(Umm al‑Qura, Issue 1514 — 4 Ramadan 1373 / 7 May 1954)
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
From Saud bin Abdulaziz to all his Muslim brothers in Pakistan.
Peace and God’s mercy and blessings be upon you.
As I prepare at this hour to depart this dear and cherished land, I wish to express my deepest thanks, appreciation, and gratitude to all my Pakistani brothers—government and people—for the hospitality, welcome, and true Islamic brotherhood I have encountered throughout these days of our visit, days filled with memories of fraternity, friendship, and affection between us. All of this has reaffirmed my conviction that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are one land, and that the Saudi Arab and Pakistani peoples are one people—brothers in faith, brothers in creed and principle, and brothers in prosperity and adversity, God willing.
I am profoundly delighted by all that I have heard and seen in every place I visited, and from every brother I met—of this Islamic and fraternal spirit that unites us, of the religious bond that ties us, and of the just and noble aims we share. Neither we nor you seek any personal gain or private interest in what we call for and strive toward, other than uniting the word of Muslims everywhere—East and West—upon truth; that they may be brothers who love one another for the sake of God; that they may be like a solid structure, like a single body; and that they may “hold fast, all together, to the rope of God.”
This is our goal. This is our purpose. This is our principle. We enjoin it upon ourselves and call our brothers to it. And we implore God—Who knows the treachery of the eyes and what hearts conceal—to fulfill our hopes and aims in all that brings good to the Muslims, to unite our hearts, gather our ranks, and mend our divisions in all that ensures our collective welfare, honor, and the restoration of our ancient and enduring glory among the nations of the earth.
I entrust you to God, and my heart and thoughts remain with you—in presence and in absence, in nearness and in distance.
From the depths of my heart, I pray that Pakistan may prosper and rise, and that it may attain among the nations the standing it seeks and deserves. May God bless it, protect it, and guide its leadership to what ensures its welfare, its progress, and the good of all Muslims.
Muslims did not attain their former greatness—when they led the nations of the world and spread justice, peace, and truth among peoples—except through faith, sincerity, devotion, selflessness, and sacrifice for the unity of the Muslim word. This is my counsel to myself and to all my Muslim brothers everywhere. Upon these principles rests every renaissance, every advancement, and every success. Let this be our motto and yours, our aim and yours, in private and in public, in ease and in hardship. Let each of you consider these words addressed personally to him—from his brother in Islam, in hopes and in trials.
Peace and God’s mercy and blessings be upon you.