Category Archives: Aga Khan Park

Resident or Visiting Toronto? You MUST VISIT the Ismaili Centre and the Aga Khan Museum: These two gems are among the favourite buildings during Doors Open Toronto

22 September 2024

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Introduced by MALIK MERCHANT

The Jamatkhana dome, Ismaili Centre Toronto, 49 Wynford Drive. Photograph: The Ismaili.
The Jamatkhana Dome, Ismaili Centre Toronto, 49 Wynford Drive. Photograph: The Ismaili. Please click on the image for the Centre’s 10th anniversary pictorial essay.

Since their inauguration by former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and His Highness the Aga Khan in mid-September 2014, the Ismaili Centre Toronto and the Aga Khan Museum have become among the most beloved buildings explored by the public during the Doors Open Toronto held every May. The buildings, with their mission to promote cultural understanding, have consistently attracted thousands of visitors for their incredible artistic and architectural features and the rich collection of artifacts housed in the Museum. The Ismaili Centre’s domed Jamatkhana, a unique architectural marvel, is a sight to behold. Its remarkable features, under which Ismaili Muslims congregate for prayers daily, make it one of the most distinctive buildings in the country. Watching the building from the Don Valley Parkway when the dome is lit at night is a truly breathtaking experience.

As the buildings celebrate their 10th anniversary, we present two posts that will give our readers a glimpse of these fascinating projects. Please click on THE ISMAILI CENTRE and THE AGA KHAN MUSEUM.

Did you know that you can book a one-hour free tour of the Ismaili Centre (77 Wynford Drive, Toronto) online? This is a fantastic opportunity to delve into the architectural and cultural wonders of this unique building. Please click HERE to get more details about an Ismaili Centre tour. If a window is not available, please send an email to tours.toronto@iicanada.net. For information on visiting the Aga Khan Museum (77 Wynford Drive, Toronto), please go to http://agakhanmuseum.org.

Plan your visit today and experience these iconic buildings’ cultural and architectural wonders.

Aga Khan Museum, Wynford Drive, Toronto. Please clock on image for story and photographs
The Aga Khan Museum, 77 Wynford Drive, Toronto. Photograph: Malik Merchant/Simerg. Please click on the image for the Museum’s 10th anniversary pictorial essay.

Date posted: September 22, 2024.

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The Hawk at Aga Khan Park: Beautiful Photos from Simerg’s 2021 Collection

23 December 2021

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Hast thou not seen how that whatsoever is in the heavens and in the earth extols God, and the birds spreading their wings? Each — He knows its prayer and its extolling; and God knows the things they do — Holy Qur’an, 24:41, Sura An-Nur

Hawk at Aga Khan Park
Please click on image for more beautiful photos of the hawk’s visit to Aga Khan Park in August 2021.

Date posted: December 23, 2021.

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The Heavenly Ismaili Jamatkhana at Night; and Changing Face of Nature at Morningside and Aga Khan Parks

18 November 2021

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Hopefully, you did not miss photos of the rich autumn colours at Aga Khan Park, when autumn foliage peaked around November 5, 2021. If you missed the post, please click HERE.

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About a week later, as trees started losing their leaves, Malik Merchant happened to be at the grounds of Aga Khan Park at night, and captured the beauty of the heavenly Ismaili Jamatkhana dome through lit-up trees, moments before the lights in the prayer hall went out. See the beautiful photos HERE.

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The face of nature changed once again, as more and more trees shed their leaves and lost much of the autumn foliage. For one last time Malik Merchant visited Morningside Park, and also made his customary pilgrimage to the Aga Khan Park. His story and spectacular photos are HERE.

Date posted: November 18, 2021.

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Before departing this website please take a moment to review Simerg’s Table of Contents for links to hundreds of thought provoking pieces on a vast array of subjects including faith and culture, history and philosophy, and arts and letters to name a few. Please also visit Simerg’s sister websites Barakah and Simergphotos.

Autumn Photos: Blazing Red Maples at Aga Khan Park

6 November 2021

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Introduced by MALIK MERCHANT
(Publisher-Editor Barakah, Simerg, and Simergphotos)

What truly instilled in me a love for nature? I had taken it for granted in Africa! But on a New Moon Night (Chandraat or Chaand Raat; Bengali, Urdu etc.) in Salt Lake City, Utah, during the 3rd week of November 1979, I looked up at the sky with the Wasatch Mountain range around me. There I spotted the beautiful crescent on a clear evening!

Chandraat as Mawlana Sultan Mahomed Shah, His Highness the Aga Khan III, 48th Hereditary Imam of Ismaili Muslims, said is a night that will generate immense happiness and peace. In anxious moments of arriving in a new city to work as a trainee computer programmer, the sighting of the New Moon is exactly what I needed. I have loved nature ever since that day.

Yesterday, November 5, in Canada and in many other parts of the world, Ismailis marked the Night of the New Moon with special prayers of Salwaat and the prayers of Bibi Fatimah — the beloved daughter of Prophet Muhammad (S.A.S.) and wife of the first Shia Imam Hazrat Ali (A.S.) from whom Ismaili Imams are directly descended. Thousands of Ismailis around the world attended their respective Jamatkhanas while many others prayed at home due to Covid-19 procedures in place. I spent hours during the day time taking photos — I was even more excited and energized, because of the significance of the day.

Please click HERE or on image below to view a small collection from hundreds of nature photographs I took, mostly with my Olympus OM-D EM10, between November 3 and 5, 2021 in Toronto’s forests and parks.

Blazing Aga Khan Park
Please click on image for story Blazing Aga Khan Park and photos from Parks and Forests in Toronto.

Date posted: November 6, 2021.

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Photos: Aga Khan Park’s New Visitor, a Beautiful Fox, Fall Colours and Superb Pictures from the Silk Roads

22 October 2021

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Malik Merchant spends a chilly morning at Aga Khan Park, sees brilliant autumn colours on maple trees and encounters a lovable fox. And walking through the park, he sees panels of brilliant photographs captured by Christopher Wilson-Steer during his 40,000 journey from Venice to Beijing. Click SIMERGPHOTOS or on image below to view photos and videos from an absorbing day at the Park and the Aga Khan Museum.

Autumn colours at Aga Khan Park. Click on image for story, photos and videos.
Fall colours, the Ismaili flag and a fox at Aga Khan Park.
Aga Khan Park’s new visitor, a beautiful fox, walks along a wall in front of the Ismaili Flag at Aga Khan Park. Please click on image for story, photos and videos.

A Visit to the Rooftop Terrace of the Ismaili Centre Toronto: Views of the Jamatkhana Prayer Hall’s Crystalline Glass Dome

28 September 2021

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“What we dedicate today is what we identify as an Ismaili Centre — a building that is focused around our Jamatkhana, but which also includes many secular spaces…..And soaring above it all is the great crystalline dome that you have observed, through which light from the prayer hall will provide a glowing beacon, symbolising the spirit of enlightenment that will always be at the heart of the Centre’s life.” — His Highness the Aga Khan, Opening Ceremony of Ismaili Centre Toronto, September 12, 2014.

Simerg’s Malik Merchant visits the rooftop terrace of the Ismaili Centre, and comes as close as possible to the unique dome of Toronto Headquarters Jamatkhana located on 49 Wynford Drive. Click HERE or on image below to see photos of the dome and the area surrounding the Ismaili Centre.

Crystalline glass dome of the Ismaili Headquarters Jamatkhana Toronto
Please click on image for photo essay

Date posted: September 28, 2021.

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Stunning Nature Photos from Aga Khan Park: The Majestic Hawk, Honey Bees, Russian Sage and the Beautiful Hibiscus

9 August 2021

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See Nurin and Malik Merchant’s extraordinary photos of their visit to Aga Khan Park. Nurin notes that with 6 summer weeks remaining, make the most by visiting the Park or other gardens and trails where you live. Then of course, we will all see the arrival of autumn that will offer us spectacular fall colours!

Please click INCREDIBLE ENCOUNTERS AT AGA KHAN PARK or on image below

Broad-winged hawk at Aga Khan Park, August 7, 2021. Photo: Malik Merchant/Simergphotos. Please click for photo essay.

Date posted: August 9, 2021.

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Before departing this website please take a moment to review Simerg’s Table of Contents for links to hundreds of thought provoking pieces on a vast array of subjects including faith and culture, history and philosophy, and arts and letters to name a few. Also visit Simerg’s sister websites Barakah, dedicated to His Highness the Aga Khan, and Simergphotos.

Aga Khan Park and East Don Trail: Amazing Nature Photos & Videos You Must Not Miss by Malik Merchant

5 June 2021

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The ponds are flowing at Aga Khan Park, bringing stillness and calmness to our minds. The geese are beating their wings as they bathe in their favourite pond. Then, it is amazing to see them take off on the shortest and safest runway in the world with two majestic buildings — the Ismaili Centre and the Aga Khan Museum — built by Mawlana Hazar Imam, His Highness the Aga Khan, in full view! It is a wonderful sight. Intimacy and procreation are nature’s gift — the mallards and frogs are captured in their act, facing confrontations — yes, see the videos! Watch a tiny turtle walk to a pond of water, overcoming obstacles along the way. There are photos too to make the article complete.

I am providing a sample video, below, one of several I have included in Simergphotos where you will get a fuller taste of my extraordinary encounter with nature at Aga Khan Park and the exciting East Don Trail. This is a post you don’t want to miss! Show it to your children; they will love it.

Canadian geese at pond in Aga Khan Park, as they lift off. Click to watch video, and click Simergphotos for full story, more videos as well as photos

To see full post with extraordinary photos and videos please click Simergphotos.

Date posted: June 5, 2021.

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Before departing this website please take a moment to review Simerg’s Table of Contents for links to hundreds of thought provoking pieces on a vast array of subjects including faith and culture, history and philosophy, and arts and letters to name a few. Also visit Simerg’s sister websites Barakah, dedicated to His Highness the Aga Khan, and Simergphotos.

Weeping Cherry flowers at Aga Khan Park

Photo of the Day: Aga Khan Park’s Beautiful Weeping Cherries

10 May 2021

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Malik Merchant returns to Aga Khan Park after a 3-week absence, and sees visitors excitedly taking photos of masses of pink flowers behind the Aga Khan Museum. A young boy goes from one weeping cherry tree to another to feel the soft petals of the blossoming trees, a dog owner has her beautiful 1 year old dog, Cice, pose in front of a tree, a bird perches on top of one while a robin wanders around pecking on grass around the trees. And as Malik finally leaves the site of the Aga Khan Park via the east side, he captures a stunning shot of the Aga Khan Museum under a lovely blue sky! Click here for story and photos

Aga Khan Park weeping cherry
Cice poses for a photo for her owner Dana McIvor in front of a weeping cherry tree at Toronto’s Aga Khan Park. May 8, 2021. Please click on image for more photos and story.

Date posted: May 10, 2021.

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Before departing this website please take a moment to review Simerg’s Table of Contents for links to hundreds of thought provoking pieces on a vast array of subjects including faith and culture, history and philosophy, and arts and letters to name a few. Also visit Simerg’s sister websites Barakah, dedicated to His Highness the Aga Khan, and Simergphotos.