Isma'ilism is a branch or sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sadiq, wherein they differ from the Twelver Shia, who accept Musa al-Kadhim, the younger brother of Isma'il, as the true Imām.
Alamut is a mountain fortress at an altitude of 2163 meters at the central Alborz, in the Iranian stanza of Qazvin, about 100 kilometers from Tehran. In 1090 AD, the Alamut Castle, a mountain fortress in present-day Iran, came into the possession of Hassan-i Sabbah, a champion of the Nizari Ismaili cause. Until 1256, Alamut functioned as the headquarters of the Nizari Ismaili state, which included a series of strategic strongholds scattered throughout Persia and Syria, with each stronghold being surrounded by swathes of hostile territory.
Aga Khan is a title held by the Imām of the Nizari Ismāʿīli Shias. Since 1957, the holder of the title has been the 49th Imām, Prince Shah Karim al-Husseini, Aga Khan IV. Aga Khan claims to be a direct descendant of Muhammad, the last prophet according to the doctrine of Islam.
Shah Karim al-Husayni, known by the religious title Mawlānā Hazar Imam by his Ismaili followers and elsewhere as Aga Khan IV, is the 49th and current Imam of Nizari Ismailis. He has held the position of Imam and the title of Aga Khan since 11 July, 1957, when, at the age of 20, he succeeded his grandfather, Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah Aga Khan III. The Aga Khan claims direct lineal descent from the Islamic prophet Muhammad through Muhammad's cousin and son-in-law, Ali, who is considered an Imam by Nizari Ismailis, and Ali's wife Fatima, Muhammad's daughter from his first marriage.
The Nizaris are the largest segment of the Ismaili Muslims, who are the second-largest branch of Shia Islam after the Twelvers. Nizari teachings emphasize independent reasoning or ijtihad; pluralism—the acceptance of racial, ethnic, cultural and inter-religious differences; and social justice. Nizaris, along with Twelvers, adhere to the Jaʽfari school of jurisprudence. The Aga Khan, currently Aga Khan IV, is the spiritual leader and Imam of the Nizaris. The global seat of the Ismaili Imamate is in Lisbon, Portugal.
Nūr is a term in Islamic context referring to the "cold light of the night" or "heatless light" i.e. the light of the moon. This light is used as a symbol for "God's guidance" and "knowledge", a symbol of mercy in contrast to Nar, which refers to the diurnal solar "hot light" i.e. fire. In the Quran, God is stated to be "the light (Nūr) of the heavens and the earth". Many classical commentators on the Quran compare this to God illuminating the world with understanding, not taken literally. The first and foremost to representatively stand to the concept of nūr muḥammadī being the quintessence of everything was Sayyid Abdul Qadir Gilani, who described this idea in his book Sirr ul Asrar. This concept was then preached by his disciples. One of Sayyid Abdul Qadir Gilani's disciples was the Andalusian scholar Abu Bakr ibn al-Arabi, who categorized nūr into different levels of understanding from the most profound to the most mundane. Shias believe nūr, in the sense of inner esoteric understanding, is inherited through the Imams, who in turn communicate it to the people.
Ginans are devotional hymns or poems recited by Shia Ismaili Muslims.
Satpanth is a Sanskrit term used initially by Nizari Isma'ilis and Ismaili Sufis to identify their faith formed over 700 years ago by Pir Sadardin. Although the term is today used mainly by its subgroup formed in the 15th century by his grandson Pir Imam Shah which itself consists of various sub-sects, and differs from the mainstream Nizari Khojas in that they reject the Aga Khan as their leader and are known more commonly as Imamshahi. Uniquely, the term Satpanth has been historically used by Ismaili, as well as by adherents of subgroups. There are villages in Gujarat which are totally Satpanthi such as Pirana near Ahmedabad where Imam Shah is buried. Satpanthi dargahs are known to be venerated with a stark contrast in the devotees, with outward Muslims who may wear a hijab, and outward Hindus wearing traditional garb such as the sari.
Nizari Ismaili Muslims around the globe are governed by one universal constitution known as "The World Constitution".
The History of Nizari Isma'ilism from the founding of Islam covers a period of over 1400 years. It begins with Muhammad's mission to restore to humanity the universality and knowledge of the oneness of the divine within the Abrahamic tradition, through the final message and what the Shia believe was the appointment of Ali as successor and guardian of that message with both the spiritual and temporal authority of Muhammad through the institution of the Imamate.
Anjudan is a village in Amanabad Rural District, in the Central District of Arak County, Markazi Province, Iran. At the 2006 census, its population was 446, in 154 families. it situated near the major Shi'i centres of Qumm and Kashan in Iran, to which the Nizari Ismaili Imamate was transferred during the late 14th century CE. Owing to the village’s name, Nizari history between the 14th and 15th centuries is dubbed the “Anjudan period”.
Hakīm Sa'd-al-Dīn ibn Shams-al-Dīn Nizārī Bīrjandī Quhistānī, or simply Nizari Ghohestani, was a 13th-century Nizari Ismaili author and poet, who lived in the time of the Imam Shams al-Din (Nizari) Muhammad. Nizari was born into a family of landed gentry approximately a decade after the capitulation of the Alamut state and hailed from the town of Birjand. Nizari is the only Ismaili poet of this period whose works are extant. Nizari Quhistani’s work was quoted by many later Ismaili authors, such as the Persian Khwāja Muḥammad Riḍā b. Sulṭān Ḥusayn, also known as Khayrkhvah-i Harati.
The Imamate in Nizari Isma'ili doctrine is a concept in Nizari Isma'ilism which defines the political, religious and spiritual dimensions of authority concerning Islamic leadership over the nation of believers. The primary function of the Imamate is to establish an institution between an Imam who is present and living in the world and his following whereby each are granted rights and responsibilities.
Ḥasan ʿAlā Zikrihi's-Salām or Hassan II was the hereditary Imam of the Nizari Isma'ilis of the Alamut Period from 1162 until 1166. From his capital of Alamut he ruled parts of Persia and Syria. His chief subordinate in Syria was Rashid ad-Din Sinan, the Old Man of the Mountain.
The Nizari state was a Nizari Isma'ili Shia state founded by Hassan-i Sabbah after he took control of the Alamut Castle in 1090 AD, which marked the beginning of an era of Ismailism known as the "Alamut period". Their people were also known as the Assassins or Hashashins.
Nūr al-Dīn Muḥammad II or ʾAʿlā Muḥammad was the Nizari Isma'ili Imām of Alamūt who reigned the longest period out of any lord (Khudawand) of Alamut, forty-four years. He affirmed the policies of his father, Hassan Ala Dhikrihi's Salam, who had been stabbed to death a year after proclaiming Qiyāma, or Resurrection.
In Nizārī Ismāʿīlism, the qiyāma was ceremoniously proclaimed at the mountain fortress of Alamūt in 1164 CE by the Nizārī imām Ḥasan ʿAlā Dhikrihi al-Salām. According to standard narratives of Islamic eschatology, the Yawm al-Qiyāmah is to take place at the end of time, at which point people will be called to account for their actions, and then be rewarded or punished accordingly. The Nizārī proclamation of qiyāma, however, is distinct in that it takes place within history, and, as such, assumes a special significance.
By the late 11th century, the Shi'a sub-sect of Ismailism had found many adherents in Persia, although the region was occupied by the Sunni Seljuk Empire. The hostile tendencies of the Abbasid–Seljuk order triggered a revolt by Ismailis in Persia under Hassan-i Sabbah. Siege of Maysaf
Abū ʿAlī Ḥasan, or ʿAlī, surnamed Al-Hādī was the 20th Ismaili Nizari Imam. Born in Cairo, he was about 17 years old when his predecessor, Imam al-Mustansir, died, and 20 years old during the assumption of his Imamate in 490 AH/1097 CE. Henceforward, the seat of Ismaili Imamate was transferred from Egypt to Persia owing to the division among the Ismailis, where Hasan bin Sabbah had founded the Nizari Ismaili state.
Al-Qāhir ibn al-Muhtadī bi-Quwwat Allāh or Ḥasan al-Qāhir was the 22nd Imam of the Shia Nizari Ismailis. He is believed to have lived in occultation in the Nizari Ismaili state centrered around Alamut Castle. He is believed to have been represented externally by Kiya Buzurg-Ummid, and later on by Muhammad ibn Buzurg-Ummid.
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