Dr Amier Saidula reflects on how he moved from serving as a State Prosecutor in Xinjiang, China, to becoming a Senior Research Associate at The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS). His path was shaped by a multicultural upbringing in Kashgar and a legal career that ultimately reached its limits. He recounts the seven-year journey that led him to IIS through encounters with Canadian IsmailisAdherents of a branch of Shi’i Islam that considers Ismail, the eldest son of the Shi’i Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (d. 765), as his successor., Pakistani business leaders, and Russian scholars. He also reflects on how IIS provided a space for intellectual growth and self-discovery. The episode explores his multilingual abilities, his long-term research on Muslim and Ismaili communities in China, and his forthcoming monographs and documentary project. It concludes with his reflections on finding clarity, voice, and purpose after more than two decades of scholarship.
