Khalilullah Ali resided in Mahallat. He came to live in Kahek after assumption of the Imamate in 1206/1792 where he stayed for about 23 years. The Ismailis of Syria, Iran and India flocked in Mahallat, and then in Kahek. His uncle Mirza Muhammad Bakir also lived in Mahallat.
Some contemporary European travellers have reported the whereabouts of Khalilullah. L.J. Rousseau (1780-1831), a French Consul in Aleppo from 1809 to 1816, was the first person to draw the attention of the Europeans to the existence of the contemporary Ismailis and their living Imam. He writes in 'Memoire sur les Ismaelis et les Nosairis de Syrie', (Vol. XIV, 1811, Paris, pp. 279-80) that, 'There were still many Ismailis in the country who owed allegiance to an Imam of the line of Ismail. His name was Shah Khalilullah, and he resided in a village called Kehk near Qumm, half-way between Tehran and Isfahan.'

Sir John Macdonnell Kinneir (1728-1830) about the year 1813 also described in his 'Topographical History of Persia' that, 'In the district of the Persian highlands especially near the ruins of Alamut, are still to be found a remnant of the Ismailis, who go by the name of Hooseinis ... the Ismailis of Persia recognize (Shah Khalilullah) as their chief and Imam, dwelling near Kehkt whose descent they deduce from Ismail, the son of Jaffir Sadick.'

The Scottish tourist, James Baillie Fraser (1783-1856), who in the course of his journey through Iran had seen the Ismailis. 'Shah Khuleel Oollah', he writes in his 'Narrative of a Journey into Khorasan' (London, 1825, p. 376), 'was a person of high respectability and great influence, keeping an hundred gholaums of his own in pay; but he was put to death by the inhabitants of Yezd, in a riot....'

Silvestre de Sacy (1758-1838), an eminent orientalist of the 19th century in his 'Memoir sur la dynastie des Assassins' (Paris, 1818, p. 84) quotes an exerpt of a letter of Rousseau's son wrote to him from Tehran on June 1, 1808. It reads: 'The Ismailis even today have their Imam, or pontiff, descending, as they claim, from Jafar Sadiq, the chief of their sect, and residing at Kehek, a village in the districts of Qom. He is called Sheikh Khalil Allah.....This person, whom his people grace with the pompous title of caliph, enjoys a great reputation and is considered to have the gift of performing miracles.'

In Syria, the Ismailis faced certain local troubles around 1209/1795 due to the constant raids of the bigoted Nusairis of Raslan. Most of the Ismaili families led by the chief dai, Suleman bin Hyder (1143-1212/1731-1798) were obliged to leave Masiyaf and settled down in Hims, Hammah, Aleppo and Damascus. In 1222/1808, the Nusairis at the command of Shaikh Mahmud also killed an Ismaili chief of Masiyaf, Mustapha Mulhim and his son, alongwith 300 inhabitants, and their inroads continued till 1223/1809. This event also reflects in the hyperbolic writings of Simone Assemani (1752-1821) in the year 1214/1806. L.J. Rousseau (1780-1831) had also underlined the miserable conditions of the Syrian Ismailis in his 'Memoirs' (Paris, 1811). The inhabitants, who had sought refuge in flight, applied for protection to Yousuf Pasha, the governor of Damascus. He sent a punitive expedition of 5000 soldiers against the Nusairis. At length, Masiyaf had to be surrendered by the Nusairis after three months' stubborn resistance, and the Ismailis returned to the town after restoration of peace in the beginning of 1224/1810.

Sayed Ghulam Ali Shah, or Ghulmali Shah from the Kadiwal family was a prominent missionary in Sind, Kutchh and Kathiawar. He had converted many Hindus. He composed few ginans, and died in Karachi in 1207/1792 and was buried in Kera in Kutchh. He was followed by Sayed Muhammad Shah in Kutchh, who died in 1228/1813 and was buried in Bombay. He was the last vakil in India to be sent from Iran. He was not married, therefore, he was honoured the epithet of dullah (bridegroom).

It appears that two persons, called Mehr Ali and Saniya in Kutchh had claimed as the incarnations of Chandraban and Surban, the famous dais during the time of Pir Shams. They preached the doctrines of Imam-Shahi sect. Khalilullah Ali is said to have summoned them in Mahallat and warned to refrain from their activities. Few years after their return from Iran, they once again misguided the Ismailis in Kutchh and pretended as dumbs. They started to talk after few months, claiming to have been granted the vocal power by Sayed Imam Shah. The Ismailis of Kutchh sent a report of their activities to the Imam, and as a result, they had been ex-communicated.

Sayed Fateh Ali Shah (1733-1798) was an eminent dai, whose grave exists near Jiraq in Sind. His pen-name was Shamsi, also known as Sayed Shamsi. He was hailed from Kadiwal family. Imam Abul Hasan Ali had given him mantle of vakil for India. He seems to have visited Iran for two times, and lastly in 1210/1795 during the time of Khalilullah Ali, where he stayed about for eight months. He arrived in Mahallat on the day of Navroz and his mind became forlorn when he learnt that the Imam had gone on a hunting expedition in the woods to the north of Mahallat. He relates his quest for the Imam which ultimately led to his meeting. His two ginans are accessible, wherein he makes mention of the Imam that:-

'Shah Khalilullah enjoys his stay in the fort of Mahallat, and mercifully summoned Sayed Fateh Ali, and accomplished his immense desires, where Mawla Ali appeared in an absolute glory.'

The most marked instance of the political involvement of the Shia ulema during this period was in the case of the first Perso-Russian War (1804-1813) in the Caucasus, which had been intermittent from about 1804, and resumed in 1811. Abbas Mirza, the son of Fateh Ali Shah was conducting the campaign, turned to the ulema of Iraq and Ispahan to issue fatwa, declaring the encounter against Russia to be holy war (jihad). Many of the prominent ulema, such as Shaikh Jafar Kashiful Gitta (d. 1227/1812) and Ahmad Naraqi (d. 1245/1829), responded to this appeal and stirred up hootest agitation. In 1812, the Iranian army defeated the Russians at Qarabagh. Russian forces were reinforced, crossed the Aras river, and defeated the Iranians at Aslanduz.
The first Perso-Russian War was consequently ended in defeat of Iran, and the Treaty of Gulistan in 1228/1813 stripped Iran of all the Caucasian provinces, such as Georgia, Darband, Baku, Shirwan, Shaki, Ganja, Qarabagh, Mughan and part of Talish. This war had considerably depleted the resources of Iran. A number of disorders broke out; and the Afghans also engineered a rebellion in Khorasan in 1813. There was also repeated chaotic condition on the Turkish frontier, but war did not break out until 1821. It however lasted until 1823 when it was concluded by the treaty of Erzurum.

The ulema class however continued to employ effectively the tactics of obstructionism in the Iranian politics, and emphatically agitated for another holy war against Russia. In 1825, the Russian governor-general of Georgia occupied Gokcheh, the principal disputed district with a military force. Fateh Ali Shah was reluctant but when in 1826 he set out for his summer residence in Sultaniyya, he was followed there by Aqa Sayed Muhammad Tabataba, Ahmad Naraqi (d. 1245/1829), Muhammad Taqi Baraghani (d.1230/1847) and other prominent ulema; demanded that Fateh Ali Shah should declare war on Russia. They threatened to take control of the affairs of government if Fateh Ali Shah would refuse to declare holy war. They issued fatwas, declaring the war to be obligatory and opposition to it a sign of unbelief (kufr).

The king was pressed into acquiescing, and the war broke out in 1826. Iran gained initial success, recovering most of the territories ceded by the treaty of Gulistan. The Russian forces were reinforced with latest weapons. The ulema imparted to the Iranian soldiers, who had inferior weapons, to recite Sura Yasin of Holy Koran in the battlefield, to cause their enemies blind. The Russians inflicted a series of severe defeats on the Iranian army. They advanced rapidly and Tabriz was first to be fallen, and various discontented leaders in Azerbaijan went over to the Russian side. The outcome of this second Perso-Russian War was as disastrous as the first. Negotiations for peace began in November, 1827, and a treaty was signed on February 21, 1828 at Turkomanchay. As the result of the Treaty of Turkomanchay, Erivan and Nakhchivan and a large indemnity were ceded by Iran. Saiyid Athar Abbas Rizvi writes in 'Iran - Royalty, Religion and Revolution' (Canberra, 1980, p. 95) that, 'Thus the war-mongering bureaucrates forced upon Iran a war with Russia which ended with the even more humiliating treaty of Turkomanchay in 1828.'

The state over which Fateh Ali reigned had much in common with the earliest kingdoms of the Seljuqs, the Ilkhanids, the Taymurids and the Safavids. After the Perso-Russian Wars, Fateh Ali lost large part of the Iranian territories.

In India, the Mughal empire was declining, and the British dominated the whole country. After Shah Alam II (1759-1806), the next rulers were Akbar Shah (1807-1837) and Bahadur Shah II (1837-1857), the last ruler, who had taken part in the Independence War of 1273/1857, the last struggle on the part of the masses in India to throw off the foreign yoke. But it failed miserably and, on the charge of engineering revolt, the last Mughal ruler was exiled by the British to Rangoon, where he died in extreme penury on 1278/1862. Neither the Muslims nor the Hindus were destined in India to build lasting kingdom on the ruins of the Mughal empire

In 1157/1744, a daughter Bibi Marium Khatoon, was born at his uncle's home, known as Bibi Sarcar Mata Salamat, with whom the marriage of Khalilullah Ali was solemnized, who gave birth of Hasan Ali Shah. She was a good orator and visited India about at the age of 85 years in 1245/1829 with Mirza Abul Kassim to remove the internal strifes of the community. She went to live at Kera in Kutchh in 1246/1830, where she breathed her last in 1248/1832. She had been interred in Najaf, but her memorial still exists in Kera. It must be known that during his visit to Kera on December 2, 1903, the Aga Khan III had told to his followers to perpetuate the memory of the place where she laid her feet and breathed her last.
The second marriage of Khalilullah Ali had been actualized in Yazd with the sister of Aga Imam Khan Farahani in 1231/1816.

Khalilullah Ali ascended in 1206/1792, which he intimated in writing to his Indian followers. E.I. Howard had delivered his speech in the Bombay High Court in June, 1866, where he presented a few letters of Imam Khalilullah Ali, vide 'The Shia School of Islam and its Branches' (Bombay, 1906, p. 85). In pursuant, on 23rd May, 1792, when asssumed the Imamate, he wrote a letter, addressed to the community of Bhavnagar, stating that he had been so fortunate as to have assumed his seat on the throne of the Imamate, and directed them to remit the religious dues to him to the care of the jamat at Muscat. Another letter dated July, 1794 also addressed to the jamats of Sind, Kutchh, Surat, Bombay, Mahim, Bhavnagar etc.

Khalilullah Ali was a brave and generous. It is related in 'Athar-i Muhammadi' (pp 76-77) that a darwish asked something from Imam, and he was given a costly horse. Hunting was a favourite pastime of the noblemen in Iran. Khalilullah Ali also used to go out on regular hunting trips in the woods with his retainers and pages, preferably during the festives of Navroz and Eid-i Ghadir. He had many lands in Mahallat, Kahek and Shahr-i Babak, procuring large earnings. His followers from India, Iran, Syria, Afghanistan and Central Asia used to flock at Mahallat, whom he granted the title of darwish. Sometimes, he gave them the letters for the jamat. Some pilgrims are reported to have died in Iran, whose graves exist in Kahek. For instance, Kamadia Datardina Wandani of the darkhana jamat died in 1217/1803 and a certain Rai Pareo Janguani died in 1224/1810. Khalilullah Ali had acquired few pieces of land in Yazd for the Iranian Ismailis, and himself also moved to Yazd in 1230/1815.

Sayed Karamali Shah was an Iranian Ismaili, who lived in Mahallat. He mostly remained in the company of Mirza Muhammad Bakir, who taught him the esoteric doctrines of Ismailism. Sayed Karamali had been sent to Badakhshan and Chitral, where he launched pervasive mission. He also went to Yasin, whose ruler was Raja Khushwaqt I (1640-1700), the founder of Khushwawaqt dynasty. Sayed Karamali had devoted his life in the Ismaili mission and died in Yasin.

Aga Muhammad Khan Qajar had founded the Qajarid dynasty in Iran and made Tehran as his capital in 1210/1796. He concluded a truce with the Russians, and accordingly, the Qajarid retained the occupation of Jurjan and Taghlas. In 1206/1792, Aga Muhammad Khan seized Shiraz and sent his nephew, Fateh Ali to conquer Kirman. Fateh Ali replaced Mirza Sadik, the cousin of Imam Abul Hasan Ali, and himself became the governor of the provinces of Fars, Kirman and Yazd.

Aga Muhammad Khan then turned to the Afsharids of Khorasan, and invaded Mashhad in 1210/1796 and defeated them. Meanwhile, the Russians once again attacked the northern region of Iran, therefore, Aga Muhammad Khan had to take field, where he was killed by his own two slaves in 1211/1797, when he was about 57 years old. He ruled over a great part of Iran for a period of 18 years and 10 months, and was succeeded by his nephew, Fateh Ali Shah, who was engaged in expelling his enemies at that time, such as Russia, Turkey, the Uzbeks and Afghans. France and England had also attacked the Iranian ports and borders for extending their influences.

Khalilullah Ali II was born in 1153/1740 in the city of Kirman. His upbringing in Mahallat began under the care of his uncle, Mirza Muhammad Bakir at the age of two years, and got rudiments of his formal education at home.

Abul Hasan Ali was also known as Sayed Shah Muhammad Hasan Shah, Hasan Beg and Abul Hasan Ali Shah. He was born in Shahr-i Babak in Kirman. The Iranian sources named him, Abul Hasan Kaheki, a name mostly was popular among the inhabitants of Kahek, whom he generously helped for about two times. One of the ways he utalised his wealth was to serve delicious dishes strewn with ample varities of food to the hungry and needy while he himself would seldom taste it.
Abul Hasan was the governor of Kirman during the Afsharid and Zand periods. It seems almost appropriate to mention that Abul Hasan Ali was the first Ismaili Imam after the fall of Alamut in emerging slowly from obscurity. He was highly learned and a friend of the local Sufis. He had also patronized the local artists. Few chambers of the Imam's residence are reported to have been decorated with the rare collection of the Iranian paintings.

He was a prominent land-owner (Sahib amlak wa raqabat) in Kirman. According to 'Athar-i Muhammadi' (p. 70), 'When the Afghans had launched terrible raids in Iran, Imam Abul Hasan Ali had laid the foundation of a strong edifice of the fort in Kiab on the shore of Hibala and Depine, lying between Rugan and Jinjan, where he lodged after its completion.'

The rise of the Afsharids in Iran

Nadir, the last great Asiatic conqueror was born in 1102/1688 in Afshar tribe of Khorasan. The word afshar (derived from Turkish awshar) means 'one who promptly finishes an affair.' He was the son of a certain Imam Quli, and was tending flocks after his father's death. He and his mother were carried off by a raiding band of Uzbek of Khiva in 1114/1702, where four years later, his mother died in slavery. Nadir escaped and returned to Khorasan, and became a leader of the plundering band. He entered into the service of Baba Ali Beg, the chief of Abivard, and married to his daughter. After the death of Baba Ali Beg, Nadir became the chief of Abivard. In 1138/1726, the Safavid Shah Tahmasp II learnt his valour, and acquired his help to repel the Gilzay Afghans from Iran. Nadir readily responded the call and came with his troop of 5000 Kurd and Afshar warriors. He was hailed and honored, and was granted the title of Tahmasp Quli Khan. Nadir took field against the Gilzay Afghans by commanding the Safavid army, and inflicted them a defeat. Shah Tahmasp II rejoiced on Nadir's role, and appointed him a chief commander (qurchi-bashi). In 1144/1732, Nadir deposed Shah Tahmasp II and crowned the latter's son Shah Abbas III. In 1148/1736, Nadir also deposed Shah Abbas III, and assumed the power, and thus he got the declination of the Safavid empire. He established the Afsharid rule in Iran, and fought with the Afghans and dominated Iran like Taymurlame. He also fought with the Turks and captured Iraq and Azerbaijan. Nadir was a brave and so was cruel and fierce like Chinghiz Khan and Taymurlame. Sayyid Athar Abbas Rizvi writes in 'A Socio-Intellectual History of the Isna Ashari' (Lucknow, 1986, 2nd vol., p. 51) that, 'Nadir Shah, as a fierce fighter and ruthless restorer of law and order, can be compared with Jinghiz and Timur.'

It appears that Abul Hasan Ali had also maintained his best of ties with Nadir, and the seat of his governorship in Kirman coming from the period of the Safavids, remained intact during the Afsharid rule. When Nadir had been in Kirman in 1160/1747, according to 'Athar-i Muhammadi' (p. 73), 'Imam invited him at his residence and presented many valuable gifts.' After Nadir, his successor Shah Rukh also retained his relation with Imam. John R. Perry writes in 'Karim Khan Zand' (Chicago, 1979, pp. 135-6) that, 'Abu'l-Hasan enjoyed the respect of all the leading citizens and even the provincial warlords and would seem the perfect choice for beglerbegi (governor-general) now that Kirman was relatively settled. On his appointment, therefore, Mirza Hosayn, Mortaza Qoli Khan, and the other local rulers meekly handed over their provinces to him. No details of his administration are recorded; he probably re-allocated the regions to several local khans and used his moral rather than military authority to check injustice. He remained on good terms with the leading men of the bureaucratic class, consulting them readily in matters of government.' John R. Perry also adds, 'After Nader's death, Sayyed Abu'l Hasan took a winter residence in Kirman itself, retaining his house at Babak for the summer. Shahrokh Khan accorded him great respect, even marrying his son Lotf Ali Khan to the Sayyed's (Imam's) daughter.' (Ibid. p. 135)

Nadir, as previously stated, was a fierce ruler, grinding the people in the millstone of cruelty, which can be judged from his massacres in Kirman in 1160/1747. L. Lockhart writes in 'Nadir Shah' (London, 1938, p. 259) that, 'On 10th Moharram, 1160/ January 23, 1747, Nadir left Ispahan for Yazd and Kirman; wherever he halted, he had many people tortured and put to death, and had towers of their heads erected. He was particularly severe in Kirman, because of the revolt that had occurred there in the previous summer. Captain Passiet, a member of Prince Mikhail Mikhailvich Golitzin's mission to Persia, who had travelled on in advance and was in Kirman at that time, saw two lofty towers of heads there.'

Kassim Ali was born most probably in 1086/1675. He was also known as Sayed Aga Jafar, or Sayed Jafar. His mother related to a Safavid amir of Kirman. According to the later sources, Imam had married to one of the daughters of Shah Tahmasp II (d. 1145/1732).
His period of Imamate witnessed several vital cataclysm in Iranian kingdom, therefore, the Ismaili mission exercised great care. It seems that Kassim Ali also took part in the politics like his father, and was also the governor of Kirman. He had however come to reside in Mahallat during the ending period of his Imamate.

It is known that in 1115/1703, the Nusairis tribe of Raslan, known as al-Rasalina fiercely attacked on the Ismaili villages in Syria, and took hold of Masiyaf for about eight years. The Ottoman authorities at Latakia, finally assisted the Ismailis to recover their castle. One Syrian Ismaili caravan is however reported to have repaired to Kirman in this context between 1117/1705 and 1120/1708.

It also appears from the fragment of the traditions that during the occupation of Masiyaf by the Nusairis for eight years, some Ismaili families moved towards the northern Syria and began to live in the mantles of the Druzes at Jabal al-A'la, the mountain of Keftin, where their number increased considerably after few decades. Carsten Niebuhr (1733-1815), the famous German traveller had been invited in 1760 to join the Arabian expedition being sent out by Frederick V of Denmark. He writes in 'Voyage en Arabie et en d' austres pays circonvoisins' (tr. from German, Amsterdam, 1870, 2nd vol., p. 348) that he was not certain whether the inhabitants of this district were indeed the Druzes. He was reportedly told that there were more than forty villages populated by Druzes; however, he suspected their veracity because, he said, the people looked like the Ismailis.

In Syria, the Ismailis also resided in peace in the town of Masiyaf. Abdul Ghani al-Nabulusi, a famous mystic and traveller had passed through Masiyaf in 1106/1693-4, and describes in his 'al-Hakika wa'l majaz fi rihlat al-Sham wa Misr wa'l Hijaz' about a certain Ismaili, called Suleman Tanukhi as a chief of the town.

The Ismailis lived in peace in India, but the Ismailis of Kashmir had to follow precaution because of a curious religious tendency. Khwaja Muhammad Azam Didah-mari writes in 'Waqi'at-i Kashmir' (comp. 1160/1747) that the Shaikh al-Islam of Kashmir, Muhtavi Khan, alias Mulla Abdul Nabi, demanded in Kashmir that the Hindus should not ride on horses, put on caste-marks on their foreheads and not wear turbans. He made an attempt to prevail upon Mir Ahmad Khan, the deputy governor of the province, to support him in this mission. Mir Ahmad Khan did not agree, whereupon the Mulla incited the Muslims and created a communal commotion in Srinagar in 1130/1720. A year later Mulla Muhtavi Khan was put to death by Khwaja Abdullah Khan Deb Bedi.

The Safavid Shah Suleman died in 1105/1693, and was succeeded by his son Shah Hussain, who ruled till 1135/1722. Shah Hussain soon abandoned his austere way of life and, like his father took to drink. He became so luxurious that the size and magnificence of his harem was a serious drain of the exchequer. Like his father, he had no interest in state affairs, which was distressing and ultimately disastrous aspect of the empire. Within the empire, this lack of interest signalled increasing corruption and inefficiency in provincial government. Insecurity on the highways was widespread. Often travellers were robbed by the very officials who were supposed to protect them.

According to Rida Quli Khan in 'Raudat al-Safa'i Nasiri' (Tehran, 1853) that, 'After the accession of Shah Hussain in 1105/1693, the signs of decline (inhitat), nay, rather, of extinction (inqirad) of the life of the dynasty became from day to day manifest.' By the time of Shah Hussain, the bureaucratic centralization of the state structure was weakened through incompetence, and cloven by bigoted in high places. The military weakness of the state was thrown into sharp relief in 1110/1698 when a band of Baluchi tribesmen raided Kirman, almost reached Yazd and threatened Port Abbas. Shah Hussain turned to the Georgian prince Giorgi XI, who happened to be at the Safavid court, for help in repelling the Baluchis. Giorgi was made governor of Kirman in 1111/1699 and defeated the invaders. Ten years after the Baluchis incursion, the military feebleness of the Safavid empire and, in particular, the defenseless state of the eastern frontier, was demonstrated again, and this time with more serious consequences for the state. In 1121/1709, the Gilzay Afghans under their leader, Mir Vays, seized Kandhar and killed Giorgi. After Mir Vays's death in 1127/1715, his brother Abul Aziz succeeded him as chief of the Gilzay Afghans. In 1128/1716, Mehmud, the eldest son of Mir Vays, became the chief of Gilzay Afghans and attacked Kirman. Shah Hussain had to leave Ispahan for Qazwin, therefore, Mehmud took chance to march ahead, and subdued a small military unit and occupied Ispahan in 1134/1722.

In 1127/1715, the Tzar Peter the Great, sent Artemii Petrovich Volynsky as an ambassador to Shah Hussain; he was to conclude a commercial treaty with Iran. He also collected secrecy of Iranian resources and important communication. Volynsky reported that the general situation in Iran was so disturbed, and the army so demoralized and inefficient, that the country could easily be conquered by a small Russian army. By 1133/1721, if not before, the Tzar had decided to invade Iran. He showing of the flag in the Caspian coastal provinces in 1134/1722 had occasioned great alarm in Istanbul, and there was a flurry of diplomatic activity as the possibility of war between Russia and Turkey became stronger or receded. The outcome was the Russo-Ottoman Treaty for the partition of Iran's north-west provinces, dated June 24, 1724. The dismemberment of Iran was short-lived. Six Russian battalions landed in Gilan in 1135/1723, and another Russian forces captured Baku. Hence, Iran's Caspian provinces of Gilan, Mazandaran and Astrabad had gone in the Russian pocket. On the other side, the European merchants started their dominion on the principal sea-ports of the Muslim countries.

Imam Kassim Ali was made the governor of Kirman in 1106/1694, but when the Baluchi tribesmen had raided Kirman in 1110/1698, the military control was assigned to the Georgian prince Giorgi XI by making him the governor of those parts of Kirman which had been affected by the invaders.

In Kirman, the village land was factorized into six shares (dang), each of which comprised one-sixth of the village water supply together with the land watered thereby. Imam Kassim Ali was the governor of the three villages, viz. Shahr-i Babak, Kahek and Mahallat. The Safavid authority accorded him due permission to create an Ataullahi regiment in the Safavid military for security against the Baluchi invaders.

In 1134/1722, an appaling drought reduced the inhabitants of Kirman and Ispahan to the last extremity. It was so severe that hundreds of rotting corpses clogged the streets. At least 80,000 people are said to have perished from starvation and disease. It is learnt that a bulk of the Ismaili from Fars with the governor started from Ispahan to help the affected persons, but Mehmud, the chief of Gilzay Afghans had occupied Ispahan on December 25, 1722 and was proclaimed as a ruler, therefore, the Ismailis could not enter the city.

Hasan Ali I, also known in Iranian orbits as Bakir Shah, was born in Kahek. He had also gone to the city of Kirman with his father, but returned to Kahek after assuming the Imamate. In 1085/1674, he betrothed to a Safavid lady, and soon afterwards, there is a likelihood that the Imam had taken certain interest in the political arena. In 1105/1693, he was made the governor of Kirman. The cursory glance of the Iranian empire reveals that Shah Abbas II had died in 1077/1666. John Malcolm writes in 'History of Persia' (London, 1815, 1st vol., p. 582) that, 'The love of wine, in which this prince often indulged to excess, was the cause of all the evils of his reign. It was in his moments of intoxication alone that he was capricious, cruel and unjust.' Shah Abbas II was succeeded by Shah Suleman. Henceforward, the Safavid kingdom took a rapid march towards decline. Under weak and ineffective king, the ulema tended to reassert their independence of the political institution, and were at the height of their power. The mujtahids fully reasserted their independence of the Shah, and reclaimed their prerogative to be the representatives of their hidden Imam. The mujtahids moved gradually towards a position of actually controlling the king. Some sources suggest a direct religious rule by means of a concourse of mujtahids above the monarch. The ulema consequently pressed forward to obtain a dominant position in the state, heedless of the fact that by so doing they were helping to destroy it. The foreign observer, such as Sir John Chardin had noted in his 'Voyages du Chevalier Chardin en Perse' (Paris, 1811, 5th vol., p. 249) that, 'The ulema were saying that these immortal Safavid kings were not worthy of kinship and that the mujtahid is the real ruler as representative of the hidden Imam.'

The Russian ambassador visited Iran during the period under review to conclude a truce, and as a result, Mazandaran, Jurjan etc,. went into the pocket of Russia. The Ottoman sultans in Turkey were also so weak that the whole empire had been isolated in different states. They however marched in Europe, near Vienna, but the Russians were devouring the Turkish territories behind the door.

In India, after the reign of Shah Jehan (1627-1658), the Mughal princes fought for the throne. Finally, Aurengzeb (1658-1707) ascended and ruled till 1118/1707. He fought with prince Dara Shikou, who was associated with the Qadri Sufi order. Aurengzeb was strict orthodox, intending for the Islamic rule in India. After his death, the Mughal empire was torn apart by the incessant strugglers of rival claimants to the throne.

Imam Hasan Ali directed the Ismaili mission in view of the changing situation of Iran. The names of few Ismaili dais, viz., Pir Mihrab Beg, Pir Ali Asghar Beg and Pir Ali Akbar Beg are however located, but nothing is known about them. The Turkish word beg in their names however sounds that they should have preached in the Iranian regions inhabited by the Turkomans, or more possibly, had come into the close contact of the Kizilbash circle in Iran.

It is learnt that in 1868 at Bombay, an unknown Ismaili scholar had composed a long poem to glorify the Ismaili Imams, tinged with brief accounts and advices of the Imams. It tells that Imam Hasan Ali I, had warned the Indian jamats the coming of a storm of foreign religious dogma that would convulse the poor people. He also emphasised his followers to adhere strictly to the faith of their forbears. It appears that the above unknown scholar would have derived his informations from the old manuscripts. The timely guidance of Hasan Ali however may be verified from the fast moving activities of the Christian missionaries hovering over India in the poor class. W.H. Sharp writes in 'Selections from Educational Records' (1st vol., p. 3) that, 'In 1659, the Court of Directors in England stated that it was their earnest desire by all possible means to spread Christianity amongst the people of India and allowed missionaries to embark on their ships.' Thus, the evangelical zeal found due support in England, and steps had been taken for the propagation of the Gospel in India in the poor class. The British East India Company was primarily a commercial concern, but it also launched in the campaign in fostering proselytising and educational activities in India. In 1698, the famous missionary clause was included in the Charter of the Company by British Parliament, directing the Company to maintain ministers of religion at their factories in India, and to take a Chaplain in every ship of 500 tons or more. It was not the Company's educational enterprise as stated by some, but a systematic campaign to the activities of the Christian missionaries. On that juncture, it is possible that Imam Hasan Ali I had appropriately warned his Indian followers about the incoming storm of the Christian dogma from Europe.

In the flourishing liberty of the Shiite mujtahids in Iran, the latent differences came readily to the fore. Two major schools of theological thought emerged in Shiite society. The majority stressed constant reference to the first principles, to all the sources (usul) of law: these were Holy Koran, reports about the Prophet and the Imams. They became known as the Usuli. But a vigorously protesting movement arose, which threw doubt on the validity of reason as an independent basis of law; it stressed the massive use of reports (akhbar) were available from Prophet and the Imams, and they were known as the Akhbari. One of the most important features of this period is the greatly enhanced influence of the religious classes as a whole, as they freed themselves from political control apart from the internal differences of the Usuli and Akhbari groups. Powerful theologians emerged, of whom a typical example is Muhammad Bakir Majlisi (1037-1110/1628-1699), who held the office of Shaikh al-Islam from 1687, and then as Mulla-bashi (head of the mullas) until his death.

It is a significant point that the Usuli and Akhbari Shiite groups jointly made the Sufis as their victims. Under these circumstances, the Ismailis had to change their Sufic mantles to the Shiite. It appears that Imam Hasan Ali also followed the similar taqiya in Kirman, and adopted the Shiite sounding name, Bakir Shah few years before becoming the governor of Kirman in 1105/1693. It is also said that he had purchased some estates in Baghdad, Basra and Kazamain Sharif. The last will of the Imam, indicating his burial in Najaf also suggests a sort of taqiya in Shiite garb.

The Safavid Shah Suleman is reported to have used the fortress of Alamut as a state prison for the rebellious persons from among his courtiers, amirsand relatives. At that time, only a few Ismaili families resided in the lower Caspian region.

Imam Hasan Ali I executed the governorship of Kirman for one year, and died in 1106/1694, and his body had been taken to Najaf for interment.

Sayed Ali was born most probably in Shahr-i Babak, where he passed his early life with his mother. He also came in Kahek after his father's arrival from Khorasan. He was also known as Shah Ataullah II among the Nimatullahi Sufi order. He was a popular figure as an amir in Shahr-i Babak and Kirman among the elites. He is also known as Rais al-Kirman (Lord of Kirman), an honour which ultimately promoted him to the governorship of Kirman. He was also a leading landlord, and had acquired many lands in Shahr-i Babak and Sirjan. He built many streets in Kirman, known after his name, none of them existed during the Qajarids period.
Shah Abbas I was on the verge of death when he had no son to succeed him. He died in 1038/1629, and was succeeded by his grandson, Sam Safi, known as Shah Safi. Sir John Chardin, who was visiting Iran in 1077/1666 had remarked in his 'Voyages du Chevalier Chardin en Perse' (Paris, 1811, 3rd vol., p. 291) that: 'D_s que ce grand et bon prince eut cess? de vivre, la Perse cessa de prosp?rer, i.e., 'When this great prince (Shah Abbas) ceased to live, Persia ceased to prosper.' Under Shah Safi, the conversion of 'state' to 'crown' provinces was extended. His vizir Sadru Taqi put forward an argument which the new king found attractive, since the Safavid state was now relatively secure from its external enemies, he said, there was no point in allowing a large part of Safavid territory to remain in the hands of Kizilbash governors, who remitted little to the royal treasury. Thus, the provinces of Qazwin, Gilan, Mazandaran, Yazd, Kirman, Khorasan and Azerbaijan were all brought under the administration of the crown except in time of war, when Kizilbash governors were reappointed.

Shah Safi died at the early age of 32 years, as he was making preparations for an expedition to recover Kandhar from the Mughals. There seems to be general agreement that he was addicted to opium, and, according to some, was prescribed alcoholic drinks by his physicians to counteract the evil effects of the opium. He was succeeded by his son, Abbas II, who came to the throne in 1052/1642 at the age of eight and a half. As already mentioned, the system of converting 'state' to 'crown' provinces was carried on by Shah Abbas II on a large scale, with the result that almost the whole country was brought under the direct administration of the crown except in time of war, when adhoc military governors were appointed to strategically important frontier provinces. Ann K.S. Lambton writes in 'Landlord and Peasant in Persia' (London, 1953, p. 108) that, 'Shah Abbas II, continuing his father, Shah Shafi's policy, abolished provincial governments in the interior of the kingdom wherever there was no danger of war, as in Qazwin, Gilan, Mazandaran, Yazd, Kirman, Khurasan and Azarbayjan'. We may be well assured that the Ismailis in these provinces, had acquired respite in the absence of political turmoil. Shah Abbas II managed to preserve the frontier of the empire intact, and even recaptured Kandhar from the Mughals in 1058/1648 and repulsed three subsequent attempts by the emperor Aurengzeb to recover it.

The Mughal emperors in India at that time were Jahangir (1605-1627) and Shah Jehan (1627-1658). Jahangir invaded Kandhar and included it in Mughal dominion, but it was re-occupied by Shah Abbas II in 1648, resulting a dispute between Iran and India.

Captain William Hawkins was the first English to have visited the court of Jahangir in 1608 and took permission of trade facility and the opening of a factory in Surat. Sir Thomas Roe arrived in India in 1617 for opening other new factories. The entry of the British gradually in India resulted their political ambition. Having secured a sound foothold, the British began interfering in the internal affairs of the state under one pretext or another. Ultimately, because of their cleverness, superior military strategy and latest weapons, they wiped off all the forces contending for supremacy on the Indian soil and became the undisputed masters of the sub-continent for one century and half.

Heretofore, we have discussed that Shah Abbas I had attempted to incorporate the Sufi elements in the administrative structure in 1588, and as a result, many Kizilbash embraced Sufism in Iran. The Ismaili dais began to preach in the cloak of Sufis, and there are certain indications that many Kizilbash had privily come under the yoke of Ismailism in the time of Imam Nizar. Thus, Imam Sayed Ali also assumed among them the Turkish sounding name, Sayed Abul Hasan Beg.

The liberal policy towards the Sufism declined in Iran with the death of Shah Abbas in 1038/1629. The Sufis began to be persecuted and killed, and their khanqahs (cloisters) were demolished. Roger Savory writes in 'Iran under the Safavids' (New York, 1980, p. 237) that, 'After the death of Shah Abbas I, the status of the Sufis continued to decline, and in the 17th century, less than two hundred years after, Sufi zeal and devotion had brought the Safavids to power, the mujtahid Mohammad Bakir Majlisi denounced Sufism as the foul and hellish growth.' The Sufis were searched from all corners and scourged to death as an act of religious services. The Nimatullahi Sufi order was also not spared, and before the massacre of the Ismailis, known as Ataullahis in Khorasan and Kirman, Imam Sayed Ali ordered them to join the royal army at once, which avoided the danger of massacre. It is known that a small regiment of Ataullahis in the Safavid army, was also created in Khorasan and Kirman.

Nizar was born in 982/1574 in Anjudan, and ascended at the age of 11 years. He is known as Shah Ataullah among the Iranian mystics. His father had brought him in Kahek in 992/1584, and henceforward, Kahek became the next headquarters. It took few years to the Ismailis to settle in Kahek and its locality. He also founded a village near Kuhubandi, known as Kahek of Aqa Nizar, then became known as Bagh-i Takhat. The colony of the farmers in this village was also known as Nizarabad. The Ismaili merchants of Kirman are said to have built a small palace for Nizar in Kahek, which became known as Kahek-i Shah Nizar, where a small marble platform had been erected in a garden, facing the palace. It is said that the Imam would sit on this platform, which was surrounded by water, when giving audience. His guests would be placed amid flower beds on the other side of the water. Kahek, or Kiagrak is situated about 35 kilometers northest of Anjudan and north-west of Mahallat.

From the extant qasida, it appears that Imam Nizar was physically weak. He was of a middle height like his ancestor Ali bin Abu Talib. In his qasida, he however says:-

Har chand ke man dar nazar'e khalq nizaram,

Sad shukar ke dar alam'e tahaqiq nazaram.

means, 'Although I am looking weak in the eyes of the people, but it is a matter of thank that I am watching the world of reality.'

Gar pustam wa gir'rai hakiram na chunanam,

Kaz rah'e jalal'e nasab akbaraz'e kibaram.

means, 'Physically, I am looking weak and small in size, but I am not so in reality. Because of the dignity of my (illustrious) linage, I am greater than the greatest ones.'
The Safavid Shah Abbas ruled Iran from 995/1588 to 1038/1628. He restored peace with severe actions. He reduced the number of provincial governors to curb the power of Kizilbash, and took punitive action against them for their disloyalty. Shah Abbas also turned to the third force, which Shah Tahmasp had introduced into the state, and created their regiments which constituted the nucleus of a standing army. He also took the power of collecting revenue from the Kizilbash, and demanded accounts of expenditure from his governors. The chief of the Ustajlu faction in Khorasan, Murshid Quli Khan, was a powerful Kizilbash leader, who was responsible for placing Shah Abbas on the throne; had assumed that, as in the past, he would be able to bend the king to his will. Shah Abbas had him executed in 996/1589. Hence, the Uzbeks overran the province of Sistan, and invaded Mashhad, but it had been repulsed. In 1005/1598, Shah Abbas transferred his capital from Qazwin to Ispahan. He expanded his influence in Herat and defeated the Uzbeks, and annexed Balkh in his state. In 1014/1605, he attacked on the Turks and recovered Tabriz.

Shah Abbas is noted as a great builder, and so was very cruel. In 1024/1615, he executed his son, Muhammad Bakir, the then governor of Khorasan. His another son Hasan predeceased him. In 1030/1621, when he fell ill, his third son Muhammad prematurely celebrated his death. When Shah Abbas recovered, he blinded Muhammad. In 1035/1626, he blinded his only surviving son, Quli Mirza. Hence, he had no male issue to succeed him. He died in 1038/1629 after ruling for 42 years, and was succeeded by his grandson, Sam Mirza, surnamed Shah Shafi, the son of Muhammad Bakir.

The Ottoman empire was sunk into the internal disputes after sultan Suleman, and lost many regions from the Safavids. Unemployment, poor exports and the worsening condition of the peasants had badly paralysed the economy of Turkey. Earlier, the Europe and United States imported silver from Turkey for minting coins, but now they began the coinage with other cheap metal, causing heavy loss of mine business in the country. The Safavid Shah Abbas used to export the silken costumes and carpets to Europe through the port of Turkey, but it was stopped because of the newly formed Port Abbas in Iran, resulting another heavy crack in the tax-income of Turkey. In sum, the Ottoman empire began to come in its ebb.

Bayazid Ansari (1525-1581), known as Pir-i Rawshan originated a Roshaniyya cult in Kabul and Kashmir. His works, 'Khayr al-Bayan', 'Maksud al- Muminin', 'Surat-i Tawhid', 'Fakhr', 'Hal-Nama' etc. were rigorously opposed by the Sunni ulema. The Mughals persecuted his followers and executed many of them. It must be known that the Ismaili mission had no relation with the Roshaniyya sect, but Bayazid Ansari seems to have been influenced with the esoteric doctrines of the Ismailis in Kandhar. Nevertheless, a bulk of the Ismailis were also scourged to death in Kashmir during the Mughal operations, forcing the surviving Ismailis to migrate to Punjab, where they emerged under the name of the Shamsi.

The Shi'ism dominated in Iran with the foundation of the Safavid kingdom and brought forth many eminent scholars and theologians, viz., Mulla Muhammad Amin Astrabadi (d. 1033/1623), known as Mir Damad, who compiled many works on Shiite jurisprudence, and founded a thought, known as Akhbari against those Shias, who professed the doctrines of Ijtihad. The Akhbari group adhered only to Holy Koran, Hadith and the sayings of twelve Imams being the source of authority. In contrast, the other Shias, known as Usuli believed in Holy Koran, Hadith and Qiyas. They used to debate each other, and their polemical writings had become a major industry in Iran. This period is also noted for the introduction of marsiya (mourning songs) and the commemoration of the rawda-khani (recital of the martyrdom of Imam Hussain) during Muharram.

In addition, the ilm al-kalam (theology), hikmat (wisdom), irfan (gnosis) and the Sufic thought also accelerated. Iran was a fertile land to nourish philosophy and wisdom, and gave birth of prominent scholars, viz., Ibn Turka Ispahani (d. 835/1431), Sayed Hyder Ali Amuli (11th/16th cent.), Mir Dad (d. 1041/1631), Muhammad Bakir Majlisi (d. 1110/1699), Mulla Sadra (d. 1050/1640), Mohsin-i Fayd Kashani (d. 1091/1680), Abdur Razzak Lahiji (d. 1072/1661), Rajab Ali Tabrizi (d. 1080/1699) etc.

Roger Savory writes in 'Iran under the Safavids' (New York, 1980, p. 91) that, 'We have seen the period from the establishment of the Safavid state in 1501, upto the accession of Shah Abbas I in 1588, was one of change and experiment. An attempt was made to incorporate the original Sufi organization of the Safavid Order in the administrative structure of the state.' Thus, under Shah Abbas, the Sufism came to life once again.

In India, the Kadiwal Sayeds continued the tradition of Ismaili mission despite several impediments. Fourth in the line of Sayed Mashaikh bin Sayed Rehmatullah Shah bin Pir Hasan Kabir, was Sayed Fazal Shah; who operated proselytizing mission in north Gujrat with a tremendous effect upon the local peasants. His disciples islamized their names and forsook irrelevant customs. He is said to have visited Iran in 1035/1625 during the period of Imam Nizar and was appointed as a vakil. The tradition relates that Nizar also sent with him his one relative, called Pir Kassim Shah. Both of them not only conducted the proselytism afresh, but also accelerated the economical condition of the Ismailis. It appears that their secret mission was closely noticed by Aurengzeb at Gujrat. In the meantime, Sayed Fazal Shah died in the village of Jetral in 1068/1659, and left behind two sons, Sayed Hasan Shah and Sayed Mashaikh Shah II (1060-1108/1650-1697). Sayed Hasan Shah, known as Hasan Pir (1062-1126/1652-1715) became next vakil and continued to work with Pir Kassim Shah in place of his father. It is however related that Sayed Mashaikh Shah had strong proclivity towards Sunnism, and renounced his allegiance to the Imam. He is said to have visited the Mughal emperor Aurengzeb in the Deccan, and reviled the faith of his forbears to win the heart of the emperor.
Aurengzeb, who knew the Ismaili activities in Gujrat, had sent a certain Mir Shamsuddin in Gujrat with a troop when Pir Kassim Shah and Hasan Pir were on a trip of Kathiawar. Mir Shamsuddin read the royal decree before the Ismailis, impugning them to forsake Ismailism and espouse Sunnism, otherwise they would be beheaded with their children, and their properties would be confiscated. Sayed Mashaikh Shah also tried to convince them to give up Ismaili faith, and as a result, many Ismailis embraced Sunnism, but other 500 Ismaili families flatly refused, who became known as momins or later on mominas. The seceders were called, chilia in Gujrat. The momina Ismailis were imprisoned at Patan. In the meantime, Pir Kassim Shah and Hasan Pir rushed to Ahmadnagar, and filed suit before the chief judge, who, after the proceeding of three days, exculpated the Ismailis, declaring the Ismailis as true Muslims. This may be perhaps the first legal verdict in India if the tradition is genuine. Pir Kassim Shah and Hasan Pir came in Patan and relieved the Ismailis. Henceforward, the Ismailis broke their relation with the chilia, the followers of Sayed Mashaikh Shah, who died in 1108/1697 in Ahmadabad, and his followers later quarrelled as to whether he had been a Sunni or Shia, causing further internal splits. Pir Kassim Shah took about 250 Ismaili families to different villages of Gujrat, and other 250 families were flourished in Kathiawar by Hasan Pir. Pir Kassim Shah died around 1121/1710, and was buried at a village, called Mudana, two miles from Sidhpur. Thus, Hasan Pir had to administer the mission all alone in Gujrat and Kathiawar, and died probably in 1126/1715. Hasan Pir was revered as the saint of the Momina Ismailis. In addition to his mausoleum in Thanapipli, near Junagarh, the local Ismailis built a shrine in 1128/1717 at Ganod, Gujrat as a tribute to Hasan Pir. His shrine is flocked by the multitude of visitors, and one like visit is noteworthy that of Mahomed Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan, who as a child was taken from Karachi by his parents.

After the death of Pir Kassim Shah and Hasan Pir, the Momina Ismailis were severely in trouble without any other vakil for many years. The Mughal governors seem to have continued the tradition of Aurengzeb, and the circumstances did not allow the Ismailis to divulge their faith or perform prayers in thier prayer-hall. In Surat, the Momina Ismailis were yet tinged with the Hindu social customs and had to live sometimes under Shiite garbs. It seems that the Mughal authorities had made the Hindus and the Shias as their main target, and as a result, the Momina Ismailis had to face problems on either side. It is said that they built a secret prayer-hall in Surat, where both the Muslim-Hindu styles were significantly employed at two main entrances. The first entrance facing the Hindu locality, was ornamented like a temple. The second entrance lying at the street of the Shia Muslims, imitated the design of a mausoleum. The premises was known simply as Vada Bhuvan (big mansion). The Ismailis used secret codes at the entrances before admission. When the enemies hunted the Shia Muslims in their locality, the entranc in that area was to be closed, and another was opened instead. And if the Hindus were persecuted in their locality, the gate lying in that street was to be shut, and other was opened for the service. This was a sort of taqiya that could avoid the Ismailis from being domineered. In the middle of premises, there was a big hall, whose underground chamber was used for prayers. It must be noted that a like tradition of two exterior faces of the secret prayer-hall is reported to have been employed in Surat once again in the middle of 19th century, known as Dada'nu Ghar (house of the grandfather).

It must be noted on this juncture that Sayed Buzrug Ali, the son of Sayed Mashaikh Shah II (d. 1108/1697) is said to have settled in Tando Muhammad Khan in Sind, and died between 1153/1740 and 1158/1745. His son Sayed Hashim Ali Shah was the father of Sayeda Imam Begum, the last composer of the ginans in India.

Imam Nizar died in Kahek in 1038/1628 and was entombed in his small palace, which had been made a domed sepulcher. It is an eye-catching building in Kahek, consisting of different chambers. It also accommodated the graves of Imam's close relatives, but the dates inscribed in the graves are concocted. The mausoleum was renovated in 1805 by the Syrian pilgrims, who stayed in Kahek for many months, and it was again rebuilt in 1966 by the local Ismailis.

It is parenthetically worth mentioning that the dates of the Ismaili Imams of the early post-Alamut period are well recorded in the 'Satveni'ji Vel'by Sayed Nur Muhammad Shah (d. 940/1534), down to the period of Imam Nuruddin Ali (d. 957/1550). It also prompted the Indian Ismailis to write down the dates of the following Imams. The Russian scholar W.Ivanow visited Iran in 1937 and noted the dates of Imams' death from the plaques on the existing mausoleums. While collating the dates of the inscriptions with the traditional records, it seems that the dates of few early Imams are almost in agreement, but other dates are in fair contrast, making a layer of confusion to reconcile them. For instance, the death of Imam Nizar is placed 1038/1628 in the traditional records, but the inscription of mausoleum places 1134/1722, indicating a discrimination of about 94 years. It is, however, much nearer to reasonable possibility that the Indian Ismailis had been in close contact with the Imams after Pir Sadruddin's time in Iran, and they had treasured up the traditional records in their memory with the same tendency which they had employed in learning the ginans, and therefore, the traditional dates cannot be ruled out. Besides, there is another testimony equally potent that Pir Sadruddin is said to have composed a daily prayer (dua) for the Indian followers, wherein the names of the Imams from Hazrat Ali down to the Imam of the time were recited. When an Imam died, the name of his successor was inserted in the daily prayer as the Lord of the Light (noor-shah). Under such practice, the traditional records seem more credible than that of the inscriptions. It seems probable that most of the mausoleums and their inscriptions existed long after the death of the Imams, and none can assert that the scribes had either written the actual dates, or the dates of their own time, or written on guess work. Take it for granted that the inscriptions provide true record, then one would have to brush aside few names of the Imams from the official list, so as to adjust the history with the dates of inscriptions. It also deserves notice that the Indian pilgrims most possibly had visited the mausoleums of the Imams and seen the inscriptions, had these really existed during their time. In spite of reading the extant inscriptions, the Indian pilgrims of later period seem to have clung with their own dominant records, which is ample to judge that they had discarded the uncertain dates of inscriptions. In all this, what should have become abundantly clear is that the dates of the inscriptions are not to be trusted.

It is related that some scholars in the Nimatullahi Sufi order had ignored the Sufic teachings of Imam Nizar in Khorasan. In his sayings, Nizar is reported to have addressed them as under:-

Amruz baman pi nabrad aqeel wa farda,
sajada'i umid kund luh'i mazaram.

'The talented does not try to take benefit from me. When I will depart from the world, he will prostrate before the slab of my tomb as the source of accomplishing hopes.'
It seems that the above qasida was preserved with the Nimatullahis in Khorasan of no avail. When Nizar returned to Kirman and died, many Nimatullahis began to realize its worth after a long time. They seem to have flocked at Kahek when the seat of the Imamate had been transferred from that village, and venerated the mausoleum of Nizar. It is also possible that they had either built Nizar's mausoleum, or had given the present shape to it most possibly in the period of Imam Kassim Ali (d. 1143/1730).

There are many folklores attributed to Nizar. One among them however relates a touching anecdote that Nizar was once sitting at the top of his house at night. Suddenly he heard the gallop of horses, and saw the Safavid horsemen approaching near Kahek, who were loitering for foods and provisions. They spurred their horses on the slopy tract of the village for taking a night respite. For a while, Nizar found himself between the horns of a dilemma. He did not like the hoof of a single horse be entered in Kahek and also avoided to check them through his sleeping guards. He came down at speed and relieved a bulk of lambs from the fold, directing them to make a stampede downwards to impede the mounting horsemen. The lambs jumped down like an advancing column. The horsemen angerily brandished their swords to cut their way in the lines of dashing lambs. The exhausted horsemen were at length forced to come down to the main tract and took flight. Nizar watched the occurrence from the roof, and did not sleep until morning. He however found that all the lambs were brutally killed. Suddenly, he saw a wounded lamb coming calmly from downwards. Nizar came down and took it with his arms lovingly, and made its bandages. The wounded lamb also died at the same moment. This story depicts the services of the lambs, and therefore, the lamp is customarily burnt in the mausoleum of Nizar, fed only with the oil of lamb's fat. It may be remarked as strange that the lamp bearing the oil other than the lamb's fat, it becomes extinguished at once.

It will perhaps be well at this stage to glance that the first western monograph devoted entirely to the subject of the Ismailis seems to be that of Denis Lebey de Batilly, a French official at the court of Henry IV in Europe. The author had become deeply concerned about the revival of political murders in Europe, after the stabbing of Henry III of France at the hands of a Jacobin friar in 1589. He set out in 1595 to compile a short treatise on the true origin of the word assassin, which had acquired a new currency in France.