VIDEO: A Legacy of Learning - Episode 3
Mawlana Hazar Imam's constant emphasis on lifelong learning serves both as the benchmark and hallmark of Islam's value to continue to invest in and share knowledge with others. ...
Part 21 -- Self-control; Patience; Chastity and Voluptuousness -- Maxims of Ali
GOOGLE.COM -- It is up to you to show patience in misfortune and distress. ~~ Affliction is easily borne by one who knows how to be patient. ~~ Bear sorrows and calamities patiently otherwise you will never be happy. ~~ Acquire patience and endurance, because their relation with true faith is that of a head to a body; a body is of no use without a head, similarly true faith can be of no use without attributes of resignation, endurance and patience. ~~ Chastity is a strong fortress. ~~ Joy begins voluptuousness, but ruin ends it. ~~ Shun even the baseness that would bring you to your heart's desire. ~~ Beware of too strong a passion for women, and be not greedy of pleasure. In the first case you are ...
VIDEO: We serve the Jamat
In celebration of International Volunteer Day, The Ismaili is pleased to present "We serve the Jamat," performed in Farsi by Najib Shirzad and volunteers from the Jamat in Afghanistan. The song depicts the humility and commitment of volunteers who ensure the wellbeing of the entire community, year after year. ...
VIDEO: INSPIRE Book Review - TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE
Tuesdays with Morrie is a magical chronicle of the time spent together by Mitch Albom and Morrie Schwartz, his college professor from nearly twenty years ago. Mitch rediscovered Morrie in the last months of the older man's life. Knowing he was dying of ALS - or motor neurone disease - Mitch visited Morrie in his study every Tuesday, just as they used to ...
VIDEO: We are IVC
Released to coincide with International Volunteer Day, "We are IVC" honours the Ismaili Volunteer Corps and others who continue a long-standing tradition by offering tireless and dedicated service to the Jamat and beyond. ...
Volunteering: A cherished tradition of service
Global -- The long-standing tradition of giving of one's time and resources has been a significant aspect of the worldwide Jamat. On the occasion of International Volunteer Day, we explore the notion of voluntary service and the impact it has had in community building and enhancing quality of life. In his literary masterpiece The Prophet, the renowned author and poet Kahlil ...
Fostering Pluralism - Chief Scouts Day Virtual Celebration
UAE -- "A pluralist, cosmopolitan society is a society which not only accepts difference, but actively seeks to understand it and to learn from it. In this perspective, diversity is not a burden to be endured, but an opportunity to be welcomed." - HH The Aga Khan at Harvard University, Cambridge, USA, 12th November 2015. Besides the global pandemic, this year ...
VIDEO: Happy Hearts, Happy Soul - Episode 2
Mawlana Hazar Imam loves sports and encourages us to live a healthy and balanced life. Our overall health allows the preservation of our personal dignity and the ability to fulfill our responsibility towards each other through communal growth, leading to positive mental and spiritual health. ...
Zaynah Bhanji Wins Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award
"Every year, we have a challenge: to select just 100 women to receive our Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards. These are women who personify what it means to be ...
11 Fascinating Facts About the Swahili Language
THECULTURETRIP.COM -- With an estimated 50 to 100 million Swahili speakers worldwide, it's time to broaden the scope - there's more to it than Hakuna Matata - and dive deeper into this relatively unknown East African language. Here are 11 interesting facts on Swahili. It's a rich mix of languages. It has roots in Arabic. It developed as a coastal trading language. It is spoken ...
Leading UX designer explores future of the field
Global -- The field of User Experience (UX) has grown rapidly over recent years, due to the proliferation of electronic devices, software apps, games, and productivity tools. We take a look into the world of UX and some of the career opportunities that may exist within it. Careers of the Future is a new original series airing exclusively on The Ismaili ...
11-year-old Muskan Jiwa of Edmonton, Canada wins national spelling bee championship
Muskan Jiwa might be too young to drink espresso, but knowing how to spell the word helped her win a national spelling bee. Jiwa, a Grade 7 student at Edmonton's Dr. ...
Schools2030: One Design Process. 10 Countries. 1,000 Schools. Endless Opportunity
By Gray Garmon and Katie Krummeck Source: The University of Texas at Austin (School of Design and Creative Technologies) College of Fine Arts In the fall of 2019, the Aga Khan ...
VIDEO: Aga Khan Agency for Habitat wins World Habitat Awards Gold Award
Today the Aga Khan Agency for Habitat, Pakistan AKAH won the World Habitat Awards 2020 Gold Award for its work helping vulnerable communities in Pakistan manage disaster risk and plan for a better future, using hazard vulnerability and risk assessments. Combining the latest scientific insights with the power of a community that is prepared, AKAH has helped set up plans for nearly ...
Aga Khan Agency for Habitat wins World Habitat Awards Gold Award
Islamabad, Pakistan, 3 December 2020 - The Aga Khan Agency for Habitat (AKAH) won the World Habitat Awards 2020 Gold Award today for its "Integrating Indigenous Knowledge and Technology for Safer Habitat" project. In the winning project, AKAH pioneered the use of Hazard Vulnerability and Risk Assessments (HVRAs), which integrate science, technology and local knowledge for disaster risk management and sustainable ...
Simerg invites (1) Ismaili artists to provide submissions/updates for revised edition of its compendium; and (2) Ismaili authors to submit synopsis of their books for listing on the website
By MALIK MERCHANTPublisher-Editor, Simerg,Barakah and Simergphotos Talented Ismaili Artists The Golden and Diamond Jubilees of Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, revealed and showcased the amazing talent of the artists in the Ismaili community. Hundreds of young children and youth as well as elderly members of the Jamat participated in locally held programs during the Golden Jubilee. Ten years ...
Why Are so Many Young People Unhappy?
YOUTUBE.COM -- PRAGERU -- [ISMAILI DIGEST ED: Hazar Imam, 1967: I believe, thinking people both in Europe and America are asking: Where is this all prosperity leading us? Are we any happier? ... There has been a fundamental challenge to the traditional and in this case, mainly Christian religious values.] ARTICLE: People have more money, better health, better housing, more education, and live longer than at any time in history, but people -- especially the young -- are unhappier than at any time since data began to be collected. Why? There are any number of reasons but the biggest is the loss of values and meaning. And nothing has given people as much meaning as religion. In the West, God and religion have been relegated to the dustbin of history. The result is that more than a third of Americans born after 1980 affiliate with no religion. This is unprecedented in American history. And it's even worse in Europe. Yet a 2016 study found ...
Benefícios da leitura
Portugal -- Desde fomentar a inteligência a prolongar a esperança média de vida, a leitura só traz benefícios. Saiba mais. English Previne doenças Correr e ir ao ginásio são atividades físicas "na moda", porque o exercício fortalece o corpo e promove o bem-estar. Mas, por mais variado que seja o treino, nem todos os músculos são trabalhados. Para garantir que nada ...
Whatever you do in life ...
AZQUOTES.COM -- "Whatever you do in life, surround yourself with smart people who'll argue with you." -- John Wooden ...
Aprender em tempos de isolamento
Portugal -- Num mundo cada vez mais interligado, o inglês tornou-se a língua universal, com uma enorme importância para todos nós - dos mais jovens aos mais experientes. Os nossos seniores aderiram ao desafio e decidiram participar semanalmente em aulas de conversação, agora online. Cada vez mais é evidente que vivemos num mundo crescentemente globalizado. A comunicação tornou-se instantânea e simplificada, ...
VIDEO: INSPIRE Book Review - THE METAMORPHOSIS
With it's startling, bizarre, yet surprisingly funny first opening, Franz Kafka begins his masterpiece, The Metamorphosis. It is the story of a young man who, transformed overnight into a giant beetle-like insect, becomes an object of disgrace to his family, an outsider in his own home, a quintessentially alienated man. Reviewer : Samreen Huda Host: Salman Rajan ...
Young Ismailis volunteer at the Paris Peace Forum
Global -- The third edition of the Paris Peace Forum was held from 11 to 13 November 2020. Stakeholders from different backgrounds were brought together to discuss global challenges and promote constructive solutions. This year, young Ismaili professionals from the France jurisdiction also participated as volunteers. To minimise the risk posed by the pandemic, this year's Paris Peace Forum was held ...
VIDEO: Duende Festival 2020: Por qué/Why? with Flamenco sin Fronteras
An international ensemble of renowned flamenco artists put the tradition's versatility and resilience to the test in a new performance for the Aga Khan Museum's Duende Festival. Spanish flamenco luminaries Emilio Ochando (dance) and Miriam Mendez (piano) along with Toronto pioneer Carmen Romero present a preview of their latest work-in-progress. Por qué?/Why? is an interrogation of the creative process in the COVID-19 era. ...
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo severely scolded by US Supreme Court over places of worship COVID rules
YOUTUBE.COM -- BLAZETV -- In a world where the mainstream media worships New York Governor Andrew Cuomo despite his horrific COVID-19 failings in his state, it's nice to see a little common sense prevail. Stu examines the recent Supreme Court ruling against Gov. Cuomo and his disgust for religious groups. ...
The Key to Unhappiness
YOUTUBE.COM -- PRAGERU -- How many times have you heard someone say they want to make a better world? It is a noble sentiment, but very hard to achieve, right? Well, actually, it's quite easy. All we have to do is increase just one human trait. This trait is so powerful that it alone can make people happier without working on their happiness, and make them better - and by "better," I mean more generous, more honest, more kind, more everything good - without a single lesson in morality. So, then, what is this one almost magical thing? Drumroll, please. It's ...
TKN Volunteers in Pakistan - A Catalyst for Economic Upliftment
TKN -- The path towards initiating and sustaining your own business can be a daunting mountain to climb and often many individuals, even if they possess good business ideas, refrain from treading this path. To support the spirit of new entrepreneurs and promote business ownership within the Ismaili Jamat in Pakistan, one initiative that has become prominent is the 'Business Opportunity ...
VIDEO: Quote of the week
Stephen Ogden Lecture by His Highness the Aga Khan at Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA, 10 March 2014. Read full speech: ...
Jamatkhanas Reopening
Mozambique -- It is with the greatest happiness and shukrana that the Jamati Institutions announce the reopening of Jamatkhana using a gradual and carefully considered approach. As part of the reopening, protocols have been developed for all areas of Jamatkhana operations and practices that are anchored in the principles of physical distancing, personal hygiene, and personal responsibility-- keeping in mind our ...
Poem "In Mawlana Hazar Imam's Eyes" with a Digital Portrait Launches Our New Series on Historic Days in the Life of His Highness the Aga Khan
Introduced by MALIK MERCHANTPublisher/Editor Barakah, Simergphotos, and SimergHis Highness the Aga Khan. Photo: © Ulstein Bild, Getty Images, 1960. When Barakah was launched four years ago, it was intended primarily as a commemoration of Mawlana Hazar Imam's Diamond Jubilee. Barakah included tributes in the form of photographs, eyewitness accounts, descriptive essays, in-depth articles, insightful interviews, detailed timelines, as well as audio ...
The Necessity of Chivalry by C.S. Lewis
YOUTUBE.COM -- CSLEWISDOODLE -- [ISMAILI DIGEST ED: Hazrat Ali: "A good man revolts against violence, but shows himself mild and reasonable if well treated."] ARTICLE: The word chivalry has meant at different times a good many different things -- from heavy cavalry to giving a woman a seat in a train. But if we want to understand chivalry, we cannot do better than turn to the words addressed to the greatest of all the imaginary knights. "Thou were the meekest man that ever ate in hall among ladies; and thou were the sternest knight to thy mortal foe that ever put spear in the rest", says Sir Ector to the dead Launcelot. The important thing about this ideal is, of course, the double demand it makes on human nature. He is not a compromise or happy mean between ferocity and meekness; he is fierce to the nth and meek to the nth. What, you may ask, is the relevance of this idea to the modern world? It is terribly relevant. It may or may not be ...
VIDEO: Global Affairs Canada: Feminist Foreign Policy Dialogue - Global Centre for Pluralism Submission
The Government of Canada is developing a White Paper to articulate its feminist foreign policy. Global Affairs Canada asked civil society: What does a feminist approach to foreign policy mean to you? What actions can Canada take in the next two years to implement its feminist foreign policy? Here is the response from Meredith Preston McGhie, Secretary General of the Global Centre ...
Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq: "From amongst us shall be the one over whose head the sun shall come down, and then rise from the place where it sets"
Pachham deesaa hoi chadde aakaashaa, Jaai dekhyaa agam tamaashaa.64 The skies in the West glow And one witnesses a unique and unparalleled show of Light - Nur. (Brahm Prakash v. 64) The mysterious illumination of the western heavens is held to be a symbolic rendition of a spiritual experience. The 150-verse Brahm Prakash composed by Pir Shams relates the gnostic ascent ...
VIDEO: Curator's Pick: A Forest of Tales with Dr. Filiz Çakır Phillip
A lion, a deer, a hero, a dragon, a phoenix, and a cheeky monkey or two -- can you spot these characters in the Museum's Dr. Filiz Çakır Phillip's latest Curator's Pick for the #MuseumWithoutWalls? The drawing, depicting a lively scene in a dense, wildlife-filled forest, was created in Iran in the early 15th century. It tells a tale that harkens back ...
VIDEO: Huston Smith -- Psychology of Religious Experience, Thinking Allowed w/ Jeffrey Mishlove
One of the most widely read writers in the field of philosophy and religion, Huston Smith's classic book The Religions of Man has sold over two million copies. In this stimulating program Dr. Smith discusses the relation between psychedelic experience and religious practice, the god within and the cultivation of psychic experiences within religious and shamanic traditions. ...
VIDEO: Akeel Bilgrami -- The Shadow of Terror on Distant Muslims
Paper presented at the AKU-ISMC conference "The Construction of Belief: Reflections on the Thought of Mohammed Arkoun". Akeel Bilgrami is a Professor of Philosophy at Columbia University. He is a founding member of the Committee on Global Thought. His book of selected essays on the moral psychology of politics entitled Secularism, Identity, and Enchantment was published by Harvard University Press. ...
The Information Enigma: Where does information come from?
YOUTUBE.COM -- DISCOVERY SCIENCE -- Information drives the development of life. But what is the source of that information? Could it have been produced by an unguided Darwinian process? Or did it require intelligent design? The Information Enigma is a fascinating 21-minute documentary that probes the mystery of biological information, the challenge it poses to orthodox Darwinian theory, and the reason it points to intelligent design. The video features Dr. Stephen Meyer, and molecular biologist Douglas Axe, founder of the Biologic Institute. ...
Building connections through connectivity
Global -- Over the course of the Covid-19 pandemic, many in the Ismaili community, and indeed, the global community, have collectively strived to achieve a sense of optimism towards the future, propelled by the value we place on human connection. "The right to hope is the most powerful human motivation I know," said Mawlana Hazar Imam in a speech at Brown ...
