Islamic Awakening should lead to creation of a brilliant Islamic civilization: Supreme Leader

TEHRAN,April 30(MNA) – Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said that the creation of a brilliant Islamic civilization should be set as a long-term goal of the Islamic Awakening in Muslim countries. The Leader made the remarks in a speech on the first day of the World Conference of Ulama and Islamic Awakening, which opened in Tehran on Monday and closes today. Over 500 foreign scholars and 200 Iranian intellectuals are attending the conference to discuss issues related to the Islamic Awakening and ways to help resolve the crises in the countries which have experienced pro-democracy uprisings in recent years. Ramadan Shalah, the leader of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, former Iraqi prime minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, and Ammar al-Hakim, the leader of the Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq, are some of the scholars attending the event. In his speech, the text of which was published in English on his website, Khamenei.ir, Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized “the necessity of delineating a long-term goal for the Islamic Awakening in Muslim countries,” saying, “It is through identifying this particular point that one can prepare a roadmap and specify the medium- and short-term goals in it. “This final goal cannot be anything less than creating a brilliant Islamic civilization. All parts of the Islamic Ummah -- in the form of different nations and countries -- should achieve the civilizational position that has been specified in the Holy Quran. “The main and the general characteristic of this civilization is that it should allow human beings to utilize all the material and spiritual capacities that Allah the Exalted has bestowed on them and on the world in order to bring about happiness and transcendence for humanity. “The surface structure of this civilization can and should be witnessed in popular government, in the laws that have been extracted from the Holy Quran, in identifying and addressing different needs of humanity, in avoidance of rigidity and reactionary attitudes as well as unwarranted innovation and adulteration, in creating public welfare and wealth, in establishing justice, in liberation from an economy that is based on special privileges, usury and taking pride in wealth, in promoting human values, in defending oppressed people in the world, and in hard work and innovation. “Adopting an ijtihadi and scholarly outlook on different areas -- ranging from the humanities to the system of formal education, from economy and banking to technical and technological production, from modern media to art and cinema and to international relations and other areas -- are all among the requirements for this civilization-building.”