Beyond the Mosque
Diverse Spaces of Muslim Worship
by Rizwan Mawani
Chapter 3
Shi‘i Sites of Piety
The 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. and the Jamatkhana
The Ismailis form the world’s second largest Shi‘i community. They came to prominence in the early 10th century, when al-Mahdi (909–934) proclaimed himself the first Fatimid Imam-caliph. The FatimidsMajor Muslim dynasty of Ismaili caliphs in North Africa (from 909) and later in Egypt (973–1171) More (909–1171) ruled across North Africa and the southern Mediterranean, founding Cairo as their new capital. Theirs was the longest sustained Shi‘i empire, accepting of other faiths, and where intellectual and cultural endeavours flourished.
As Fatimid rule began to decline, a succession dispute led to a schism among the Ismailis. As a result, the Ismailis split into two branches which became known as the Musta‘lis and the NizarisAdherents of a branch of the Ismailis who gave allegiance to Nizar, the eldest son of the Fatimid Imam-caliph al-Mustansir (d. 1094) as his successor.. The Musta‘lis continued to rule the Fatimid state but later established their strongholds in Yemen and the Indian subcontinent, where proselytizing activities have kept the community alive until today. The Nizari Ismailis, on the other hand, found their most committed supporters in Iran and Syria, where they established a state and a network of mountain fortresses centred at AlamutFortress of the Nizari Ismailis in northern Iran, which fell to the Mongols in 654 AH/1256 CE.. They are the only Imami Shia community who claim to maintain a continuous line of living hereditary Imams since the demise of the Prophet.
Prince Shah Karim al-Husseini Aga KhanA title granted by the Shah of Persia to the then Ismaili Imam in 1818 and inherited by each of his successors to the Imamate. is the present, 49th hereditary Imam of the Nizari Ismaili community. He succeeded his grandfather in 1957 and now commands the spiritual allegiance (bay‘a) of millions of Ismailis around the world, across more than 25 countries, with a notable presence in the Middle East, South and Central Asia, Sub-Saharan Africa, North America and Europe. In 2015 the seat of the Ismaili imamate was established – significantly, in a non-Muslim state – in Lisbon, Portugal. Although this is not a political office, the present Ismaili Imam frequently engages diplomatically with global agencies and heads of state, and as part of his mandate he has created various institutions aimed at improving the quality of human life.
The continuity of spiritual leadership has resulted in several key differences between the Ismailis and other Shi‘i communities. The unifying voice of the Imam at the apex of this culturally diverse community has engendered an interpretation of Islam that speaks to contemporary life, its changing challenges and realities. Maintaining a historic adherence to the Ja‘fari madhhabArabic word with a range of meanings including ‘doctrine’, ‘movement’ and ‘creed’; a system or school of religious law in Islam., while also adhering to Sufi principles of personal quest, the Ismailis seek a balance between external acts of faith (zahir) and their inner spiritual meaning (batin).
Since at least the early 19th century, as supported by architectural evidence, and possibly earlier, and alluded to in the devotional poetry they recite, Ismailis have prayed in spaces known as jamatkhanas. The exact origins of the use of the term jamatkhana in the Ismaili tradition are not clear. However, by the mid-19th century, the jamatkhana, literally meaning ‘house of the community’, firmly established its presence as a space of communal gathering and practice in its own right. Many of the earliest examples of the jamatkhana may be traced to the South Asian region at this time, with numerous structures found in present-day India and Pakistan. In this primary space of communal gathering, men and women are seated in distinct but adjacent areas, and actively partake in religious activities, including the central ritual that is performed daily in the jamatkhana, the du‘a.
Excerpted from Beyond the Mosque: Diverse Spaces of Muslim Worship by Rizwan Mawani. Copyright © Islamic Publications Limited, 2019. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
