It is said that the first revealed chapter is “Read in the name of your Lord” (Quran, 96:1). It is not said: “Read in the name of Allah”, nor said: “Read in the name of men”. He has said: “Read in the name of your Lord” (Quran, 96:1). This means Lord of the Prophet; the one who has taught the Prophet. This means God the Almighty with all His names and tributes; All the names including being the Lord of the Prophet and man. The entity of God is with all the names and tributes; the names and qualities of God circumference the creatures of the world. In other words all the creatures are the evidence or appearance of His Names and Qualities. When God commands “Read in the name of your Lord” (Quran, 96:1) means the name, which includes all the names and qualities. God is the teacher in all its sense in the world of nature, in a world beyond nature; the teaching that is coherent and consistent with all the worlds- the world of arrogance and glory (`Jabarout'). This is the Lord of the Prophet. Prophet is bound to read and recite. The very first thing commanded to him is to act according to the narration, reading, education, and training. It is as though He wants to say that your Lord, to whom belongs everything, orders you to read so that you can teach the people and guide the way- the way of Lord of the Prophet, the last and final one. So, the Prophet is obliged to invite the people to the Lord of the Prophet. Qur'an too has come for the same end. Islam too has the same mission- to teach and train the people. If there be no teaching on training to man, he is more wild than all the animals and more harmful than all the beasts. Man is such a wild being. If no teaching is couched to him then no being in the world will be more pernicious than him. No being could be harmful to the extent of the harm that he can do. All the Prophets came to train man. If he(man )is left to himself he will upset the whole world. But regrettably; Prophets were not successful in their mission too. “By age, man is indeed a looser” (Quran, 103:1-2). It is likely that the world ‘Age’ be a reference to Imam Mahdi in this age. Or a perfect man like the Prophet or the infallible Imams. In our age, the Imam is Mahdi. This is a swearing. I swear by the creatures of age, by the compendium of creatures, or by the brief of the world. It is a copy representing the whole world. The entire world is hidden in this perfect man. He is the brief of the world. He is a compendium of all claims. So God is swearing by his name. God says that man is in a loss. Man is truculent, cruel and ruthless." Except those who believe, that is those who have received training. Not those who surrender; those who believe; the faithful ones, the believers; the people, those who receive teaching from the Prophets. In our age those who received the teaching of our Prophet they are not the same as the believers. All are in a loss. The exception goes only with the Believers, the Faithful ones. The Believers have these qualities too: “They do good deeds and recommend (others) towards the Truth and patience.” (Quran, 103:3) This is an exception. The rest of us, are at a loss. Islam has come to bring all the losers into the group of Believers. Islam has not come to wage a war or occupy a country or to conquer others. Islam and all other true religions have come to rescue man from this loss and shelter them for the fortification of Faith. Though the Prophets tried, they did not succeed much.
Sahifeh, vol. 12, Page: 362-363
Speech, June 12, 1980