“commitment to a search for knowledge for the betterment of self and society; embracing pluralism by building bridges of peace and understanding; and generously sharing of one’s time, talents, and material resources to improve the quality of life of the community and those among whom they live.”
Ismailis live in over 25 different countries, mainly in Central and South Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, North America, and Australia. It is estimated there are 12 to 15 million Ismailis across the globe.
His Highness the Aga Khan
As previously mentioned, His Highness the Aga Khan is the 49th hereditary Imam (Spiritual Leader) of the Shi‘a Ismaili Muslims. His Highness the Aga Khan assumed office in 1957, adapting the system of caring and administering pioneered by his grandfather, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan III, who was not only twice President of the League of Nations, but the person responsible for articulating the international role of the Imamat as being politically neutral. Balancing the spiritual wellbeing of his followers with the quality of his or her life, the Imams have provided constitutions and rules of conformity “with the Islamic concepts of unity, brotherhood, justice, tolerance, and goodwill.”
The first Ismaili Constitution was ‘ordained’ by the grandfather of His Highness the Aga Khan, the 48th Imam, Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan III, in 1905, for the Ismailis of East Africa. This constitution gave the community a form of administration, comprising a hierarchy of governance structures at local, national and regional levels. It also set out rules of personal law to govern such matters as marriage, divorce, and inheritance, as well as guidelines for mutual cooperation and support within the community and its interface with other communities. Similar constitutions were promulgated in South Asia and other regions around the world under instructions from the Imam. The 49th Imam, His Highness the Aga
Khan, ‘ordained’ an Ismaili Constitution in 1986 that brought together social governance of the global Ismaili community. Within that constitutional framework, national, regional and local councils were also established “for overall social governance,” as were central institutions that provided for services involving education, health, social welfare, housing, economic welfare, cultural and women’s activities, youth, and sports development. Such a framework was intended not just to secure the peace and unity of Ismailis, but ‘to foster fruitful collaboration among different peoples, to optimize the use of resources, and to enable the Ismaili Muslims to make a valid and meaningful contribution to the improvement of the quality of life of the societies in which they live and to be responsible citizens of the countries where they reside.”
His Highness the Aga Khan has received acclaim and numerous awards for his work involving not just his leadership of Ismaili Muslims but his support of pluralism, rationalism, and human dignity.
Above:
His Highness
the Aga Khan, 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims and founder and chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN)
Photo
Courtesy of:
AKDN / Anya Campbell Photography
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