By: Sadruddin Noorani, Chicago, USA What is civil society? This phrase was uncommon in Western discourse before the 1980s, and so it may still be unfamiliar to many people. In simple ...
USA -- How might we prepare for al-Akhira or the Hereafter? Perhaps one way is to remember the promise we made to our Lord at the time of creation-that we will remain obedient and worship Allah. Over the course of the past several months, we have discussed the notion of covenants in the Quran, whereby humankind promised its obedience to Allah ...
News story -- To celebrate World Book Day, Naureen Ali, Cataloguer and Adlib Officer in the Ismaili Special Collections Unit, showcases some of the unique and beautiful manuscripts and printed material housed at the IIS. Featured below is a selection including manuscripts, a rare book and a bookmark, ranging from the 14th to the 20th century, which gives a taste of the ...
#Speech made by His Highness the #AgaKhan at the Leadership and #Diversity Conference in Gatineau, Canada on 19 May 2004. Read the full speech here: For more about the Aga Khan Development Network, visit ...
"Given the great moral authority of His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan over the Ismaili population of Badakhshan, Special Envoy Piriz-Ballon [of UN Secretary General Boutro Boutro Ghali], and Special Representative Gerd Merrem [of Germany] consulted him on issues related to the peace process. His visits to the country, informal mediating role and moderating influence significantly contributed to the success of ...
Events -- 25th March 2022 -- About the event: This event is the closing keynote address of the IIS-Cambridge workshop on the study of Islam at the end of empire. The workshop brings together scholars of Muslim thought in order to reassess and reconsider a critical moment in the making of modern Islam: the transition from orientalism to "Islamic Studies". It foregrounds ...
Nairobi, Kenya, 28 February 2022 - More than 660 students in Pakistan, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda graduated from the Aga Khan University (AKU) in a live-streamed Global Convocation Ceremony that was watched by viewers around the world. The ceremony in Nairobi was attended in-person by Princess Zahra Aga Khan and saw the University commit to becoming carbon neutral in its operations ...
UAE -- In Celebration of the Golden Jubilee of the United Arab Emirates and World Arabic Language Day, the Ismaili Centre Dubai organised and hosted a Symposium on 'The Evolution of the Arabic Word: From Rock Inscriptions to the Digital Age' on 11 December 2021. Inspired by, and in collaboration with, Sheikha Alyazia Bint Nahyan Al Nahyan, Extraordinary Ambassador for Culture, ...
Compiled and prepared by MALIK MERCHANT (Publisher-Editor, Simerg, Barakah,and Simergphotos) For the past week, the world's attention has dramatically shifted from the misery that Afghanistan is facing to the invasion of Ukraine by the armed forces of Russia. The Ukraine war is indeed very very serious and frightening, especially with Russian President Putin asking his country's nuclear deterrent forces to be ...
Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, ...
By MALIK MERCHANTPublisher/Editor Simerg, Barakah andSimergphotos Simerg's series entitled "Books by Ismaili Authors" continues with Montreal based health care professional Naznin Rahemtulla Hébert's biographical work "This is My Life." We follow the same Q/A format as our earlier presentations of books written by Shairoz Lakhani, Shelina Shariff Zia, Ali Lakhani, Nizar Sultan, Nargis Fazal, Nazlin Rahemtulla, Azmina Suleman, Alnasir Rajan, Shafeen ...
In honour of Black History Month, this Curator's Pick delivered by Aga Khan Museum Curator Dr. Michael Chagnon highlights Kumbi Saleh 3020 CE -- a monumental LEGO® sculpture acquired by the Museum in 2021. Created by Toronto-based Ghanaian-Canadian Ekow Nimako, Kumbi Saleh 3020 CE is an Afrofuturistic reimagining of the capital of the medieval Kingdom of Ghana. Made up of approximately 100,000+ LEGO® ...
Lost Eden becomes Stakes winner number 87 for sire. SEA THE STARS has enjoyed plenty of early-season success in the UAE, with his latest winner Lost Eden becoming his 87th lifetime Stakes winner after landing the Listed Jebel Ali Stakes. It was a second course and distance win for the lightly raced, Doug Watson-trained five-year-old this year. A €200,000 Goffs yearling ...
AKHB Northeast: Heart Health - February 2022 ...
With an increasing number of job postings, there is a huge demand for professionals equipped with the necessary skills and expertise. If you are keen on understanding how this industry works and want to gain more information about the careers related to this technology, ...
GOOGLE.COM -- I may mention here the name of a great Sunni Muslim theologian, Al-Ghazzali, whose writings debased the Ismailis in the eyes of Muslim world. His books namely, "Hujjat-ul-Haqq, Mufassil-ul-Khalif, Kasimul-Batinia, Muwahim-ul-Batinia and Mustazahiri", which he wrote against Ismaili teachings but have since disappeared, have been the cause of great friction between Sunnis and Ismailis. The readers of this article would be exceedingly surprised to learn that the author himself denounced all the books as being devoid of facts and reality in his famous work, "Jawahirul-Quran", which he compiled later. "Mustazahiri" was written by him, as he admits, at the instigation of Mustazahirbilah, Abbasid Khaliph, whose name the book indicates. When authors like Ghazzali could be hired and set against Ismailis by their ...
Case StudyBy Zuzanna Błajet - Abstract The mass influx of people from the former republics of the Soviet Union has resulted in 'migration' and 'integration' being one of the central foci ...
"Healing Rhythms" is a four-part series marking Black History Month and the rich cultural diversity of Toronto. Across the series you will be introduced to several teachers and musicians -- including the Moneka family -- who share their rhythms and songs that celebrate family and community. In episode 1, you are introduced to the Moneka family and their journey from Mombasa to Basra ...
Portugal -- Desde o lançamento global da iniciativa Ismaili CIVIC, os voluntários do Jamat mundial têm tido um impacto significativo nas áreas da saúde, educação, desenvolvimento económico, gestão ambiental e desenvolvimento cultural. Fique aqui a conhecer mais sobre esta iniciativa. O Ismaili CIVIC é uma iniciativa global sob o qual a comunidade muçulmana Shia Ismaili se uniu em torno da sua ...
Portugal -- As we glide into 2022, another phase of the pandemic, what better time to seek balance in our lives on a physical, spiritual, material, intellectual and mental level. Being the best version of yourself, requires work on a daily basis, offering endless benefits of personal growth resulting in self-confidence, acceptance, gratification and satisfaction. As part of our endeavour to ...
Portugal -- The Prophet Muhammad, by Stephen Burge, presents an illuminating portrait of Hazrat Muhammad in his capacity as God's messenger and an exemplary figure to Muslims. Portuguese Revealing the challenges and triumphs of prophecy, Stephen Burge examines how prophets have inspired faith communities' relationship with the Divine, and one another. In doing so, this engaging account elucidates the enduring influence ...
The Theremin is a musical instrument controlled entirely without physical contact. One of the most intriguing inventions, it "revolutionised music as the predecessor of the modern synthesiser, among others. When radio ...
Global -- The Global Pluralism Award ceremony was streamed to a worldwide audience on 23 February 2022, highlighting the organisations and individuals who demonstrate pluralism in action everyday. The virtual ceremony recognised the three winners of the 2021 Award, selected from among 10 finalists and nearly 500 submissions,by the renowned international jury. The occasion marks the third conferral of the awards, ...
Global -- The recent Winterlude Games held in the valleys of Northern Pakistan enabled the local community to come together to improve their mental and physical wellbeing. The mountainous valley of Hunza in the Gilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistan hosted a winter sports competition in January 2022, building upon its short yet rich history of sporting achievement. Prior to 2016, the region ...
"Scientific pursuits, philosophic inquiry and artistic endeavour are all seen as the response of the faithful to the recurring call of the Qur'an to ponder the creation as a way to understand Allah's benevolent majesty." Mawlana Hazar Imam, London, UK, 19 October 2003Speech "As we use our intellect to gain new knowledge about Creation, we come to see even more profoundly ...
Global -- In a unique celebration of knowledge and learning, the Aga Khan University (AKU) will host a Global Convocation ceremony on Saturday 26 February 2022. The special virtual ceremony will bring together AKU's graduating classes in Kenya, Pakistan, Tanzania, Uganda, and the UK, and will include an address by Princess Zahra on behalf of the Chancellor. For almost four decades, ...
In honour of Black History Month, this Curator's Pick delivered by Aga Khan Museum Curator Dr. Michael Chagnon highlights a recently acquired monumental LEGO® sculpture in the Aga Khan Museum's Permanent Collection. Created by Toronto-based Ghanaian-Canadian Ekow Nimako, Kumbi Saleh 3020 CE is an Afrofuturistic reimagining of the capital of the medieval Kingdom of Ghana. Made up of approximately 100,000+ LEGO® pieces, Kumbi ...
[H/T SIMERG] -- TEXASMONTHLY.COM -- In renderings, the Ismaili Center Houston looks destined to become an international landmark. Think paradise on the bayou. Ismaili centers are an invention of the Aga Khan. Houston's center will be the most public-focused yet, with an education wing, a black box theater, a cafe, flexible exhibition spaces, conference rooms, and social halls. Performances and gatherings will happen outside. David Leslie, the executive director of the Rothko Chapel, has collaborated with the Ismaili community for years. "So many people who are not Muslim have a very truncated view of Islam, and not always a very positive one," he says. He hopes the new center will give Texans a greater view into the diversity of the Islamic world. Now the Ismaili community is putting forward, in very public ways, key tenets of ...
This piano composition by contemporary multi-instrumentalist Afraaz Mulji is inspired by a 16th-century music manuscript in the exhibition Hidden Stories: Books Along the Silk Roads at the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto. The manuscript, now in the collection of Western University in Ontario, was originally owned by a monastery in Spain and used for communal singing in the choir. Mulji performs his original ...
An estimated 14 million children around the world suffer from acute malnutrition, but a Rhode Island (USA) mother of four - Navyn Salem, founder and CEO of Edesia Nutrition - is ...
Hasan Ali Khan: "...we came upon a well-maintained property with a palatial gate, and a plaque that read: The palace of the first Aga Khan Hasan Ali Shah, date: 1843. Our ...
Compiled by MALIK MERCHANTPublisher/Editor Simerg, Simergphotos and Barakah The David Rumsey Historical Map Collection focuses on 16th through 21st century maps of North and and South America, as well as maps of the World, Asia, Africa, Europe, and Oceania. Atlases, globes, school geographies, maritime charts, and a variety of separate maps including pocket, wall, children's and manuscript maps are present on ...
USA -- Julian Drinkall, General Manager of the Aga Khan Schools (AKS), visited Texas. Julian Drinkall (right) and Amyn Merchant (left) touring the Early Childhood Development Center Julian Drinkall, General Manager of the Aga Khan Schools (AKS), visited Texas to meet with high-ranking academic officials from the state. He also met with National Council President, Al-Karim Alidina, and the leadership of ...
H Ahmed presents a heartwarming rendition of the nasheed "Tala Al Badru" originally attributed to Ansars (the Helpers), the local inhabitants of Medina who took Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his early ...
#Speech made by His Highness the #AgaKhan presentation ceremony of the 2007 Aga Khan Award for Architecture in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 4 September 2007. Read the full speech here: For more about the Aga Khan Development Network, visit ...
Global -- Join us for the Global Pluralism Award Ceremony on Wednesday, 23 February, where prizes will be presented to this year's recipients. The ceremony will begin at 12 PM (EST) and will be streamed live on The Ismaili TV. Hosted by Secretary General Meredith Preston McGhie and featuring Jury Chair the Right Honourable Joe Clark, the ceremony will announce the ...
Imam Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah Aga Khan III succeeded his father to the Imamat on August 17, 1885 reigning for seventy-two years, longer that any of his predecessors. K.K. Aziz notes that Mawlana Sultan Muhammad Shah "occupies a place which .... may be called unique.... The positions he held in public life, the parties and organizations he led or patronized, the ...
By ZAHIR DHARSEE with MALIK MERCHANT The 49th Ismaili Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, is also an enthusiastic and energetic sportsmanHis Highness the Aga Khan, Mawlana Hazar Imam, pictured in his traditional gown at the commencement of his Silver Jubilee on July 7, 1982. As the 2022 Winter Olympics are winding down in Beijing, China, with the remaining skiing races ...
This video provides insight into substance abuse and addiction through the lens of neuroscience and faith. ...
GOOGLE.COM -- Next to my mind comes an oral history department. It is high time that our research centres in India, Pakistan, Africa and Middle East should establish oral history departments. This means collecting the facts about the recent and not very remote history of our people orally from the elder generation which is fast disappearing. With them we shall lose a great heritage which has not been recorded. It is easy to understand that in the absence of organizations such as exist today, the history of our people has remained unrecorded particularly in the Middle East where we had practically no organizations and old traditions have passed from generation to generation by mouth. It is most essential that a batch of young ...
