Ismaili.NET - Heritage F.I.E.L.D.

If Islam aspires, as I believe she must, to recapture the glories of the past, she must be ready to adapt -- I do not say abandon -- her own traditions to the entirely different circumstances of today. If we fail to do this, not only shall we fail to progress ourselves, but the younger generation will become disillusioned and fall prey to alien and materialistic creeds, which have nothing whatever in common with Islam.

Through the work of the Aga Khan Development Network, whether in health, education, culture, economic development, or the environment, our aim has always been to improve the quality of life for all, regardless of background or faith.

I felt very alone when caring for my mother with Alzheimer’s. I didn’t realize then that feeling isolated is common among caregivers and those living with the disease. By sharing her diagnosis, I hoped others might feel less alone.

I have spoken about our strength as a global and pluralistic Jamat, but arguably our superpower is our centuries old tradition of volunteerism. To volunteer may sound small, but at its core, it is one of the largest and loudest act. Our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) tells us that the best of people is the one who benefits others the most.

Of my late father’s many lasting legacies, Global Encounters represents a very significant one. Shah Karim created GE as a tool for the Jamat, as an opportunity. He wanted the diversity and the pluralism within our Jamat to be felt and to be practiced. He wanted to encourage excellence, to build understanding and cohesion and to strengthen the forces that bring us closer together. This is a legacy that our present Imam, Mowlana Shah Rahim and our Jamat all together will honour and build on.

I began by speaking of hope. The hope I refer to is not an idle wish. It is the hope one feels when there is strong evidence for optimism. It is the hope our Chancellor, His Highness the Aga Khan, has called “probably the single most powerful trampoline of progress”. That is the hope that I believe unites us today.

Islam says that the best form of charity, to use the term, is by helping
people to become self-sufficient. It is to give in such a way that the
person becomes master of one's own destiny.

If I as a Muslim came to you and were to say: What's happening in Northern Ireland reflects Catholic and Protestant beliefs, then you would say: you're uneducated.

In keeping with our historic tradition of ever abiding commitment to Muslim unity, we reaffirm our respect for the historical interpretation of Islam by our brother Muslims as an equally earnest endeavour to practise the faith in Allah and emulate the example of our Holy Prophet, may peace be upon him, which illuminates Muslim lives and which, Inshallah, will elevate all Muslim souls.

In keeping with our historic tradition of ever abiding commitment to Muslim unity, we reaffirm our respect for the historical interpretation of Islam by our brother Muslims as an equally earnest endeavour to practise the faith in Allah and emulate the example of our Holy Prophet, may peace be upon him, which illuminates Muslim lives and which, Inshallah, will elevate all Muslim souls.

Our historic adherence is to the Jafari Madhhab and other Madhahib of close affinity, and it continues, under the leadership of the hereditary Ismaili Imam of the time. This adherence is in harmony also with our acceptance of Sufi principles of personal search and balance between the zahir and the spirit or the intellect which the zahir signifies.

Our historic adherence is to the Jafari Madhhab and other Madhahib of close affinity, and it continues, under the leadership of the hereditary Ismaili Imam of the time. This adherence is in harmony also with our acceptance of Sufi principles of personal search and balance between the zahir and the spirit or the intellect which the zahir signifies.

The other point of importance is to present your history in a logical form. When you are taking the type of advanced education that you must get for the university degrees today, you must have in every walk of life a logical concept. This does not mean to wipe away faith. But the real principle of Islam is that faith is logical. Islam would not be what it is if it were not logical.

Meritocracy applies to institutions, to countries. I have been concerned at whether our institutions would themselves become meritocratic, and if they were going to become meritocratic....I hope that as time goes by, you will be more and more demanding upon yourselves, upon your institutions, more and more eager to bring competence and knowledge and wisdom and understanding from generation after generation into these institutions.

In your high intellectual world many of you are fortunate to have the time to reflect on the great aspects of Prophet Mohammed's life. It is a blessing that many a Muslim would wish for, but due to circumstances beyond his control, indeed the very nature of modern life, he can

My Jamat will be aware of the innovative work undertaken by the Aga Khan University in combating the Covid-19 pandemic. These efforts, alongside those of all other Imamat and Jamati institutions globally, are worthy of the highest admiration, and I convey my special loving blessings to all my spiritual children who, in the capacity of either healthcare professionals or volunteers, continue to spare no effort in providing treatment, care, and support to my Jamat.

Two recent events of special happiness for me as Imam-of-the-Time are the granting of the Charter to the Aga Khan University by the Kenyan government, and the first convocation of the University of Central Asia, which was established through an Ismaili Imamat treaty with the governments of Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan. I hope that my Jamat will share in my happiness and that, together, we will continue to make good progress in developing new institutions and programmes for excellence in higher education and research.

It was Canada which opened her arms to receive them, to succour them and to give them a new home and a new country. None of us will ever forget that wonderful gesture of spontaneous goodwill by the government and people of Canad

In Islam, the Holy Quran offers explicit direction to share resources beyond one?s requirements, and to care for the poor and those in need. The injunction to service is the ethical underpinning of the work of the Aga Khan Development Network. It drives its efforts to build the intellectual capital and institutions needed to address the problems of our world today. An example is the Global Centre for Pluralism which we have recently founded in partnership with the Government of Canada.

ngaging with one another to build mutual understanding and appreciation across our differences, the kind of dialogue which is at the heart of pluralism, must continue. There are important lessons to be learnt from the past year as the pandemic has transformed our societies and our institutions.