A Brief History of Aga Khan I

Watch this video to follow the eventful journey of the first Aga Khan from Persia to the Indian Subcontinent. View maps of his travels, the different locations where he resided and his interactions with the various political authorities of the time.

Part of the Ismaili Texts and Translations Series, The First Aga Khan - Memoirs of the 46th Ismaili Imam is the first English translation of the original Persian manuscript, the Ibrat-afza which was composed in 1850. In addition to the English and Persian texts, the book provides a detailed contextual introduction, helping readers to engage more insightfully with the Imam’s testimony, told as part autobiography and part as his memoir.

“The Ibrat-afza is an important historical source that helps us to answer one of the critical questions in the study of Ismaili history, namely that of how the Nizari Imams, after existing in relative obscurity for centuries after the Mongol invasions, were able to once again obtain a position of prominence in the Muslim world and beyond in the 19th century." Dr Daniel Beben 

"The book is narrated by Aga Khan I as the speaker but the author is Waqar-i Shirazi, a prominent scholarly and literary figure of the early Qajar period.The authorship of the book is (thus) critical in the sense that it provides us with valuable information about the genre, style, the kind of poetry used and the role of dual identity and taqiyya in the book." Dr Daryoush M. Poor

The book was published in honour of His Highness the Aga Khan IV Diamond Jubilee.

Click here to learn more about the book.

Read the full story of the London book launch event here.      

Listen to Excerpts from the book read by Dr Daryoush M. Poor