At the beginning of his advanced jurisprudence class on September 27, at the Milani Hall of Goharshad Mosque inside Imam Reza Shrine, Ayat. Ahmad Marvi referred to the Iranian president’s speech at the United Nations. He said: “Everyone praised this speech, and it deserved praise. In a speech delivered from a position of dignity, strength, wisdom, logic, and resolve, the president made it impossible for anyone, friend or foe, to say that he bowed or showed humility before the United States, or that America’s grandeur had intimidated him.”

He added that the president had prepared another version of his speech in writing, but after hearing the remarks of the “vile and base” US president, he set it aside and delivered a different speech. “It was a courageous and logical speech that made us proud,” he noted.

The AQR Custodian went on to say that speeches of this kind are rare at the United Nations: a president speaking there from a position of power and strength while also relying on logic. “Any fair-minded person who hears these remarks will judge that they are logical,” he said.

Referring to the martyred Leader’s emphasis on “dignity, wisdom, and expediency” as the three principles of foreign policy, Ayat. Marvi stated: “These three principles must be our main concern in foreign policy, and this speech was within that framework. It embodied both dignity and expediency.”

Ayat. Marvi then addressed the US president’s offer to negotiate. He said the US president had declared that he was willing to negotiate with Iran’s president, and that some people may have tried to make such a meeting happen. “But Iran’s president said: ‘What negotiations? Any promise or agreement made with this US president will be torn up a few days later. What would I negotiate with him?’”

The top official added: “How many presidents stood in line to meet the US president so they could return to their countries with something in hand and say, ‘We negotiated with the Great Satan! We drank a glass of water with the Great Satan!’ They stood in line, and they were not even given an appointment. Then this same US president said, ‘I want to negotiate with Iran’s president.’ But our president said, ‘I will not negotiate with you.’ This is the dignity and strength of the Islamic Republic.”

Referring to the role of Imam Khomeini and the martyred Leader in establishing this approach, Ayat. Marvi stated: “May God have mercy on our great late Imam and our great martyred Leader, who created this dignity for us.”

He acknowledged that dignity comes at a cost. “There are sanctions, pressure, harassment, and hardship for the people. It is truly difficult, very difficult, but the Iranian nation has stood firm in defense of its dignity,” he said.

The AQR Custodian expressed his gratitude to the president for delivering the speech. “I am certain that the pure spirit of our great martyred Leader was gladdened. There was not the slightest sign of weakness, illogicality, or fear of the enemy in this speech,” he said.

Ayat. Marvi also recalled a description the martyred Leader had used about the president. “One of the words our martyred Imam used to describe our country’s president was ‘truthful.’ That very sincerity helped him and will continue to help him. When a person is sincere and honest with God, God supports and helps him,” he stated.

Describing the president’s speech at the United Nations as “a source of pride,” the AQR Custodian said: “Nations should learn from this and tell their presidents: ‘Go and speak this way, deliver speeches this way, and stand up to these powers.’”

Ayat. Marvi also expressed sorrow over the passing of Ayat. Seyyed Musa Shobeiri Zanjani, describing the loss as “a blow and a calamity.” Speaking about the late cleric’s scholarship, ethics, and asceticism, he said that Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani avoided self-promotion and spent most of his life in scholarly discussions, studying hadith narrators and jurisprudence, and conducting careful research into jurisprudential questions.

“His passing was truly a blow and a calamity,” head of Astan Qods Razavi stated. “This eminent religious authority did not allow anyone to promote him. What stood out instead were his scholarly discussions, his study of hadith narrators and jurisprudence, and his close research and careful examination of jurisprudential issues.”

Speaking about Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani’s character and simple way of life, he added: “He was a truly great and ascetic man. He had a house on Tabarsi Street in Mashhad, and whenever he came to Mashhad each year, I would visit him. His house was very old and dilapidated; it seemed that it would collapse if there were an earthquake. The alleys were crowded with pilgrims, and there was the noise of cars. I told him to move to another house, but he said: ‘No, this house is fine.’ I suggested that he at least move to a quieter neighborhood, but he would not agree. He was a very ascetic and unpretentious person.”

Ayat. Marvi said that Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani served as prayer leader at the Shrine of Hazrat Fatima Masumeh. “He would come to the shrine alone, pray, and then return,” he said.

He also praised the late scholar’s extensive research and precision, describing them as worthy of everyone’s respect and admiration. Ayat. Marvi added that Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani continued his scholarly discussions until the final days of his life, and that his academic sessions continued until the night before his passing.

“Toward the end of his life, he would not start the discussion himself. Someone would raise a question about hadith narrators or jurisprudence, or one of his sons, who are learned men, would begin the discussion. He would listen and, if he felt it necessary to offer a correction or make a point, he would join in and speak. His scholarly sessions continued until the very last night,” Ayat. Marvi explained.

The AQR Custodian also spoke about Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani’s longstanding friendship with the martyred Leader, saying that the two had been close since their years as seminary students. Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani was 103 by the lunar calendar and 99 by the solar calendar, and was about 12 or 13 years older than the martyred Leader.

Recalling a story told by the martyred Leader, Ayat. Marvi said: “The great martyred Leader used to say that, when he was a seminary student in Qom, he and Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani were friends and attended the classes of Ayat. Sheikh Morteza Haeri, may God’s mercy be upon him. The martyred Leader was very close to him and shared a strong friendship with him.”

He added that when the martyred Leader visited Qom, he would meet with religious authorities, and they had also had the opportunity to be present at those meetings. “His meetings with Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani were different and very warm,” he said.

Ayat. Marvi noted that Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani had an exceptionally strong memory and remembered many stories about scholars and prominent figures. “All these recollections are lessons in themselves,” he said.

He added that the stories had been published in the collection Jor’eh-i az Darya. “Four or five volumes have been published under the title Jor’eh-i az Darya. Reza Mokhtari, one of Ayat. Shobeiri Zanjani’s students and a learned seminary student, would carry a tape recorder while accompanying him on the way from his home to the mosque or to his place of study, and record his recollections. Their conversations covered scholarly topics as well as ethical discussions and instructive memories. The collection eventually grew to four or five volumes,” Ayat. Marvi explained.

Commemorating Sacred Defense Week, the AQR Custodian described the eight years of the Sacred Defense as “eight years of honor for this country.” He stressed the need to keep the memories of that period alive and revisit the history of the war for younger generations. “The memories of the eight years of the Sacred Defense must remain alive, because those eight years were eight years of honor for this country,” he said.

“We fought for eight years, not only against Saddam, but against all the powers behind him. Saddam was, in reality, a representative and executor of the policies of the great powers, from the United States and the Soviet Union to the various countries that stood against the Iranian nation at that time,” he added.

The AQR Custodian continued: “We stood against all these powers, even though the Islamic Republic was a newly established government. Nevertheless, we resisted for eight years and did not lose even a handspan of our country’s territory. This is a great honor and a lasting record in the history of this nation.”

Referring to the martyred Leader’s emphasis on studying Iran’s history, Ayat. Marvi said that he was a distinguished historian with extensive knowledge of the country’s past and had consistently urged young people to study Iran’s contemporary history. “He himself had a profound command of Iran’s history,” he added.

Ayat. Marvi noted that the martyred Leader had said in his speeches that over the past 250 years, every war imposed on Iran had ultimately resulted in the loss of part of the country’s territory. “But during the Islamic Republic, an eight-year war was imposed on the country, and despite the different powers standing against Iran, we did not surrender even a handspan of our territory,” he said.

The AQR Custodian described this as a source of pride for the Iranian nation and a testament to the people’s spirit of resistance, steadfastness, and resilience throughout the eight years of the Sacred Defense. He stressed that this period must be honored and its history revisited for younger generations. “This period must be honored, spoken about with the people, and its history revisited for the younger generations,” he said.

Ayat. Marvi urged people to read books about the Sacred Defense and the memoirs of those who took part in it. “Read books about the Sacred Defense and the memoirs of the combatants. The martyred Leader wrote notes of commendation on many of these books, and those notes were intended to encourage people to read them,” he said.

He added that the martyred Leader used to read books about the Sacred Defense and write commendations on some of them. “Some of those notes are profound and moving, written from the depths of the heart. In some cases, he wrote words to this effect: ‘I wish I had been in this young man’s place,’” Ayat. Marvi stated.

He also called on people to visit the families of martyrs, veterans, former prisoners of war, and combatants during Sacred Defense Week. “If there is a family of a martyr, a veteran, a former prisoner of war, or a combatant in our neighborhood, city, or community, let us visit them. Even taking a box of sweets to their home would be a way to honor them,” he said.

“These families and individuals must be treated with respect. We should visit them, sit and listen to their stories, and not allow the memories and sacrifices of that period to be forgotten,” Ayat. Marvi concluded.