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The phrase in the first verse of the 105th Koranic chapter, Sura al-Fil, from which al-fil (elephant) provides the term by which the sura is known. The verse directly addressed to the Prophet: "Have you not seen how your Lord has dealt with the People of the Elephant (ashab al-fil)?" The short sura of five verses describes an expedition in which one of the mounts was an elephant, which was miraculously annihilated by God, Who sent flocks of birds against the invading host.

It means the year of grief. Soon after the annulment of the social boycott in the tenth year, i.e. 619 A.D. of the mission, the Prophet suffered two severe calamities in the death of his uncle, Abu Talib, which was followed by that of his wife, Khadija. With the death of Khadija, the lamp of the Prophet's house was extinguished. One protected him with the influence that derived from his noble rank, while the other guarded him with her material and wealth.

In 41/661, Hasan bin Ali bin Abu Talib had relinquished the power in favour of Muawiya after ruling for 6 months and 3 days. Thus, the year of his abdication became known as A'am al-Ja'ma (the year of the community), and prevented a bloody military solution of the conflict.

It is a sonorous word intoned by the faithful at the end of the every dua as a confirmation or its corroboration. It means be it so. When one recites the dua, the listeners uttered a'amin (be it so)

The word a'lam (pl. a'lamun) means world or realm. In the technical language of the philosophers and the mystics, it is often connected with various nouns and adjectives to distinguish between the visible and the invisible world. From the point of view of the phenomenal determination, the cosmos is described by Ibn Arabi in several different cosmological and ontological schems, in each of which diverse existential aspects of cosmic quantities are depicted. Ibn Arabi thus divided the cosmos into two main realms: one unseen, and the other sensory.

"The word ab-i shafa in Persian means healing water, and its synonymous in Arabic is ma'ush- shafa. The word shafa occurs six times in the Koran (9:14, 26:80, 10:57, 16:69, 17:82 and 41:44), which literally means remedy, recovery, healing or convalescence. One of the names of the Koran itself is shafa (healing): "And We revealed the Koran which is a healing (shifaun) and a mercy to the believers" (17:82). The word ma' (pl.

The word is derived from the verbal root ta'abbada means what remains for a long time or eternity. The word abad occurs thrice in the Koran, means post-eternity, ever-lastingness or that which has no end.

Abbas, the uncle of the Prophet had a son, Abdullah, who never tried to establish his own caliphate. Abdullah and his son, Ali bin Abdullah resided in Humayma. It was the latter's son, Muhammad bin Ali to have taken the charge of Kaysaniya sect from the dying Abu Hashim. Thus, the house of Abbas inherited the party and organization of Abu Hashim along with his claims. Muhammad bin Ali led the Kaysaniya sect, and propagated in the name of Ahl al-Bayt, declaring that the caliph should be from Alid descent and the Umayyads had no right to rule.

"Mahmud Shah, surnamed Abdus Salam or Salam Shah, whose exact date of birth is not known. But the evidence is in favour of his having been born in 859/1456 in Shahr-i Babak, where he mostly passed his early life. He is also called Shah Salamullah. He ascended to the office of Imamate at the age of 21 years. It is related that he was a pragmatic scholar and had gleaned historical informations from his father and the elders of the community, notably the period stretching from the reduction of Alamut to his time.

The word abjad means chronogram, which is a mode of reckoning numbers by means of the Arabic letters of the alphabets, counting alif for one; bay for two; jim for three, etc. It may be noted that in English, only seven letters have of this chronogram, viz. C for 100, D for 500, I for 1, L for 50, M for 1000, V for 5 and X for 10.

[ see WUZU ]

"Abu Abdullah al-Shi'i was hailed from Kufa. He espoused Ismailism by the hand of da'i Firuz. Imam Radi Abdullah sent him to Ibn Hawshab in Yamen for further training in esoteric doctrines as well as affairs of the state, where he stayed for a year. Ibn Hawshab then sent him towards Maghrib.

"Abu Ali ibn Sina, Ibn Sina or Avicenna, known in the West as Prince of Physicians, was born in 370/980 in the village of Afshana near Bukhara. He was an encyclopeadist, philosopher, physiologist, physician, mathematician, astronomer, logician and poet. He gained the titles of Shaikh al-Ra'is (leader among the wise men) and Hujjat al-Haq (proof of God), displayed a remarkable aptitude for learning from an early age. His father Abdullah hailed from Balkh and was in the service of the Samanid court.

Abu Bakr, the son of Abu Qahafa was born in the Qoraish family. When he was born he was taken to the Kaba, dedicated to the gods, and named Abdul Kaba. In his early age, he liked to play with the young camels, which earned him the surname of Abu Bakr, i.e., the father of the foal of the camel. He did not receive any formal education. At the age of 18 years, he adopted the profession of a cloth merchant, which was his family business, and came to be recognized as one of the richest merchants of Mecca. He was first among the elders to accept Islam in Mecca.

"Abu Hatim ar-Razi was born near Ray around 260/874. He was the hujjat of Ray, and conducted the mission with great efficiency and promptness. He studied Ismaili doctrines, also Arabic poetry, and the religious science of Islam, comparative religion and indeed the natural and mathematical sciences. He succeeded to bring the ruler of Ray, Ahmad bin Ali (307-311/92O-924) to the Ismaili fold, who was formerly aggressive to the Ismailis.

"Abu Yaqub Ishaq bin Ahmad as-Sijistani, nicknamed "cotton-seed" (Iranian, panba-dana, Arabic khayshafuj) was born in 271/883 in Bandan, a district in north of Sijistan and was trained in Yamen. He was a great philosopher and scholar and considered to be one of the major Ismaili thinkers whose share in the development of the Ismaili system of thought is considerable. Paul E. Walker writes in Abu Yaqub al-Sijistani: Intellectual Missionary (London, 1996, p.

"Imam Abul Hasan Ali was also known as Syed Shah Muhammad Hasan Shah, Hasan Beg and Abul Hasan Ali Shah. He was born in Shahr-i Babak. The Iranian sources called 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 utilized his wealth was to serve delicious dishes strewn with ample varieties of food to the hungry and needy while he himself would seldom taste it.

Pir Shihabuddin Shah (d. 1301/1884) married to Bibi Arus Khanum, who gave birth of a son, Abul Hasan Shah and six daughters, viz. Talah, Nushi, Turan Malek, Khadija, Tuman Malik and Zarin Taj. Upon the death of Pir Shihabuddin Shah, Imam Aga Ali Shah declared his infant son, Abul Hasan Shah as a next Pir. In this context, the farman follows:

"Muhammad Abuzar Shah, surnamed Abuzar, was also called Nuruddin. He is also known as Shah Nuruddin bin Gharib Shah in the Syrian works. Like his father, he also passed a darwish life in Anjudan. He had however advised his followers to exercise precautions in view of new religious tendency and political cataclysm in Iran.

The word adl means equity. It is used in the Koran in quasi-legal contexts, but elsewhere to mean being fair or fairness. The Koran employed the term adl but relatively rarely 14 times in the sense of justice or equity and in a much broader fashion, vide ta'dlin (6:70), adlun (2:48, 123, 282; 4:58, 85, 5:95, 106; 6:70, 16:76, 106:90, 49:9, 65:2) and li adli (42:15). While God's words are described as adl in 6:115.

"Imam Aga Ali Shah, His Highness Aga Khan II was born in 1246/1830 at Mahallat, where he spent the first decade of his age. In the outset of 1256/1840, Imam Aga Ali Shah had been taken to Iraq, where he stayed a few years with his mother. Under the instruction of Iranian and Arab teachers, eminent for their piety and learning, he had been taught the oriental languages, and he achieved a reputation as an authority on Persian and Arabic literature, as a student of metaphysics and as an exponent of religious philosophy.

"He was the son of Imam Hasan Ali Shah. Marium Khanum, also called Khanum Baji, who died on May 21, 1894 was the third wife of Imam Hasan Ali Shah. She was the mother of Aga Jhangi Shah and Bibi Saheba, the wife of Suleman Khan.

The first of a planned network of Aga Khan Academies dedicated to expanding access to education of an international standard of excellence in Asia and Africa was inaugurated in Mombasa, Kenya on December 20, 2003 in presence of the President of Kenya, Mr. Mwai Kibaki. The network of Academies will feature a curriculum based on the framework of the International Baccalaureate (IB). At the centre of this approach is a broad education in the humanities from pre-primary years through to higher secondary.

It was the Imam's own involvement in construction in developing countries during the 1960s and 1970s that evoked his concern with the deteriorating architectural heritage and inappropriate building practices in many Muslim societies. To sensitize those who build in the developing world to the unique heritage of Muslim history and architecture, the Aga Khan Award for Architecture (AKAA) was founded in 1977. The goal of the Award is to recognize outstanding architectural achievements in all the different cultures and communities of the Muslim world.

"Imam Hasan Ali Shah had to face periodical troubles from certain dissident members of his community. In 1243/1827, while the Imam was in Iran, a group led by Habib Ibrahim in Bombay refused to pay tithe and forced others to do so. The leaders of the Bombay jamat reported to the Imam in Iran at the end of 1244/1828. The Imam, in order to overcome this opposition, sent to Bombay as his agent, Mirza Abul Kassim, who was accompanied by the Imam's mother, Bibi Sarcar Mata Salamat (1744-1832) in 1245/1829.

It is a group of institutions working to improve living conditions and opportunities in specific regions of the developing world. The Network's institutions have individuals mandates that range from the fields of health and education to architecture, rural development and the promotion of private sector enterprise. Together they collaborate in working toward a common goal

The Aga Khan Education Services (AKES) provides schooling and other educational services in over 300 facilities in the developing world, ranging from day care center to higher secondary schools. With roots in the Ismaili community's traditions of educational activity, national service companies in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, India, Pakistan and Bangladesh now manage these schools and centers

AGA KHAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS [ see AKDN ]

AGA KHAN FOUNDATION [ see AKDN ]

AGA KHAN FUND FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT [ see AKDN ]

AGA KHAN GYMKHANA [ see KHOJA PANJIBHAI CLUB ]

AGA KHAN HEALTH SERVICE [ see AKDN ]

The Aga Khan Fund for Economic Development (AKFED) carries out these Network activities in economic development. It looks for projects with development potential as well as financial viability and works to build them into companies with lasting institutional strengths. Its criteria for project design emphasize both technology transfer and local resource use; it seeks to harness both international experience and local know-how to the task of improving living standards in the developing world.

The Aga Khan Health Services (AKHS) is one of the most comprehensive non-profit health care systems in the developing world. Building on the Ismaili community's health care efforts during the first half of the century, AKHS now provides primary health care and curative medical care in India, Pakistan, Kenya, Tanzania and Syria. It includes five general hospitals, the Aga Khan University Hospital in Pakistan, six maternity homes and more than 230 health centers.

AGA KHAN HOUSING BOARDS [ see AKDN ]

AGA KHAN INDUSTRIAL PROMOTION SERVICES [ see AKDN ]

Museums in the contemporary world have expanded their missions to become viable educational institutions, actively seeking to broaden their constituencies. Collections and exhibitions have become dynamic tools for instruction, debate and reflection, and for attracting large numbers to the cultural life of societies. They also act as catalysts for cultural exchange and communication, contributing to the development of civil society.

AGA KHAN TOURISM PROMOTION SERVICES [ see AKDN ]

AGA KHAN UNIVERSITY [ see AKDN ]

"Title is a name indicative of eminence, affording special distinction to the holder. Every title appears to have meaning or derivation from a word expressive of quality and historical background. Likewise, Imam Hasan Ali Shah, the 46th Imam was the bearer of the title Aga Khan. Fateh Ali Shah, the Qajari emperor invested him in 1818 in Tehran. Henceforward, he and his successors became known by this title. How this title was invested? What is its origin and meaning? We will discuss these points as under.

"Five months after his arrival in Medina, it was the Prophet's next task to find shelter and livelihood for the men who had accompanied him from Mecca. In their own home-town many of them were prosperous, but now they were all equally destitute. As a preliminary step, the Prophet enjoined the Muslims of Medina, now known as Ansar (the helpers) to adopt as brothers their co-religionists from Mecca, now known as Muhajir (the refugees), to share with them like their own kith and kin whatever they possessed, in prosperity and in want.

"The word ahl al-bayt occurs twice in the Koran: "The mercy of God and His blessing are on you, O people of the house, ..." (11:73). This verse refers to the people of the house of Abraham (Kashf al-Asrar wa Uddat al-Abrar, 4:416), and to the house of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him): "God desires only to keep away the uncleanness from you, O people of the House! And to purify you a (thorough) purifying (33:33)".

"According to Islamic law, the non-Muslims inhabited in the Islamic state were called ahlu dh-dhimmati (people of protection) or simply al-dhimma or dhimmis. They included the Christian, Jewish, Magian, Samaritan and Sabian. Ahl al-dhimma were prohibited in the Muslim state from holding public religious ceremonies, from raising their voices loudly when praying and even from ringing their church bells aloud.

"The word ahl means those who occupy with one the same tent, the family or inmates, relative, folk, kin, kinfolk, family, people, members, followers, etc. Under these meanings, the word ahl occurs 31 times in the Koran. According to another view, it is derived from ahala, meaning to demonstrate (the family). The word kitab, comes from the root word kataba, meaning to write down. The word kitaba occurs in the Koran for the Divine Books revealed to various prophets.

The headquarters of the Present Ismaili Imam Shah Karim al-Husayni was Geneva, Switzerland between 1957 and 1976. Then, in 1976, the Imam moved his headquarters, the Secretariat de Son Altesse l'Aga Khan, from Geneva to Paris, building two replica 17th century chateaux on a large wooded estate at Aiglemont, Gouvieus, north of Paris

The Prophet not only laid down the principle of the oneness of humanity, but he also put it into practice. The Arabs, who regarded themselves as a superior race, had a very strong race and colour prejudice. To all non-Arabs, they gave the name of ajam, which means dumb, and ajma means speechless animal or brute. The immediate task before the Prophet was, therefore, to blot out the race, colour and language prejudices from the Arab mind.

No less than 67 chapters of the Koran (56 Meccan and 11 Medinan) contain verses on the day of judgment. It is spoken of under various names, the most frequent of which is yaum al-qiyama or the day of great rising, which occurs 70 times in the Koran. Next to it is al-sa'a means the hour, and occurs 40 times, yaum al-akhir or the last day, which occurs 26 times, while al-akhira as meaning the future life occurs 115 times. Next in importance is yaum al-din, which means the day of requital, occurs 6 times.

(continued)
Resurrection is quite consistent with present knowledge