Jump to content

Great Satan

Without priority, Quality: c
From wikishia
The caricature of the Great Satan, by Carlos Latuff, the Brazilian cartoonist

The Great Satan is the expression that Imam Khomeini used in his speech after the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran to describe the United States.[1] In that speech, he drew upon a Hadith where the chief of the devils (Iblis) gathered them after the Prophet Muhammad's mission and warned that misleading humanity would become more difficult.[2][3] Similarly, in Imam Khomeini's view of the Islamic Revolution, the Great Satan—the United States—gathers the smaller devils, both internal and external, around itself to create turmoil.[4]

It is said that this description is derived from the characteristics of Satan mentioned in the Qur’an. The Qur'an portrays Satan as a disbeliever,[5] an enemy of humankind,[6] arrogant,[7] divisive,[8] untrustworthy,[9] corrupt,[10] the leader of a faction,[11] and one who beautifies evil deeds.[12] Imam Khomeini believed that all of these traits were present in American policies.

Imam Khomeini frequently used the term "Great Satan." In his moral, Qur'anic, and theological discussions, the phrase referred to Iblis or the evil-commanding soul, while in political contexts, it referred specifically to the United States.[13] He also described the Israeli Zionist regime, in the context of criticizing Muslim governments' submission to it, as the "Little Satan."[14]

The title "Great Satan" has also been repeatedly used by Sayyid Ali Khamenei, the second leader of the Islamic Republic.[15] In his view, although Iblis is the head of all devils, he can only whisper and tempt, whereas the United States not only deceives but also commits acts of killing, plunder, and sedition.[16] This description is also used in anti-American demonstrations as a slogan to express hatred and rejection of U.S. policies.[17]

Notes

  1. ↑ Mūsawī Khomeynī, Ṣaḥīfah-yi Imām, vol. 10, p. 489.
  2. ↑ Mūsawī Khomeynī, Ṣaḥīfah-yi Imām, vol. 10, p. 489.
  3. ↑ Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, 1403 AH, vol. 15, p 258.
  4. ↑ Mūsawī Khomeynī, Ṣaḥīfah-yi Imām, vol. 10, p. 489.
  5. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 94.
  6. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 94-96.
  7. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 96-98.
  8. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 98.
  9. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 98-99.
  10. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 99-100.
  11. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 100.
  12. ↑ Rikābīyān, Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg, p. 101.
  13. ↑ Tawānāʾī, and Rafīʿī, Wāzha-yi ‘Shayṭān’ dar adabīyāt-i Inqilāb-i Islāmī va Kalām-i Imām Khomenī, p. 62.
  14. ↑ Mūsawī Khomeynī, Ṣaḥīfah-yi Imām, vol. 15, p. 265.
  15. ↑ Notes on the Great Satan
  16. ↑ Statements in a meeting with various groups of people.
  17. ↑ Farewell, O wound upon the heart; Echo of the slogan “Allah Allah Akbar, America the Greatest Satan” across Iraq; "Al-Tahrir" against America.

References

  • Majlisī, Muḥammad Bāqir al-. Biḥār al-anwār. Beirut: Muʾassisat al-Wafāʾ, 1403 AH.
  • Mūsawī Khomeynī, RūḥʾAllāh. Ṣaḥīfah-yi Imām. Tehrān: Muʾassasa-yi Tanzīm va Nashr-i Āthār-i Imām Khomenī, 1378 Sh.
  • Rikābīyān, Rashīd. Mabānī-yi Qurʾānī-yi didgāh-i Imām Khomenī darbāra-yi Āmrīkā ‘Shayṭān-i Buzurg. Majalla-yi Maʿrifat, No 279, Winter 1399 Sh.
  • Tawānāʾī, Muḥammad Ḥusayn and Rafīʿī, Ḥusayn. Wāzha-yi ‘Shayṭān’ dar adabīyāt-i Inqilāb-i Islāmī va Kalām-i Imām Khomenī. Pazhuhishʿhā-yi Sīyāsī, No 15, Winter 1394 Sh.
  • Statements in a meeting with various groups of people (Persian). Daftar-i Ḥifẓ va Nashr-i Āthār-i Āyat Allāh Khāmeneʾī. Accessed: 2025/09/23.
  • "Al-Tahrir" against America (Persian). Iran News Agency. Accessed: 2025/09/23.
  • Farewell, O wound upon the heart (Persian). Jamaran News Agency. Accessed: 2025/09/23.
  • Echo of the slogan “Allah Allah Akbar, America the Greatest Satan” across Iraq (Persian). Inqelab News Agency. Accessed: 2025/09/23.
  • Notes on the Great Satan (Persian). Daftar-i Ḥifẓ va Nashr-i Āthār-i Āyat Allāh Khāmeneʾī. Accessed: 2025/09/23.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikishia.net/w/index.php?title=Great_Satan&oldid=196882"