TEHRAN — Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei on Saturday hosted a mourning ceremony on the occasion of Arbaeen in the Imam Khomeini Hussainiyah.

University students from throughout the country participated in the ceremony.

At the end of the ceremony, the Leader explained that the pure, believing hearts of the young people add quality to their supplications and the sermons while increasing divine guidance. 

“The ceremony for Arbaeen, which is the lofty flag of Imam Hussain (AS), was conducted with more magnificence and glory this year than any other period in history,” the Leader remarked.

Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized that the miraculous event of the Arbaeen march shows that this ritual is the divine will for the flag of Islam to be raised even higher. 

“Such a movement could not have come about based on any human strategy or planning. This is God’s hand which is giving us good news with this magnificent manifestation that this path that is before us is clear and can be traveled,” Ayatollah Khamenei underlined.

The Leader advised the young people to realize the value of their youth and to pay special attention to the mourning ceremonies held for Imam Hussain (AS). 

“The mourning ceremonies held for Imam Hussain (AS) should both keep the memory of the Prophet (PBUH) and his family alive, and at the same time be centers and bases for clarifying the truth,” he stated.

Elsewhere in his remarks, Ayatollah Khamenei referred to the continuous efforts of the bandits who are stealing the truth and the ill-wishers conspiring against such an important event as the inspiring Arbaeen march. 

Recommending that everyone carry out his duty, he stressed, “These two vital, eternal sentences of the Quran, ‘enjoining the truth’ and ‘enjoining patience,’ should always be fundamental instructions for us, especially today.”

Illustrating his point, the Leader of the Islamic Revolution underscored that patience means resistance, persistence, not feeling tired, and not feeling that one has arrived at a dead-end. 

He addressed the youth who are devoted to Quran, saying, “Follow the path of truth yourselves and also endeavor to guide others to this path by enlightening various environments, including the universities, with God’s color and light.”

The Leader made his public appearance amid a series of ridiculous speculations about his health conditions. These unfounded claims somehow made their way into The New York Times as well!

Citing an anonymous source “close” to the Leader’s office, the New York Times claimed, “Mr. Khamenei, 83, had surgery some time last week for bowel obstruction after suffering extreme stomach pains and high fever, one of the people said.”

Continuing its unfounded reports, the New York Times claimed, “Mr. Khamenei told the people traveling with him that he felt it might be his last time at the shrine, given his age, according to one of the four people, who was familiar with the details of his trip.”

21 million people attended the Arbaeen march ritual this year, as reported by Iraqi officials. 

Iranian government spokesman Ali Bahadori Jahromi said that this year, over 3 million Iranians attended the march, setting a new record. 

The miracle of this ritual, which the Leader said is that the occasion brings together all Muslims. Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, Iraqis, Iranians, and Arabs from all walks of life set foot on the Najaf-Karbala road to mourn for their Imam and get a taste of the hardships he faced in Karbala. 

This miraculous unity can never be broken, as the “hand of God” is behind it.