Emily Wither

When we asked about the Islamic Republic justifying repressive actions in the name of God, he recited a young Iranian poet, Saeed Sablam.

We asked him about his view of the war with Iran and the US and Israel and how he's coping during such dangerous and unpredictable times.

Like the mother and son we heard from earlier, he too has questioned his faith and at times sought refuge in his own personal interpretation of spirituality.

Another Iranian we spoke to is in her early 50s.

She told us that she's watched Iranian society becoming less religious over the years, herself included.

She spoke to us from Mazandaran in the north of the country, located along the southern coast of the Caspian Sea.

She started by telling us how she believes the Iranian regime uses religion.

Her words are also voiced by an actor.

For this woman from northern Iran, her feelings about the war echo what many Iranians have told me since the outbreak of fighting in February.

They are confused and often conflicted.

She's referring to the protests in Iran at the start of this year.

January street demonstrations began over economic grievances and soon spread to become some of Iran's largest protests.

The regime opened fire on their citizens that had come out onto the streets.

And the US-based human rights activist news agency said it had confirmed the killing of at least 7,000 people, including over 200 children.

Thousands of more cases are still being investigated.

Often turning to ancient spiritual texts herself, we asked her how her relationship with Islam has changed over the years.

She grew up in a typical, relatively religious family.

This episode of Heart and Soul was produced by me, Emily Wither.

The series producer is Rajiv Gupta.

People are confused about the future.