamic Ummah have gone through many peaks and valleys, but they will benefit from worldly and otherworldly mercy only when they follow the Holy Prophet. (December 6, 2017) The Holy Existence of the Messenger of God is the summit of the world and the best spot in the universe in the true sense of the world. The Holy Quran has referred to itself as light. One of the words that the Holy Quran uses to describe itself is light: “God has indeed sent upon you light and the Book.” [The Holy Quran: 5: 15] The Holy Quran is light. One of the esteemed wives of the Holy Prophet was asked to describe him and she said in response, “The Holy Quran is in his nature.” This means that he was the living Quran. So, he was light as well. Light is a means of providing brightness and ensuring the life of humans. The Holy Prophet too is a means of providing brightness and ensuring the life of human societies. These are things that humanity will reach gradually. The holy existence of the Messenger of God is a source of light in the true sense of the word. (November 15, 2019) All humanity is indebted to this shining sun … All members of humanity, whether they believe in this religion or not, are indebted to the Great Prophet. In the true sense of the word, they belong to his religion. Why? What is this great debt that causes humanity to be indebted to the Prophet? The Great Prophet brought humanity the prescription for the treatment of all of humanity’s major afflictions. This is a fact. Almighty God says, “This is a Book We have sent down to you that you may bring mankind out from darkness into light” [Quran 14:1]. What is darkness? Darkness is all the things throughout history that have made human beings’ lives dark, bitter, and poisonous. Ignorance is darkness; poverty is darkness; oppression is darkness; discrimination is darkness; drowning in lusts is darkness; moral corruption and social afflictions are all darkness. These are all different kinds of darkness that humankind has suffered from throughout the long history of its life. Not having faith is darkness; not having a purpose is darkness. These are humanities’ serious afflictions. The Great Prophet brought humankind the prescription — both a prescription in understanding and a prescription for our actions — for the treatment of these pains. If you wish to get rid of these pains, these are the cures. Islamic laws brought by the Prophet and the teachings of the Quran are the cure for humanity’s pains. This is what the Prophet of Islam has given to humankind. That is why the Commander of the Faithful (pbuh) says the following about the Prophet: “The Prophet was like a roaming physician who had prepared his ointments and heated his instruments” [Nahj al-Balaghah, Sermon 108] …  He has both things, both the ointment and the heating instruments. He has presented these to humanity in the form of the Quran. If you want to live well, this is how you should live. (October 3, 2023) There are many ayahs in the Holy Quran about the Holy Prophet …  Some of these ayahs clearly manifest humanity’s condition in the present time. When one reads these ayahs, one feels as if they had been sent down for today’s humanity. One ayah is from holy Sura al-Bara’at: “Now has come unto you a Messenger from among yourselves: it grieves him that you should perish. Ardently anxious is he over you: to the Believers is he most kind and merciful” [The Holy Quran: 9: 128]. The first two sentences of the ayah are related to the entire humanity. There is another ayah which says, “Oh men, I am sent unto you all, as the Messenger of Allah” [The Holy Quran, 7: 158]. The entire humanity is addressed by the Holy Prophet in this ayah. These two sentences are very important: “It grieves him that you should perish.” He suffers from your pain. The next sentence is: “Ardently anxious is he over you.” He is interested in your fate and he cares about you. This is addressed to all humans. Today, human society is the manifestation of this address. In other words, these sentences correspond, to a large part, to humanity’s condition in the present time. We could really say that today, humanity is suffering more than ever in history … What global taghuts do by utilizing human science and technology - resulting in discrimination, inequality and warmongering – is more serious than ever. The Holy Prophet really “grieves him that you should perish.” The blessed soul of the Holy Prophet really suffers from humanity’s pain in the present time. He is anxious for humanity to achieve bliss and he wishes to guide humanity. Like a gentle father, in the true sense of the word, he wants humanity to achieve bliss, to be directed to the straight path and to achieve an end that will be good for it. (November 3, 2020) In logic of the wise of the world, the right of life is above all other rights that human beings have over each other. When someone wants to emphasize the fact that they are indebted to someone, they will, for example, say, “I owe my life to this person.” What does the right of life mean? It means, for example, that you were in danger of drowning, and he/she saved you. You were in danger of becoming trapped under the rubble of a house that has collapsed and he/she saved you. In other words, he/she returned this life in the material world to you that was about to be taken away. That is what we mean by the right of life. It is the greatest right. When one looks at the general public and investigates this, one will find that they consider the right of life as the greatest right … Almighty God says, “O you who have faith! Respond to Allah and the Messenger when he summons you to that which will give you life” [Quran 8:24]. The Prophet will give you life. This “life” is not that “life.” This is the life that ensures your happiness in this world, brings life to your heart, illuminates your soul, makes your life pleasant, and continues on. This life is not limited; it is not vulnerable; it is eternal. This life that Islam, religion, and the Prophet give to humanity is thousands of times more important than the life that is given to us if someone pulls us out from under rubble or saves us from drowning. This is why humanity is indebted to the Prophet. This is the right of the Prophet. We are indebted to the Prophet. (October 3, 2023) I have chosen three points about the Holy Prophet and his characteristics … These three points are patience, justice and morality. Patience is something prominent we can see in the life of the Prophet … What does patience mean? … Well, patience means endurance. We should show endurance in the face of temptations to commit sins. We should also show endurance with regard to carrying out our duty and confront laziness and idleness . We should show endurance when facing the enemy. We should keep control of ourselves in the face of various calamities. We should control our will. This is what patience means. Patience means endurance. Today, we need patience more than ever … [Quran, 33:21] The second point is about justice and equity. One of the most important – perhaps the most important intermediate goals of sending prophets – was to administer justice, “We sent aforetime our apostles with clear signs and sent down with them the Book and the Balance of Right and Wrong, that men may stand forth in justice.” [Quran, 57:25] The purpose of sending prophets and divine books was to establish justice and encourage society to work for justice … As for ethics and morality, we should follow the Holy Prophet’s example in ethics. God, the Exalted, said, “And you stand on an exalted standard of character.” [Quran, 68:4] Something that our Creator has said is “an exalted standard of character” is something extraordinary, “And you stand on an exalted standard of character.” Such morality should always receive our attention and be a guideline for us. We should behave in an Islamic way and be humble and forgiving. These are examples of Islamic ethics. (October 24, 2021) The Holy Prophet would get along with the poor and the weak. He would not attach great significance to appearances and to those elements and factors which are apparently sources of glory, magnificence and the like. The Holy Prophet lived like that. This is really instructive for us. Of course, we cannot be expected to behave like the Holy Prophet and the Commander of the Faithful. Well, they enjoyed a different position and status. Nonetheless, we should set their behavior as the standard. We should use it as a sign. For example, when you are climbing a mountain, you look at the summit. You might not reach the summit, but you move towards it. This is how we should proceed. (December 24, 2019) We, as Muslims and as human beings, are today in need of the Holy Prophet, since the Holy Prophet was a blessing for the entire humanity, not just for Muslims. The entire mankind is indebted to the Holy Prophet for his favor and blessings. What he bestowed on mankind as a result of his prophetic mission is in the Holy Quran, which we can benefit from today. The Holy Prophet of Islam [peace be upon him and his household] led mankind to salvation and prosperity. He encouraged human beings to move on a path that can lead to a solution for the problems facing mankind and a remedy for the sufferings besetting human beings. Mankind has long been suffering from chronic pains in the course of its history. Humanity is in need of justice; it is in need of guidance and noble human morality. Human mind requires the help of divine messengers. The Holy Prophet offered divine guidance to human beings. (April 6, 2007) Well, we are the followers of the Holy Prophet. We associate ourselves with the Holy Prophet. What is our duty? In every era, the duty of the believers is to see what position they are in, what religion asks of them, what duty has been entrusted to them, what things they should think about, and what they should do. They should understand these in every era. Well, religious scholars and intellectuals have discussed these issues at great length. (October 24, 2021) The exalted rank of the sacred being of the Holy Prophet isn’t something we human beings can fully portray with our limited, imperfect language and our inadequate understanding. We can only love him, and we can only express our sincerity and humility. We’re unable to do more than that. The Prophet is the one about whom Almighty God said, "Indeed, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet" (Quran 33:56). The sacred Essence of the Lord sends blessings upon him, and Almighty God’s angels send blessings upon him. Who are we to be able to understand or comprehend his station? However, we feel an affection for him, we love him, and we abide by his words. This must remain a principle for us that we must stand by the word of our Prophet, which is the word of monotheism, the word of Islam, and the Quran. (Sept. 24, 2012)