Quotes

Islam, or any religion, will become totalitarian if it is made into an ideology, because that is the nature of ideologies.

The clergy earns its living from religion. If your interests are secured through religion, then you will defend your interests first, and religion will become secondary.

In many of the things that people do, they themselves are the centre of attention, but they inscribe some other name on their banner.

We must break problems down into small, digestible bits. We must define the concepts that we use and explain what components they consist of. We must tackle small problems.

If a group of people feels that it has been humiliated and that its honour has been trampled underfoot, it will want to express its identity and this expression of an identity will take different shapes and forms.

Establishing an equilibrium between the Islam of truth and Islam as an identity is one of the most difficult tasks of religious intellectuals.

As a result of the awareness and consciousness of decline, an awareness and consciousness of a national ethnicity or an Islamic identity also came into being.

Goals and objectives are based on theories and foundations.

There are all sorts of cries that the leaders of the Green Movement should submit themselves to the supreme leader, but that won't take place. Both sides have to be prepared for a serious negotiation.

One of the achievements of the reform movement is that people realize that they can be democrats and remain faithful Muslims. Democracy is now an established idea.

When I have an idea, I'm like a pregnant woman. I just have to deliver.

Arresting development, attacking science, and glorifying poverty is not the answer to the vices that attend prosperity.

Human beings can remain spiritual and religious while enjoying the benefits of rational administration of their affairs.

A realistic view of humanity will stop the proliferation of impossible injunctions.

It is impossible to advance new theories... when you are under the influence of a particular view, or under the pressure of a particular dogma.

Religion forbids us from assuming a God-like character. This is especially true in politics and government, where limiting the power of the state, division of powers, and the doctrine of checks and balances are established in order to prevent accumulation of power that might lead to such Godly claims.

That President Mohammad Khatami's policies have been blocked is the bitterest incident in the contemporary Iranian history. This means that the wishes of millions of people who voted for Khatami and called for freedom and justice have been ignored... Why should cultural activities and journalism be so risky in Iran?

We no longer claim that a genuinely religious government can be democratic, but that it cannot be otherwise.

I am a strong man, I am always looking forward and this is my main thing.

I still work on it almost every day in the gym. You have to know your body and that also means knowing when it's time to rest. Sometimes the coach will manage me and give me a day off so that I'm right for the weekend.

A lot of people talk about clubs but if something happens the club will know and will inform me. If one club wants to buy me we will have to sit together to take the decision.

When I play, I play with my feet and with my head also.

The main quality I have is my mentality because I never gave up - I never, ever give up. I have been like that since I was young. I knew I had to take my chance when it came. Nobody gives you anything. You have to go and take it and this was the way I think.

Being the second-youngest of eight children has helped. You get used to waiting your turn even if it's just to have a go on the PlayStation. And you have to make sure you're ready to take it when it comes. It's the same in football.

To get to the only club in my area you had to cross a really busy road and my mother forbade me from going there.