What is the authority of H H the Aga Khan, the Imam of Isnaili Muslims, where does it come from, and how is it excercised. New article
Link http://www.ismaili.net/html/modules.php ... pic&t=9224
Imam and Imamat
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swamidada_1
- Posts: 239
- Joined: Sun Nov 18, 2018 9:21 pm
mahebubchatur wrote:What is the authority of H H the Aga Khan, the Imam of Isnaili Muslims, where does it come from, and how is it excercised. New article
Link http://www.ismaili.net/html/modules.php ... pic&t=9224
I agree with the following 3 paragraphs written by Mahebub Chatur on the topic of Imamat. It is true Imam is Noor of Allah, Mazhar of Allah, Hujjat of Allah, he is true guide, he is intercessor, he is trustee, he is door to Allah (Baabullah), he is shaheed (witness), that's why he is called 'Ainullah.
"Authority is a right which comes from a position of leadership. Leadership is much more that giving orders and enforcing them. The Aga Khan is first and foremost a religious Leader, an Imam , guiding over 15 million Ismaili Muslims worldwide. This guidance is called Farmans . His authority and position are derived from the Quran, which has come from Allah (God), through Prophet Mohammed. The first Ismaili Imam, was appointed by Prophet Mohammed with authority to continue the interpretation, and teaching of the Quran. This is a divinely ordained mandate, to light the way for all those who seek, called believers or murids. To the Imam they are all his beloved spiritual children".
"Imam is therefore an inheritor, intercessor & trustee, to continue the interpretations (Tawil), and teaching (Talim), of the Qur’an. This has been explained by the Imam, in the Ismaili constitution, and in many Farmans.
"There is a difference between Divinity and Divine or divinely ordained authority. IMAMS DO NOT CLAIM DIVINITY. PROPHET MUHAMMAD NEVER CLAIMED DIVINITY. According to Ismaili Muslims, Prophet Mohammed passed on authority, by appointing Imam Ali, as the inheritor and a successor. Imam’s guidance is for all who seek, and submit to his guidance".
Imam means many things to many people but as Imam himself has said, he is Pir to the one who consider him as Pir, he is a friend to one who consider him a friend etc.. All this has been discussed in the Imamat thread as well as in the Ali Allah thread.swamidada wrote:I agree with the following 3 paragraphs written by Mahebub Chatur on the topic of Imamat.
From the article of Mumtaz Ali Tajddin published in 2000 - "Divine Light of Ali - In all Imams"
“You should be rest assured that the Light (noor) of Murtza Ali is in me, present and apparent before you. We put on the (bodily) dress (jama) and put off in the world, but our One Light (noor) is descended since eternity, therefore, you must see One Light (in different bodies). There was One Light (noor) of Ali in Aga Ali Shah and my grandfather, even in their forefathers, and that very Light (noor) is descended in me. I am their heir apparent. The Light (noor) is present and apparent all the times, only the names are different. The Throne (gadi) of Mawla Murtza Ali is present and will remain till the Judgment Day. You jamat have no reason to deject in any way. I am present before you. There is no difference between me and them (only) the bodies have to change, therefore, the true believers must comprehend the foregoing point.” (Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah (Bombay, 8th September, 1885)
“You should be rest assured that the Light (noor) of Murtza Ali is in me, present and apparent before you. We put on the (bodily) dress (jama) and put off in the world, but our One Light (noor) is descended since eternity, therefore, you must see One Light (in different bodies). There was One Light (noor) of Ali in Aga Ali Shah and my grandfather, even in their forefathers, and that very Light (noor) is descended in me. I am their heir apparent. The Light (noor) is present and apparent all the times, only the names are different. The Throne (gadi) of Mawla Murtza Ali is present and will remain till the Judgment Day. You jamat have no reason to deject in any way. I am present before you. There is no difference between me and them (only) the bodies have to change, therefore, the true believers must comprehend the foregoing point.” (Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah (Bombay, 8th September, 1885)
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swamidada_1
- Posts: 239
- Joined: Sun Nov 18, 2018 9:21 pm
Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah became Imam on August 17, 1885 on Monday at age of 8 years. Two weeks after coronation, Imam gave Dedaar to Indian jamaits in Mumbai darkhana and made the following Farman on September 1, 1885. It is a lengthy Farman but I shall quote the portions of Farman related to subject of Imam and Noor e Imamat.
MSMS said," Jamaits, do not consider me small, I am the decendant of Prophet and my grand father is Hazrat Amirul Mu'mineen and my grand mother is Khatoon e Janat Hazrat Bibi Fatimah. I am the Noor of both Hazrat Ali and the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Though young in age I am exalted.
Hazrat Imam Zainul Abideen was also young in age, but had the same power and learning as Murtaza Ali. My Noor continues on from there and verily Noor of Ali ever remains in the world.
Apparently we have adopted DARVESHI but have got reverence from the court of Khudavand Ta'allah because we are Ahl e Bait, progeny of the Prophet.
You should differentiate between Truth and false, Insha Allah those who recognize us are like precious valuable jewels, follow the course of honesty and truthfulness (to recognize Imam of time).
MSMS said," Jamaits, do not consider me small, I am the decendant of Prophet and my grand father is Hazrat Amirul Mu'mineen and my grand mother is Khatoon e Janat Hazrat Bibi Fatimah. I am the Noor of both Hazrat Ali and the Holy Prophet Muhammad. Though young in age I am exalted.
Hazrat Imam Zainul Abideen was also young in age, but had the same power and learning as Murtaza Ali. My Noor continues on from there and verily Noor of Ali ever remains in the world.
Apparently we have adopted DARVESHI but have got reverence from the court of Khudavand Ta'allah because we are Ahl e Bait, progeny of the Prophet.
You should differentiate between Truth and false, Insha Allah those who recognize us are like precious valuable jewels, follow the course of honesty and truthfulness (to recognize Imam of time).
Manifestation and Concealment: Revival and Survival in Ismailism
Daryoush Mohammad Poor
D. Mohammad Poor
Ismailism begins its history, almost immediately with the experience of concealment (satr), which was interconnected with the inaccessibility of Ismaili Imams beginning with Muḥammad b. Ismāʿīl b. Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq , who came to be known as Muḥammad al-Maktūm (the hidden). This period of concealment is also marked by the belief of early Ismailis in Muḥammad b. Ismāʿīl being the seventh enunciator and the qāʾim. This period comes to an end when the Fatimids rise to power and ʿAbd Allāh al-Mahdī (ʿUbayd Allāh, in non-Ismaili sources) (d. 322/934) establishes the Fatimid dynasty in North Africa as the first Fatimid Imam-Caliph. The notion of qāʾim is also, as a consequence, revised to accommodate the shift from the early doctrine of messianic beliefs to one that can incorporate the founding of an Ismaili state.
The Nizārī-Mustaʿlian split at the time of al-Mustanṣir (d. 487/1094), the eight Fatimid caliph, marks the beginning of another period of concealment with the same implication of the physical inaccessibility of the Imam, which lasts from the death of Nizār (d. 488/1095) until the death of Muḥammad b. Buzurg Umīd (d. 557/1162), the third ruler of Alamut, when his successor Ḥasan II (d. 561/1166) claims decent from Nizār but also claims shortly after to be the qāʾim. It is here that concealment and manifestation transmute fully into a doctrine which specifically deals with the religious law (sharīʿat) and its esoteric meaning (qiyāmat). While in earlier periods (and even later on) concealment often related to the physical accessibility of the Imam (not occultation unlike the Imamī tradition), this time concealment specifically referred to the period of the domination of religious laws and rituals. Manifestation, or be more precise the cycle of manifestation, referred to the era when under certain conditions, religious laws would be lifted.
The multiple meanings of satr and kashf, all of which were interconnected with how the doctrine of imamate was understood by Ismailis of different periods, reflect the dynamics of how authority was articulated and exercised in the Ismaili community. This paper will address how these multiple meanings are often invoked, interpreted and reinterpreted to accommodate socio-political and doctrinal changes in the Ismaili community. The paper will draw on the works of Sijistānī, Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān, Nāṣir-i Khusraw and Naṣīr al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī and a few unpublished fragments of manuscripts from the Alamut period of Ismaili history.
Location: Denver, MESA 2015
Event Date: Nov 23, 2015
Conference End Date: Nov 25, 2015
Conference Start Date: Nov 21, 2015
The entire paper can be accessed at:
https://www.academia.edu/19903957/Manif ... view-paper
Daryoush Mohammad Poor
D. Mohammad Poor
Ismailism begins its history, almost immediately with the experience of concealment (satr), which was interconnected with the inaccessibility of Ismaili Imams beginning with Muḥammad b. Ismāʿīl b. Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq , who came to be known as Muḥammad al-Maktūm (the hidden). This period of concealment is also marked by the belief of early Ismailis in Muḥammad b. Ismāʿīl being the seventh enunciator and the qāʾim. This period comes to an end when the Fatimids rise to power and ʿAbd Allāh al-Mahdī (ʿUbayd Allāh, in non-Ismaili sources) (d. 322/934) establishes the Fatimid dynasty in North Africa as the first Fatimid Imam-Caliph. The notion of qāʾim is also, as a consequence, revised to accommodate the shift from the early doctrine of messianic beliefs to one that can incorporate the founding of an Ismaili state.
The Nizārī-Mustaʿlian split at the time of al-Mustanṣir (d. 487/1094), the eight Fatimid caliph, marks the beginning of another period of concealment with the same implication of the physical inaccessibility of the Imam, which lasts from the death of Nizār (d. 488/1095) until the death of Muḥammad b. Buzurg Umīd (d. 557/1162), the third ruler of Alamut, when his successor Ḥasan II (d. 561/1166) claims decent from Nizār but also claims shortly after to be the qāʾim. It is here that concealment and manifestation transmute fully into a doctrine which specifically deals with the religious law (sharīʿat) and its esoteric meaning (qiyāmat). While in earlier periods (and even later on) concealment often related to the physical accessibility of the Imam (not occultation unlike the Imamī tradition), this time concealment specifically referred to the period of the domination of religious laws and rituals. Manifestation, or be more precise the cycle of manifestation, referred to the era when under certain conditions, religious laws would be lifted.
The multiple meanings of satr and kashf, all of which were interconnected with how the doctrine of imamate was understood by Ismailis of different periods, reflect the dynamics of how authority was articulated and exercised in the Ismaili community. This paper will address how these multiple meanings are often invoked, interpreted and reinterpreted to accommodate socio-political and doctrinal changes in the Ismaili community. The paper will draw on the works of Sijistānī, Qāḍī al-Nuʿmān, Nāṣir-i Khusraw and Naṣīr al-Dīn al-Ṭūsī and a few unpublished fragments of manuscripts from the Alamut period of Ismaili history.
Location: Denver, MESA 2015
Event Date: Nov 23, 2015
Conference End Date: Nov 25, 2015
Conference Start Date: Nov 21, 2015
The entire paper can be accessed at:
https://www.academia.edu/19903957/Manif ... view-paper
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mahebubchatur
- Posts: 735
- Joined: Mon Jan 13, 2014 7:01 pm
Imam's mission is on 3 levels
The Imam must direct Ismailis on the practice of their religion and constantly interpret the Qur’an for them according to our theology. On the spiritual plane, the Imam’s authority is absolute. Ismaili Muslims believe therefore that what the Imam says is the true interpretation (of the Quran) possible.
Mawlana Hazar Imam
L’Expansion Interview, Roger Priouret (Paris, France), March 1975
You see, my mission is situated on three levels. Firstly, religious: it concerns a symbolic exegesis of the Qur’an: interpreting the Divine Word, the adapting the needs of each community to the time; refashioning the law, constantly and relentlessly. Wherever one finds an Ismaili community, there exists a commission of theologians that engages in this research. But nothing is decided without me…. Our religion is esoteric, you understand. It is a perpetual initiation.
Mawlana Hazar Imam (Translation)
Jeune Afrique Interview (1st), Anne Loesch (Paris, France), 15 October 1967
ismailignosis.com/2018/04/02/how-the-ismaili-imam-teaches-the-esoteric-interpretation-tawil-of-the-holy-quran/
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Note from Admin: This interview in its original format is already since 1993 on http://www.ismaili.net/intervue/i671015.html
Mawlana Hazar Imam
L’Expansion Interview, Roger Priouret (Paris, France), March 1975
You see, my mission is situated on three levels. Firstly, religious: it concerns a symbolic exegesis of the Qur’an: interpreting the Divine Word, the adapting the needs of each community to the time; refashioning the law, constantly and relentlessly. Wherever one finds an Ismaili community, there exists a commission of theologians that engages in this research. But nothing is decided without me…. Our religion is esoteric, you understand. It is a perpetual initiation.
Mawlana Hazar Imam (Translation)
Jeune Afrique Interview (1st), Anne Loesch (Paris, France), 15 October 1967
ismailignosis.com/2018/04/02/how-the-ismaili-imam-teaches-the-esoteric-interpretation-tawil-of-the-holy-quran/
-------------
Note from Admin: This interview in its original format is already since 1993 on http://www.ismaili.net/intervue/i671015.html
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mahebubchatur
- Posts: 735
- Joined: Mon Jan 13, 2014 7:01 pm
Beautiful chart of the genealogy of Mowlana Shah Karim Aga Khan IV in direct descent of Hazrat Ali with the line of Imams.
The chart contains dates for each Imam. Please note that I have not verified the date. The chart is desgned by Pyarali Jiwa. It is a handy tool to go through Ismaili Imam's historical dates.
The larger version is on this link:
http://ismaili.net/source/charts/imamat-chart.pdf
The chart contains dates for each Imam. Please note that I have not verified the date. The chart is desgned by Pyarali Jiwa. It is a handy tool to go through Ismaili Imam's historical dates.
The larger version is on this link:
http://ismaili.net/source/charts/imamat-chart.pdf
Rehmat Ni Varsha - A Shower of Blessings (With Lyrics & Translations
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSDCKHP ... e=youtu.be
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSDCKHP ... e=youtu.be
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ismaili103
- Posts: 542
- Joined: Wed Mar 20, 2013 1:40 am
It is narrated through Ammar-e Yasir, Jabir bin Abdullah, Malik-e Ashtar and Miqdad Aswad al Kindi (r.a), that when Imam Ali [a.s] was proceeding towards Shaam [for the battle at Siffin], he stopped and turned his horse away from the direction of Shaam and looked around for quite some time and then proceeded in one direction [away from Shaam]. His companions were astonished at this and asked him the reason for the change of direction.
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "I see what you are unable to see, for the hidden [Ghaib] is screened from your eyes. There is a monastry in this forest in which a Christian Monk is waiting with the sword tied around his waist and is ready to blow the trumpet. I want to break his sword and shatter his trumpet to pieces. If you are with me then follow me".
He, along with his companions then proceeded to the place where they found the monastry and the hermit. The hermit was attracted by the luminiscent face of Imam Ali [a.s] surrounded by his companions.
The herimt asked: "O, You Fair Gentleman where are you coming from?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied : "I am coming from Madina and we are proceeding to fight a battle at Shaam"
The personality of Imam Ali [a.s] so impressed the hermit that his heart was illumined with faith.
The hermit asked: "O, you, Young man with the effulgent face are you an angel or a human being?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "I am a human being and a Guide to the jinns and leader of the angles"
The hermit said: "In the Bible I have read the name as Taab Taab. O you the Effulgent One, Is that your name?".
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Taab Taab is the name of Muhammad the Chosen One [Mustafa] [s.a.w] My name is Santiyya".
The hermit asked: "Is your name mentioned as Meet Meet in the Torah?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Meet Meet is the name of Muhammad the Chosen One [Mustafa] [s.a.w] and my name is Aeliya"
The hermit asked : "Are you the Messiah who has descended from the skies to alliviate the melancholy and sorrow of the denizens of the earth?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "No. I am not Jesus, but Jesus is one of those who adore me"
The hermit asked: "Are you Moses come down with his staff to show his miracles to mankind?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Iam not Moses but Moses is one of those who loves me"
The hermit said: "For God's sake tell me your name and your descent [geneology]"
Imam Ali [s] replied: "In every country and community I bear different names. The Arabs call me Hal `Ata and search for me in this title. The people of Tayif call me Tahmeed. Among the Meccans I am known as Babul Balad. The denizens of the skies write my name as Ahad. The Turks call me Balya and the Zangis call me Majeelan. And the Hindus call me Kishen Kishen. The Firangis call me Hami Isa. And the people of Khataya call me Bolya. I am reknowned in Iraq as Ameerun Nahl. In Khurasan I am knoewwn as Haider. In the first firmament I am known as Abdul Hameed. In the second fiermament I am known as Abdul Samad. In the third firmament I am known as Abdul Majeed. In the fourth firmamwnt I am known as Zul `Ulaa. In the fifth firmament my nanmew is Ali al `Aalaa. The Glorious Lord has made me sit upon theThrone of Authority [Musnad-e-Imaarat] and designated me as Ameerul Mominin. The Chief of the two worlds [Khwaja-e-Do-Saraa] Muhammade Mustafa [s.a.w] named me Abu Turaab. My father gave Abul Hasan as my agnomen and my mother gave the agnomen Abul `Ashar"
Reference from Book-:
('Kaukab-e-Durri',page.no 364-365)
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "I see what you are unable to see, for the hidden [Ghaib] is screened from your eyes. There is a monastry in this forest in which a Christian Monk is waiting with the sword tied around his waist and is ready to blow the trumpet. I want to break his sword and shatter his trumpet to pieces. If you are with me then follow me".
He, along with his companions then proceeded to the place where they found the monastry and the hermit. The hermit was attracted by the luminiscent face of Imam Ali [a.s] surrounded by his companions.
The herimt asked: "O, You Fair Gentleman where are you coming from?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied : "I am coming from Madina and we are proceeding to fight a battle at Shaam"
The personality of Imam Ali [a.s] so impressed the hermit that his heart was illumined with faith.
The hermit asked: "O, you, Young man with the effulgent face are you an angel or a human being?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "I am a human being and a Guide to the jinns and leader of the angles"
The hermit said: "In the Bible I have read the name as Taab Taab. O you the Effulgent One, Is that your name?".
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Taab Taab is the name of Muhammad the Chosen One [Mustafa] [s.a.w] My name is Santiyya".
The hermit asked: "Is your name mentioned as Meet Meet in the Torah?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Meet Meet is the name of Muhammad the Chosen One [Mustafa] [s.a.w] and my name is Aeliya"
The hermit asked : "Are you the Messiah who has descended from the skies to alliviate the melancholy and sorrow of the denizens of the earth?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "No. I am not Jesus, but Jesus is one of those who adore me"
The hermit asked: "Are you Moses come down with his staff to show his miracles to mankind?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Iam not Moses but Moses is one of those who loves me"
The hermit said: "For God's sake tell me your name and your descent [geneology]"
Imam Ali [s] replied: "In every country and community I bear different names. The Arabs call me Hal `Ata and search for me in this title. The people of Tayif call me Tahmeed. Among the Meccans I am known as Babul Balad. The denizens of the skies write my name as Ahad. The Turks call me Balya and the Zangis call me Majeelan. And the Hindus call me Kishen Kishen. The Firangis call me Hami Isa. And the people of Khataya call me Bolya. I am reknowned in Iraq as Ameerun Nahl. In Khurasan I am knoewwn as Haider. In the first firmament I am known as Abdul Hameed. In the second fiermament I am known as Abdul Samad. In the third firmament I am known as Abdul Majeed. In the fourth firmamwnt I am known as Zul `Ulaa. In the fifth firmament my nanmew is Ali al `Aalaa. The Glorious Lord has made me sit upon theThrone of Authority [Musnad-e-Imaarat] and designated me as Ameerul Mominin. The Chief of the two worlds [Khwaja-e-Do-Saraa] Muhammade Mustafa [s.a.w] named me Abu Turaab. My father gave Abul Hasan as my agnomen and my mother gave the agnomen Abul `Ashar"
Reference from Book-:
('Kaukab-e-Durri',page.no 364-365)
I own a copy of the famous book KAUKAB DURRI, no where on pages 364/365 the story you mentioned is narrated. Please double check your source.ismaili103 wrote:It is narrated through Ammar-e Yasir, Jabir bin Abdullah, Malik-e Ashtar and Miqdad Aswad al Kindi (r.a), that when Imam Ali [a.s] was proceeding towards Shaam [for the battle at Siffin], he stopped and turned his horse away from the direction of Shaam and looked around for quite some time and then proceeded in one direction [away from Shaam]. His companions were astonished at this and asked him the reason for the change of direction.
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "I see what you are unable to see, for the hidden [Ghaib] is screened from your eyes. There is a monastry in this forest in which a Christian Monk is waiting with the sword tied around his waist and is ready to blow the trumpet. I want to break his sword and shatter his trumpet to pieces. If you are with me then follow me".
He, along with his companions then proceeded to the place where they found the monastry and the hermit. The hermit was attracted by the luminiscent face of Imam Ali [a.s] surrounded by his companions.
The herimt asked: "O, You Fair Gentleman where are you coming from?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied : "I am coming from Madina and we are proceeding to fight a battle at Shaam"
The personality of Imam Ali [a.s] so impressed the hermit that his heart was illumined with faith.
The hermit asked: "O, you, Young man with the effulgent face are you an angel or a human being?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "I am a human being and a Guide to the jinns and leader of the angles"
The hermit said: "In the Bible I have read the name as Taab Taab. O you the Effulgent One, Is that your name?".
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Taab Taab is the name of Muhammad the Chosen One [Mustafa] [s.a.w] My name is Santiyya".
The hermit asked: "Is your name mentioned as Meet Meet in the Torah?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Meet Meet is the name of Muhammad the Chosen One [Mustafa] [s.a.w] and my name is Aeliya"
The hermit asked : "Are you the Messiah who has descended from the skies to alliviate the melancholy and sorrow of the denizens of the earth?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "No. I am not Jesus, but Jesus is one of those who adore me"
The hermit asked: "Are you Moses come down with his staff to show his miracles to mankind?"
Imam Ali [a.s] replied: "Iam not Moses but Moses is one of those who loves me"
The hermit said: "For God's sake tell me your name and your descent [geneology]"
Imam Ali [s] replied: "In every country and community I bear different names. The Arabs call me Hal `Ata and search for me in this title. The people of Tayif call me Tahmeed. Among the Meccans I am known as Babul Balad. The denizens of the skies write my name as Ahad. The Turks call me Balya and the Zangis call me Majeelan. And the Hindus call me Kishen Kishen. The Firangis call me Hami Isa. And the people of Khataya call me Bolya. I am reknowned in Iraq as Ameerun Nahl. In Khurasan I am knoewwn as Haider. In the first firmament I am known as Abdul Hameed. In the second fiermament I am known as Abdul Samad. In the third firmament I am known as Abdul Majeed. In the fourth firmamwnt I am known as Zul `Ulaa. In the fifth firmament my nanmew is Ali al `Aalaa. The Glorious Lord has made me sit upon theThrone of Authority [Musnad-e-Imaarat] and designated me as Ameerul Mominin. The Chief of the two worlds [Khwaja-e-Do-Saraa] Muhammade Mustafa [s.a.w] named me Abu Turaab. My father gave Abul Hasan as my agnomen and my mother gave the agnomen Abul `Ashar"
Reference from Book-:
('Kaukab-e-Durri',page.no 364-365)
In the following passage, you wrote," In the first firmament I am known as Abdul Hameed. In the second fiermament I am known as Abdul Samad. In the third firmament I am known as Abdul Majeed. In the fourth firmamwnt I am known as Zul `Ulaa. In the fifth firmament my nanmew is Ali al `Aalaa. The Glorious Lord has made me sit upon theThrone of Authority [Musnad-e-Imaarat] and designated me as Ameerul Mominin. The Chief of the two worlds [Khwaja-e-Do-Saraa] Muhammade Mustafa [s.a.w] named me Abu Turaab. My father gave Abul Hasan as my agnomen and my mother gave the agnomen Abul `Ashar"
Reference from Book-: ('Kaukab-e-Durri',page.no 364-365)
You have mentioned names 'Abdul Hameed, Abdul Samad, Abdul Majeed',
Abd means slave, ghullam, servant which goes against your ideology!!
The name Hyder was given by Bibi Fatimah.
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ismaili103
- Posts: 542
- Joined: Wed Mar 20, 2013 1:40 am
It's copied from The.ismaili missionary FB page and I also have PDF of this book in Urdu in which this anecdote is mentioned on page 364. After reading this anecdote on FB, I verified it with the book I have before posting it here.
Secondly, my ideology is based on the Farmans of Hazir Imam and Ginans of Pirs.
Secondly, my ideology is based on the Farmans of Hazir Imam and Ginans of Pirs.
I would suggest that you ignore the postings of Swamidada, his all aim is to create doubt in the minds of ismailis about the legitimacy of our faith and our documents.ismaili103 wrote:It's copied from The.ismaili missionary FB page and I also have PDF of this book in Urdu in which this anecdote is mentioned on page 364. After reading this anecdote on FB, I verified it with the book I have before posting it here.
Secondly, my ideology is based on the Farmans of Hazir Imam and Ginans of Pirs.
I remember when I gave the reference of Gibbon's book on Mowlana Hakim's declaration that Mowlana Hakim was the Tenth manifestation of God on earth, he questioned my reference and I had to waste precious time going through boxes to find the book and scan a copy of the page to post for all to see that he was making ridiculous counter claims. I can see that he is doing the same with you. Just ignore him.
Thank you again for bringing this important text to the attention of all those who seek and search for the path to the truth.
WOH ALI JO:
Woh Ali jo Mowla e Kainaat hai.
Woh Ali jo Mazharul 'ajaaib hai.
Woh Ali jo Saheb e Mu'jizaat hai.
Woh Ali jo madinatul ilm hai.
Woh Ali jo Sirat e Mustaqeem hai.
Woh Ali jo amr e 'aalameen hai.
Woh Ali jo mufakar e Quran hai.
Woh Ali jo 'aalam e ilm e luduni hai.
Woh Ali jo Hadi e khalq hai.
Woh Ali jo la fata hai.
Woh Ali jo Saheb e Zulfiqar hai.
Woh Ali jo kalimatu Rahman hai.
Woh Ali jo kaleed Saheb e Hikmat hai.
Woh Ali jo Saheb e suluni hai.
Woh Ali jo Basheer wa Nazeer hai.
Woh Ali jo Imam e Awwal hai.
Woh Ali jo Amirul mu'mineen hai.
Woh Ali jo quwwat e Paigamber hai.
Woh Ali jo nafs e Rasul hai.
Woh Ali jo faateh Badar, Khaibar,khandaq wa hunnain hai.
Woh Ali jo jahnasheen Ahmad e Mursal hai.
Woh Ali jo Imam e mahshar hai.
Woh Ali jo Islam ka suttun hai.
Woh Ali jo Sidiq e Akbar hai.
Woh Ali jo Qazi e dahar hai.
Woh Ali jo Sultan e uns wa jaan hai.
Woh Ali jo Imamul mutaqeen hai.
Woh Ali jo hal e mushkilaat hai.
Woh Ali jo marji'a e ikhlaq hai.
Woh Ali jo koh e tur par Noor tha.
Woh Ali jo koh e abu 'ubaid par Massiha bana.
Woh Ali jo koh e zaitun par mu'ajiza bana.
Woh Ali jo mimbar e Ghadir par Mowla bana.
Woh Ali jo 'arshe Muneer par 'Alla bana.
Woh Ali jo kisi ka GHULLAM nahi.
Woh Ali jo subb ka MOWLA ALI hai.
Woh Ali jo Mowla e Kainaat hai.
Woh Ali jo Mazharul 'ajaaib hai.
Woh Ali jo Saheb e Mu'jizaat hai.
Woh Ali jo madinatul ilm hai.
Woh Ali jo Sirat e Mustaqeem hai.
Woh Ali jo amr e 'aalameen hai.
Woh Ali jo mufakar e Quran hai.
Woh Ali jo 'aalam e ilm e luduni hai.
Woh Ali jo Hadi e khalq hai.
Woh Ali jo la fata hai.
Woh Ali jo Saheb e Zulfiqar hai.
Woh Ali jo kalimatu Rahman hai.
Woh Ali jo kaleed Saheb e Hikmat hai.
Woh Ali jo Saheb e suluni hai.
Woh Ali jo Basheer wa Nazeer hai.
Woh Ali jo Imam e Awwal hai.
Woh Ali jo Amirul mu'mineen hai.
Woh Ali jo quwwat e Paigamber hai.
Woh Ali jo nafs e Rasul hai.
Woh Ali jo faateh Badar, Khaibar,khandaq wa hunnain hai.
Woh Ali jo jahnasheen Ahmad e Mursal hai.
Woh Ali jo Imam e mahshar hai.
Woh Ali jo Islam ka suttun hai.
Woh Ali jo Sidiq e Akbar hai.
Woh Ali jo Qazi e dahar hai.
Woh Ali jo Sultan e uns wa jaan hai.
Woh Ali jo Imamul mutaqeen hai.
Woh Ali jo hal e mushkilaat hai.
Woh Ali jo marji'a e ikhlaq hai.
Woh Ali jo koh e tur par Noor tha.
Woh Ali jo koh e abu 'ubaid par Massiha bana.
Woh Ali jo koh e zaitun par mu'ajiza bana.
Woh Ali jo mimbar e Ghadir par Mowla bana.
Woh Ali jo 'arshe Muneer par 'Alla bana.
Woh Ali jo kisi ka GHULLAM nahi.
Woh Ali jo subb ka MOWLA ALI hai.
An excerpt from the lecture by famous Islamic scholar from Pakistan Jawed Ghamadi about real Imam and Imamat: He said:
Imam is appointed by Allah as He appointed Prophets. When Allah appointed Prophets He never consulted any one. It is His Divine right to appoint any Prophet. Same way He appoints Imam without asking or consulting any one. Imams are appointed by His Divine will. Imams can not be appointed according to wishes of public, otherwise there would be chaos and many will claim to be imams, like it happens in political era. Allah ordered The Prophet to declare Ali as Imam, which he did. But many at that time ignored and criticized Prophet, they were unjust people.
Jawed Ghamadi.
Imam is appointed by Allah as He appointed Prophets. When Allah appointed Prophets He never consulted any one. It is His Divine right to appoint any Prophet. Same way He appoints Imam without asking or consulting any one. Imams are appointed by His Divine will. Imams can not be appointed according to wishes of public, otherwise there would be chaos and many will claim to be imams, like it happens in political era. Allah ordered The Prophet to declare Ali as Imam, which he did. But many at that time ignored and criticized Prophet, they were unjust people.
Jawed Ghamadi.
Contemplations on Love
One of the most powerful emotions experienced by an individual is love. We are willing to go to the ends of the earth and beyond for the love of another individual. Muslims across centuries have relied on the language of love to express love for the Divine as well as to imagine the intensity of Divine love.
In Jawhar al-Dhat, the Persian poet Farid al-Din Attar illuminates the depths of Divine love when he writes:
From each a mystic silence Love demands.
What do we all seek so earnestly? ‘Tis Love.
What do they whisper to each other? Love.
Love is the subject of their inmost thoughts.
In Love, no longer “thou” and “I” exist, for Self has passed away in the Beloved.1
Love, in this framing, emerges as an organic connection that humans share with each other, and with the Divine.
In the Shia tradition, the Ahl al-Bayt, the family of the Prophet, and the Imams, become the center of the believers’ love and devotion. Ibn Hani al-Andalusi, a court poet of the Fatimid Imam-caliph al-Muizz, emphasizes his devotion and love for the descendants of Hazrat Ali and Hazrat Bibi Fatima (a.s.), as he writes:
O Children of Fatima! Is there in our resurrection a means of protection for us, a sure refuge other than you? You are the friends of God and the friends of His people, God’s pious khalifas and proofs, ever-present on earth. You are from the people of prophecy, messengership and guidance, the pure chiefs manifest, clearly for everyone to see.2
Ibn Hani affirms the status of the descendants of Imam Ali and Bibi Fatima as the khalifas, stewards or deputies, of God on earth. His expression of love for them thus becomes an intentional act of faith.
In contemporary times too, Shia Ismaili Muslims express their love for Mawlana Hazar Imam in similar poetic forms. Isma’il Adra, a Shia Ismaili poet, beautifully articulates his love for the Imam of the Time:
O Karim! O my sovereign! You are my destination and to you I come running with a breathless heart. Come close to me in your love and presence, with that which is between your purity and mercy. Since I have made you the sovereign of my heart, increase its yearning for you who are so near to me.3
Adra yearns for the proximity of the Imam and draws upon the established Arabic poetic tradition to simultaneously express and strengthen his spiritual bond.
While Ismaili murids of the past and present have expressed love for the Imam in myriad ways, we have been blessed to experience a glimpse of the unconditional love of the Imam for us, his Jamat. In a message to the global jamat, on March 29, 2020, Hazar Imam said:
“Please convey my best paternal and my best maternal loving blessings to my worldwide Jamat, and tell them that I think of them every minute of the day, each day, and I pray for Mushkil Asan and for their peace and happiness.”4
Let us find joy and strength in this shared bond of love. May it lead us to further strengthen our spiritual bond with each other and with our Imam. Ameen.
1 Smith, Margaret. The Persian Mystics, Attar. New York: E. P. Dutton & Company, Inc. 1932. p. 93.
2 Hunzai, Faquir M. (Ed). Shimmering Light: An Anthology of Ismaili Poetry. London: IB Tauris Publishers, The Institute of Ismaili Studies. 1996. p. 25.
3 Ibid., p.136.
4 Mawlana Hazar Imam conveys blessings for the worldwide Jamat. 29 March 2020. https://the.ismaili/global/news/imamat- ... -conveys-b...
https://the.ismaili/usa/contemplations-love
One of the most powerful emotions experienced by an individual is love. We are willing to go to the ends of the earth and beyond for the love of another individual. Muslims across centuries have relied on the language of love to express love for the Divine as well as to imagine the intensity of Divine love.
In Jawhar al-Dhat, the Persian poet Farid al-Din Attar illuminates the depths of Divine love when he writes:
From each a mystic silence Love demands.
What do we all seek so earnestly? ‘Tis Love.
What do they whisper to each other? Love.
Love is the subject of their inmost thoughts.
In Love, no longer “thou” and “I” exist, for Self has passed away in the Beloved.1
Love, in this framing, emerges as an organic connection that humans share with each other, and with the Divine.
In the Shia tradition, the Ahl al-Bayt, the family of the Prophet, and the Imams, become the center of the believers’ love and devotion. Ibn Hani al-Andalusi, a court poet of the Fatimid Imam-caliph al-Muizz, emphasizes his devotion and love for the descendants of Hazrat Ali and Hazrat Bibi Fatima (a.s.), as he writes:
O Children of Fatima! Is there in our resurrection a means of protection for us, a sure refuge other than you? You are the friends of God and the friends of His people, God’s pious khalifas and proofs, ever-present on earth. You are from the people of prophecy, messengership and guidance, the pure chiefs manifest, clearly for everyone to see.2
Ibn Hani affirms the status of the descendants of Imam Ali and Bibi Fatima as the khalifas, stewards or deputies, of God on earth. His expression of love for them thus becomes an intentional act of faith.
In contemporary times too, Shia Ismaili Muslims express their love for Mawlana Hazar Imam in similar poetic forms. Isma’il Adra, a Shia Ismaili poet, beautifully articulates his love for the Imam of the Time:
O Karim! O my sovereign! You are my destination and to you I come running with a breathless heart. Come close to me in your love and presence, with that which is between your purity and mercy. Since I have made you the sovereign of my heart, increase its yearning for you who are so near to me.3
Adra yearns for the proximity of the Imam and draws upon the established Arabic poetic tradition to simultaneously express and strengthen his spiritual bond.
While Ismaili murids of the past and present have expressed love for the Imam in myriad ways, we have been blessed to experience a glimpse of the unconditional love of the Imam for us, his Jamat. In a message to the global jamat, on March 29, 2020, Hazar Imam said:
“Please convey my best paternal and my best maternal loving blessings to my worldwide Jamat, and tell them that I think of them every minute of the day, each day, and I pray for Mushkil Asan and for their peace and happiness.”4
Let us find joy and strength in this shared bond of love. May it lead us to further strengthen our spiritual bond with each other and with our Imam. Ameen.
1 Smith, Margaret. The Persian Mystics, Attar. New York: E. P. Dutton & Company, Inc. 1932. p. 93.
2 Hunzai, Faquir M. (Ed). Shimmering Light: An Anthology of Ismaili Poetry. London: IB Tauris Publishers, The Institute of Ismaili Studies. 1996. p. 25.
3 Ibid., p.136.
4 Mawlana Hazar Imam conveys blessings for the worldwide Jamat. 29 March 2020. https://the.ismaili/global/news/imamat- ... -conveys-b...
https://the.ismaili/usa/contemplations-love
A Guiding Light – The Imamat of the Shia Ismaili Muslims (Hindi)
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqjsjSS-td8
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FqjsjSS-td8
https://en.abna24.com/news//%E2%80%9Cim ... 14598.html
“Imam” has most important place in Isma’ilism: Farmanian
January 2, 2022 - 8:35 AM News Code : 1214598 Source : ABNA Link:
The Deputy for Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly said, “According to the Isma’ilism, the Imam has a very important position. They believe that everything is entrusted to the Imam.”
AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Deputy for Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly said, “According to the Isma’ilism, the Imam has a very important position. They believe that everything is entrusted to the Imam.”
By the Research Department of the University of Religions and Denominations, the first seminar “Isma’ilism in Iran; Theology, Literature and History” started on Saturday, December 25, 2021, in cyberspace and will be held every night until Thursday, December 30.
On the second night of the seminar, which is being held in the form of a webinar, Dr. Hojat al-Islam Farmanian spoke about the “Theory of Imamate in the Isma’ilism” and Dr. Mustafa Nadim about the “Isma’ilism in Fars (Province)”.
It should be said that the secretary of this seminar is Dr. Mahdi Elmi Daneshvar.
Theory of Imamate in Isma’ilism
As the first speaker on the second night of the seminar, Hojat al-Islam Dr. Mahdi Farmanian, Deputy for Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, spoke on “Theory of Imamate in the Isma’ilism”, and considered this important principle as the most central feature of the Isma’ilis.
As an introduction to his speech, he said, “To understand the theory of Imamate in Isma’ilism, it is necessary to know the “Philosophy of history in Isma’ilism”. Isma’ilism believe in a growing philosophy of history and their view is not linear. They believe that history starts from a mountain in a series of mountains next to another, goes up a slope and reaches the peak, and then goes down, and on the next mountain it goes up and down again, until finally reach the final peak in the last mountain.”
“Twelver Shia and Isma’ili Shia consider history as an uphill that culminates in the emergence of the Imam of End Time (a.s.). In Isma’ili thought, this Imam is called the “Seventh Nateq (orator)”. For them, history will reach its peak when this Nateq emerges and reveals all the unseen. According to them, since the time of the Prophet Adam (a.s.), every Nateq who has come has advanced the world one step,” continued the faculty member of the University of Religions and Denominations.
“But there is disagreement among the Isma’ilis as to who the Seventh Nateq is,” The Deputy of Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly added, “From 260 AH onwards, two views can be seen in the Isma’ilis. The first was the view of Qaramatian, who believed that Muhammad ibn Ismail was the Seventh Nateq. That is, his period was the period of the Seventh Nateq, and the period of the revelation of all unseen things had arrived. Therefore, the Bahraini Nateq no longer believed in Sharia.”
“Another view was that of the Fatimids, who believed that there were three levels in the Imamate of Muhammad ibn Ismail. The first level is the “Physical Level” and it existed during his lifetime and with his death, he hid. The three Imams after him were also hidden until Obaidullah Al-Mahdi became the fourth Imam after Muhammad ibn Ismail. The second level, the “Spiritual Level”, began with the emergence of Obaidullah al-Mahdi. During this period, these Imams showed the inside of the world to some people who were capable. The third level of Muhammad ibn Ismail is the “Level of Qaem Al-Qiama”, who is the Seventh Nateq and will appear in the distance and show the inside of the world to all people of the world. From the perspective of the Fatimids, Muhammad ibn Ismail had three levels: Physical, Spiritual, and Qaem Al-Qiama,” he continued.
“According to Isma’ilism, the Imam has a very important position. They believe that everything is entrusted to the Imam. Some hadiths that contain this type of content are also present in the thoughts of the Ghulat of the Shiites, and people such as Allameh Majlesi have also denied the validity of some of these hadiths. Like the hadith known as “Khotba Al-Bayan”,” Farmanian clarified, regarding the position of the Imamate in the eyes of the Isma’ilism.
“According to us Twelver Shiites, the Imam has three important characteristics; Infallibility, the knowledge of the unseen, and being ordained (based on scriptures). The Isma’ilis also accept the same three characteristics and attributes, but with further elaboration and description,” he continued.
The Deputy of the Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly said that the Isma’ilis consider the Imamate to be of five types:
The first type: “Imam al-Asas” (Basic Imam) means the first Imam after each prophet. For example, Imam Ali (a.s.) who was the basic Imam of the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h);
The second type: “Imam al-Mustaqar” (Established Imam) means the Imam from whose generation the Imamate continues. Like Imam Hussain (a.s.);
The third type: “Imam al-Mostada’a” means the Imam in whom the Imamate was trusted so that the next Imam will have the conditions. Such as Imam Hassan Mojtaba (a.s.), Muhammad Hanafi and Imam Musa ibn Ja'far (a.s.);
The fourth type: “Imam al-Moqim” (Residing Imam) means the last Imam of a period who trains the next prophet and establishes the Imamate in him. Like Hazrat Abu Talib (a.s.) who was the last Imam of the sixth period and established the Imamate in the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h);
The fifth type: “Imam al-Motemm” means the person with whom the Imamate ends.
“In the Ismaili books, either the hadith is narrated from the six Imams who are common with the Twelver Shiites Imams, or scientific material is found from the Ismaili elders such as Abu Ya’qub Sajestani. But not much has been narrated from the Fatimid Imams,” he noted, regarding the jurisprudential and hadith heritage of the Ismaili Imams.
“Imam Musa ibn Ja'far (a.s.) was transferred to Baghdad and imprisoned due to the malice of Muhammad ibn Ismail or his brother Ali ibn Ismail. Therefore, Muhammad ibn Ismail could not stay in Medina after that incident and traveled to Baghdad and died there. But the Isma’ilis deny that he is dead but believe that he has entered a “Hiding Period”,” said the Deputy for the Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, referring to the history of the Ismaili Imamate.
“After Imam Al-Mustansir, there was a dispute over which of his sons were Imams. Some became supporters of Nizar, and some became supporters of al-Musta’li,” Farmanian stated, referring to some disputes among the Isma’ilis.
“Musta’lawis continued to live in Egypt until Al-Amer bi-Amr Allah died. Then the Musta’lawis of Yemen believed in the Imamate of “Tayyib” and then emigrated to India. In India, they are called “Bohra”, which themselves are divided into three groups: Dawoodi, Alawite and Soleimani,” continued the faculty member of the University of Religions and Denominations.
Referring to some commonalities between the Isma’ilis and the Twelvers, the professor of the seminary and the university said, “For example, the question arises about the issue of Bada’ whether there is Bada’ in the Imamate? According to both the Twelver Shia and the Isma’ili Shiites, there is no Bada’ in the Imamate. Therefore, in the Ismaili works, there is no mention of Bada’.”
Regarding the accusation that “Ismailis do not adhere to religious rules,” he said, “Bohras (Tayyebi Isma’ilis) adhere to Sharia. They pray and fast and go on Hajj and pilgrimage of the holy shrines. But the Nizari Isma’ilis, although do not perform prayer and fasting, they mourn for Imam Hussain (a.s.).”
“The Tayyebi Isma’ilis live mostly in India. While the Nizari Isma’ilis live in different parts of the world and now the “Aga Khan IV” as the 49th Nizari Imam resides in Europe and leads the Nizari from there. The total population of Nizari in the world is estimated at fifteen to twenty million. In Iran, there are a maximum of fifty thousand Isma’ilis, all of whom are Nizari and live in Khorasan (Quhistan), Shahrbabak, Tehran and so on,” said former Deputy for Research Department at the University of Religions and Denominations, regarding the situation and population of the Ismailis.
“Mr. Shah Khalili, the former president of the Ismaili Association of Iran, wrote the book “Seven Pillars of Worship” and asked the Nizaris of Iran to pray and worship. But I do not know why he was fired. Maybe it was because of his book!” Dr. Farmanian said, referring to efforts to persuade Nizaris to follow the Sharia.
He also invited the attendees of the second night of the webinar to read old and new books for further study; Classic books such as “Ta’wil al-Da’im” by Ghazi Nu’man and “Wajh-e-Din” by Nasser Khosrow, a prominent Ismaili scholar, and contemporary books such as “Collection of Isma’ili Articles” by Scholars of the University of Religions and Denominations and “Isma’ili History and Beliefs” by Dr. Farhad Daftari.
At the end of Hojat al-Islam, Dr. Mahdi Farmanian answered a number of questions of the webinar participants.
It should be mentioned that the first seminar “Isma’ilism in Iran; Theology, Literature and History” is being held virtually at the University of Religions and Denominations, with the presence and presentation of seminary and university professors. At the end of the seminar, participants will be awarded valid certificates.
According to the Deputy Office for Research of the University of Religions and Denominations, the lecture program of the professors in this conference is as follows:
1) Saturday, December 25, 2021, 8 pm – Hojat al-Islam Dr. Hamid Reza Shariatmadari (Associate Professor, Department of Shiite Studies, University of Religions and Denominations) – Lecture Topic: Isma’ili esoteric interpretations.
2) Sunday, December 26, 2021, 8 pm – Hojat al-Islam Dr. Mahdi Farmanian (Associate Professor, Department of Islamic Denominations of the University of Religions and Religions) - Lecture topic: Theory of Imamate in the Isma’ilism
3) Sunday, December 26, 2021, 08:45 pm – Dr. Mostafa Nadim (Associate Professor, Department of History, Shiraz University) – Lecture topic: Ismailis in Fars (Province)
4) Monday, December 27, 2021, 8 pm - Dr. Sayed Ahmad Tamimdari (Professor of Literature, Allameh Tabatabai University) – Lecture topic: Isma’ili Literature
5) Tuesday, December 28, 2021, 8 pm - Dr. Fatemeh Jan Ahmadi (Professor of History, Tarbiat Modares University) – Lecture Topic: Ismaili and the Ghulat Issue
6) Wednesday, December 29, 2021, 8 pm - Dr. Mahdi Elmi Daneshvar (researcher of ancient Iranian religions and scientific secretary of the seminar) – Lecture Topic: The manifestation of religious concepts of ancient Iran in the Isma’ili theological foundations
7) Wednesday, December 29, 2021, 08:45 pm – Dr. Jahanbakhsh Sawaqeb (Professor, Department History, Lorestan University) – Lecture topic: The role of Da’awah Organization in the spread of Isma’ilism in Iran
Thursday, December 30, 2021, 8 pm – Dr. Sayed Ghani Eftekhari (Assistant Professor, Department of History, Islamic Azad University) – Lecture topic: Social-historical research and the study of the location of Ismaili forts
9) Thursday, December 30, 2021, 08:45 pm – Dr. Mostafa Beheshti Seresht (Associate Professor, Department of History, Imam Khomeini University) – Lecture Topic: Mongol Invasion and the Ismaili Movement.
“Imam” has most important place in Isma’ilism: Farmanian
January 2, 2022 - 8:35 AM News Code : 1214598 Source : ABNA Link:
The Deputy for Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly said, “According to the Isma’ilism, the Imam has a very important position. They believe that everything is entrusted to the Imam.”
AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Deputy for Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly said, “According to the Isma’ilism, the Imam has a very important position. They believe that everything is entrusted to the Imam.”
By the Research Department of the University of Religions and Denominations, the first seminar “Isma’ilism in Iran; Theology, Literature and History” started on Saturday, December 25, 2021, in cyberspace and will be held every night until Thursday, December 30.
On the second night of the seminar, which is being held in the form of a webinar, Dr. Hojat al-Islam Farmanian spoke about the “Theory of Imamate in the Isma’ilism” and Dr. Mustafa Nadim about the “Isma’ilism in Fars (Province)”.
It should be said that the secretary of this seminar is Dr. Mahdi Elmi Daneshvar.
Theory of Imamate in Isma’ilism
As the first speaker on the second night of the seminar, Hojat al-Islam Dr. Mahdi Farmanian, Deputy for Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, spoke on “Theory of Imamate in the Isma’ilism”, and considered this important principle as the most central feature of the Isma’ilis.
As an introduction to his speech, he said, “To understand the theory of Imamate in Isma’ilism, it is necessary to know the “Philosophy of history in Isma’ilism”. Isma’ilism believe in a growing philosophy of history and their view is not linear. They believe that history starts from a mountain in a series of mountains next to another, goes up a slope and reaches the peak, and then goes down, and on the next mountain it goes up and down again, until finally reach the final peak in the last mountain.”
“Twelver Shia and Isma’ili Shia consider history as an uphill that culminates in the emergence of the Imam of End Time (a.s.). In Isma’ili thought, this Imam is called the “Seventh Nateq (orator)”. For them, history will reach its peak when this Nateq emerges and reveals all the unseen. According to them, since the time of the Prophet Adam (a.s.), every Nateq who has come has advanced the world one step,” continued the faculty member of the University of Religions and Denominations.
“But there is disagreement among the Isma’ilis as to who the Seventh Nateq is,” The Deputy of Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly added, “From 260 AH onwards, two views can be seen in the Isma’ilis. The first was the view of Qaramatian, who believed that Muhammad ibn Ismail was the Seventh Nateq. That is, his period was the period of the Seventh Nateq, and the period of the revelation of all unseen things had arrived. Therefore, the Bahraini Nateq no longer believed in Sharia.”
“Another view was that of the Fatimids, who believed that there were three levels in the Imamate of Muhammad ibn Ismail. The first level is the “Physical Level” and it existed during his lifetime and with his death, he hid. The three Imams after him were also hidden until Obaidullah Al-Mahdi became the fourth Imam after Muhammad ibn Ismail. The second level, the “Spiritual Level”, began with the emergence of Obaidullah al-Mahdi. During this period, these Imams showed the inside of the world to some people who were capable. The third level of Muhammad ibn Ismail is the “Level of Qaem Al-Qiama”, who is the Seventh Nateq and will appear in the distance and show the inside of the world to all people of the world. From the perspective of the Fatimids, Muhammad ibn Ismail had three levels: Physical, Spiritual, and Qaem Al-Qiama,” he continued.
“According to Isma’ilism, the Imam has a very important position. They believe that everything is entrusted to the Imam. Some hadiths that contain this type of content are also present in the thoughts of the Ghulat of the Shiites, and people such as Allameh Majlesi have also denied the validity of some of these hadiths. Like the hadith known as “Khotba Al-Bayan”,” Farmanian clarified, regarding the position of the Imamate in the eyes of the Isma’ilism.
“According to us Twelver Shiites, the Imam has three important characteristics; Infallibility, the knowledge of the unseen, and being ordained (based on scriptures). The Isma’ilis also accept the same three characteristics and attributes, but with further elaboration and description,” he continued.
The Deputy of the Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly said that the Isma’ilis consider the Imamate to be of five types:
The first type: “Imam al-Asas” (Basic Imam) means the first Imam after each prophet. For example, Imam Ali (a.s.) who was the basic Imam of the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h);
The second type: “Imam al-Mustaqar” (Established Imam) means the Imam from whose generation the Imamate continues. Like Imam Hussain (a.s.);
The third type: “Imam al-Mostada’a” means the Imam in whom the Imamate was trusted so that the next Imam will have the conditions. Such as Imam Hassan Mojtaba (a.s.), Muhammad Hanafi and Imam Musa ibn Ja'far (a.s.);
The fourth type: “Imam al-Moqim” (Residing Imam) means the last Imam of a period who trains the next prophet and establishes the Imamate in him. Like Hazrat Abu Talib (a.s.) who was the last Imam of the sixth period and established the Imamate in the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h);
The fifth type: “Imam al-Motemm” means the person with whom the Imamate ends.
“In the Ismaili books, either the hadith is narrated from the six Imams who are common with the Twelver Shiites Imams, or scientific material is found from the Ismaili elders such as Abu Ya’qub Sajestani. But not much has been narrated from the Fatimid Imams,” he noted, regarding the jurisprudential and hadith heritage of the Ismaili Imams.
“Imam Musa ibn Ja'far (a.s.) was transferred to Baghdad and imprisoned due to the malice of Muhammad ibn Ismail or his brother Ali ibn Ismail. Therefore, Muhammad ibn Ismail could not stay in Medina after that incident and traveled to Baghdad and died there. But the Isma’ilis deny that he is dead but believe that he has entered a “Hiding Period”,” said the Deputy for the Scientific and Cultural Affairs of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, referring to the history of the Ismaili Imamate.
“After Imam Al-Mustansir, there was a dispute over which of his sons were Imams. Some became supporters of Nizar, and some became supporters of al-Musta’li,” Farmanian stated, referring to some disputes among the Isma’ilis.
“Musta’lawis continued to live in Egypt until Al-Amer bi-Amr Allah died. Then the Musta’lawis of Yemen believed in the Imamate of “Tayyib” and then emigrated to India. In India, they are called “Bohra”, which themselves are divided into three groups: Dawoodi, Alawite and Soleimani,” continued the faculty member of the University of Religions and Denominations.
Referring to some commonalities between the Isma’ilis and the Twelvers, the professor of the seminary and the university said, “For example, the question arises about the issue of Bada’ whether there is Bada’ in the Imamate? According to both the Twelver Shia and the Isma’ili Shiites, there is no Bada’ in the Imamate. Therefore, in the Ismaili works, there is no mention of Bada’.”
Regarding the accusation that “Ismailis do not adhere to religious rules,” he said, “Bohras (Tayyebi Isma’ilis) adhere to Sharia. They pray and fast and go on Hajj and pilgrimage of the holy shrines. But the Nizari Isma’ilis, although do not perform prayer and fasting, they mourn for Imam Hussain (a.s.).”
“The Tayyebi Isma’ilis live mostly in India. While the Nizari Isma’ilis live in different parts of the world and now the “Aga Khan IV” as the 49th Nizari Imam resides in Europe and leads the Nizari from there. The total population of Nizari in the world is estimated at fifteen to twenty million. In Iran, there are a maximum of fifty thousand Isma’ilis, all of whom are Nizari and live in Khorasan (Quhistan), Shahrbabak, Tehran and so on,” said former Deputy for Research Department at the University of Religions and Denominations, regarding the situation and population of the Ismailis.
“Mr. Shah Khalili, the former president of the Ismaili Association of Iran, wrote the book “Seven Pillars of Worship” and asked the Nizaris of Iran to pray and worship. But I do not know why he was fired. Maybe it was because of his book!” Dr. Farmanian said, referring to efforts to persuade Nizaris to follow the Sharia.
He also invited the attendees of the second night of the webinar to read old and new books for further study; Classic books such as “Ta’wil al-Da’im” by Ghazi Nu’man and “Wajh-e-Din” by Nasser Khosrow, a prominent Ismaili scholar, and contemporary books such as “Collection of Isma’ili Articles” by Scholars of the University of Religions and Denominations and “Isma’ili History and Beliefs” by Dr. Farhad Daftari.
At the end of Hojat al-Islam, Dr. Mahdi Farmanian answered a number of questions of the webinar participants.
It should be mentioned that the first seminar “Isma’ilism in Iran; Theology, Literature and History” is being held virtually at the University of Religions and Denominations, with the presence and presentation of seminary and university professors. At the end of the seminar, participants will be awarded valid certificates.
According to the Deputy Office for Research of the University of Religions and Denominations, the lecture program of the professors in this conference is as follows:
1) Saturday, December 25, 2021, 8 pm – Hojat al-Islam Dr. Hamid Reza Shariatmadari (Associate Professor, Department of Shiite Studies, University of Religions and Denominations) – Lecture Topic: Isma’ili esoteric interpretations.
2) Sunday, December 26, 2021, 8 pm – Hojat al-Islam Dr. Mahdi Farmanian (Associate Professor, Department of Islamic Denominations of the University of Religions and Religions) - Lecture topic: Theory of Imamate in the Isma’ilism
3) Sunday, December 26, 2021, 08:45 pm – Dr. Mostafa Nadim (Associate Professor, Department of History, Shiraz University) – Lecture topic: Ismailis in Fars (Province)
4) Monday, December 27, 2021, 8 pm - Dr. Sayed Ahmad Tamimdari (Professor of Literature, Allameh Tabatabai University) – Lecture topic: Isma’ili Literature
5) Tuesday, December 28, 2021, 8 pm - Dr. Fatemeh Jan Ahmadi (Professor of History, Tarbiat Modares University) – Lecture Topic: Ismaili and the Ghulat Issue
6) Wednesday, December 29, 2021, 8 pm - Dr. Mahdi Elmi Daneshvar (researcher of ancient Iranian religions and scientific secretary of the seminar) – Lecture Topic: The manifestation of religious concepts of ancient Iran in the Isma’ili theological foundations
7) Wednesday, December 29, 2021, 08:45 pm – Dr. Jahanbakhsh Sawaqeb (Professor, Department History, Lorestan University) – Lecture topic: The role of Da’awah Organization in the spread of Isma’ilism in Iran
Thursday, December 30, 2021, 8 pm – Dr. Sayed Ghani Eftekhari (Assistant Professor, Department of History, Islamic Azad University) – Lecture topic: Social-historical research and the study of the location of Ismaili forts9) Thursday, December 30, 2021, 08:45 pm – Dr. Mostafa Beheshti Seresht (Associate Professor, Department of History, Imam Khomeini University) – Lecture Topic: Mongol Invasion and the Ismaili Movement.
Video Quote: Authority, Role and Responsibility of Imamat
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17M2LD_cRfM
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17M2LD_cRfM
Re: Imam and Imamat
Book
The Ismaili Imams: A Biographical History Hardcover – Oct. 29 2020
The Ismailis are the second-largest Shi'i community in the world today, settled in over 25 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and North America. They are the only Muslims to follow a living spiritual guide of their community, the Nizari Ismaili Imam. This book is the first collection of biographies of all the Ismaili Imams, from the seminal Imams of early Shi'i Islam, through to those of the first 'period of concealment' when their public identities remained hidden, to the Imam-caliphs of the illustrious Fatimid dynasty, and those of the Alamut period, up to the Aga Khans of the modern period. The Ismaili Imams mines the rich scholarship of the developing field of Ismaili Studies, providing a simple and clear resource for the general reader, as well as a handy reference guide for scholars. This copiously illustrated book offers a snapshot of the lives, events, and legacies of all 49 Imams, and through them, of the Ismaili community's storied past.
https://www.amazon.ca/Ismaili-Imams-Bio ... 8840&psc=1
The Ismaili Imams: A Biographical History Hardcover – Oct. 29 2020
The Ismailis are the second-largest Shi'i community in the world today, settled in over 25 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and North America. They are the only Muslims to follow a living spiritual guide of their community, the Nizari Ismaili Imam. This book is the first collection of biographies of all the Ismaili Imams, from the seminal Imams of early Shi'i Islam, through to those of the first 'period of concealment' when their public identities remained hidden, to the Imam-caliphs of the illustrious Fatimid dynasty, and those of the Alamut period, up to the Aga Khans of the modern period. The Ismaili Imams mines the rich scholarship of the developing field of Ismaili Studies, providing a simple and clear resource for the general reader, as well as a handy reference guide for scholars. This copiously illustrated book offers a snapshot of the lives, events, and legacies of all 49 Imams, and through them, of the Ismaili community's storied past.
https://www.amazon.ca/Ismaili-Imams-Bio ... 8840&psc=1
Re: Imam and Imamat
Why do Ismailis seek help from Hazrat Ali and the Imams?
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_MnxX85pQU
Both Sunni and Shia Muslims believe in intercession. Believers ask those considered close to God to intercede with the Lord on their behalf.
Many religious communities around the world, including both Sunni and Shia Muslims, believe in the concept of intercession, which means to plead or intervene on behalf of another. Believers ask those who are considered close to God to intercede with the Lord on their behalf.
In the Shia interpretation of Islam, Allah commanded Prophet Muhammad to appoint Hazrat Ali (peace be upon him) as his successor, and the first in a line of hereditary Imams. The Shia extend the Prophet’s role as intercessor to the Imams descended from him. They therefore invoke the names of Prophet Muhammad, Hazrat Ali, the Imams and other members of the Prophet’s family in their devotional practices and prayers.
Seeking intercession does not mean equating the Prophet or the Imams to God. All Muslims, including Shia Ismailis, believe in the oneness of God (tawhid) as professed in the first part of the shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith: la ilaha illa-llah, which means “there is no god but Allah.”
Read More
In the following verse from the Holy Qur’an, the Prophet is described as having the authority to seek forgiveness for those who had made mistakes:
And if, when they had wronged themselves, they had but come to you [Prophet] and asked forgiveness of Allah, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah Forgiving, Merciful. (Qur’an 4:64)
According to one hadith, the Prophet suggested to a blind man that he offer the following prayer, seeking God’s help through the intercession of the Prophet:
O Allah, I turn towards You through Your Messenger, the conveyor of Your mercy. O Muhammad, I turn to my Lord through you so that He may grant me what I need…
Based on these traditions, many Muslims throughout history have believed in the intercession of Prophet Muhammad. Shia Ismailis and Ithna’asharis invoke the names of the Prophet and their Imams in prayers and devotional practices to seek help from God.
Sometimes, prayers for help or easing of difficulties (mushkil asan) are addressed directly to the Prophet or Imams. This is based on the understanding that all help and support comes from God, but often that grace is channelled through others.
During an interview in 1985 for Thames TV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPzFMlkC8PQ , His Highness the Aga Khan, the 49th Ismaili Imam, had the following to say:
Andrew Gardner: One of the myths surrounding you is that some people in the West think of you as a living god. Not only is that not true, it is also blasphemous.
Aga Khan: Absolutely. I mean, as you know the faith of Islam was revealed at a time when the Arabian continent was idolatrous, and idolatry – all forms of idolatry – are totally prohibited by Islam. It is certainly true to say that the Western world doesn’t necessarily understand the theology of Shi‘ism, nor indeed the theology of many mystical sects, whether they are Shia or Sunni or Christian. Mysticism, in its essence, is difficult.
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -the-imams
Video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_MnxX85pQU
Both Sunni and Shia Muslims believe in intercession. Believers ask those considered close to God to intercede with the Lord on their behalf.
Many religious communities around the world, including both Sunni and Shia Muslims, believe in the concept of intercession, which means to plead or intervene on behalf of another. Believers ask those who are considered close to God to intercede with the Lord on their behalf.
In the Shia interpretation of Islam, Allah commanded Prophet Muhammad to appoint Hazrat Ali (peace be upon him) as his successor, and the first in a line of hereditary Imams. The Shia extend the Prophet’s role as intercessor to the Imams descended from him. They therefore invoke the names of Prophet Muhammad, Hazrat Ali, the Imams and other members of the Prophet’s family in their devotional practices and prayers.
Seeking intercession does not mean equating the Prophet or the Imams to God. All Muslims, including Shia Ismailis, believe in the oneness of God (tawhid) as professed in the first part of the shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith: la ilaha illa-llah, which means “there is no god but Allah.”
Read More
In the following verse from the Holy Qur’an, the Prophet is described as having the authority to seek forgiveness for those who had made mistakes:
And if, when they had wronged themselves, they had but come to you [Prophet] and asked forgiveness of Allah, and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them, they would have found Allah Forgiving, Merciful. (Qur’an 4:64)
According to one hadith, the Prophet suggested to a blind man that he offer the following prayer, seeking God’s help through the intercession of the Prophet:
O Allah, I turn towards You through Your Messenger, the conveyor of Your mercy. O Muhammad, I turn to my Lord through you so that He may grant me what I need…
Based on these traditions, many Muslims throughout history have believed in the intercession of Prophet Muhammad. Shia Ismailis and Ithna’asharis invoke the names of the Prophet and their Imams in prayers and devotional practices to seek help from God.
Sometimes, prayers for help or easing of difficulties (mushkil asan) are addressed directly to the Prophet or Imams. This is based on the understanding that all help and support comes from God, but often that grace is channelled through others.
During an interview in 1985 for Thames TV https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZPzFMlkC8PQ , His Highness the Aga Khan, the 49th Ismaili Imam, had the following to say:
Andrew Gardner: One of the myths surrounding you is that some people in the West think of you as a living god. Not only is that not true, it is also blasphemous.
Aga Khan: Absolutely. I mean, as you know the faith of Islam was revealed at a time when the Arabian continent was idolatrous, and idolatry – all forms of idolatry – are totally prohibited by Islam. It is certainly true to say that the Western world doesn’t necessarily understand the theology of Shi‘ism, nor indeed the theology of many mystical sects, whether they are Shia or Sunni or Christian. Mysticism, in its essence, is difficult.
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -the-imams
Reflecting on 65 years of Imamat - Part one: 1957-1967 Mawlana Hazar Imam visits Salamieh, Syria for the first time as I
On 11 July 2022, the global Jamat will commemorate a rare milestone - Mawlana Hazar Imam’s 65th Imamat Day. To begin a new series of reflections, here, we look back at his first decade as Imam.
In 1957, Prince Karim Aga Khan, then a 20-year-old student at Harvard, became the Imam-of-the-Time when his grandfather, Mawlana Sultan Mahomed Shah passed away. Upon his accession, Mawlana Hazar Imam committed to do everything possible for the Jamat’s worldly and spiritual upliftment. He spent his first year as Imam visiting Jamats around the world. In this same year, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II conferred on him the title of His Highness.
Over the course of 1957 and 1958, ceremonies to mark the Takht Nashini — ascension to the office of Imamat — were held in Dar-es-Salaam, Nairobi, Kampala, Karachi, Bombay, and Dhaka. This was an opportunity for the Jamat to pledge its baiyat, offering love, loyalty, and devotion to the newly designated Imam-of-the-Time. After completing the Takht-Nashini ceremonies, Hazar Imam returned to Harvard to complete his undergraduate degree in Islamic History, demonstrating the great importance he places on education.
As a young Imam, Mawlana Hazar Imam witnessed a period of significant political upheaval and instability which had a direct impact on the Jamat. Countries in Africa and Asia were struggling to become independent from colonial rule or were adjusting to their newfound independence; at the same time, the ideological conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States, known as the Cold War, shaped the global geopolitical landscape.
The Jamat in Central Asia was particularly affected by Soviet rule, as the Tajik Jamat was isolated from the Imamat and other Jamats in the region. The Cold War also brought noteworthy technological advancement as part of the “Space Race” between the world’s two rival superpowers.
Despite this global turmoil and change, Hazar Imam’s guidance gave the Jamat courage and faith to overcome adversity, and to emerge into a new world order with strength and confidence. His focus on education enabled the Jamat to begin looking ahead and planning for the futures of their children and grandchildren.
From the very beginning, Hazar Imam built upon the work of his late grandfather, by consolidating and establishing new, contemporary institutions to improve the quality of life of his murids and the communities in which they live. He inaugurated schools and educational institutions in East Africa and Pakistan, established scholarship programmes at Harvard for Muslim students, and created the Aga Khan Chair of Islamic Studies at the American University in Beirut. In early 1963, Hazar Imam also created the East African Industrial Promotion Services to encourage and expand the role of private enterprise in the developing world. In 1967, he established the Aga Khan Foundation, the first agency of what would become the Aga Khan Development Network. This was a significant step towards enhancing synergy among the various development activities of the Imamat under a single institutional structure. Throughout, the work of the Imamat was supported by the Jamat, who offered their resources, both material and of time and knowledge.
At the same time, Mawlana Hazar Imam continued to remind the Jamat about the necessity of maintaining a balance between din and dunya — faith and world — both of which are inextricably linked. This is a key teaching he continued to highlight throughout the following decade, which was marked with political instability across many parts of the developing world.
More photos at:
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -1957-1967
Reflecting on 65 years of Imamat - Part two: 1967-1977
Mawlana Hazar Imam performs the foundation ceremony at the nursing home of Prince Aly Khan Hospital in Bombay, India, in 1967, then known as the Ismailia General Hospital. The hospital was opened in 1945, and is a part of Aga Hall Estate.
On 11 July 2022, the global Jamat will commemorate a rare milestone - Mawlana Hazar Imam’s 65th Imamat Day. Here, we look back at his second decade as Imam.
Between 1967 and 1977, Mawlana Hazar Imam continued to navigate the Jamat through times of change and crisis. Political situations in Asia and Africa that significantly affected the Jamat included: Bangladesh gaining independence from Pakistan; and the expulsion of all Asians from Uganda, including thousands of Ismailis. Many of these refugees, as well as those who feared instability throughout East Africa, migrated to North America and Europe, with significant assistance and guidance from Mawlana Hazar Imam. For the first time in history, large communities of Ismailis became permanently settled in the Western world.
Throughout this period, Hazar Imam continued to establish institutions to improve quality of life in Africa and Asia. He inaugurated the Industrial Promotion Services (IPS) in Tanzania and Uganda, laid the foundation of the Aga Khan Medical College and Hospital in Karachi, opened the Serena Hotel in Nairobi, and announced the creation of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture. These development activities of the Imamat have always been underpinned by the Islamic ethic of caring for those in greatest need in society. In his 1967 Convocation Address at Peshawar University, Mawlana Hazar Imam warned that Muslim societies should not lose sight of these ethics, stating that:
“It would be traumatic if those pillars of the Islamic way of life, social justice, equality, humility and generosity, enjoined upon us all, were to lose their force or wide application in our young society. It must never be said generations hence, that in our greed for the material good of the rich West, we have forsaken our responsibilities to the poor, to the orphans, to the traveller, to the single woman.”
The theme of moral conflicts faced by Western nations and the threats these posed to Muslim societies recurred in the Imam’s guidance. In 1976, in his Presidential address to the International Seerat Conference in Karachi, Hazar Imam suggested that the values of the Holy Qur’an and the example of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) remain relevant to life in modern Muslim societies.
Mawlana Hazar Imam has also consistently emphasised the importance of education and the intellect, Allah’s greatest gift to humankind. In 1975, the decision was made to establish a significant institution for the study of the Jamat’s heritage and for improving the quality of religious education for the Jamat. The Institute of Ismaili Studies was opened in London in 1977 and continues to make important academic and educational contributions, including curriculum development, and the training of waezeen and professional religious education teachers.
On a personal level, this decade also saw the births of three of Hazar Imam’s children, Princess Zahra, Prince Rahim, and Prince Hussain, who were all born in Geneva, Switzerland. He also continued to make several visits, gracing the Jamats in East Africa, Pakistan, the UK, India, and France with Deedar. In his guidance, he emphasised not only worldly matters, but also the importance of faith, regularity in prayer, and living by the ethics of Islam to ensure a life of balance that enables us to fulfil our true potential. This was especially important considering the scientific and technological developments which would emerge in the following years.
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -173435533
Reflecting on 65 years of Imamat - Part three: 1977-1987
On his 50th birthday — 13 December 1986 — Mawlana Hazar Imam marked a significant moment in the Jamat’s modern history, as he ordained the first global Ismaili Constitution.
On 11 July 2022, the global Jamat will commemorate a rare milestone - Mawlana Hazar Imam’s 65th Imamat Day. Here, we look back at his third decade as Imam.
From 1977, the world began to experience great technological achievements: the birth of the first test tube baby, the sale of the first Apple Macintosh computer, and the first permanent artificial heart implant on a human. Political upheaval continued with the Revolution in Iran and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.
Responding to these challenges, Mawlana Hazar Imam continued to establish new institutions to enable the progress of the Jamat and wider society. The Aga Khan Award for Architecture was established in 1977 to identify and encourage building concepts that successfully address the needs and goals of societies in which Muslims have a significant presence. The Award’s first seminar was held in early 1978 at Aiglemont. In his opening remarks, Mawlana Hazar Imam noted that:
“….there is no such thing as one type of Muslim environment or one type of Muslim building. We are enjoined to help the needy, the sick, and the poor of whatever colour or origin. I think, therefore, we must assist in the challenging, but fundamentally important task of demanding, from our architects, an environment in which we can live, work, and practice the precepts of our faith harmoniously and to the fullest.”
The award is guided by the Islamic ethic of care for the most vulnerable in society; the belief that Allah has made us trustees over His creation; and that we have a responsibility to leave the world better than when we inherited it.
A second institution established in 1977 was The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS), with Hazar Imam expressing his hope that it would “become one of the major institutions of the Jamat, growing into an internationally recognised centre.” The IIS was founded to contribute to academic discourse in the field of Islamic Studies, aiming to address misperceptions of Islam, including of Shia Muslims in general and Ismailis in particular. It also sought to benefit the Jamat through the development of quality curriculum materials and training religious education teachers. The IIS builds on the historic traditions of learning, including the legacy of Al-Azhar University, founded by the Fatimid Imams a thousand years earlier.
In September 1979, Mawlana Hazar Imam attended the foundation ceremony of the Ismaili Centre in London and spoke of the building as symbolic of a growing understanding of Islam. This would be the first in a global network of Ismaili Centres.
A year later, he initiated the construction of the Aga Khan Hospital and Medical University in Karachi. AKU now has campuses in Asia, Africa and Europe.
On 11 July 1982, Jamati leaders paid homage to Mawlana Hazar Imam at Aiglemont to mark the auspicious occasion of the Silver Jubilee of Hazar Imam's accession to the office of Imamat. It was a time of celebration for the global Jamat. During the Silver Jubilee year, Hazar Imam blessed a number of Jamats with Deedar. He spoke of the importance of faith, of the balance between din and dunya, of education, meritocracy, and the role of the intellect. He attended the foundation ceremony of the Ismaili Centre Burnaby and received the Charter of the Aga Khan University from the President of Pakistan.
At the inauguration of the Aga Khan University in 1985, Hazar Imam spoke of the relationship between intellect and faith. He noted that, “the man of faith who fails to pursue intellectual search is likely to have only a limited comprehension of Allah’s creation. Indeed, it is man’s intellect that enables him to expand his vision of that creation.”
The Ismaili Centre London was officially opened in April 1985, and the Ismaili Centre Burnaby in August 1985, each respectively by the Prime Minister of the time. Today, the six Centres around the world provide spaces for the Jamat’s search for spiritual enlightenment, but also help to build partnerships in the communities in which the Jamat lives.
On his 50th birthday — 13 December 1986 — Mawlana Hazar Imam marked a significant moment in the Jamat’s modern history, as he ordained the first global Ismaili Constitution. This would go on to become an important platform upon which the global institutional structure was built, and one that was particularly timely, given the imminent collapse of the Soviet Union and the period of globalisation which would soon follow.
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -173435533
Reflecting on 65 years of Imamat - Part four: 1987-1997 Mawlana Hazar Imam visits projects of the Aga Khan Rural Support
On 11 July 2022, the global Jamat will commemorate a rare milestone - Mawlana Hazar Imam’s 65th Imamat Day. Here, we look back at his fourth decade as Imam.
This decade saw a rise in the popularity of personal computing, and the emergence of the World Wide Web as a form of communication, which accelerated the process of globalisation. From 1987 onwards, as in previous years, Mawlana Hazar Imam continued his tireless efforts to advance the spiritual and material progress of the Jamat. The Imam’s mandate to improve quality of life is rooted in the ethic of Islam, wherein all Muslims are called upon to care for those who are most vulnerable in society.
Much of the Imam’s focus turned to Central Asia, which was undergoing significant changes. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, national entities like Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan emerged as independent nation states. The opening up of Central Asia enabled the Imamat to come into contact with the Jamats of Central Asia for the first time in decades. When civil war broke out in Tajikistan, the Aga Khan Development Network’s institutions were there to provide vital aid. Meanwhile, Afghanistan was devastated by an eight-year conflict with the Soviet Union, followed by the Taliban seizing power in the country. The Imamat established new institutions and agreements to provide humanitarian assistance in these countries, and to help resettle refugees.
The Imamat continued to undertake a variety of development projects, including the Baltit Fort in Hunza, Al-Azhar Park in Cairo, and the Zanzibar Serena hotel. Tourism ventures of the AKDN invested in fostering sustainability and strengthening the economic capacity of societies in the developing world. Mawlana Hazar Imam presided over the first Convocation ceremony of the Aga Khan University and Medical College in Karachi, an important milestone in AKU’s endeavour to improve the quality of health care in Pakistan. Three cycles of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture were held, with ceremonies in Cairo, Samarkand, and Indonesia.
For his contributions to society, Hazar Imam received honours by governments, universities, and other civil society organisations, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Brown University, and the University of Wales. Hazar Imam was also awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit by the President of Portugal for his “outstanding contribution to human understanding and to social and economic progress in different areas of the world.”
Mawlana Hazar Imam continued to spend time with his murids this decade, visiting the Jamats of Canada and the United Kingdom in 1992 and 1994 respectively. He also attended the foundation ceremony of the Ismaili Centre Lisbon in 1996, to establish what would become the third such high-profile, ambassadorial building in the western world. The coming years would be marked by further technological advancement along with a growing misperception of Islam around the world.
Photos at:
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -1987-1997
This decade saw a rise in the popularity of personal computing, and the emergence of the World Wide Web as a form of communication, which accelerated the process of globalisation. From 1987 onwards, as in previous years, Mawlana Hazar Imam continued his tireless efforts to advance the spiritual and material progress of the Jamat. The Imam’s mandate to improve quality of life is rooted in the ethic of Islam, wherein all Muslims are called upon to care for those who are most vulnerable in society.
Much of the Imam’s focus turned to Central Asia, which was undergoing significant changes. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, national entities like Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan emerged as independent nation states. The opening up of Central Asia enabled the Imamat to come into contact with the Jamats of Central Asia for the first time in decades. When civil war broke out in Tajikistan, the Aga Khan Development Network’s institutions were there to provide vital aid. Meanwhile, Afghanistan was devastated by an eight-year conflict with the Soviet Union, followed by the Taliban seizing power in the country. The Imamat established new institutions and agreements to provide humanitarian assistance in these countries, and to help resettle refugees.
The Imamat continued to undertake a variety of development projects, including the Baltit Fort in Hunza, Al-Azhar Park in Cairo, and the Zanzibar Serena hotel. Tourism ventures of the AKDN invested in fostering sustainability and strengthening the economic capacity of societies in the developing world. Mawlana Hazar Imam presided over the first Convocation ceremony of the Aga Khan University and Medical College in Karachi, an important milestone in AKU’s endeavour to improve the quality of health care in Pakistan. Three cycles of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture were held, with ceremonies in Cairo, Samarkand, and Indonesia.
For his contributions to society, Hazar Imam received honours by governments, universities, and other civil society organisations, including the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Brown University, and the University of Wales. Hazar Imam was also awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit by the President of Portugal for his “outstanding contribution to human understanding and to social and economic progress in different areas of the world.”
Mawlana Hazar Imam continued to spend time with his murids this decade, visiting the Jamats of Canada and the United Kingdom in 1992 and 1994 respectively. He also attended the foundation ceremony of the Ismaili Centre Lisbon in 1996, to establish what would become the third such high-profile, ambassadorial building in the western world. The coming years would be marked by further technological advancement along with a growing misperception of Islam around the world.
Photos at:
https://the.ismaili/global/news/feature ... -1987-1997
Reflecting on 65 years of Imamat - Part five
On 11 July 2022, the global Jamat will commemorate a rare milestone - Mawlana Hazar Imam’s 65th Imamat Day. Here, we look back at his fifth decade as Imam.
Between 1997 and 2007, the world experienced discovery and discord: the first Hybrid vehicle came onto the market; much of Europe began to use the Euro as a common currency; and the launch of Google made information much easier to access, share, and disseminate. Controversial cartoons depicting Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) were published in a Danish newspaper, and the bringing down of the World Trade Centre in New York in September 2001 was to go on to influence global perceptions of Islam in the Western world.
Several months after the 9/11 attacks, Mawlana Hazar Imam inaugurated a new Jamatkhana and Centre in Texas, and spoke of its broader significance:
“Nine eleven has scarred America, but not just America. It has scarred the Islamic world, and hundreds of millions of devout and practicing Muslims for whom the word of the Qur’an is the word of God. We have clarity and direction enough when the Qur’an affirms that to save a life is, as if, to save humankind altogether. It is in this context that I request that you view the Ismaili Jamatkhana and Centre, Houston, as much, much more than a place of congregation, and a home for administrative offices. The Centre will be a place of peace, humility, reflection and prayer. It will be a place of search and enlightenment, not of anger and of obscurantism. It will be a centre which will seek to bond men and women of this pluralist country to replace their fragility in their narrow spheres by the strength of civilised society bound together by a common destiny.”
Hazar Imam’s desire to address misperceptions of Islam is central to the mandate of the Ismaili Centres. During this decade, he opened the Ismaili Centre, Lisbon, and attended foundation ceremonies of the Ismaili Centres in Dubai and Dushanbe. Hazar Imam also announced his intention to establish the Aga Khan Museum and the Global Centre for Pluralism, and attended the foundation ceremony of the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat — three milestone projects in Canada.
Mawlana Hazar Imam also established institutions to assist in the development of Central Asian societies in the years following the collapse of the Soviet Union. This included inaugurating the first in a series of bridges linking Tajikistan and Afghanistan, the opening of Aga Khan Schools in Khorog and Osh, and the signing of agreements to launch the University of Central Asia, which is dedicated to studies of mountainous societies.
Other activities aimed at improving quality of life included the restoration of the gardens at Humayun’s tomb in New Delhi, and Al-Azhar Park in Cairo. Hazar Imam also attended the inauguration of the Aga Khan Academy in Mombasa and the foundation ceremonies of the Aga Khan Academies in Maputo, Hyderabad, and Dar-es-Salaam, initiating what would go on to become a network of schools of excellence across Africa and Asia. Award ceremonies were also held for winners of the seventh, eighth, and ninth cycles of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture.
Throughout this decade, Hazar Imam blessed various Jamats with Deedar, including Portugal, Mozambique, Syria, East Africa, USA, India, Pakistan, and Canada. Whilst in Tajikistan, he also addressed the Jamat of Afghan Shugnan, who had assembled across the Panj River.
On 11 July 2007, to mark the start of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Golden Jubilee, Jamati leaders representing the global Jamat paid homage to their 49th Imam at his residence in Aiglemont. For the first time in history, the global Jamats were able to participate in this momentous occasion, as one united Jamat. The Imam’s work to build institutional capacity over the previous decades facilitated an increased volume of activity through both Jamati and Imamat institutions during the Golden Jubilee, which coincided with the advent of the digital age.
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Reflecting on 65 years of Imamat - Part six: 2007-2017
On 11 July 2022, the global Jamat will commemorate a rare milestone - Mawlana Hazar Imam’s 65th Imamat Day. Here, we look back at his sixth decade as Imam.
This decade began with the commencement of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Golden Jubilee, which ran from 11 July 2007 to 13 December 2008. Hazar Imam visited 22 countries, met with leaders from government and civil society, built partnership agreements to strengthen the capacity of Imamat institutions, and established new projects to improve the quality of life of the Jamat and wider society. He also graciously blessed the Jamat with Darbars.
These years saw a global economic crisis, the growing popularity of smartphones, increased engagement with social media, threats to the natural environment, growing political uncertainty, and the quickening pace of change. In response to a more complex world, Mawlana Hazar Imam’s continued global development activities and institution building saw the opening of Ismaili Centres in Dubai, Dushanbe, and Toronto, and parks in Zanzibar, Khorog, Mali, Kabul, and Toronto in the Islamic tradition of bringing people together in harmony. In addition, three significant institutions were inaugurated in Canada: the Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat and the Global Centre for Pluralism in Ottawa, and the Aga Khan Museum in Toronto - the first museum dedicated to Muslim civilisations in North America.
In the fields of education and health care, Mawlana Hazar Imam attended the opening of the Aga Khan University’s Faculty of Health Sciences, the Heart and Cancer Centre at the AKU Hospital, and the foundation ceremony of the Graduate School of Media and Communications — all in Nairobi, Kenya. He also announced the creation of a new AKU Hospital in Kampala, Uganda. At the same time, the first of three campuses of the University of Central Asia was opened in Naryn, in the Kyrgyz Republic. Mawlana Hazar Imam inaugurated the Aga Khan Academy in Hyderabad, India, and attended foundation ceremonies for Academies in Kampala and Dhaka. Four cycles of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture took place in this decade, with ceremonies in Malaysia, Qatar, Portugal, and the UAE.
In addition to being the fifth person to be made an honorary Canadian citizen, Mawlana Hazar Imam also became just the sixth foreign dignitary to address the Canadian Parliament. Other key addresses by Mawlana Hazar Imam in this decade include those made at Harvard and Brown Universities, and a UNESCO conference in China, along with the LaFontaine-Baldwin Lecture in Toronto, and the International Baccalaureate’s Peterson Lecture.
Numerous accords and partnerships were also signed, but the most historic was the agreement signed between the Republic of Portugal and the Ismaili Imamat for the establishment of the Global Seat of the Ismaili Imamat in Portugal. The Agreement marked the first such accord in the Imamat’s modern history. At the signing, Mawlana Hazar Imam noted that the agreement provided an enabling framework, which would facilitate the work of the Ismaili Imamat and the Imam globally.
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