Prince Rahim Aga Khan Graces the Inauguration of India’s First Sunken Museum in New Delhi

Prince Rahim Aga Khan and India’s Minister of Culture and Toursism, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, perform a lamp-lighting ceremony to formally inaugurate the Humayun Tomb World Heritage Site Museum in New Delhi
Prince Rahim Aga Khan and India’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, perform a lamp-lighting ceremony to formally inaugurate the Humayun Tomb World Heritage Site Museum in New Delhi on July 29, 2024. Photograph: PIB/Government of India.

Date posted: July 30, 2024.

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Prince Rahim Aga Khan to Inaugurate a One-of-a-Kind Sunken Museum at Humayun World Heritage Site on July 29 in New Delhi

A group of dignitaries, including India's Minister of Tourism and Culture, participating in the inauguration ceremony of the Humayun Tomb Site Museum, with one person lighting a ceremonial lamp.
Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, and the then Minister of Tourism and Culture, Dr. Mahesh Sharma, on April 7, 2015, laid the foundation of a site museum to be situated at the Humayun’s Tomb complex. Prince Rahim Aga Khan will inaugurate the sunken museum on Monday, July 29, 2024. Photograph: The Ismaili/Aziz Ajaney.

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Artist rendering of Humayun’s Tomb Complex Site Museum in New Delhi, India.
Artist rendering of Humayun’s Tomb Complex Site Museum in New Delhi, India. Photograph: AKDN. Please click on image for enlargement

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(I) Social Justice Concerns About the Aga Hall Project in Mumbai; and (II) Sad Observations by a Canadian Ismaili Visitor to India

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Aga Hall Towers
Aga Hall Towers, Mumbai, India, centre of photo.

  • What impact will the seeming turnaround have on the way Ismailis conceptualize some of their fundamental values?
  • How will those who are feeling disaffected with the community’s institutions respond?

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Cover page, Aga Hall brochure.

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Page 26, Aga Hall brochure.

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Institute of Ismaili Studies inaugural alumni award to Karim H Karim
Professor Karim H. Karim delivering his remarks on March 23, 2024, at the Ismaili Centre in London upon being presented the Institute of Ismaili Studies inaugural Alumni Recognition Award. Photograph: Institute of Ismaili Studies/via Karim H. Karim.

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  1. Aga Khan Agency for Habitat. (2023). Aga Khan Agency for Habitat. AKDN.
  2. Aga Hall Estate. (No date). The Aga Hall Estate, Mumbai (brochure). Aga Hall Estate.
  3. AKDN. (May 28, 2014). Aga Hall Estate Redevelopment Project: Design Report. AKDN/Stantec.
  4. American Ismaili Chamber of Commerce. (Nov 11, 2021). The Aga Hall Estate project, Mumbai, India.
  5. Charania, Shahnaz. (April 11, 2018). The Heritage Walk. The Ismaili India.
  6. Das, Basudha (2023, Feb 15). Mumbai leaves Delhi behind, ranks as world’s second-most polluted cityBusiness Today (Noida, India). 
  7. Karim H. Karim. (2022, Nov. 23). Contemporary Nizari Thought’s Pragmatic Turn and the Centrality of Ethics. Ismaili Studies Conference: State of the Field. Institute of Ismaili Studies. London, UK.
  8. Karim H. Karim. (2014). The Aga Khan Development Network: Shia Ismaili Islam. In Stephen M. Cherry and Helen Rose Ebaugh (Eds.), Global Religious Movements Across Borders. London: Ashgate Publishers.
  9. Simerg (2010, August 26). “Bombay…. has very close associations with my family.” Mawlana Hazar Imam Takht Nashini speech.
  10. Edge. (2023). The Aga Hall Estate.
  11. IICanada. (Sept 7, 2023).  Aga Hall Estate Redevelopment Information Sessions
  12. Ini Design Studio. (2023). The Aga Hall Estate Redevelopment Plan.
  13. Institute of Ismaili Studies. (2000). Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN): An Ethical Framework.
  14. The Ismaili. (Feb 14, 2022). Aga Hall Estate: A gift from the past that gives into the future.
  15. The Ismaili. (March 3, 2024). Aga Hall Estate awarded Iconic Residential Project of the Year.
  16. Lakhani, Ali. (2018). Faith and Ethics: The Vision of the Ismaili Imamat, London: I.B. Tauris / IIS
  17. Kurwa, Aziz R. (Sept. 11. 2021). Happy Days in HasanabadSimerg.
  18. Thakkar, Mehul. (Oct 31, 2022). Aga Khan Development Network to Invest Rs. 2,000 Crore on Luxury Development Project in South Mumbai. Money Control. 
  19. Vellani, Shams. (2020.) People of Faith: Essays on a Historical and Contemporary Profile of the Ismailis. London: IB Tauris / IIS.

Books by Ismaili Authors: A Brief Note on “Small Acts of Courage” by Award-winning Author and Journalist Ali Velshi

Aly Velshi Ismaili author series by simerg acts of courage
Mansoor Ladha, left, greets Ali Velshi at the launch and signing of his new book “Small Acts of Courage” in Calgary, Canada, at the Grand on June 3, 2024.

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Book cover for 'Small Acts of Courage: A Legacy of Endurance and the Fight for Democracy' by Ali Velshi, featuring the author in a suit and the title prominently displayed.
Mansoor Ladha Ismaili author series, Simerg
Mansoor Ladha

Ismaili Community Presents Aga Khan with Unique Gift from 18th Century, and Canadian Leaders Honour Him on His 67th Imamat Day

A large audience, including Ismaili leaders and Canadian politicians, stands and applauds in a formal legislative chamber during a significant event recognizing His Highness the Aga Khan on his anniversary as the Ismaili Imam.
His Highness the Aga Khan delivers a historic address to a joint session of the Parliament of Canada on January 27, 2014, at the invitation of the then Prime Minister Stephen Harper.

July 11, 2024: Ismaili Muslims Celebrate 67th Imamat Day of His Highness the Aga Khan

His Highness the Aga Khan, Mawlana Hazar Imam
Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, 49th Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims, pictured at the Diamond Jubilee Darbar in Kenya. Photo: The Ismaili.
Aga Khan Imamat Day Calligraphy by Karim Ismaili for simerg and barakah
Calligraphy to commemorate the 67th Imamat Day of His Highness the Aga Khan, Mawlana Shah Karim Al Hussaini Hazar Imam. The Quranic verse “Wa Kulla Sha’in Ahsainahu fee Imamim-Mubeen” is in cursive script with the border top and bottom “Shah Karim” in eastern Kufi. Calligraphy and design by Karim Ismail, Toronto, Canada.

Exclusive: A Painting of the 49th Hereditary Ismaili Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, for His 67th Imamat Day

Take Me Away by Shafina Jaffer, Coronation of King Charless III
Take Me Away by Shafina Jaffer. Medium: Oil on canvas. Size: 200 x 80 cm (78.7 x 31.5 in). This painting was projected on the facade of Windsor Castle during the Coronation Concert honouring the Coronation of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla, on May 7, 2023. Shafina presented the original painting to Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, for the auspicious occasion of Navroz, March 21, 2024. Photograph: Shafina Jaffer collection.
Portrairt painting of the 49th Ismaili Imam, Aga Khan, Barakah, Textual and Visual Expressions.
Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, by Shafina Jaffer. Medium: Oil, Gold and Charcoal; Size: 42 x 32 cm.  Original photograph for painting: Gary Otte (cover page and page 121 of Depth of Field: The Aga Khan Beyond the Lens).

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Glittering Star - Mazhat, Theophany, Imam of the Time, Aga Khan, Hazar Imam, simerg, insights from around the world

Mazhar or Theophany – Manifestation of God: A Special Reading to Commemorate the 67th Imamat Day of His Highness the Aga Khan, July 11, 2024

Mazhar

A radiant orange star against a dark sky, symbolizing spiritual illumination and divine presence.

A shimmering orange star radiating beams of light against a dark background, symbolizing spiritual illumination.

A bright, glittering star with a radiant orange hue against a dark background, symbolizing illumination and beauty.

Glittering Star, Ismaili Imam, simerg

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An Introduction to Mazhar

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Kutub Kassam, author of poem Mazhar
Kutub Kassam

What Happened at Ghadir Khumm? A Milestone Historical Event Unknown to the World at Large

Idd-e-Ghadir, the declaration of Ali as Imam
A calligraphy designed by Toronto’s Karim Ismail honouring the first Shia Imam Ali, on the auspicious commemoration of Idd-e Ghadir.

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30598842
Photograph: Vysotsky – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia.

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Logo of the Encyclopaedia of Islam, with the words 'ENCYCLOPAEDIA OF ISLAM' in yellow over a green background, and 'ONLINE' in white text.

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Ismaili Constitution Imamat Aga Khan, Simerg
Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, is seen signing a new constitution for the worldwide Ismaili community on his 50th birthday, December 13, 1986. The preamble excerpts produced in this post are from this constitution.

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Artistic Expressions: Profound Paintings by Ismaili Muslim Artist Mobina Marani Reflect Her Concern About Climate Change and Plastic Pollution

Mobina Marani pictured in front of her exhibit at the Red Ribbon Event in Fort Erie,
Mobina Marani pictured in front of her exhibit at the Red Ribbon Event in Fort Erie, Ontario, in November 2023. Photograph: Mobina Marani Collection.

Climate Change Marine pollution by Mobina Marani, artistic expressions, simerg insights from around the world, Ismaili artist Canada
Global Pollution, April 2023, Acrylic on canvas, 16 X 20 inches. Artist: Mobina Marani.

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Climate Change Force of Nature by Mobina Marani, artistic expressions, simerg insights from around the world, Ismaili artist Canada
Force of Nature, Acrylic on canvas, 16 X 20 inches. Artist: Mobina Marani.

Climate Change by Mobina Marani, artistic expressions, simerg insights from around the world, Ismaili artist Canada
Nature’s Fury, Acrylic on canvas, 16 X 20 inches. Artist: Mobina Marani.

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Artistic expressions Simerg Ismaili artist, Mobina Marani