Nutrition Centre -- According to the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey of 2010, men tend to eat more salt and less fruits and vegetables than women, placing them at greater risk of stroke and heart disease. Azmina Govindji shares important facts and practical tips on how to reduce salt in your diet just in time for Salt Awareness Week (21 ...
NAVROZ MUBARAK "The Closer You Come the More You Will See Him" This digital mosaic rendering is based on an existing photo portrait of His Highness the Aga Khan, the 49th Ismaili Imam. For graphic artist Akbar Kanji of Toronto, the concept is to "portray our Imam's entire life and his dedications at a glance which we cannot imagine until we ...
Nutrition Centre -- Healthy Hints There are some traditional dishes that are delicious but not so healthy -- although rice is a healthy food, the sugar in this dish has a red traffic light. However, this is a healthier version of the original recipe as it is lower in sugar and only uses a few sprays of oil, helping you to ...
Zarkava's half-brother wins Cheltenham Group 1. The Aga Khan-bred ZARKANDAR ran out an impressive winner of the Gr 1 Triumph Hurdle on the final day of the Cheltenham Festival to be crowned Britain and Ireland's top juvenile hurdler. The son of Gilltown sire Azamour offered a third success in this championship event to the Aga Khan Studs, breeders of Zaynar (Daylami), ...
RESURGENCE By Nuram It is ordained by Allah I come once a year on this day And for six months I stay in the Northern Hemisphere I shine in all my splendour I bring warmth I bring life to the dead earth I bring colour and all the hues I bring movement to all living things I bring hope for good ...
By Vali Jamal, PhD A photo of the Kampala Jamatkhana taken in 1982. Notice the broken windows, non-functioning tower clock and lone VW beetle. Photo: Vali Jamal. Copyright. Any Kampala Ismaili over 60, even though they are now in their diaspora countries and seen some remarkable Jamatkhanas, would say the Kampala Jamatkhana was the best. Of course, any Ismaili would say ...
Prix de Diane heroine and Arc third awarded prestigious "Courses & Elevage" accolade. HH the Aga Khan's SARAFINA (Refuse to Bend) has been rewarded for her magnificent 2010 season in the annual awards ceremony organised by French racing and breeding publication Courses & Elevage. Selections for these awards are made by members of the specialised press and SARAFINA was elected best ...
Geneva, Switzerland, 18 March 2011 - Six albums and songs from the Central Asia series produced by the Aga Khan Music Initiative and Smithsonian Folkways were selected as finalists for the 10th Independent Music Awards. In addition, the Songlines Music Awards Nominees 2011 include Rainbow - Music of Central Asia Vol 8, the collaboration featuring the Kronos Quartet, Alim and Fargana ...
Compiled by Abdulmalik Merchant Editor, Simerg Oil painting by a Neapolitan painter, 17th century, of an Arabic man of learning, presumably Avicenna, who is seen holding a snake over a book of herbal recipes. Photo: Wellcome Library, London. Copyright. Just as Arabs, Turks and Persians all like to claim Avicenna as their own, the Ismailis like to consider him to be ...
AVICENNA ON EDUCATION: PART II By 'Abd al-Rahman al Naqib THE AIMS OF EDUCATION Many countries around the world have honoured Avicenna, the great Muslim scientist, by depicting his vignette on their postage stamps. The symbolic value of Avicenna has been often chosen to commemorate scientific occasions, achievements and anniversaries. Avicenna sees the aims of education as the overall growth of ...
United States -- There is near universal scientific consensus that the loading of the atmosphere with greenhouse gases is causing increased global warming and associated climate change, argues Abyd Karmali. Fortunately, he notes, several countries are putting in place policies to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, which are resulting substantial new economic opportunities. Climate change, the carbon market and treesOver 25 ...
Pakistan -- Over the last 25 years, AKDN has planted over 100 million trees in Asia and Africa. Many communities already recognise that sustainable agro-forestry provides dividends in the form of food, fuel and fodder, and the emergence of a global carbon market presents new opportunity. The Aga Khan Development Network's concern for climate change is an integral part of its ...
By 'Abd al-Rahman al Naqib To mark the 1,000th birth anniversary of the most influential of Islam's philosopher-scientists, UNESCO minted this commemorative medal in 1980. Abu Ali al-Husain Ibn Abdallah Ibn Sina was known in Europe as Avicenna. A healer and a humanist, Avicenna developed an exemplary holistic approach that captures the essence of ethics in science and has thus come ...
United Kingdom -- Professionals and representatives of leading healthcare organisations in the United Kingdom gathered at Leicester Jamatkhana on 9 February to learn about The Ismaili Nutrition Centre, a unique online resource that offers healthy alternatives to traditional dishes. "The British Dietetic Association proudly supports the excellent work of The Ismaili Nutrition Centre," declared Andy Burman, the Association's Chief Executive Officer ...
News story -- Another publication was released by the IIS in October: On Logic: An Arabic Critical Edition and English Translation of Epistles 10-14, edited and translated by Professor Carmela Baffioni. This is the second volume of primary text from the Epistles of the Brethren of Purity(Rasa'il Ikhwan al-Safa'), which is being published in its entirety, over sixteen bilingual volumes, by Oxford ...
Nutrition Centre -- Healthy Hints While the spinach offers some powerful nutrients, try not to overcook the leaves to ensure they retain as much nutrition as possible! Add in some colourful red and yellow peppers for some crunch and added nutrition. This pairs perfectly alongside protein-rich quinoa or why not make a wrap! 230 g chicken breast (or chicken tenderloin), boneless ...
The joint venture saw its first two yearlings successfully go through the Inglis sales ring, during the Melbourne Premier Sale (February 28th- March 3rd). A daughter of Hussonet and DARALARA, who was Stakes placed in France and stems from the immediate family of Champion Darjina, sold for AUS $100,000 to owner/ breeder Paul Fudge (Waratah Thoroughbreds), while a daughter of Danzero ...
News story -- The Department of Academic Research and Publications at the IIS organised an international colloquium on 20-22 September 2010. The colloquium entitled The Study of Shi'i Islam: The State of the Field, Issues of Methodology and Recent Developments offered a productive atmosphere for the exchange of new ideas and for taking stock of the current state of scholarship in Shi'i ...
News story -- Given that it was nearly lost to history - only available in a unique manuscript held in Tehran - Sharastani's commentary (dating from 540 AH/1145 CE) is a peculiarly exciting survival of the medieval literature on the Holy Qur'an. Its value mainly rests on three things. Firstly, its author enjoys a very high reputation as a scholar and thinker ...
News story -- Adapted from the original Arabic text by Hooda al-Shawwa' al-Qaddumi, this abridged version of the famous fable: Epistle 22 of the Rasa'il Ihkwan al-Safa' (Epistles of the Brethren of Purity) was first published in Iraq in the 10th century CE. The story is illustrated by vibrant and colourful paintings by the artist Hasan Mousa. The narrative features the animal ...
News story -- Despite critical studies on Shi'i Islam having increased in scope in the last few decades, to this day most Shi'i beliefs and practices remain relatively unknown and poorly understood. One reason for this is that Western specialists in this field make up no more than thirty in number, in addition to a few rare Shi'i scholars who apply historico-critical ...
Pakistan -- Massive flooding last year in the regions surrounding the Indus River caused devastation, destroying more than 1.4 million acres of cropland and over one million homes. But the resilience of those affected and the compassion and generosity of those providing assistance offers hope and lessons for the times ahead. They call it the Lion River because on a dark ...
Three mares have been scanned in foal to the Aga Khan Studs' new recruit Siyouni. Amongst them are Ponte Di Legno (SINNDAR), a winning daughter of the Group 1 winner Porlezza and Ebiyana, whose dam is a half sister to the Irish Oaks winner Ebadiyla. A Group 1 winner at two, SIYOUNI's speed and precocity, matched to a pedigree which features ...
India -- Young Ismailis are increasingly making their mark in all fields - academic and non-academic. Through the Youth Awards for Excellence, 2010, the Aga Khan Youth and Sports Board for India recognised the Jamati youth and honoured high achievers in fields such as sports, the arts, sciences, creative expression, and leadership. Youth from Mumbai perform a traditional dance during the ...
Editor's Note: Rumi's Mathnawi is an epic poem comprising of thousands of stanzas of allegories, fables, parables and tales which convey moral lessons as well as emphasize a spiritual connection with the Almighty. Bringing the works of a mystical poet to life is not an easy job, and Zayn Kassam in this reading retells two stories from Rumi's majestic work which ...
Impressive Gr 2 winner set to line up in Triumph Hurdle. Zarkava's half-brother ZARKANDAR made a stylish winning debut to his new career over jumps on Saturday, lifting the Gr 2 Adonis Juvenile Hurdle at Kempton to secure a place among the favourites in the Gr 1 Triumph Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. ZARKANDAR was a winner and placed on the ...
News story -- The Central Asian Studies unit of the IIS, in collaboration with the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan (AST), has published a new Tajik edition of Nasir Khusraw's Zad al-Musafirin: The Nourishment of the Wayfarers. This is the second publication in Tajik after Nasir Khusraw's Diwan of poetry which was published ...
News story -- It was the first time that the Institute has collaborated on such a programme with a working group from the AAR, which is the major international organisation for scholars of religion. The workshop was co-sponsored by the AAR's Qur'an group. This event highlighted the increasing scholarly interest in Qur'an commentaries, and the critical importance of the work being undertaken ...
Nutrition Centre -- There is no doubt that our bodies require fat, but did you know that some fats are healthier than others? All fats have different characteristics, so it is important to try to choose foods that contain the better variety, and cut down on those that could cause our bodies harm. There is no doubt that our bodies require ...
PartnershipsInAction is an initiative of Aga Khan Foundation U.S.A. and its volunteers across America ...
Afghanistan -- The Ismaili youth of Afghanistan have a new place where they can play, learn and socialise. The two-storey Youth, Sports and Social Development Center in Kabul, opened its doors in December 2010. The product of a partnership between the Ismaili Council for Afghanistan and Roshan Community (the social responsibility arm of the nation's leading telecommunications provider), the centre is ...
Tashkorgan Tashkorgan in the Xinjiang Province of China is 295km (183 miles) South West of Kashgar. The town marked the end of the Silk Routes for Chinese traders arriving from Kashgar. Their goods would be transferred to caravans, which continued on to Gilgit and thence either south to the Indian Ocean along the Indus River, or west through Kabul, Herat, and ...
Islamabad, Pakistan, 22 February 2011 - A client of the First MicroFinanceBank (an institution of the Aga Khan Agency for Microfinance) in Pakistan, Purdum Wali, won the "Best National Micro-Entrepreneur Award Male" at the recent Citi-PPAF Micro-entrepreneurship Awards 2010 ceremony held in Islamabad. Purdum Wali, from Mastuj, Chitral, was awarded a cash prize of PKR 200,000. Another FMFB client, Sirajuddin from ...
Healthy Hints Don't be misled by the lack of red traffic lights. You need to consider how you eat a food, what you eat it with, and how much you have. Experiment with whole grain flour, less sugar and shallow frying instead of deep frying. 150 ml water 25 g coconut cream 300 g plain flour 6 tbsp sugar ¾ tsp ...
On November 18, 1957, the citizens of Pemba, an island forming part of the Zanzibar archipelago (see map below), honoured the 49th Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims, His Highness the Aga Khan, during his one day visit to the Island. On that historic occasion, Sheikh Sir Said bin Ali al-Mugheri presented to him a casket, bearing the words: "THESE ...
ADAPTED FROM A RESEARCH PAPER By Ali Mohammad Rajput Persian text of the letters exchanged between Sultan Malik Shah and dai Hasan-i-Sabbah in a 1962 work. Link to PDF file provided below. Photo: A.M. Rajput archives Introduction: It is reported that an exchange of letters took place between the Seljuk Sultan, Malik Shah, who ruled from 1072-1092, and Hasan-i-Sabbah. The texts ...
United Kingdom -- The Ismaili Community Ensemble in the United Kingdom recently collaborated with musicians from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Pandemonium and Morley Chamber Choir to present a cornucopia of beautiful music evoking the heritage of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions. Learning how to play the Pakistani Rubab. Naveed Osman On 29 January at Cadogan Hall, Councillor Richard Barnes, the ...
Champion Zarkava gave birth to a bay foal. ZARKAVA foaled a bay colt by SEA THE STARS on Friday 11th February at the Aga Khan's Haras de Bonneval. Georges Rimaud, French manager of the Aga Khan Studs reported: "he is a strong colt who looks like his sire and is very correct. It was a straight forward foaling and both the ...
By Omid Safi (Special to Simerg) As we celebrate the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, it is good to reflect on the ways in which various memories of Muhammad have continued to reverberate through Islamic society. One of the loveliest has been through a distinctly Turkish tradition called Mevlud (also spelled as Mevlut) which recalls and celebrates the birth of the ...
By Hatim Mahamid ABSTRACT This paper will discuss the mutual influence between politics and the Isma'ili da'wa, particularly after the establishment of the Fatimid government in Egypt. Some questions arise at this point, such as: (1) 'what were the circumstances that influenced the developments in the role of the da'wa?' and (2) 'had the office of da'i undergone a process of ...
