By Mohib Ebrahim Editor's Note: On August 5th, 1923, a young 16 year old boy -- the youngest honorary missionary and member of the Bombay Recreation Club, now the Ismaili Tariqah and Religious Education Board (ITREB) -- delivered a two hour lecture to "prove the significance and the need of Imamat from the Holy Qur'an and the Hadith." That boy was ...
Last August's leading Arqana sire Sea The Stars represented by three yearlings. Aga Khan Studs sires feature strongly in Arqana's August yearling catalogue, with progeny of all their Irish and French residents entered in the Premium sale. SEA THE STARS created fireworks in Deauville in 2012 with his first crop of yearlings and the champion racehorse has three entries in this ...
The NanoWisdoms Archive of Imamat Speeches, Interviews and Writings wishes all Imamat Day Mubarak. In keeping with the theme of our Imamat Day card, we would like to share with you some important quotes of His Highness the Aga Khan in which he explains that social progress -- communal or national -- depends on trusting people: delegating authority, discretion and decision ...
Compiled by Malik Merchant (Publisher-Editor, Simerg and Simergphotos) MAWLANA HAZAR IMAM, HIS HIGHNESS THE AGA KHAN A portrait of the new 49th Ismaili Imam taken shortly after he succeeded his late grandfather to the throne of Imamat on July 11, 1957 at the age of twenty. A framed portrait of the late 48th Imam who served the community for 72 years ...
Compiled by Malik Merchant (Publisher-Editor, Simergphotos) A UNIQUE PORTRAIT OF MAWLANA HAZAR IMAM, HIS HIGHNESS THE AGA KHAN A portrait of the new 49th Ismaili Imam taken shortly after he succeeded his late grandfather to the throne of Imamat on July 11, 1957 at the age of twenty. A framed portrait of the late 48th Imam who served the community ...
"Man Kunto Mowla", a part of a famous statement of the Seal of Prophet, upon him be peace, which is, "Man kunto Mowla, fa Ali-yun Mowla" - meaning 'Whoever accepts me as master, Ali is his master'. Amir Khusru is one of the iconic figures in the cultural history of the Indian subcontinent. A Sufi mystic and a spiritual disciple of ...
As prescribed in the Qur'an, each year Muslims commemorate Ramadan -- the month "in which was revealed the Qur'an" (Qur'an 2:185) -- with special reverence. For Muslims, it is a month of reflection, of self-restraint, of purification and of benevolence all with an eye strengthening one's spiritual and moral character generally. To help us in our development, fasting was prescribed: "O ...
EXPRESSIONS OF MYSTICAL AND ESOTERIC LOVE FOR HAZAR IMAM Ismailis throughout the world celebrated the Golden Jubilee of their 49th Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, Mawlana Shah Karim al-Hussaini, during the period July 11, 2007 - December 13, 2008. Part of the commemorative festivities in Europe included an exclusive project, entitled "Festival of Poetic Expressions", produced and directed by Aitmadi ...
News story -- Dr Stephen Burge, Research Associate in the Institute's Qur'anic Studies Unit, attended the American Oriental Society (AOS) Annual Meeting, held in Boston, USA. His paper was entitled Jihad in the late Mamluk Period: A Comparison of Two Arba'un Collections by al-Biqa'i (d.1480 CE) and al-Suyuti (d.1505 CE). The paper presentedan analysis of two collections of Forty Hadiths (arba'un) Collections, ...
"The Prophet himself never claimed any miracle of any sort. The only miracle which you have in Islam is the Qur'an." His Highness the Aga Khan's 1986 CBC Interview (1st) with Roy Bonisteel (Canada) ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ Rajiv Mehrotra: Spirituality, or the religion or the faith is frequently threatened by technology. You have a passion and a great interest ...
Nutrition Centre -- Healthy Hints Special occasions tend to demand fried snacks like samosas and fried meat kebabs. This recipe uses minced chicken cooked in a little olive oil, making it much lower in harmful saturated fats. You could grill them instead -- just brush with a little olive oil and cook till the juices run clear. 525 g chicken breast, ...
Nutrition Centre -- In 2008, non-communicable diseases were responsible for an astounding 63 per cent of deaths world-wide - more than all other causes combined. Known as NCDs, they include diabetes, heart disease and cancers, and are a growing concern to people of South East Asian descent. However, these diseases are largely preventable and their impact can be significantly reduced. Non-communicable ...
News story -- April and May saw the last four lectures in the Qur'anic Studies Series, The Meaning of the Word: Lexicology and Tafsir. The series aimed to explore the ways in which different exegetes approached questions relating to the meaning of words in the Qur'an. In April, Prof. Agosinto Cilardo (University of Napels) presented a lecture entitled: 'From Qur'an to Fiqh: ...
Bonneval stallion is maternal grandsire of Trading Leather and Flotilla. A highly effective stallion in his own right, SINNDAR is rapidly gaining a reputation as a leading producer of broodmares. The direct sire of four Gr 1 winners, notably Prix Vermeille and Yorkshire Oaks victrix SHARETA, he now boasts three Classic scorers as a grandsire, as Trading Leather and Flotilla have ...
IC EVENT ON 4 July 2013 -- Ismaili Centre Lisbon -- 4 July 2013 -- The annual Aga Khan Development Network Imamat Day reception was held at the Ismaili Centre, Lisbon today. ...
News story -- Professor Wilferd Madelung, Senior Research Fellow at the IIS, received the Farabi International Award from Iran's Ministry of Islamic Guidance and Culture for his outstanding contributions to Islamic and Iranian studies. The award is named in honour of the great Muslim philosopher, Abu Nasr al-Farabi, of Turkish descent from Iranian Central Asia, who studied and revived the tradition of ...
News story -- The Institute of Ismaili Studies is pleased to announce the publication of an Arabic edition and English translation of the Tathbit al-imama, attributed to the Fatimid Caliph-Imam al-Mansur. This book, edited and translated by Professor Sami Makarem, has been published under the title, The Shi'i Imamate: A Fatimid Interpretation. The Tathbit al-imama is an early Ismaili treatise on the ...
Montreux, Switzerland, 3 July 2013 - The Aga Khan Music Initiative (AKMI) and the Montreux Jazz Foundation 2 announced a new wide-reaching partnership today. Both organizations will join efforts to curate and present concerts, workshops, and master classes within the framework of the Montreux Jazz Festival. AKMI will also leverage the expertise of the Montreux Jazz Foundation 2 in showcasing aspects ...
IC EVENT ON 3 July 2013 -- Ismaili Centre Lisbon -- 3 July 2013 --The Aga Khan Foundation Portugal held a book launch event for Nursery Education and Pedagogy in Participation. ...
Text and photos by Malik Merchant Thousands of Ismailis gathered at the Toronto International Centre on Sunday June 30, 2013 to celebrate His Highness the Aga Khan’s ascension to the throne of Imamat. Mawlana Hazar Imam, as His Highness is affectionately known to his Ismaili followers, is the direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.s) and became 49th hereditary Ismaili ...
A traditional custom around Canada Day is the launch of Storytime at Rideau Hall, the residence of the Governor General of Canada, which is located just across from the Prime Minister’s home on Sussex Drive in Ottawa. This year’s Storytime was launched by Their Excellencies the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, and Mrs. Sharon Johnston, along with ...
In these two lovely articles, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah, Aga Khan III, offers much needed simple advices on how to stay happy pointing out, for example:that "the fundamental question [is]: Are you in harmony with God? If you are -- you are happy," that "happiness never depends on one's surroundings; it depends altogether and exclusively on oneself" and that "you should ...
Qayl Azeem Maherali pictured as an astronaut when he was 6. Photo: Qayl’s Collection © Copyright. The picture above was taken three years ago. I am 9 years old now. I want to be an astronaut and an international soccer player. I have been interested in space all my life – well if you asked my dad, he would say ...
Ismā'īlī Gnosis presents Imām Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh's teachings on the concept of God as found in his public speeches, interviews and writings. Imām Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh Āgā Khān III (1877-1957) was the forty-eighth hereditary Imām of the Shi'ī Ismā'īlī Muslims and the predecessor of the present Imām Shāh Karīm al-Husayni Āgā Khān IV. Within the chain of hereditary Imāms in the ...
News story -- The Institute of Ismaili Studies is pleased to announce the publication of an English translation of the text on the fourth Fatimid Imam-caliph, al-Mu'izz li-Din Allah, from Idris 'Imad al-Din's 'Uyun al-akhbar. This book, translated by Dr Shainool Jiwa, has been published under the title, The Founder of Cairo: The Fatimid Imam-Caliph al-Mu'izz and his Era, Ismaili Texts and ...
I have become convinced that the human and economic action implied in the conservation or rehabilitation of cultural heritage is closely related, no matter where they occur.... The renewal or restoration of a place of culture always implies the necessity of considering the economic potential destined to ensure the sustainability of the effort in the long term. The concept is simple. ...
"We are all familiar that al-Kindi, even in the 9th century, saw no shame in acknowledging and assimilating the truth, whatever its source. He argued that truth never abases, but only ennobles its seeker. Poetising the Prophet's teaching, Nasir Khusraw, the 11th century Iranian poet-philosopher, also extols the virtue of knowledge. For him, true jihad is the war that must be ...
By His Highness the Aga Khan, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah (1877 - 1957) A portrait of Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah, His Highness the Aga Khan III, dated 1911, Copyright: National Portrait Gallery. There had been sinister rumors that an epidemic of bubonic plague was sedulously and remorselessly spreading westward across Asia. There had been a bad outbreak in Hong Kong; sporadically ...
Defining Without Confining: Reflections on a prophetic usage of sacred space. Reza Shah-Kazemi INTRODUCTION In this article I intend to show that, in traditional Islamic consciousness, to define the space of the sacred (the mosque, the qibla, etc.) does not confine the sacred (wherever ye turn there is the face of God), and thus that the space of the sacred cannot ...
"[D]evelopment is only possible when the community is engaged at the grassroots level and is given the ways and the means to take responsibility for its own future." His Highness the Aga Khan's 2006 Address to the Conference on Afghanistan (London, UK) ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~~ "I have seen situations where there has been an attempt to marginalise the intelligentsia ...
Bamako, Mali, 20 June 2013 - The National Zoo of Mali was inaugurated today after 24 months of rehabilitation and expansion undertaken through a non-profit public-private partnership (PPP) led by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC). The Minister of Environment and Sanitation, Mr Ousmane Ag Rhissa, and the Minister of Culture, Mr Bruno Maiga, were joined by Mr Luis Monreal, ...
Introduced by Azeem Maherali In celebration of Father's Day, I wanted to salute all fathers, grand fathers and father like figures in their continuing efforts to keeping their families strong, safe and happy. In addition to being great role models, they have in their many ways inspired us to be better individuals, make a difference with our lives and in turn, ...
Caption with image at source Racehorse billionaire and Islamic spiritual leader the Aga Khan makes a speech at the inauguration of the renovated Musee du Cheval (The Museum of the Horse) in Chantilly, north of Paris, on its reopening day on June 15, 2013. Closed ten month for renovations, the museum reopened in 15 rooms tracing the history of the horse, ...
United Kingdom -- The Harmony Project premiered before audiences at the Ismaili Centre, London on 13 and 14 April 2013. Written, directed and performed by members of the United Kingdom Jamat, the theatrical production follows the story of a group of fictional characters from completely different backgrounds, brought together to create a show. When a student of Western philosophy, a professor ...
Text by: Gulshan Chunara Photos by: Salina Hasan The Pivotal Role of the 46th Ismaili Imam, Shah Hasan Ali Shah, Aga Khan I This vintage engraving depicts the portrait of Aga Khan I (1804 – 1881), the 46th Imam of the Nizari Shia Ismaili Ismaili Muslims. © iStockphoto.com Amir Pir, a minor town with indefinite boundaries is located in the ...
Canada -- A Golden Jubilee International Programme, RAYS OF LIGHT:Glimpses into the Ismaili Imamat, will make its much-anticipated Canadian debut in Edmonton on 4 July 2013. The exhibition provides a unique opportunity for the Jamat and the wider public to understand the scope and scale of Mawlana Hazar Imam's tremendous work across the globe. The spirit and emotion of Mawlana Hazar ...
News story -- Dr Omar Ali-de-Unzaga and Dr Daryoush Mohammad Poor presented papers at a conference honouring Professor Ismail Poonawala's career held at the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA) on 23 May 2013. The conference, 'Reflecting on Ismaili Studies: Standing on Poonawala's shoulders' was organised by the G.E. Von Grunebaum Center for Near Eastern Studies of UCLA to recognise the achievements of ...
From a distant, Waterloo Square, 75 King Street in Waterloo, Canada, site of the World Partnership Walk for the past 3 years. Several hundred people from the surrounding cities of Guelph, Kitchener, Waterloo converge here to raise funds for Aga Khan Foundation Canada which supports numerous projects around the world. A life-size poster explaining the Walk’s objective A tent with ...
16-Strong Aga Khan contingent for Arqana July. Sold for 160,000 Euros at Arqana's horses in training sale last July, DIAKALI has progressed into one of the best hurdlers of his generation. This season, the son of Sinndar lifted the Gr 1 Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle at Punchestown and the French equivalent, the Gr 1 Prix Alain du Breil at Auteuil on Sunday. ...
Almost 90 years ago -- decades before the more recent interest in health, diet and exercise -- Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah, Aga Khan III, wrote this short but lovely article on keeping healthy opening it with the remark that "all my life I have been keenly interested in the kindred subjects of exercise and diet, and their influence on the general ...
