Introduction

The Shia Ismaili Muslims are a community of ethnically and culturally diverse peoples living in over 25 countries around the world, united in their allegiance to His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan (known to the Ismailis as Mawlana Hazar Imam) as the 49th hereditary Imam (spiritual leader), and direct descendant of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family).

 

Articles related to: Pluralism

Universities have a role in encouraging pluralist encounters says UBC President at inaugural Ismaili Centre Lecture

Professor Stephen J. Toope, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of British Columbia, delivering the inaugural Ismaili Centre Lecture at the Ismaili Centre, Burnaby. Photo: Noor Rahemtulla

Speaking at the Ismaili Centre, Burnaby, Professor Stephen J. Toope, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of British Columbia said that creating an environment that fosters “global citizens” is crucial to seeing pluralism in action. His address marked the inauguration of The Ismaili Centre Lectures, a series of intellectually stimulating speaker-based events held at the Centre.

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Ismaili Community Ensemble to celebrate the value of diversity through music and art

The rubab features prominently in the musical traditions of Central Asia, and is one of many instruments that contribute to the rich diversity of music in the Jamat and the ummah. Photo: Naveed Osman

As it prepares for its January 2012 concert, the UK Ismaili Community Ensemble has found resonance with the values of the forthcoming London 2012 Olympic Games. The celebration of cultural diversity, finding ways to inspire and involve young people, and leaving a positive legacy in London through social cohesion and cultural participation are notions that are shared by the Ensemble and have influenced the music it has created.

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Snapshots of our identity on a coffee table

Titled “HERStory”, this photograph of a woman in Badakshan, Tajikistan by Zahid Wissanji won the grand prize in the photography competition leading up to the publication of “Ismailis, A Celebration of Diversity”. Photo: ISMGlobalPhotos.com / Zahid Wissanji

The photography book Ismailis, A Celebration of Diversity portrays the rich plurality of the global Ismaili community and the sentiments expressed by talented photographers through their visually stirring images. It is the result of one photographer’s love of art and the community.

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Interview with Jaume Plensa, creator of Tolerance statues in Houston

Jaume Plensa at the Tolerance dedication ceremony held at Harmony Walk, with one of the sculptures visible in the background. Photo: Zahid Alibhai

In February 2011, an installation of seven statues titled Tolerance was unveiled at Harmony Walk in Houston, near the site of the planned Ismaili Center, Houston. Sculptor Jaume Plensa describes his vision, inspiration and technique in creating this work of art.

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Mawlana Hazar Imam partners with the City of Houston in commissioning a landmark sculpture celebrating tolerance

A view of the Tolerance sculptures along Allen Parkway at night time. Photo: Zahid Alibhai

In February 2011, a group of seven 10-foot high installations called Tolerance was unveiled at Harmony Walk in Houston near the site of the planned Ismaili Center, Houston. The statues were created by Spanish artist, Jaume Plensa and funded by City of Houston together with Mawlana Hazar Imam and a few private donors.

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Communities of the Abrahamic traditions join their musical voices

Pandemonium, the Morley Chamber Choir and the Ismaili Community Ensemble perform together at Cadogan Hall. Photo: Naveed Osman

The Ismaili Community Ensemble in the United Kingdom recently collaborated with musicians from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Pandemonium and Morley Chamber Choir to present a cornucopia of beautiful music evoking the heritage of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions.

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Diversity sparks dialogue at annual Texas Youth Summit

Participants and parents listen to the speakers at the fourth Annual Youth Summit and Diversity Dialogue held at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
. Photo: Bombay Photography

Several Ismaili students and speakers participated in the fourth Annual Youth Summit and Diversity Dialogue, titled Getting to the Core of Diversity at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. The annual event promotes pluralism and leadership development in high school students.

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Taking the Canadian model for citizenship into the world

Former Governor General of Canada the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson and John Ralston Saul spoke with Sheherazade Hirji following Mawlana Hazar Imam’s lecture at the 2010 LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium. Photo: Moez Visram

Following Mawlana Hazar Imam’s lecture at the LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium in October, Sheherazade Hirji of The Ismaili Canada magazine met with the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson and Mr John Ralston Saul to discuss the lecture series, and the work of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship.

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Qatar Jamat celebrates the values premiated in award-winning Muslim architecture

Children parade into the hall waving the Qatari and Ismaili flags. Photo: Courtesy of the Ismaili Council for the UAE

As the “Cultural Capital of the Arab World in 2010”, Doha was a fitting venue for the Award Ceremony of the 11th cycle of the Aga Khan Award for Architecture, which was held in November. The event was particularly special for members of the Qatar Jamat, who were jubilant over Mawlana Hazar Imam’s visit to their peninsular country.

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“Outsourced” not outdone — Ismaili actor makes headway in Hollywood

In “Outsourced”, Rizwan Manji plays the part of Rajiv Gidwani, an ambitious and conniving assistant manager of a call centre in India. Photo: Chris Haston/NBC

Rizwan Manji, an Ismaili Muslim actor from Toronto, plays the part of Rajiv in the hit comedy TV series Outsourced. The show, which features a cast of South Asian actors premiered this fall on NBC to critical acclaim, and has garnered worldwide attention and publicity.

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Mawlana Hazar Imam addresses prestigious LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium in Toronto

Mawlana Hazar Imam addressed the 10th annual LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium in Toronto on Friday, 15 October 2010. Photo: Moez Visram

Toronto, 15 October 2010 — “What the Canadian experience suggests to me is that identity itself can be pluralistic,” said Mawlana Hazar Imam before a packed audience at the Royal Conservatory’s Telus Centre for Performance and Learning. Speaking at the invitation of the Institute for Canadian Citizenship, Hazar Imam received a warm welcome from the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson and John Ralston Saul.

Also see:
» AKDN coverage of the LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium, including speech and photos
» Welcome address by John Ralston Saul and introductory remarks by the Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson
» Watch the complete recorded event
» The LaFontaine-Baldwin Symposium at the Institute for Canadian Citizenship website

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Harvard University Professor Ali Asani discusses a new course on Ismaili history and thought

Shenila Khoja-Moolji interviewing Professor Ali Asani for this article. Photo: Courtesy of Shenila S. Khoja-Moolji

In the spring of 2010, Harvard University, for the first time in its history, offered a course on Ismaili History and Thought. Harvard student Shenila S. Khoja-Moolji spoke with Professor Ali Asani about his experience designing and teaching it.

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Mawlana Hazar Imam is awarded Honorary Canadian Citizenship as he is joined by Prime Minister for Foundation Ceremony in Toronto

Mawlana Hazar Imam receives a certificate of Honorary Canadian Citizenship from Prime Minister Harper. Photo: Moez Visram

Toronto, 28 May 2010 — Mawlana Hazar Imam and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper were in Toronto today to mark the Foundation of the Ismaili Centre, the Aga Khan Museum and their Park situated in the city’s Don Mills area. The Prime Minister used the occasion to formally announce the Canadian Parliament’s unanimous decision to make Mawlana Hazar Imam an Honorary Canadian Citizen.

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Mawlana Hazar Imam arrives in Canada to lay foundation of Ismaili Centre, museum and park

Upon his arrival in Ottawa, Mawlana Hazar Imam was welcomed by Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Lawrence Cannon, Ismaili Council for Canada President Mohamed Manji, and other leaders of the Jamat and AKDN institutions in Canada. Photo: Zahur Ramji

Ottawa, 26 May 2010 — Mawlana Hazar Imam arrived in Ottawa this afternoon, marking the start of a two-day visit to Canada during which he will participate in the Foundation Ceremony of the Ismaili Centre, the first-ever Aga Khan Museum for Islamic Art and Culture, and the park where they will be situated in Toronto’s Don Mills neighbourhood.

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New chapter in Canadian Ismaili story set to unfold in the Don Mills neighbourhood of Toronto

An aerial view of the Don Mills neighbourhood, looking towards the future site of the Ismaili Centre, the Aga Khan Museum and their park. The Foundation Ceremony for the three projects is due to take place on 28 May. Photo: Moez Visram

Over the decades, the Toronto neighbourhood of Don Mills has opened its welcoming arms and helped many new immigrants make Canada their home, including Ismailis and other Muslims. On 28 May, Mawlana Hazar Imam will lay the foundation for three important new projects that will invite Canadians — Muslim and non-Muslim — to explore their connected heritage and celebrate their unique backgrounds.

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Aga Khan Museum Collection reflects pluralism of the Muslim world and shared human heritage

This Qur’an bifolium is written in gold kufic script on blue parchment. Created by the Fatimids during their rule in Kairouan, it is considered to be one of the most lavish Qur’anic scripts ever created. Photo: Courtesy of the Aga Khan Trust for Culture

The Aga Khan Museum Collection, which has been travelling across Europe since 2007, will ultimately find its permanent home in a new museum being established in Toronto. Reflecting the diversity and pluralism that characterises the Muslim world, the artwork and objects that comprise the Collection are helping to foster a greater appreciation of our collective human heritage and shared history.

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Pamirs provide an enchanting backdrop to learn about the Jamat in Tajikistan

A statue of Nasir Khusraw with the Pamir Mountains rising behind him. Photo: Janet Southern

Recalling her visit to Tajikistan last summer, Janet Southern shares her experience of being immersed in Pamiri culture, as she lived and worked in Khorog for two months. Embraced by the warm hospitality of her hosts, she observes how community tradition is contributing to self-sustained economic development.

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Healthy eating, West African style

Kente cloth worn at a festival in Kpetoe Agotime, in the Volta region of Ghana. The colours and patterns of the cloth convey different meanings and are said to symbolically preserve the history, ethics and moral values of the people. Photo: Flikr/okrahoma/john nash

The continent of Africa is steeped in tribal and ethnic diversity. Its geographic regions in the west, east, north and south vary in language, religion and even cuisine. If you enjoy West African cooking, here are some tips to help you prepare nutritious traditional foods for your family.

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Transforming values into reality — A conversation with Eboo Patel (Part 2)

Following a talk he delivered at The Institute of Ismaili Studies in December 2009, Eboo Patel converses with audience members about the work of his Interfaith Youth Core. Photo: Courtesy of The Institute of Ismaili Studies

Concluding a two-part series, Eboo Patel, the Founder and Executive Director of Interfaith Youth Core, discusses how his organisation overcomes the faith line and promotes religious pluralism by bringing young people together to engage in dialogue and service to the community. (Read the first part of this interview here.)

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The shared value of religious pluralism — A conversation with Eboo Patel (Part 1)

Eboo Patel, founder and Executive Director of the Interfaith Youth Core, a Chicago-based institution building the global interfaith youth movement, addressing an audience at The Institute of Ismaili Studies in London. Photo: Courtesy of The Institute of Ismaili Studies

In the first of a two-part series, TheIsmaili.org spoke with Eboo Patel, the Founder and Executive Director of Interfaith Youth Core, an organisation that promotes mutual respect and pluralism among young people from different religious traditions. Patel shares his understanding of religious pluralism and explains what motivates him in his work.

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Documentary film highlights relationship with the Calgary Stampede based on shared values

 Photo: Courtesy of OMNI TV and White Iron Pictures Inc.

East Meets Western, a new television documentary about the Ismaili community and the Calgary Stampede, describes two seemingly disparate cultures that have built a successful relationship based on shared values. The film showcases the volunteerism, creativity and organisational skills of the Jamat, and highlights the historical role that the Stampede has played in promoting cultural pluralism in Calgary.

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Outstanding patrons, beautiful objects: Metaphors for humanism and enlightenment

Alnoor Merchant addresses the audience at the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. Photo: Courtesy of the Ismaili Council for the USA

Alnoor Merchant from the IIS recently conducted a four-city lecture series on Muslim artistic, scientific, and architectural patronage. Captivating the audience with historic artefacts from the Aga Khan Museum collection, Merchant described the important role played by patrons in the history of Islamic art.

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The way we celebrate

Children ready to play dandia at the Pacific National Exhibition in Vancouver. Photo: Aziz Ladha

In the days leading up to Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Golden Jubilee visit to Canada, the diversity of the Jamat’s cultural roots will come alive in celebration. Events have been planned across the country under the theme One Jamat, One Heart.

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Seeds of hope: Cultivating democracy, pluralism and civil society

Where Hope Takes Root: Democracy and Pluralism in an Interdependent World. Photo: Courtesy of the Ismaili Council for Canada

Where Hope Takes Root is a collection of speeches given by Mawlana Hazar Imam over the past six years. Its publication coincides with the Golden Jubilee, which presents an opportunity to reflect on 50 years of Imamat, as well as the key themes and ideas that underlie the Imam’s work.

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The “cosmopolitan ethic” explored

Jan Aart Scholte addresses the audience at the Ismaili Centre. Photo: Ismaili Council for the UK

The 2007 Ismaili Centre Lecture Series concluded with addresses by Rageh Omar and Jan Aarte Scholte focusing on cosmopolitanism and identity, exploring ideas of tolerance and social justice in a pluralistic society. This gives way to the 2008 Lecture series which focuses on the theme Sharing the Narrative of Progress.

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Intercultural Dialogue workshops held at the Ismaili Centre, Lisbon

Keynote address by the UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations, Jorge Sampaio. Photo: Ismaili Council for Portugal

The Council of Europe, an organisation promoting democracy and human rights in Europe, will be launching a White Paper on Intercultural Dialogue with the support of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) Portugal, and other international organisations.

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Ismaili Centre London participates in Fete de la Musique

School children learn to play the daf, an Iranian percussion instrument. Photo: Ismaili Council for the United Kingdom

The Social Hall at The Ismaili Centre in London, was filled with people of all ages eager to hear the spectacular fusion of sounds from an incredible mix of western and eastern instruments on 21 June 2007, as part of the Exhibition Road Music Day festivities.

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