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

Khorog, Tajikistan and Naryn, Kyrgyzstan, 21 June 2021 - Against the backdrop of snow-capped mountains, the University of Central Asia (UCA) celebrated the achievements of its inaugural cohort of graduates: the Class of 2021. The live-streamed Convocation brought together students, family members, faculty and well-wishers across multiple countries and time zones around the world.

Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim

Your Excellency President Uhuru Kenyatta

Professor George Magoha, Cabinet Secretary for Education

Professor Chacha, Chairman of the Commission for University Education

Excellencies

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen

It is with the greatest satisfaction and the deepest gratitude that I accept the Kenya Charter of the Aga Khan University. My only regret is that, due to the pandemic, I cannot be present in person to receive the instruments of authority, and to celebrate this momentous occasion in the University’s history.

The state of Pakistan and its inhabitants owe a debt of gratitude to Aga Khan III for his contributions to its development

667 students in three continents received their degrees and listened to speeches by the Aga Khan and Melinda Gates

The first-ever global convocation ceremony of the Aga Khan University (AKU) was live-streamed to a worldwide audience on Saturday, as 667 students in three continents received their degrees and listened to speeches by the Aga Khan, Chief Guest Melinda French Gates and AKU President Firoz Rasul.

The Convocation was attended also by Prince Amyn, Princess Zahra, Prince Rahim, Prince Hussain and Prince Aly Muhammad

Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim

Our Chief Guest, Melinda French Gates
Chairman Haile Debas and the Members of the Board of Trustees
President Firoz Rasul
Provost, Deans, Faculty and Staff of the University
Generous donors and well wishers of the University from around the world
Distinguished guests
Parents, family members and Graduates​

It is a great privilege to join you today in recognising and celebrating the Class of 2020.

The 2021 AKU Global Convocation Ceremony was held across 13 time zones world-wide virtually. It was attended by Hazar Imam who delivered the Chancellor's address. Melinda French Gates delivered her address as the Chief Guest. Firoz Rassul in his opening address mentioned the various partners such as Johnson & Johnson, Harvard University and many other prominent organizations who had worked with the AKU over the many years.

The ceremony was attended by Prince Amyn Mohammed, Princess Zahra, Prince Hussain and Prince Aly Muhammad

This year’s Annual Pluralism Lecture, presented by the Global Centre for Pluralism in partnership with the University of British Columbia, will be livestreamed on 19 May, and will feature opening remarks by Princess Zahra Aga.

The 8th Annual Pluralism Lecture, entitled “The Moment of Encounter: History, Disruptions, and Transformations” will be delivered by Ethiopian-American novelist Maaza Mengiste from New York’s Center for Fiction.

MESSAGE TO THE WORLD OF ISLAM
Aga Khan III IMAM SULTAN MUHAMMAD SHAH 48th Imam of Ismailis
Published by: Centenary Committee His Royal Highness The Aga Khan Ismailia Association for Pakistan 4th Edition 1977

Chapter One: GREETINGS TO PAKISTAN

Be no more hypnotized by the dead glories of the distant past or by the misfortunes of the near past.

Nature-driven artist and environmentalist Clare Celeste Börsch among contributors to exhibition exploring concept of Eden

As in many paradise gardens, particularly those inspired by Islamic culture, a fountain lies at the heart of the quadrilateral garden created inside the Aga Khan Centre gallery in King’s Cross, London. This fountain doesn’t spout water, however, but beautiful, intricate strips of paper with laser-cut flowers made by Berlin-based American artist Clare Celeste Börsch.

FUTURE OF MUSLIM STATES

True Islam was and is dynamic and not static. Do not look to the third century of Islamic History but to the first.

Speech by H. R. H. Prince Aly Khan

Permanent Representative of Pakistan to the Council of Islamic Affairs,

New York, May 27th 1958.

The late Prince Aly Khan (d. 1960) was the father of the present Aga Khan (IV), and eldest son of the previous Aga Khan (III) — who was also the Chairman of the League of Nations (1933 – 1936).

Mr. Chairman, Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Thank you very much for the honour you have done me by inviting me to be your guest at this luncheon and for the kind words you have said about me.

Born in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France, he was the only child of Sir Sultan Mahomed Shah Aga Khan III and his French-born third wife, the former Andrée Joséphine Carron. He received his early education in Lausanne, Switzerland, before graduating Phi Beta Kappa in 1954 from Harvard College.[1] At Harvard, he lived in Eliot House with Paul Matisse, grandson of French artist Henri Matisse, with future Paris Review founders George Plimpton and John Train, and with Stephen Joyce, grandson of Irish writer James Joyce.[2] Along with Plimpton, he was an editor for the Harvard Lampoon.

Reportedly, 2400 square miles of the Gwadar area came under the domain of the Sultan of Oman in 1947. It was administered by Great Britain, and fifty percent of the revenue from the area went to the Sultan. Eventually, an American company identified Gwadar’s potential as a deep port. Through this port, 25 varieties of fish could be exported in significant quantities every year.

The Shah of Iran tried to acquire this land through the US’ influence in Britain, but in 1956, Pakistani Foreign Minister Malik Feroze Khan Noon decided that this land had to be acquired at all costs.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadruddin Aga Khan, stated that it was a privilege for him to attend the conference. The presence of his office on what he termed “This historic occasion” testified to the close and productive cooperation which had always existed between the Government of the Sudan and UNHCR. He expressed appreciation for the moral, political and financial support which Sudan consistently granted his work for refugees both in the General Assembly and in the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner’s programme in Geneva.

IN MEMORY: 1997, April 25: Princess Tajudaullah, mother of Mowlana Shah Karim and Prince Amyn and wife of Prince Ay Khan, passed away. It was a sad event and we felt we should do a Gallery in her honour. You can access it in the link bellow:

Princess Tajudaulah (JOAN VISCOUNTESS CAMROSE) married Prince Aly Khan on May 18, 1936 in Paris in the presence of Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah, Princess Andree and Lady Aly Shah. She was born Joan Barbara Yarde-Buller on April 22 1908

Just before leaving Aswan to spend the summer in Cannes, Princess Yvonne Aga Khan, wife of the late Aga Khan gave a rare interview to YOUSSEF EL-DEEB

Shortly before his death in 1957, Sultan Mohamed Shah Agha Khan, spiritual leader of the Ismaili sect of Islam, chose as his resting place a solitary sand dune on the West Bank of the Nile at Aswan. Princess Yvonne Agha Khan, known as the Begum, a French national and the Sultan`s third wife, has cared for this tomb ever since, staying at their house nearby for six months of the year and spending the summer at their villa in Cannes.

Singapore April 2 2012
SPEECH BY HAZAR IMAM AT THE INSTITUTIONAL DINNER IN SINGAPORE
President Bana, Leaders of the Jamat
I would like first of all to express My very warm gratitude for this wonderful visit to the Far East.

Recent times have been difficult in the Muslim world. They have been difficult in Africa, they have been difficult for some of our Jamats. And in looking at this background, I ask myself where do we find partners? Partners to work with us, partners where we can share thinking, partners where we will find human resources who will work with us.

Hyderabad: The 16th Century Qutub Shahi Tombs are one of the main tourist attraction in the city. A heritage park is being added as a new chapter to this attraction.

The unique heritage park is likely to come up on 106 acres of land with the joint efforts of Aga Khan Foundation, Heritage Telangana and Aga Khan Trust for Culture.

A project is underway to preserve and restore 40 tombs, three mosques, seven wells, and other buildings. The first phase of this grand program of repair and renovation has been completed in 2018 and now the last phase of this program is underway.

Mowlana Shah Karim and Begum Salimah arrive in Ottawa, received by Chief Protocol Officer Mr. L.H. Amyot, the Honorary Secrectary of the Admin. Committee for Ottawa Mr Azeem Motani and his wife Noorjehan. They came as guests of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. To commemorate the occasion, the My Flag was flown over Rideau Gate, the hotel where Hazar Imam and the Begum stayed

Interview with Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan Co-ordinator for United Nations Humanitarian and Economic Assistance Programmes relating to Afghanistan By Annick Billard (Courtesy Refugees - November 1988) Following the historic agreement signed in Geneva on 14 April 1988 between Afghanistan and Pakistan, on 11 May, the U.N. Secretary General appointed Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan to the position of Co-ordinator for United Nations Humanitarian and Economic Assistance Programmes relating to Afghanistan.