This was a My Flag Hoisting Ceremony done in Zanzibar on 11th July 2007 after almost 43 years. The ceremony took place at the compound adjacent to current Jamat Khana. The Chief Guest was Hon.Dr. Mwinyihaji Makame, Minster of State - President’s Office - Responsible for Finance & Economic Affairs in The Government of Zanzibar.

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Source: Ismailisoul Moderator

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Hoover residents left a meeting Tuesday evening content that members of an Ismaili Muslim congregation will be good neighbors if they build a worship center bordering neighborhoods on Sulphur Springs Road.

They said they remain more concerned about traffic congestion than religion.

“Hoover is horrible enough as it is, as far as traffic goes,” said Julia Copeland, who lives in the Birch Tree subdivision.

Ismaili members said issues including traffic counts and turn lanes will be discussed at an Aug. 13 public hearing before the Hoover Planning Commission.

Tuesday’s meeting at the Prince of Peace Catholic Church was to inform the public about their faith, a branch of the minority Shiite Muslims, and to assure residents they will be part of the fabric of the community.

The congregation’s proposed worship center, called a jamatkhana, is planned on a 4.7-acre wooded tract at the northeast corner of Al Seier and Sulphur Springs roads. The property is currently zoned for neighborhood business. Under their proposal, the property would be developed by Louis Passarella of Georgia, who would lease it to the Ismaili group.

A sketch showed a one-story brick structure like a professional building. University of Alabama at Birmingham oncologist Mansoor Saleh, a member and spokesman, said jamatkhanas worldwide are designed to fit local environments.

In a DVD presentation, he showed a center in Beijing that looked like a pagoda, and a sand tower design in Mali.

“We decided not to choose the pagoda version for Hoover,” he joked.

The Ismailis have allegiance to the Aga Khan, a “living guide” said to be the 49th imam and a direct descendent of the Prophet Mohammed.

Their worship centers include a lobby and a prayer room, facing east, but don’t have distinctive domes or minarets of a mosque, and there are no called prayers, Saleh said.

Prayer times are daily from 4 to 5:30 a.m. and from 7:30 to 9 p.m. Friday prayers may attract 300 people, but it is after peak traffic times, he said.

Residents opposing the center met in June to organize a petition, citing traffic concerns. A few residents Tuesday said they came to learn more about the religion.

Residents Angela and Scott George said reports that traffic concerns were just a way residents could mask religious bigotry were bogus.

“The Preserve hasn’t been built out yet and there are other developments going on,” Scott George said. “Everyone is worried about traffic.”

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Source: ismailimail

Humayun’s tomb is a complex of buildings of Mughal architecture located in Nizamuddin east, New Delhi. In time of Slave Dynasty this land was under the KiloKheri Fort which was capital of Sultan Kequbad S/o Nasiruddin(1268-1287 AD). It encompasses the main tomb of the Emperor Humayun as well as numerous others. The complex is a World Heritage Site and the first example of this type of Mughal architecture in India. This style of mausoleum was the same that created the Taj Mahal in Agra.

The tomb of Humayun was built by the orders of Hamida Banu Begum, Humayun’s widow starting in 1562. The architect of the edifice was reportedly Sayyed Muhammad ibn Mirak Ghiyathuddin and his father Mirak Ghiyathuddin who were brought in from Herat. It took 8 years to build and had a Chahr Bagh Garden style in its design, the first of its kind in the region.

Restoration work by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC) was completed in March 2003, enabling water to flow through the watercourses in the gardens once more. Funding for this work was a gift from the institutions of His Highness the Aga Khan to India. In addition, AKTC is conducting a more significant restoration at Babur’s tomb, the resting place of Humayun’s father in Kabul.

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Source: ismailimail

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They’re built as one large five-pillared room with raised areas around four sides of a central pit. There are few, if any, windows; illumination comes through a skylight in the roof, which consists of four concentric squares, representing the elements earth, fire, air, and water. Carpets and mattresses take the place of furniture and also serve as decoration along with panels of hand-colored photographs–the most prominent of which is often a portrait of the Aga Khan.

http://beyond-the-river.com/?p=72

Related Post: Hidden Gems: Tajikistan’s Pamirs and Wakhan Corridor

Source: ismailimail

Bishkek (AKIpress) - More than 200 representatives of civil society, government, business community, the diplomatic corps and international organizations gathered in Kyrgyzstan’s capital, Bishkek, on Tuesday to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of His Highness the Aga Khan.

Mrs. Nurjehan Mawani, the Head of Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) Representation in Kyrgyzstan and the country’s foreign minister, His Excellency Ednan Karabaev, addressed the gathering at the Bishkek Hyatt Hotel. Representatives of the parliament, civil society and local government from Naryn and Osh districts presented their messages of congratulations. Guests at the event were delighted by the music of the Tengir-Too Ensemble and Center Ustatshakirt, which are sponsored by the Aga Khan Music Initiative in Central Asia (AKMICA), a program of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture (AKTC).

His Highness the Aga Khan completed his 50th year as the Imam of the Ismaili community on 11 July 2007. Fifty years ago, at the age of 20, the Aga Khan succeeded his grandfather, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan, as the 49th hereditary Imam (spiritual leader) of the Shia Ismaili Muslims.

In keeping with the Shia tradition of Islam, the mandate of the Imam extends to both spiritual and worldly matters. Since assuming the office of Imamat in 1957, Prince Karim Aga Khan has taken upon himself his grandfather’s concern for the well-being of the Ismaili community, the wider Muslim community, and those amongst whom they live. He has emphasised Islam as a thinking, spiritual faith that teaches compassion and tolerance and upholds the dignity of mankind.

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DOCUMENTARY FILM SCREEING “Chalo School”

Journey of five children in three different states at India Habitat Centre - 1st August, 2007

• Event Info : To commemorate the Golden Jubilee of H.H.Aga Khan, we screen ‘Chalo School’. The film tracks a day in the life of five children in three different states and settings, and takes the us through a journey into their lives and challenges.

• Time : 6:30 pm

• Collaboration : Aga Khan Foundation

• Place : India Habitat Centre ( IHC ), Lodhi Road, New Delhi-110003
• Parking : Gate No. 3 ( Cars ), Gate No. 2 ( Bikes & Bicycles )
• Click here for more events at India Habitat Centre
• Click here to Know More About India Habitat Centre

http://www.delhievents.com/2007/08/documentary-film-screeing-school.html

Source: ismailimail