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For most of us, there's nothing much we can do about COVID-19. It's here and we're stuck at home. Overnight, our hectic, day-to-day lives, which we complain leave us with "no time" for this or that, were just "cancelled" and, all of a sudden, every day, a lot of us have got hours and hours of unexpected "free time" on our hands. Free time experts feel we may continue to have for at least another 4-8 weeks.
In his Memoirs, Mawlana Sultan Muhammad Shah said that "a man’s chief capital is time, and that if he wastes time, he wastes his greatest asset." From this point of view, all this free time we suddenly have, despite the suffering COVID-19 brings, is a magnificent gift.
The question is: what are you going to do with all this extra time?
Hours of free time every day, for 4-8 weeks, is a lot of free time. Enough to make serious changes in your life that you may not otherwise be able to do and so we hope you will use these 4-8 weeks wisely.
One suggestion for using all this free time wisely
Our faith is one area of our lives that always seems to get put off for when we have "more time."
May we suggest you allocate one hour of your day to spend on deepening the role that our faith plays in your and your family's lives. Whether it's by:
- making a habit to be regular for prayers,
- educating yourself about our Tariqah's philosophy and theology, or the history and cultures of Ismailis in other parts of the world,
- waking up early for bandagi,
- properly learning the meanings and significance of our Du'a, ginans and other devotional practices,
or any number of other faith related matters.
On-line Ismaili resources
Now, when it comes to "upgrading" your knowledge and understanding about our faith, cultures and history, the only resources available today, during the COVID-19 crisis, are on-line.
However, if you've not looked into, or paid much attention to, the community's private or institutional on-line presence in the past, you'll be happy to learn it is very strong, vibrant and comprehensive.
What you may not know is that all Ismaili websites -- private or institutional -- are powered by volunteers and, right now, they're all are working overtime to increase what's available to the Jamat.
Official policy about private Ismaili websites
What you may also not know, is that private Ismaili websites are officially allowed and, in our interview linked below, we've highlighted specific guidance from Mawlana Hazar Imam gave, several years ago, to Canadian National Council President, Malik Talib, who shared it with us and other web publishers. So, if you've been unclear about whether to use private Ismaili websites before, please do take time to visit and review their outstanding content.
Private Ismaili websites are true labours of love, of usually one or two people working silently, without recognition. Each year, these selfless volunteers give up thousands of hours of their personal time to produce world class websites used by hundreds of thousands of Jamati members around the world, to virtually unanimous praise, admiration and respect. Their only motive, for these massive efforts, is a deep and sincere desire to help the Jamat, which these websites do in countless ways that may not be always appreciated.
For example, these websites help keep isolated Jamati members connected to the community with content that supplements the volume, variety and subject areas published on institutional sites.
And today, when we are all isolated, all Ismaili websites have the added burden and importance to help us stay connected, informed and educated.
Ismaili Digest's unique role among all Ismaili websites
Within the Ismaili on-line presence, Ismaili Digest plays a unique role and lets you effortlessly navigate and make the most of our the community's on-line resources, private or institutional.
Ismaili Digest automatically and continuously brings together all new articles, photos, videos, etc. from 36 of the best private and institutional Ismaili websites and video channels so you can see them all in one place, saving you the effort visiting each of them, one by one. Direct links to almost 15,000 web-pages from sites like The Ismaili, Simerg, Roundup, Nimira's Blog, the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS), NanoWisdoms, AKDN, Ismailimail, and more, are already available.
If you're not familiar with Ismaili Digest, we recommend you view the short, 2 minute introductory video linked below.
And, to help you get started, we've provided links below to some of Ismaili Digest's unique and exclusive features such as:
- Our guide to reliable private and institutional Ismaili websites and video channels.
- Our ability to search 15,000 pages from 36 Ismaili websites and video channels all at once.
- Our monthly Jamat's Choice for the most popular new articles and videos published each month on all the sites we monitor for you.
- Our weekly Editor's Choice for the best and most interesting material published.
We strongly urge you visit some of these areas of Ismaili Digest, provided in the links below, so you can see how to make Ismaili Digest work best for you and your family.
Below, we've also provided links to some of the most popular private and institutional websites that we know will provide you and your family with hours of exceptional videos, as well as short or long articles about our faith, history and cultures.
We've even included a link where you can officially download several free PDF e-books published by the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS)!
Please help the community make the most of all the free time we have by sharing this email with your friends and family so they too can deepen the role of our faith in their lives during the COVID-19 isolation phase.
Thanking you for your attention, cooperation and support.
Stay safe and warm regards,
Ismaili Digest
P.S.
Don't forget to also subscribe to institutional newsletters for your region, like the Canadian Al-Akhbar, American Insight or the Electronic Information Leaflet in the UK for local institutional news, COVID-19 updates regarding Jamatkhanas and regular online events many regions are now holding.
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Search 15,000 pages from 36 Ismaili Websites and Video Channels All at Once! -- An Ismaili Digest Exclusive
Another way to think of Ismaili Digest is as "Google search for Ismailis." So, even though we only link to and display short, 60-word digests of material from 36 of the best private and institutional websites and video channels, under the hood we've also stored the full text of their material. This means you can search almost 15,000 web pages from all the main Ismaili sites -- like the.ismaili, Simerg, Roundup, AKDN, NanoWisdoms, The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS), Nimira's Blog, Ismailimail, etc. -- at one go. So, for example, if you want to find out what Ismaili websites and video channels have about Fatimid coins, you can do that with one search on Ismaili Digest instead of searching each Ismaili site individually. Another exclusive Ismaili Digest service for the community.
Click here to search » http://isma.li/searching
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Jamat's Choice: The Most Popular Articles & Videos Each Month -- An Ismaili Digest Exclusive
With thousands of articles and videos available, are you wondering where to start? Start here, with the Jamat's most popular new articles and videos published each month from more than 36 of the best Ismaili websites and video channels. Jamat's Choice is unique and exclusive to Ismaili Digest. Our unique technology lets us know what the Jamat found most interesting, each month, from all the Ismaili websites we monitor such as The Ismaili, Nimira's Blog, Simerg, AKDN, NanoWisdoms, The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS), Ismailimail, along with many, many other Ismaili and non-Ismaili websites or institutional YouTube channels.
Continued Here » http://isma.li/jamats-choice
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Editor's Choice: The Best of the Best, Published Each Week -- An Ismaili Digest Exclusive
If you're looking for the best and most interesting content published by the main Ismaili websites, then start with Ismaili Digest's exclusive Editor's Choice. Each week we publish a selection of upto 5 articles (sometimes selected by the website Editor) from the archives of just one Ismaili website or video channel. Usually the articles are related to a common theme such as "5 heartwarming stories of meeting Mawlana Sultan Muhammad Shah" or "An important message from Harvard, Pew Research and others for all faith communities". Featured websites include Roundup, NanoWisdoms Extended Quotes, Nimira's Blog, Ismaili Ignition, The Ismaili - Nutrition Centre, Ismaili Digest's Off The Beaten Track, Simerg, Ismaili Gnosis and the Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS).
Continued Here » http://isma.li/editors-choice
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Your Guide to Reliable Private and Institutional Ismaili Websites and Video Channels -- An Ismaili Digest Exclusive
Do you know why there are so many Ismaili websites or what makes each of them different? Our exclusive Ismaili website guide explains it all so you can navigate the Ismaili on-line landscape and find which sites best suits your interests. Our guide highlights which websites are best for current community news and affairs, which is best for Mawlana Hazar Imam's speeches and interviews, which to visit for the best documentary and other videos related to the community, where to get short or in depth articles on our faith, culture and history, where to find the best articles related to our philosophy and tariqah and so much more.
Continued Here » http://isma.li/website-guide
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Ismaili Digest & Ismaili Ignition Team Interview | Ismaili Digest's Team Talks to You
The team behind Ismaili Digest and Ismaili Ignition share the vision, insights and objectives behind these two unique projects. For example, if you've ever wondered what are the official policies regarding private Ismaili websites are, we clear up many misunderstandings among the Jamat and share guidance Mawlana Hazar Imam gave, several years ago, to Canadian National Council President, Malik Talib, who shared it with us and other web publishers. We also explain the new perspective of our Ismaili intellectual tradition which inspires Ismaili Ignition as well as what makes Ismaili Ignition unique: "Ignition Interviews and Questions" where we ask the hard questions facing the community today, and "Ignition Paradigm Proposals" which offer fresh, 21st Century perspectives on our faith and community. And so much more.
Continued Here » http://isma.li/team-interview
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Off the Beaten Track -- Inspired by Mawlana Hazar Imam's Advice to Expand Our Perspectives and Knowledge
Mawlana Hazar Imam has said "knowledge is constantly changing, must ever be challenged and extended" and that we must "constantly review and revise and renew what we think we know." Inspired by his advice to continuously re-examine and expand our viewpoints and perspectives, Off The Beaten Track links to articles and videos of little-known, unconventional, even controversial, knowledge, opinions, wisdom and insights, drawn from all of humanity, that are relevant to the community's well-being, intellectual and spiritual growth, as well as administrative best practices. If Hazar Imam's advice resonates with you, then Off The Beaten Track is for you!
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/otbt
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
The.Ismaili (via Ismaili Digest)
Since its launch in 2007, at the Golden Jubilee, the.ismaili has published over 2,000 articles, videos and galleries of community news and events from around the world. Ismaili Digest's automatic feed and direct links mean keeping up to date with community activities, from Afghanistan to Zanzibar, has never been easier.
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/1FUN0K
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Ismaili Ignition (@ Ismaili Digest)
Ismaili Ignition is a unique project which hopes to encourage the Jamat to push the boundaries in how we think about issues and matters related and relevant to our community today. Ignition publishes original, thought provoking, fresh, new 21st Century perspectives and insights into our faith and community you won't find anywhere else.
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/ignition
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
RoundUp Video Series (via Ismaili Digest)
A little known-hidden gem, RoundUp aggregates the best video content of interest to the Ismaili community into five collections: Ismaili RoundUp, Devotional Music RoundUp, Diamond Jubilee RoundUp, Islam RoundUp, Religion Roundup. The videos are organised in lists of 7, 70 of which have been created, featuring some 500 videos in total. If you're not a reader and are interested in these five areas, you won't do better than RoundUp.
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/Wgcna5
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Nimira's Blog - On Faith (via Ismaili Digest)
During a visit to the Aga Khan Library, Nairobi, after reviewing some pamphlets on our faith, Mawlana Sultan Muhammad Shah remarked that people did not have time to read big books, but such pamphlets were quickly read and, therefore, more effective. Today, this is perhaps even more true, and we can't think of any Ismaili website, institutional or private, who has implemented the Imam's advice more brilliantly than Nimira's Blog. Since Nimira Dewji launched her blog, in early 2019, she has already written, by herself, well over 160 articles on Ismaili history and Muslim civilisations. The short, but always interesting pieces, are routinely among the most popular pieces published in the community. If you read nothing else, you owe it to yourself to read Nimira's Blog.
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/FxVb6n
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Simerg and Simerg Photos (via Ismaili Digest)
Simerg and Simerg Photos have been publishing exceptional articles on a wide variety of subjects and topics, from history, to personal stories, to poetry, intellectual and philosophical material for a decade. But don't wait for new content, together, they have already published some 1,200 timeless articles and we're sure you'll find something that interests you.
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/GHPz2I
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Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS)
FREE! Ebooks Directly from IIS
We are pleased to launch a selection of IIS publications as eBooks, available for online reads and downloads. Stay tuned for updates to this page as more IIS eBooks are planned for release soon! The first 7 titles, available in PDF format, are: "The Fatimids and Their Traditions of Learning", Heinz Halm ~~ "Justice and Remembrance; Introducing the Spirituality of Imam 'Ali", Dr. Reza Shah-Kazemi ~~ "Orations of the Fatimid Caliphs: Festival Sermons of the Ismaili Imams", Paul E. Walker ~~ "Shimmering Light: An Anthology of Ismaili Poetry" ~~ "Surviving the Mongols: Nizari Quhistani and the Continuity of Ismaili Tradition in Persia", Dr. Nadia Eboo Jamal ~~ "A Modern History of the Ismailis: Continuity and Change in a Muslim Community", Dr. Farhad Daftary ~~ "Civil Society in the Muslim World: Contemporary Perspectives", Dr. Amyn Sajoo ...
Continued Here » http://isma.li/HQLuIM
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News Flash for Digest + Ignition
Ismailimail (via Ismaili Digest)
Almost every day, since its launch in 2006, Ismailimail posts several excerpts to a potpourri of Ismaili news, events and personalities published on the Internet. If news about people and places are your thing, then Ismailimail is for you. Although it's archive now has over 23,000 articles, Ismaili Digest's collection only goes back to the start of the Diamond Jubilee, so be sure to browse Ismailimail for older news.
Click here to visit » http://isma.li/YtvufG
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Think of Ismaili Digest as the Front Page of all the best Ismaili websites!
Ismaili Digest automatically and continuously brings together all new articles, photos, videos, etc. from Ismaili websites -- like The Ismaili, Simerg, IIS, NanoWisdoms, AKDN, Ismailimail, etc. -- so you can see them all at once. Direct links to over 15,000 web-pages from the best Ismaili websites already available. Ismaili Digest saves you (and those who are not tech savvy, such as seniors) the effort of having to visit them one by one to keep up to date, or have your inbox cluttered with emails from each of them when they publish new content.
In a busy world, our sense of belonging to our community sometimes tends to wither and fade (particularly for isolated Jamati members). We hope Ismaili Digest's simplicity and comprehensiveness will help you feel connected as well as feel the local and global pulse of the community.
Like many other non-commercial, public-service thematic website aggregators, Ismaili Digest is just a thematic aggregator. We publish short 50-60 word digests of all their content and provide direct links to their original pages saving you time, extra page loads and clicks. For the website publishers, direct links ensure they'll get the maximum number of potential visitors reaching their content so their hard work gets the maximum exposure.
Also featured are other important articles, research and opinions relevant to the community's well being, intellectual growth, best practises and administration. And all served with a drop of humour as well, because "we are a community that welcomes the smile!"
Ismaili Digest is not associated with any private Ismaili website, whether aggregated by Ismaili Digest or not. All websites Ismaili Digest aggregates are independent websites run by their individual owners and we are not responsible for content they publish.
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