The news on Friday, December 20

1. Birthday Congratulations to Mr. Vahid 

When the night reaches its peak of darkness and gloom, without even realizing it, you find your heart longing for a light to rescue you from this darkness and despair.

And on the night that is the longest of the year, this desire of the heart undoubtedly intensifies.

We, the Aradis, are grateful to God that He destined us to celebrate the birth of Mr. Vahid.

December 21st, the birthday of Mr. Vahid, is a day of celebration for all Arad members.

He was born in 1976 in the city of Khoy, West Azerbaijan Province.

2. Special Podcast for Newcomers

4. Meeting of the Branding Commission of the Policy Council with the Topic of Branding on Internet Websites and in Real-World Spaces

⏰ 60 minutes

5. Arad Visual Documentation

⏱️ 1 minute

6. Senegalese Ambassador in Arad Branding

⏰ 1 minute

7. Response to a Mental Contradiction

I personally admit that yesterday's topic was complex, which is why I emphasized at the beginning of the text that it should be read carefully. I also anticipated that ambiguities and questions might arise for some esteemed members. However, by God's grace, the effort turned out well, and Aradi members, aiming to enhance their intellectual capacity, successfully navigated the topic of conveying concepts in commercial negotiations.

Amid this, a contradiction arose for one of Arad's enthusiasts, expressed as follows:

"We have often heard in the speeches of senior managers, especially Mr. Talia, that the customer is important.

Even in your news, Mr. Ahmadi, we read in recent weeks that you compared the customer to a girl with many suitors, implying she is more demanding.

Business, fundamentally, without customers, is doomed to failure and destruction.

But today you say the customer is not the king, and it is the trader who should interact with the customer from a higher position.

This mental contradiction has arisen for me, and I am certain that many traders feel the same and are confused."

Response:

Certainly, the customer is important.

Certainly, the customer is demanding.

Certainly, the comparisons we made earlier are exactly as we stated.

But the question is, if a girl has many suitors, is it not true that she must eventually marry a man?

In the best case, this girl becomes the bride of a king.

The bride of a king is called the queen.

And the king treats his queen as a cherished and respected beloved, treating her with affection.

But what is your opinion about a king who places himself below the queen?

In the entire system of creation, we cannot find a king and queen more complete, beautiful, or comprehensive than Imam Ali and Lady Fatima, peace be upon them.

And as affirmed by the Messenger of God, peace be upon him, Fatima is a part of my soul, and Ali is the heart and essence of my being.

And we know that although all the family of the Prophet are pure, the rank of Amir al-Mu'minin is superior to all of them in the sight of God.

With all due respect to the esteemed women in Arad, and apart from any feminist or anti-feminist thinking, we must understand that a noble life is one in which the man stands in a position higher than his wife.

Consider a romantic life in which the man’s position is above that of his wife, and this man continually cherishes and respects her.

How much would this wife enjoy this?

Women understand this better: if a woman has a man whose work class is lower than hers, even if he cherishes her, she will not feel very satisfied.

A woman enjoys her husband's affections only when she sees him as above her, not below her.

And this is the teaching of Amir al-Mu'minin Ali, peace be upon him, that humility in front of someone smaller is a sign of nobility, but humility in front of someone greater is a sign of degradation unless that humility is due to the virtues found in that greatness.

If your status and position are lower than theirs, and you try to win their affection, you will transmit a sense of discomfort.

But if they sense that you are a king who is far superior and more powerful than them, and you cherish their affection as you would a queen, you will create an incredible feeling within them.

To solidify this idea, and since the birthday of Mr. Vahid is near the birthday of Lady Fatima, peace be upon her, I will tell you the story of a man and a woman in love, both of whom were rulers, from the Book of God, to show how delightful it is to trade in this way.

King Solomon, who was a great monarch, once gathered all his ministers and supporters to give a speech.

Among them, he could not find his commander of birds, the Hoopoe, who was responsible for his communication.

Then the Hoopoe arrived and reported from a nearby land called Sheba, where the people worshiped the sun and were infidels to the Lord of the worlds.

Solomon, peace be upon him, wrote a letter and gave it to the Hoopoe to deliver to the queen of Sheba, but he did not wait there to observe what her response would be.

In this verse, there are valuable lessons for business negotiations with great people. After a negotiation, observe their perspective from a distance without getting too close, so they do not realize you are persistently following up and to avoid showing off.

She said, "O noble leaders of my kingdom, I have just received an honorable letter."

From the word Qalat (she said), which is in the feminine form, we understand that the ruler of Sheba was a woman. If it had been a man, it would have been written as Qala.

And from the manner of  hoopoe's approach and the content of the letter, it becomes clear that the Queen of Sheba was treated with great honor and dignity, as it was stated Kitab Karim, meaning a noble and esteemed letter.

Then she continued:

"It is from Solomon, and it reads: In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful."

"Do not exalt yourselves above me, but come to me in peace."

Then it is narrated:

The Queen of Sheba said, "O nobles, give me your advice in this matter, for I have never reached a decision without you being witnesses alongside me."

This indicates that she always consulted them on important matters.

Interestingly, all the nobles of the kingdom agreed and spoke with one voice, with no disagreement among them.

They said, "We are strong in military might and possess great war power, but the command is yours. Consider what you will command us to do."

This teaches us how one should present their opinion respectfully in the presence of their superior.

However, the ruler of Sheba, who, as you remember, is a woman, did not approve of their suggestion.

She said, "rulers, when they enter a village or city for war, cause corruption there, making the most honored of its people into the most humiliated. This is what they do."

With this statement, she indicated that she did not approve of their opinion.

Then she continued:

"Instead, I will send a messenger with a gift to Solomon and then wait to see what those who deliver the gift have to say."

So when they arrived at Solomon, he said, "Do you wish to assist me with wealth that God has given me better than what you have brought? Rather, are you pleased with the gifts you have brought?"

The meaning is that I do not need your wealth, but rather, I need your support. Therefore, do not rejoice in your gifts and come to me yourselves.

Then, when he saw that they did not come to him, even though in his first letter he had called them to his presence, and they had tried to bribe him with gifts and use a trick, he continued:

"Return to your people. We will come to them with an army they cannot resist, and we will expel them from their land in disgrace while they are utterly humbled."

Then Solomon asked his court for the throne of the ruler of Sheba to be brought to him.

A powerful one from among the jinn said, "I will bring it to you before you rise from your seat."

And Asif bin Barkhiya, who was one of the purest of his time and Solomon’s successor, said, "With the knowledge I have from my Lord, I will bring you the throne in the blink of an eye."

And so it happened.

Solomon ordered that the throne be adorned so that the Queen of Sheba would not recognize it and to test her awareness.

However, when the Queen of Sheba came to Solomon, Allah says:

She replied, "Yes, this is exactly it, and we knew it beforehand. We have surrendered to you."

Up to this point, the discussion had been about two rulers, one of whom had submitted to the other.

However, in the following verse, after her submission, Allah says:

Then Solomon said to Bilqis, "Enter my palace."

When she went to enter, she thought the floor was a clear, shining body of water.

So, she lifted her garment from her legs.

Solomon said, "This is a palace made of transparent glass."

Bilqis responded, "My Lord, indeed I have wronged myself in the past, but today, in the company of Solomon, I surrender myself to You, O Lord of all the worlds."

And how the heart melts with sweetness at such a beautiful, heartfelt image.

The companions of Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) asked him: Did Solomon and Bilqis marry?

The Imam replied, "Yes."

They asked, "Did Allah refer to their marriage in the Qur’an?"

The Imam said, "Yes."

They replied, "Then why, despite reading the Qur'an frequently, do we not find any verse about their marriage?"

The Imam asked, "Have you not heard Allah’s words, when He said that the Queen of Sheba raised her garment from her legs?"

They said, "Yes, we have heard that."

The Imam continued, "And Solomon did not object to this, nor did he, like Prophet Joseph (peace be upon him), distance himself from the place."

From this, it is clear that the Queen of Sheba had indeed become Solomon’s wife, and this action of hers was of no hindrance to him.