Manifestation of the Friend

With the People

part 3

After all, how are the people managing?

After the victory of the Revolution and in Qom, each group that would come  to meet with the Imam, the Imam would see them although they may have to wait for hours in the cold and hot weather. Many a time the Imam would go to the balcony to respond to the sentiments of the people even though it was either raining or snowing. Sometimes when it was snowing and we wanted to hold an umbrella over his head, he would state with discomfort that: “After all how are the people managing? I don’t need an umbrella.”‌

You too stand in the queue like others

After the victory of the Islamic Revolution, in the foremost days when the Imam arrived in Qom, on most days a large number of people would come to Qom. The guesthouses were fully booked, the restaurants packed and there were long queues at the bakeries. In Qom there was a massive crowd. There was a frail old man who served as a domestic in the house of the Imam who was called ‘Baba’. One day the Imam told him that, “I have heard that when you join the queue for bread they say that he is the servant of the Imam and ask you to go to the front of the queue and give you any number of bread loaves that you want without standing in the queue. Don’t do this. It is not right that a person goes out from this house to buy bread without observing the queue. You too stand in the queue like the others so that it is not considered a privilege for you!”‌

Who has said that the people should be restrained?

After the victory of the Revolution, when the Imam arrived at a mosque in Qom to commemorate the souls of the departed, because of the huge crowd, the shoes of the Imam was missing and the turban fell off from his head and were able to bring out the Imam from the throng with great difficulty.

 After the ceremony was over, the Imam instead of getting into the waiting car joined the crowd and the people encircled him. On the way back the Imam told the late Ishraqi and Mr. Sana’i that, “Who has said that the people be restrained and be kept behind closed doors? These things should not be repeated anymore.”‌

I do not want an armed guard

In the first days a very great difficulty was encountered in Qom from the viewpoint of safety and security which was that the Imam would not agree that an armed revolutionary guard follow behind him. He would always say that, “I don’t want an armed guard.”‌ Considering that at night the Imam would visit the homes of the martyrs and the theologians and the threat was extremely great. The residents of Qom too upon hearing that the Imam was to cross one of the streets or lanes would all pour out of their homes and gather round his car. They would even climb onto the roof of his car so that neither the driver nor the Imam could recognize where they were going. Nevertheless the Imam would state: “Nobody should follow me. The people shall guard me.”‌

An example of the intense affection of the Imam for the people

The Imam had private meetings with both locals and foreign officials that took place in a small and humble room. Sometimes in a single day the Imam would deliver five speeches in the courtyard of his house or inside the room. Although he would also get tired but because he had an intense affection for the people not even once did he call it a day?

The Imam went among the people

When martyr Rajaei was the Minister of Education, on September 20, 1979 he took the director-generals of that ministry to Qom for a meeting with the Imam. All of us were seated in the small room of the Imam while the common people and supporters of the Revolution in Qom would chant slogans in the streets. Suddenly, we were told that the Imam had come. We also saw part of the outer robe of the Imam and all stood up. How much everwe waited, the Imam did not enter. Suddenly the cry of ‘God is great’ arose from the crowd followed bysalutations to the Prophet and His revered Household.  I asked what had happened and was told that the Imam gone in the midst of the people.

Approach with absolute steadfastness and happiness

In his meeting with the people and with regard to their demands as well in serving them indefatigably, the Imam never felt tired. Although many a time even the staff of the Office of the Imam would get annoyed at the insistence and unreasonable demands of some of the visitors. But the Imam in his meeting with them would confront them with absolute steadfastness and happiness. We never saw the Imam getting angry in connection with the work of people. At times the Imam would even listen to the complaints and dreams of the visitors.

Source:

The Book "Manifestation of the Friend: A collection of memoirs about Imam Khomeini (R.A)"

Other Links:

Manifestation of the Friend: With the People (part 1)