NanoWisdoms

Yes [Zarkava] really is an exceptional filly in a very, very good year of race horses.... [H]er trainer, really had identified that quality very, very early on and that's why he took the decision to run her from a maiden and go straight into a group 1 race. Other readings related to this event Interviewer: Marcus Armytage [The Aga Khan] was ...

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Sometimes we are associated with fast ladies and this is a case when I am very happy to be associated with a fast lady! ... I want to say that, as a traditional breeder, Zarkava is probably the greatest reward that any breeder could ever have. If you are in this industry and you like breeding and not only racing this ...

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In a world that claims to be globalised, there are some who might regard cultural standardisation as natural, even desirable. For my part, I believe that marks of individual and group cultural identity generate an inner strength which is conducive to peaceful relations. I also believe in the power of plurality, without which there is no possibility of exchange. In my ...

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The congregational space incorporated within the Ismaili Centre belongs to the historic category of jamatkhana, an institutional category that also serves a number of sister Sunni and Shia communities, in their respective contexts, in many parts of the world. Here, the Jamatkhana will be reserved for traditions and practices specific to the Shia Ismaili tariqah of Islam. The Centre on the ...

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29 October 2008 (Astana, Kazakhstan): His Highness the Aga Khan is decorated as Honoured Educator of the Republic of Kazakhstan.29 October 2008 (Astana, Kazakhstan): Press conference following meetings with the President, Prime Minister, Foreign Minister and Education Minister.30 October 2008 (Tekeli, Kazakhstan): Visit to University of Central Asia's Kazakhstan Campus site.30 October 2008 (Tekeli, Kazakhstan): UCA Land title deed presentation ceremony.30 ...

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"Convivencia" -- the Spanish word for living together harmoniously -- is not a simple concept. It is, of course, the term used to describe the co-existence of different faiths in medieval Spain. The code of "convivencia" was about tolerance and much more. In Toledo, Córdoba and Granada it implied mutual respect as well as an appreciation of science and scholarship, and ...

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My family has been breeding racehorses for five generations. Two generations in India and three in Europe, and I believe this moment is the apogee of that effort. This is one of the most important moments in my life. I'm not just a racehorse owner and breeder, I have many other responsibilities, but in the racing world, with all that my ...

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"If you try to put social development ahead of economic support, it doesn't work. You have to do both together. A community whose economics don't change is not one that can support community structures, education, healthcare, it doesn't have the wherewithal." I ask whether he thinks this long-term view is key to his success and he says that many projects can ...

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In the Judaeo-Christian world, charity is a notion which evokes generosity with nothing in return. In Islam, the 'best of charities', but not the only one, is to help the poor be self-sufficient.... I was born with Islamic ethics, in a Muslim family. There is nothing wrong with being well off as long as money has a social and ethical value ...

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There is an often quoted ayat [of the Qur'an] which says that you should leave the world in a better environment than you found it. You have a responsibility of legacy of God's creation of the world, to improve that legacy from generation to generation. So there's an ethical premise to it. Interviewer: Unknown in al-Azhar Park, Cairo? [Maria Golia, Author, ...

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Your Highness, is there a message that you would like to leave the Syrian people? Well first of all, the respect and admiration that I have for Syria in its historic role within the Ummah. Secondly the notion that progress does not mean occidentalisation. Progress in the Ummah means moving forward in quality of life, but not giving up your identity, ...

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The background to this initiative is very simple. The background is to illustrate to the peoples of our world the history of the civilisations of the Ummah. We don't do enough to illustrate to the peoples of our world the greatness of the Islamic civilisations, of the cultures of the past. And because they don't know, they don't know our history, ...

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[T]he quality of life is determined by a number of different factors that are, in my view, not limited to the World Bank indicators on longevity, or health, or the economic welfare of an individual, or a community. To the Imamat, the meaning of "quality of life' extends to the entire ethical and social context in which people live, and not ...

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I would like you to know that this visit has brought me great happiness and it will remain in my memory for many, many, many years to think of the happiness I have had in this historic country, with these historic links to our Jamat for centuries and centuries. I would like you to know that this visit has brought me ...

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SOURCES POSSIBLY RELATED READINGS (GENERATED AUTOMATICALLY) ...

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SOURCES POSSIBLY RELATED READINGS (GENERATED AUTOMATICALLY) ...

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I believe that Islamic cultures have immense power and immense opportunity. It is up to us Muslims to illustrate those civilisations, those cultures of the past and the present. And one of the ways to do so is to revive the effectiveness of cultural assets in communicating to people. And historic buildings do not need to be thought of only as ...

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26 August 2008 (Damascus): His Highness the Aga Khan hosts a reception for government officials, diplomats and other guests.26 August 2008 (Damascus): Visits to proposed sites for Aga Khan Academy and proposed hotel in Old Damascus.26 August 2008 (Aleppo): Announcement to create an urban park in Aleppo.26 August 2008 (Aleppo): Tourism Promotion Services sign agreement to create hotel in Aleppo. SOURCES ...

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Does daily life carry the same importance as eternal life? In Islam, they are the same thing. One cannot separate faith from the world. [Emphasis added.] This is one of the greatest difficulties that the non-Muslim world has, because the Judaic Christian societies developed with that notion of separation. For the Muslims, that separation is not possible. We are expected to ...

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Well if you ask yourself how an institution could be effective in terms of -- as far as possible -- ensuring security, ensuring the capacity to improve quality of life, then you have to ask yourself what does the institution need in order to achieve those goals? ... Then the second thing was: "what did you need to make a difference?" ...

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[T]he agreement that was signed during this visit [to Portugal], concerning collaboration in the diplomatic field, is a very, very important agreement. For an institution of faith to enter into a formal, diplomatic relationship is extremely important in the sense that that agreement has to function within the faiths of both communities. Since some time, Portugal has been a country in ...

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NOTE: No speeches from the Golden Jubilee visit to Portgual are available in the archive.10 July 2008 (Lisbon): Luncheon hosted by the President and First Lady of Portugal.11 July 2008 (Lisbon): Ismaili Imamat and Ministry of Foreign Affairs 'Agreement of International Co-operation' Signing Ceremony.11 July 2008 (Lisbon): President of the Assembly of the Republic at the Assembly building.11 July 2008 (Lisbon): ...

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It has been an enormously happy visit to the United Kingdom and I appreciate all the kindness, generosity and particularly the hard work that has gone into transforming the Jamat of 1957 -- less than a hundred people in the UK -- to a successful Jamat of significant global importance that you are today. Congratulations and on behalf of the Jamat ...

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He is interested in the current debate on whether the hijab, the Muslim headscarf, should be worn in Irish schools and cautions against the issue being used to create division. "My own sense is that if an individual wishes to associate publicly with a faith, that's the right of that individual to do that, whether he's a Christian or a Jew ...

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We have also, in these recent decades, established two new institutions of higher learning here, The Institute of Ismaili Studies and The Institute for the Study of Muslim Civilisations, which is part of the Aga Khan University. They both offer Masters level teaching programmes, they engage in research and publication, and they also develop curriculum materials for children in primary and ...

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3 July 2008 (London): Luncheon hosted by Secretary of State for Justice and the Lord Chancellor.7 July 2008 (London): Dinner hosted by Her Majesty the Queen. SOURCES POSSIBLY RELATED READINGS (GENERATED AUTOMATICALLY) ...

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[Google translation]: [Kenzo Tange] founded the "Tange Laboratory", in which he will advise young architects whose Sachio Otani, Takashi Asada, Taneo Oki, Kisho Kurokawa, Arata Isozaki and Fumihiko Maki. The last two are well known to me. Arata Isozaki was the architect chosen by the University of Central Asia, which I am the chancellor, to build the three campuses of Tajikistan, ...

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In Afghanistan, we have brought together the multiple capacities of the AKDN, through which we combine activities in micro-finance, health, education, culture and rural development. Our multi-faceted approach has contributed to a 74% decline in poppy cultivation in the north-east of the country, improving the quality of life of over one million people. I quote this figure not to be self-congratulatory ...

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There will, of course, be facilities here for congregational gathering and for administrative functions. There will also be places for welcoming the larger community here at seminars, lectures, cultural and educational events and other programmes. But we also see the new Jamatkhana as a place which will make an important statement symbolising an important message. We see it as a place ...

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It has been an enormously happy visit. In many ways an inspiring visit because it has demonstrated how even a small Jamat can achieve outstanding results which are complex, which are necessary, but which, which your endeavours, your work, your unity ... you can achieve results which are completely unexpected. It has been an enormously happy visit. In many ways an ...

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Let me reflect for a moment on the matter of ethics and the importance of ethical commitments not only in government but throughout society. Competent civil society is a major contributor to development particularly where democracies are less well established, or where governmental efforts are inadequate. The absence of corruption or fraud in government is not enough. Fraud in medicine, fraud ...

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Technology is also transforming our economic lives. Economic value is no longer tied to how much land one controls or how many machines or factories one owns. Within our lifetimes, predominantly "Agricultural Societies" and "Industrial Societies" of the past have been joined, and sometimes supplanted, by what many call the "Knowledge Society," propelled by the digital revolution, and focusing on the ...

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20 May 2008 (Dakha): Dinner in Honour of Chief Advisor of Bangladesh; dinner is preceded by a reception for the diplomatic corps. SOURCES POSSIBLY RELATED READINGS (GENERATED AUTOMATICALLY) ...

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I have attempted in the past 50 years to build institutional capacity, within the Jamats in various parts of the world, and in such a way that the Imamat itself has the ability to achieve goals which seem to me important. That I think has made good progress. We have got capacity today. Capacity to act nationally. Capacity to act regionally. ...

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12 May 2008 (New Dehli): Dinner hosted by the Vice President of India.13 May 2008 (New Dehli): His Highness the Aga Khan visits to the Sundar Nursery and Nila Gumbad, both located around Humayun's Tomb13 May 2008 (New Dehli):The Aga Khan hosts a reception for the diplomatic corps of India.14 May 2008 (Hyderabad): Visit to the site of the Aga Khan ...

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[Google translation] The Aga Khan Development Network has started its activities in West Africa, at the request of President Houphouet in the economic field but we do not want to stay only in the economic field we now want to engage in social in the cultural field and that is why our next major initiative will be the micro-credit because micro-credit ...

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[Google translation] Formal links with the Imamat West Africa dates back to 1960 when a young Imam, I had the opportunity to visit several countries in the region. At the time, this country was called Upper Volta. But our informal links back to a much longer time since historians speak because of trade in the 12th century between the scholars of ...

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[Official translation] The improvement of rural housing is obviously an important goal in the development process, first to improve the quality of life in rural populations, which are often the poorest in these countries, but also to pass on the message that, for a start, these people are not forgotten by those who support national growth in their country. Moreover, they ...

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[Google translation] [W]hen one has a unique project like this, you have no right to be wrong. If it is unique, it must meet the needs of all segments of the population can not afford a kind of intellectual vanity, assuming we can know what all the needs of different users who will be attending this Park in the future. And ...

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I am also very happy to accept the degree of Doctor Honoris Causa from the prestigious University of Sankoré, the African continent's most ancient higher education institution. Like Djingareyber and Sidi Yahya, this university has been the alma mater of the town's 180 Qu'ranic schools and the birthplace of the many scholarly works which became uniquely influential in Africa during the ...

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