As I write this, you do not yet exist. I do not even know who your mother will be. In this mad world, deciding to bring another human being into it seems an even greater madness.
I am writing at a time when life in your country resembles a tragedy—or perhaps a comedy. If things continue this way, I do not know whether you will even be born in Iran and understand the language of this letter. There is so much bad news that if you read it one day, you may never believe a nation could endure such troubles daily without falling apart. Perhaps you will say exaggeration was a habit of people in this era. Or perhaps you will say that history is written by the winners.
I hope the world will be a better place when you are born. I hope it will not become such a hell that our life today seems something to long for rather than a nightmare.
Why I am writing
My dear daughter or son, the world is a strange place. Sometimes its beauty enchants you so completely that a thousand years seems too short a time to live in it. Sometimes it becomes such a hell that even a minute feels too long.
In childhood, everything is beautiful. You want to grow up quickly, grow teeth and discover the pleasure of ice cream, bite into an apple, and poke your finger into a cake. One advantage of those years is that whatever you do, the people around you melt with affection. Between ourselves, you can bite anyone you like as hard as you can, or hit them, and they will not merely forgive you: they may love you even more.
Unfortunately, that feature disappears as you grow up. Though there will always be people who bite when you show them kindness and become devoted to you when you hurt them. Between ourselves, it seems most people are like that. Still, be kind—even if they bite.
Adolescence is an astonishing time. Everything happens quickly, like an information explosion. You shoot up, your body changes, spots appear and your feelings become tangled. You become as confused as the world. You start fights without a reason, fall in love without a reason, and in an instant hate the person you love. Friends come and go at speed.
Perhaps you will fall in love with a girl, or with a boy. Between ourselves, do not put too much faith in the loves of those years. Perhaps you will become a revolutionary and want to fight for an ideal, fall in love with Che Guevara and resolve to struggle against some “ism” to your last breath. I do not know which path you will take. But please, do not make the celebrities of your time your role models. This singer or that actor may not deserve even your attention.
Time will teach you that most people do not know. So if you lack the patience to pursue what is true, at least do not follow stupidity. Give me reason to be proud that you were born.
On love
My child, when you fall in love, everything becomes beautiful. Your beloved’s smile fills you with joy; a frown unsettles you. Your whole world lives in that smile and that frown. And how terrible the day when that person is no longer in your life.
Many people will come and go. Some will stay for months, some for years, some for a lifetime. Some you choose, such as your friends or your partner. Others you do not choose, such as your family. But life with love is very different from life without it.
I do not know how to define love. If one day you are willing to put someone else before yourself, know that this person is very dear to you. Do not let them go lightly. But remember that love is necessary in life; it is not sufficient.
Everyone loves a love story without paying much attention to its ending. The fate of Shirin and Farhad, or Romeo and Juliet, is not beautiful. A mountain kills one; poison kills another. But love has already killed them both. I am not telling you this so that you will avoid love. I am warning you to enter its sea with open eyes. If you do not have a lion’s courage, do not set out on love’s journey.
On reason
The word for reason, aql, comes from iqal: a tether used to restrain a camel so that it cannot run away in a crisis. Reason likewise restrains us, keeping us from going beyond our limits.
My child, run from anyone who tells you to abandon reason and simply follow your heart. Yet never be afraid of a little madness, because it is the mad who have moved the world forward. Every great figure in history has been called mad. Madness is a label the majority pins on the minority to silence it or make it conform.
As I have told you, do not fear being in the minority. But do not seek that position merely for attention. If you believe in something, stand by it, whether the majority agrees with you or the minority does.
Justice
This world is not fair. The older you grow, the more you will understand that sentence. You, too, will be shaped by inequality. If I am poor, it will not be easy for you to attend university or follow your dreams. If I am rich, you may suddenly be treated as a genius even if you are a fool. Even the weight your words carry in a room will be measured against your wealth.
So never become conceited about your intelligence or talent, and never make common cause with an unjust world.
People are not equal in intelligence, talent, physical ability and many other things. But everyone has the right to a chance to succeed. Stand against injustice and bear the cost. If you cannot fight, at least help save one or two lives. If you cannot do even that, at least do not contribute to the injustice. Care about those whose lives differ from yours. That is the least you can do.
Life and honour
My dear son or daughter, life is beautiful. It is the most precious jewel God has given us. Value it and use it well, but do not trade your honour for it.
So many people could have enjoyed comfortable lives simply by selling their integrity. They could have lived for years without worry, feeding on others like leeches. Instead, while still young, they chose to embrace death with freedom rather than accept life in humiliation. The world scarcely remembers their names today.
They were not fools. They simply refused to auction off their honour. Those who mock these human heroes are flies circling the filth of power. Let them enjoy it.
I am not telling you to live like those heroes. I was not brave enough to live like them myself. I wish I had been, and I hope you will be better than I am. But remember these men and women. Sometimes revisit their lives. Learn from their greatness, so that you can make sense of this world a little more easily and think beyond yourself.
Keeping company with people of greatness is a path towards a better life. Choose your friends carefully. Meet all kinds of people and learn from everyone, but be demanding when you decide whom to call a friend. Sit with people and get to know them. Never consider yourself above anyone else: pride is the beginning of a fall. Just as Satan fell, so can you.
No colour is superior to another. No people’s blood is worth more than anyone else’s. If, in the deepest corner of your mind, you begin to believe you are above another person, tremble like a willow and pull yourself back from that fall.
There is so much to say and so little time. Perhaps you will never read this letter. Perhaps you will find it funny. Perhaps, most of all, you will never enter this world. Still, I write to you, without even knowing whether I will ever meet you.