Culture

Since the earliest days of Islam, the Shia notion of nazrana — the offering of an unconditional gift to the Imam of the Time as a gesture of a murid’s love and homage — has been a time-honoured tradition in the Jamat. With the approach of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Diamond Jubilee, Ismailis around the world are renewing this age-old tradition.

With 40 days until the inauguration of Mawlana Hazar Imam’s Diamond Jubilee, TheIsmaili is pleased to unveil a musical tribute composed by Salim – Sulaiman and performed by Ismaili artists from around the world.

In the 36 years since the Aga Khan Award for Architecture was established, it has recognised a broad array of projects, from office towers to affordable housing developments; the restoration of heritage to radical innovations in the built environment. But what the winning projects have in common is that each is an example of how architecture can make society a better place to live, says journalist Ayesha Daya.

Dr Hussein Rashid delivered a lecture titled Everyday Art: An Islamic Impact on American Art on 13 February 2011 at the Michael C. Carlos Museum of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. In the talk, Dr Rashid highlights Islamic influences on popular art in America – from architecture and popular media to poetry and writing – by the likes of Ralph Waldo Emerson, in his From Persian of Hafiz II, to Toni Morrison's portrayal of Muslim characters in her novel Beloved. The lecture followed two exhibitions on Islamic calligraphy at the museum.