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Diamond Jubilee of His Highness The Aga Khan IV

July 11, 2017 will mark the 60th anniversary of the ascension to the throne of Imamat by His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan who is the 49th Holy Imam in direct lineage from the Holy Prophet Muhammad (s.a.s)

Prince Karim dedicated his life to the spiritual and material upliftment of all his Ismaili Murids. He has also pledged to improve the quality of life of the people amongst whom his followers lived and the countries in which they lived.

Hazar Imam in East Africa soon after His Ascension to the Masnad of Imamat

Declaration of Imamat of Hazrat Ali At Ghadir e Khumm on Navroz - 632-03-21

On 18th Zilhaja, 632, Muhammad after performing farewell pilgrimage, halted at the plain of Ghadir Khum, where he declared Ali bin Abu Talib as his successor.

Evian Conference - 1952-07-04 to 08

Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah had called a Conference in Evian, France known as the Evian Conference between July 4, 1952 and July 8, 1952 to discuss various economic and social problems confronting the African Ismailis and also to make necessary amendments in the Constitution of the African Councils.

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The Post-Alamut Period - 1256-1842AD

The Post-Alamut period in Ismaili history discloses itself with the Imamate of Mowlana Shamsiddeen Muhammed and is punctuated by the Imamate of Mowlana Shah Khalilillahi Aly.

Birth of Imam Shah Karim al-Husayni Hazar Imam - 1936AD

Imam Shah Karim Al-Husayni was born on Sunday, the 13th of December, 1936, in Geneva, to Aly Solomone Khan and Princess Tajudowleh. From early on, him and his brother were under the care and training of their illustrious grandfather.

Imamate of Imam Sultan Muhammed Shah - 1885-1957AD

The Imamate of Imam Sultan Muhammed Shah is witness to a glorious period in Ismaili history, as portrayed by the illustrious presentation of the Jubilees, where the followers weighed their Imam physically against gold, diamond and platinum respectively, and subsequently placed these in humble submission to the Imam. The Imam graciously returned these in the sole endeavour of uplifting the economic and educational conditions of His Jamat.

Birth of Imam Sultan Muhammed Shah - 1877AD

Imam Sultan Muhammed Shah, the Aga Khan III, was born on Friday, the 2nd of November, 1877, in Karachi, Pakistan during the Imamat of his grandfather Imam Aga Hasan Aly Shah. He went to Europe in 1897, and spent most of his life there (Aziz, 1974).

Imamate of Imam Shah Aly Shah - 1881-1885AD

Mowlana Imam Aly Shah had married five wives one after another, the third of which promised the Imam his successor, Sultan Muhammed Shah. Within a span of less than one year, his two eldest sons died, and the Imam himself fell sick and died also in the same year, vesting the Light of Imamate in his young eight-year old son, Aga Sultan Muhammed Shah (Aziz, 1974).

Birth of Imam Shah Aly Shah - 1830AD

Mowlana Imam Ali Shah, the Aga Khan II, was born in 1830AD, in Mahalat, Iran. During the Imamate of his father, he himself had been appointed the Pir. During this time, he had travelled alongside the Imam and had visited the jamats all over India.

Imamate of Imam Shah Hasan Aly - 1817-1881AD

After the death of the King, Imam Hasan Aly Shah continued to enjoy the good pleasure of the newly enthroned grandson, much to the chagrin of the other political bodies. After such envy turned into rising political tension and armed conflict, the Imam was forced to leave Iran for good and travelled through Afghanistan to Sind, Pakistan, and finally choosing to settle down in Bombay, India. In due course, Imam Hasan Aly Shah was conferred the title of His Highness by Queen Victoria of Britain.

Birth of Imam Shah Hasan Aly - 1805AD

Mowlana Imam Hasan Aly Shah was born in Mahalat, Iran, in 1805AD. He would succeed his father, who had been murdered by a group of fanatics, at the young age of thirteen years. King Fatehali Qachar sentenced the assassins and their leader and became a great source of comfort to the young Imam and his followers. He gave the Imam his daughter in marriage and bestowed upon him the title of Aga Khan, meaning Lord of the Chiefs. He became known as Aga Khan I (Aziz, 1974).

Imamate of Imam Khalilillahi Aly - 1780-1817AD

Shah Fatehali ascended the throne of Iran in 1798AD. Imam Khalilillahi Ali had four sons and two daughters. He was murdered at the age of eighty years by some Ithnasheri fanatics in Yezd in 1817AD. He was buried in Najjaf, and was succeeded by his son Agha Shah Hasanali. His Imamat had lasted a period of thirty-nine years.

Birth of Imam Khalilillahi Aly - 1749AD

Imam Khalilillahi Aly was born in Kerman in 1749AD. At the age of two years he joined his father in Mahalat, and was brought under the care of his uncle Pir Mirza Muhammed Baqir. He would marry his uncle's daughter, Bibi Maryam Khatoon, by whom he would have his son, Agha Hasanali Shah (Aziz, 1974).

Imamate of Imam Abyl Hasan Aly - 1730-1780AD

Imam Abyl Hasan Ali moved to Shahr-i Babak in Kirman, mainly to ensure the safety of the Ismaili pilgrims from the plundering tribesman who had thus far posed much difficulty to the pilgrims as they were on their way to the Anjudan and Mahallat regions where the Imam had previously resided. Sayed Fateh Ali Shah who had visited the Imam in Shahr-i Babak alludes to the Imam's location in northern iran ('sehentar deep') in one of his ginans. Mowlana Imam Abyl Hasan Ali passed away in Mahallat and was buried in Najaf, Iraq (Sadik Ali, 1997).

Imamate of Imam Qasim Aly - 1695-1730AD

Imam Qasim Ali appointed his teenaged son Sayyid Abul Hasanali as the Pir. The latter, also known as Pir Shah Hasan Baig, was the forty-second Pir of the Ismailis, and at his father's death, was appointed as the next Imam in the succession of the Holy Imams (Aziz, 1974).

Birth of Imam Qasim Aly - 1675AD

Imam Qasim Ali, also known as Agha Jafer Shah, was born in Kahek in 1675 AD, and succeeded to the Throne of Imamat at the age of twenty years (Aziz, 1974).

Imamate of Imam Hasan Aly - 1661-1695AD

During the Imamate of Imam Hassan Aly, Ismaili dawat spread to Turkey, Armenia, and Crimea (Aziz, 1974). According to his will, he was buried in Najjaf, Iraq, after ruling as Imam of the Time for thirty-five years. He was followed in succession by his son Imam Qassim Ali (Aziz, 1974).

Imamate of Imam Sayyid Aly - 1629-1661AD

Mowlana Sayed Ali, also known as Shah Ismail, Agha Hasan Shah and Shah Abul-Hasan Baig, shifted his primary residence from Kahek to Kerman, after being offered governorship of the province by the Safawi court (Aziz, 1974). After appointing his son, Hasan Ali, to the Throne of Imamate, Imam Sayed Ali passed away in Kerman in 1661 AD (Sadik Ali, 1997).

Imamate of Imam Nizar - 1585-1629AD

Mowlana Imam Nizar rebuilt the city of Kahek and shifted his residence hereto from Anjudan (Aziz, 1974). An Ismaili dai, and a descendent of Pir Sadirdeen, by the name of Sayed Abdul Nabi, lived during this period in India and preached mostly in Gujrat. Imam Nizar passed away in Kahek, his body buried in his palace, which served as a mausoleum also for other members of the Imam's family. (Sadik Ali, 1997).

Imamate of Imam Khalilillahi Aly - 1550-1585AD

The last Imam to live in Anjudan, Imam Khalilillahi Ali remained aloof from the political instability which prevailed throughout Iran at this time. During this time, Pir Naseer Mohammed was followed by Pir Agha Hashem in the line of Piratan. Sayyid Daood, an acclaimed vakil, was appointed by the Imam to govern the religious affairs in the jamats of India. The Imam was followed in succession by his son Sayyid Nizar Ali in 1585.


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