Welcome to Episode 8 of Ismaili Gnosis Chats with Max and Mikayla. Each episode draws on original research from Ismaili Gnosis articles.

Scroll down to play the podcast. After listening, you’ll find:

• Additional Q&A

• A video overview

• Ways to support Ismaili Gnosis

• Links to the original articles

Overview and Key Questions

Is it shirk (associating partners with God) to seek the help and blessings of the Imam through prayer (du‘a), or could this practice actually reflect a deeper understanding of true tawhid (God’s oneness)? This is the central question explored here, drawing directly from two Ismaili Gnosis articles that form the foundation for everything that follows: the podcast below, the extended written Q&A, and the focused video overview.

Across these materials, the Prophet Muhammad and the Imams are presented as a wasilah—a means through which divine mercy, guidance, and grace reach the believer. The discussion engages the concern that calling upon the Imam may conflict with God’s oneness, and instead develops the argument that, when properly understood, such mediation is not a denial of tawhid but its fulfillment. It also examines themes of hidden shirk, ego worship, and how pride can subtly shape one’s understanding of devotion.

Prayer is also explored not as a means of changing God, but as a process through which the soul is transformed and made receptive to divine grace through the intercession of the Imam of the Time. Within this framework, the Prophet and the Imams are understood as living channels of purification, helping believers attain inner peace and a deeper awareness of the Divine.

The podcast, Q&A, and video overview develop these ideas further. The written Q&A addresses the following questions:

1. How does prayer transform the soul’s receptivity to Divine mercy?

2. What is “Iblisian Tawhid” and its relation to the ego?

3. What is the difference between theological and ontological tawhid?

4. What are the four conditions for forgiveness in Qur’an 4:64?

5. How do the four conditions outlined in Qur’an 4:64 relate to the Imam?

6. How does the Qur’an depict Prophet Moses as a wasilah or intermediary between man and God?

7. How do Imams inherit the Prophet’s role as wasilah?

8. What is the meaning of “bi-haqqi” in Ismaili prayers?

Those who wish to go further can continue into the full podcast, Q&A, and video overview for a deeper engagement with these themes.

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“And whoever obeys Allah
and the Messenger
will be in the company of those
on whom Allah has bestowed favors:
the prophets, the truthful,
the martyrs/witnesses,
and the righteous —
what honorable company!”

— Holy Qurʼan 4:69

In “Guardians of Esoteric Knowledge — Part 1”, we explored how Qurʼan 4:69 illuminates the chain of those entrusted with the ta‘lim (authoritative instruction) and taʼwil (esoteric interpretation) of Allah’s final message. Here, in Part 2, we turn to the question that naturally follows: how does this living transmission reach the Ismaili Jamat today?

As shown previously, the groups named in 4:69 appear in sequence — each reflecting a distinct role in the world of religion, ordered by proximity to the natiq or speaker-prophet. Sayyidna Nasir-i Khusraw explains that the natiq holds three ranks which are then inherited by those who follow him, with the sole exception of risalah, or prophethood itself.

“...the nāṭiq has three ranks, risālat (Prophethood), waṣāyat (legateeship) and imamate, while the asās has two, one being waṣāyat, (i.e. asāsiyyat [asās-ship]) and the other being imamate....”

— Sayyidnā Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Wajh-i Dīn, translated by Faquir Muhammad Hunzai as The Face of Religion, Discourse 11, forthcoming.

However, in discussing the taʼwil of the Islamic rite of ablutions or wuduʼ, Sayyidna Nasir reveals that the natiq in fact holds four ranks:

“…the nāṭiq…has four ranks: nubuwwat, waṣāyat, imamate and bābiyyat.”

“The face…signifies the nāṭiq…just as people are recognised by their face, religion is recognised by the nāṭiq…who is the face of the religion.”

“The face encompasses the four senses: sight, hearing, smell and taste. This means that God, may He be exalted, gave the nāṭiq four great ranks [nāṭiq, asās, Imam, and ḥujjat].”

— Sayyidnā Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Wajh-i Dīn (The Face of Religion), Discourse 15.

Nabuwwah and risalah are two terms for the same prophetic function, and Dr. Faquir Muhammad Hunzai clarifies that babiyyah (gateway-ship) refers to the role of the hujjah—an exalted rank, the literal meaning of which is “proof,” “argument,” or “evidence.”

The following Qurʼanic verses illustrate how the natiq historically embodied the role of hujjah within his mission:

These verses demonstrate how Hazrat Ibrahim⁽ᶜ⁾ embodied the role of hujjah, delivering divinely inspired arguments to those who disputed the faith. In the same way, the natiq exercises all functions of religious leadership, which are later distributed among the figures who follow him in the world of religion (‘alam-i din).

The number of ranks attributed to the natiq varies depending on the taʼwil being illustrated — three ranks when commenting on the three letters of ilah in the shahada (testimony of faith), four ranks when commenting on the four ritual requirements of ablution. What remains constant is the principle that every rank in the world of religion encompasses the powers of all ranks below it.

Returning to 4:69, we must now turn our attention to a fifth group, whose mention is somewhat concealed. They do not appear among the named groups but are found in the verse’s opening words: waman yutiʼil-laha wal-rasula — “and whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger.” This obedient group, too, will be in the company of the four, placing them on the sirat al-mustaqim.

To identify them, we follow the same rational rule of proximity that has guided us throughout: the closest to the natiq is his asas, the closest to the asas is the Imam, and the closest to the Imam is the hujjah. The identity of this fifth group is therefore determined by asking: who follows most closely behind the hujjah?

“Understand that for each Imam there are twelve visible diurnal ḥujjas and twelve concealed and hidden nocturnal ḥujjas...they are the veil of the Imam and are his mouthpieces and gateways, his deputies, and the messengers from him to the dā‘īs, who in turn convey the message to the believers.”

— Dā‘ī Abū ‘Abdallāh al-Shī‘ī, quoted in Sayyidnā Ibn al-Haytham, Kitāb al-Munāẓarāt (The Book of Discussions), translated by Wilfred Madelung and Paul E. Walker as The Advent of the Fatimids: A Contemporary Shi’i Witness, 97.

“After them there are five ranks that should be recognised. These correspond to the five senses in the physical creation (hearing, sight, smell, taste and touch). Similarly in spiritual creation are discernment, division, tanzīl (revelation), ta‘līf (compilation) and taʼwil, and combinations thereof. Corresponding to these five in the world of religion are the nāṭiq the asās, the Imam, the ḥujjat and the dā‘ī.”

— Sayyidnā Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Wajh-i Dīn (The Face of Religion), Discourse 33.

The most logical candidate for this fifth group is the daʿi. As the verse from Surah Al-Ahzab confirms, the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ himself fulfilled this function in his own time.

Who Were the Da‘is?

During his Diamond Jubilee, Imam Shah Karim al-Husayni⁽ᶜ⁾ initiated something whose full significance many in the Jamat have yet to contemplate — he conferred the title of da‘i upon every member of the community. In doing so, the Imam directed those who are ready to reflect on what this title truly means and what it demands. It is in that spirit that this section explores the role, purpose, and responsibilities of the Ismaili da‘i as preserved in our traditional sources.

Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾ has said:

“‘Be for us silent dā‘īs’, and they asked, ‘How can we make the appeal, O son of the Messenger of God, if we are silent?’ He replied, ‘Act in accord with what we commanded you to do with respect to obeying God and forbid what we forbade you to do.’”

— Sayyidnā Aḥmad b. Ibrāhīm al-Naysābūrī, al-Risāla al-mūjaza al-kāfiya fī ādāb al-duʿāt, translated by Verena Klemm and Paul E. Walker with Susanne Karam as A Code of Conduct: A Treatise on the Etiquette of the Fatimid Ismaili Mission, 41).

The da‘i’s first and foremost duty is complete obedience to the Imam of the Time. As Sayyidna Naysaburi illustrates through the concept of the “silent da‘i,” this obedience need not be expressed in words — it must be made visible in action, such that an observer finds in that person’s conduct a living example of the tariqah’s wisdom and ethics.

Anyone who seeks to answer the Imam’s call to be a da‘i should begin here: know the religious duties and ethical obligations of the tariqah, fulfill them to the highest degree, and abstain entirely from what the Imam has forbidden.

“In the case of the ‘daa-ee’ [da‘i] his first and foremost duty is to live in strict adherence to the principles laid down by his faith. He should be pious to the extreme....”

— Sayyidnā Qāḍī al-Nu‘mān, Kitāb al-himma fī ādāb atbā‘ al-a’imma, translated by Jawad Muscati and A. Moulvi as Code of Conduct for the Followers of Imam, 134-135.

Inseparable from this obedience is full faith in the Imam of the Time — finding no fault in him and refraining from prying into his personal affairs. This presupposes that one has become genuinely and intellectually convinced that the Ismaili Imam is the divinely designated guide not only of the Ismaili community, but of all humanity.

“To obey the commands and prohibitions of the Prophet in toto is enjoined on us by God. It is an act of devotion to Him. God has linked our devotion to Him with our devotion to the Imams. Lip-profession of devotion in words ceases to be a devotion unless it is prompted by conviction and is followed by practice.

To criticise the Prophet or to pry into his affairs or to show disapproval of his actions in words or in thoughts is abominable. It is strictly prohibited by God who through His holy Book has enjoined on us all to submit ourselves to his [i.e. the Prophet’s] will. Our faith is incomplete without our submission to his will. The holy Imams occupy a similar position. They are the representatives of the Prophet on earth and our devotion to them is devotion to the Prophet.

It logically follows that it is our bounded duty to obey the commands of every Imam of the time and submit to his will. To criticise him or to pry into his affairs is as abominable as to criticise the Prophet or to pry into his affairs.”

— Sayyidnā Qāḍī al-Nu‘mān, Code of Conduct for the Followers of Imam, 127-128.

Beyond obedience and faith, the da‘i carries a second, equally central responsibility: to be a bearer of true knowledge, capable of illuminating the souls of the believers.

“Our lord the Commander of the Faithful [Imam ‘Ali])…said: ‘Dā‘īs in religion distinguish between doubt and certainty.’ Distinguishing between doubt and certainty is to separate truth from falsehood. It is possible that he intended it to be between the literal exterior and the inner meaning. Someone who does not know the true and certain, how can he distinguish doubt from certainty, and the truth from falsehood?

The dā‘ī must know the difference between truth and falsehood, so that he can distinguish one from the other, lest he judge the false to be true, and the true to be false.”

— Sayyidnā al-Naysābūrī, A Code of Conduct, 40.

“The Ismaili da‘wa was, self-consciously, the instrument through which true religion — valid law and doctrine, proper belief and action, correct science and knowledge of the universe, rightful loyalty to God and His agent for human affairs, appropriate appreciation for the difference between appearance and reality, between the purely physical and the truly spiritual — was made known to mankind in general and to believers in particular.”

— Paul E. Walker, Early Philosophical Shiism: The Ismaili Neoplatonism of Abū Ya‘qūb al-Sijistānī, 6.

The da‘is are the foremost teachers of the Ismaili community. They are expected to become competent in addressing the full range of religious questions a believer may encounter: the practice of faith, the recognition of the Imam, the divine laws of creation, the nature of angels and jinn, and the purpose, origin, and final end of humankind.

Historically, the da‘is developed this competence within the formal Ismaili da‘wa, where they were trained as deputies under the hujjah of their region, learning to articulate and transmit the teachings of the Ismaili tariqah with clarity and authority.

“The da‘wa....was organized in ‘islands’ (jazāʼir, singular jazīra) under control of a higher ranking dā‘ī who bore the title of ḥujja (argument, proof or guarantor).”

“Subordinate to the ḥujja were numerous regional and local dā‘īs....”

— Heinz Halm, The Fatimids and their Traditions of Learning, 57-58.

Through their direct spiritual connection to the Imam, the hujjahs were able to train the da‘is in a body of knowledge whose authority was guaranteed at its source. The written works of these hujjahs—Sayyidna Nasir-i Khusraw, Sayyidna Hamid al-Din al-Kirmani, Sayyidna Abu Yaqub al-Sijistani, Sayyidna al-Mu’ayyad fi’l-Din al-Shirazi, Sayyidna Ja‘far b. Mansur al-Yaman, Qadi al-Nu‘man, and others — have survived to this day and remain an indispensable resource for any who seek to fulfill Mawlana Shah Karim⁽ᶜ⁾’s call to be the Imam’s da‘is.

“As for showing thankfulness to the Knower (who guided you), that is through obedience to him. As for thankfulness for the knowledge (he gave you), that is through putting it into action and calling (others) to it. And as for thankfulness for the (right religious) practice (he taught you), that is through steadfastness in (continuing) it and in calling (people) to it.”

— Sayyidnā Ja‘far b. Manṣūr al-Yaman, Kitāb al-‘Ālim wa’l-Ghulām, translated by James W. Morris as The Master and the Disciple: An Early Spiritual Dialogue, 63-64.

In these three forms of thankfulness, we find a precise map of everything explored in this section. Obedience to the Knower corresponds to the complete submission and faith in the Imam described by Sayyidna Qadi al-Nu‘man. Putting knowledge into action corresponds to the silent da‘i of Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾—the one whose deeds speak before his words. And calling others to knowledge corresponds to the da‘i’s responsibility to illuminate and transmit what he has received.

The following passage from the same text makes the weight of this final obligation unmistakably clear.

The passage above reminds us that this knowledge did not originate with us — it has descended through countless intermediaries before reaching our hands, and it was never meant to stop here. Imam Shah Karim⁽ᶜ⁾ has reaffirmed the role of the da‘i for our time, and the works of the great hujjahs remain accessible.

Yet the historical da‘is did not rely on texts alone — they were formed within a living chain of transmission, under the guidance of those whose souls had been directly illuminated by the Imam. Whether such guidance still exists today, and where it might be found, are questions no serious seeker can avoid.

These are the questions Part 3 will confront.

Ya ‘Ali Madad,
Navid Amiri
April 11th, 2026

Contact: n11amiri@gmail.com
Follow on Instagram @ismaili intellectual tradition

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— Imam Shah Rahim al-Husayni⁽ᶜ⁾
(Dallas, Texas, November 10, 2025)

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Welcome to Episode 7 of Ismaili Gnosis Chats with Max and Mikayla. Each episode draws on original research from Ismaili Gnosis articles.

Scroll down to play the podcast. After listening, you’ll find:

• Additional Q&A

• A video overview

• Ways to support Ismaili Gnosis

• A link to the original article

Podcast Summary

This episode explores the esoteric dimensions of Jesus’ life, death, and the Ismaili understanding of the Crucifixion. Drawing on the research of Dr. Khalil Andani and ‘Allamah Hunzai, it also weaves in modern rhyming poetry by Khayal ‘Aly inspired by the inner meaning of Christ’s resurrection and a life filled with the Holy Spirit. Moving beyond outward narratives, the discussion uncovers deeper symbolic connections—inviting listeners to reconsider familiar beliefs through a more unified and contemplative lens.

Read more

“On the Day when the earth will be changed
into another earth, and the heavens as well,
and they shall come forth before Allah,
the One, the Overwhelming
(al-Wāḥid al-Qahhār).”

— Qur’an 14:48

Opening Reflection

What if the “new earth and heavens” described in the Qur’an are not distant events awaiting the end of time, but subtle realities already hidden within your own soul? What if the Day of transformation is not only something to come, but something to be discovered within?

In this post, drawing on Key Qur’anic Wisdoms from the tradition of Ismaili Gnosis, we explore the hidden meaning of Qur’an 14:48 alongside verses such as 31:28 and 2:117—where the mystery of the Single Soul (Nafs-i Wahida) and the Divine power of God, al-Wahid al-Qahhar, begin to unfold.

These verses point toward a profound inner reality: that the “changing of the earth and the heavens” is not only cosmic, but experiential — unveiled within the personal world of the seeker, where a deeper unity and a hidden dimension of existence begin to emerge.

Question:

What is the true meaning (ta’wil) of Qur’an 14:48:

“On the Day when the earth will be changed into another earth, and the heavens as well, and they shall come forth before Allah, the One, the Overwhelming (al-Wahid al-Qahhar)”?

How are we to understand this changing of the earth and the heavens, and what is the role of God as al-Wahid al-Qahhar in this transformation?

Read more

Welcome to Episode 6 of Ismaili Gnosis Chats with Max and Mikayla. Each episode draws on original research from Ismaili Gnosis articles.

Scroll down to play the podcast. After listening, you’ll find:

• Additional Q&A

• A video overview

• Ways to support Ismaili Gnosis

• A link to the original article

Podcast Summary

This episode explores the esoteric meaning of Nawruz as more than a seasonal celebration—it is a call to inner renewal. Introducing the “microcosmic earth,” the arrival of the eternal inner Spring, and a personal Nawruz, it shifts focus to the awakening of the heart and soul.

Through Ismaili teachings, the discussion highlights the Manifest Imam as the “Spiritual Sun” whose light brings true inner spring. Drawing on Qur’anic themes, ginans, poetry, and ta’wil, it presents Nawruz as a symbol of resurrection, transformation, and spiritual rebirth.

At its core, it invites listeners to discover the true Nawruz and experience a real springtime revival within—one that never fades.

Ismaili Gnosis Chats
Episode 6

“The True Nawruz
and the Real Springtime Revival”

(click the play button ▶ to listen)

Questions & Answers
Based on the Article

1. Explain the difference between exoteric and esoteric Nawruz.

In Ismaili thought, the distinction between the exoteric (zahir) and esoteric (batin) Nawruz is defined by the difference between the renewal of the physical world and the transformation of the inner soul.

Exoteric New Day (Zahiri Nawruz)

The exoteric Nawruz refers to the macrocosmic earth, which is the physical ground we stand on. Its characteristics include:

• Automatic Process: It unfolds automatically through the physical motion of the planet and the light of the physical sun.

• Universal Visibility: It is marked by the vernal equinox, longer days, and the visible revivification of barren lands. Because it is a physical phenomenon, it can be appreciated by anyone, regardless of their faith.

• Temporal Nature: This “worldly” Nawruz is described as something that eventually becomes “worn-out” and must be replaced by subsequent cycles. It is often celebrated through outward changes, such as wearing “bright and colourful garments”.

Esoteric New Day (Batini Nawruz)

The esoteric Nawruz belongs to the microcosmic earth, or the “personal world” (‘alam-i shakhsi), which represents the heart, soul, and intellect of the believer. Its characteristics include:

• Required Effort: Unlike the automatic physical spring, the spiritual Nawruz requires individual awareness, effort, and divine grace.

• The Spiritual Sun: It occurs when the inner self is illumined by the “Spiritual Sun” or “Sun of Religion,” which is the Manifest Imam (Imam-i Mubin, Qur’anic reference: 36:12).

• Transformation of Existence: The “true” New Day is defined by a transformation of life and actions rather than just a change of the year. This entails exchanging heedlessness for conscious spiritual struggle, worldly attachment for love of the Imam, and “blind following” (taqlid) for realized certainty through spiritual search and verification (tahqiq).

• Eternal Nature: This spiritual spring is described as “safe from ever fading” and is associated with the mercy of the Sustainer, which never ages.

The Symbolic Relationship

The exoteric Nawruz serves as a sign and symbol of the esoteric. While people of “exterior forms” (zahir) focus on sowing physical fields or changing their clothes, the “people of interior meaning” (batin) recognize that this world is a sowing ground for the next and seek to purify and refine their hearts with the guidance of the Imam. Ultimately, while the physical Nawruz is brought about by a change of the calendar, the spiritual Nawruz is realized only through the “transformation of life itself”.

2. How do Ismaili Ginans and poetry symbolize the Imam?

In Ismaili ginans and poetry, the Imam is symbolized through potent metaphors of nature, light, and celestial phenomena, primarily representing him as the source of spiritual life and renewal.

Symbolism in Ismaili Ginans

The ginanic tradition of South Asia characterizes the Imam as the catalyst for the soul’s awakening:

• Spring Eternal and the Divine Bridegroom: A Sindhi ginan by Pir Ṣadr al-Din describes the Imam as “Spring eternal” and a “groom” for whom every “maiden soul” longs.

• The Rising Sun: In Gujarati ginans, the Imam’s arrival is compared to the “rising sun” from the West, which shatters the darkness of the “night” of ignorance.

• The Catalyst for Blossoming: The ginans specify that the Imam’s presence causes the believers themselves to “burst into bloom” and become “redolent with fragrance,” rather than referring to physical vegetation.

• Lord of the Resurrection: Sayyid Fath ‘Ali Shah Shamsi addresses the Imam as the “most luminous Imam, lord of the resurrection,” whose vision appears as “pure light” to fulfill the seeker’s untold hopes.

Symbolism in Ismaili Poetry

Persian Ismaili literature uses similar imagery, often deeply intertwined with the festival of Nawruz:

• The “New Day” (Nawruz) and Hidden Fortune: In the poetry of Hasan-i Mahmud, the Imam’s advent is directly compared to Nawruz itself and described as a “hidden fortune” and the “qibla of faith”.

• Nur al-Din (Light of Faith): The Imam is frequently symbolized as the “light of faith,” whose radiance ennobles his devotees and grants them a portion of “divine light” while his “fire” torments his foes.

• The Face of God (Wajh Allah): Poets like Hasan-i Mahmud aver that the world abides by the presence of the Imam, who represents the “face of God” by which the Divine is recognized.

• The Supreme Spring and Supreme Name: In more modern Persian-influenced Urdu poetry by ‘Allamah Hunzai, the Imam is the “Supreme Spring” (Bahar-i nur-i a‘zam) and the living “Supreme Name” (ism-i a‘zam), through whom spiritual resurrection occurs in the hearts of his lovers.

Universal Symbolic Roles

Across both linguistic traditions, the sources identify several common symbolic roles for the Imam:

• The Spiritual Sun: The Imam is the “Sun of Religion” or “Spiritual Sun” whose light is necessary to revive the “microcosmic earth” (the believer’s inner soul).

• The Bounteous Rain: The Imam is depicted as one whose “right hand scatters blessed rain upon the creation” and whose “forehead is dawn itself”.

• The Eternal Lamp: The Imam is described as a “lamp that is never extinguished” by the winds of change, providing the “polishing rays” of guidance that allow the heart to shine with gnosis.

3. Explain the role of the Imam as the “Resurrector”.

In Ismaili thought, the role of the Imam as the Resurrector (or Qa’im) is primarily defined by his power to trigger a spiritual awakening and renewal in the hearts of believers, a process often symbolically linked to the arrival of spring and Nawruz.

The following aspects detail his role as the Resurrector according to the sources:

Initiator of Spiritual Resurrection (Qiyama)

The Imam is described as the one through whom spiritual resurrection takes place in the hearts of his lovers. This is not viewed merely as a physical end-of-time event, but as an internal transformation. For example, in the poetry of ‘Allamah Hunzai, the Present Imam is the living “Supreme Name” (ism-i a‘zam) who ushers in this state of qiyama. Historically, this role was emphasized during the Alamut period when Imam Ḥasan ‘alā dhikrih al-salām formally declared the Resurrection, a moment poets compared to the advent of a spiritual Nawruz.

The Lord of the Resurrection

In the ginanic tradition, the Imam is explicitly titled the “Lord of the Resurrection”. In this capacity, his role includes:

• Reviving the Soul: Just as the physical sun revives the earth, the Imam, as the “Spiritual Sun,” revives the “microcosmic earth”—the heart and intellect of the believer.

• Granting Supreme Knowledge: His presence fills the “empty caskets” of the soul with “pearls,” which are symbols of supreme knowledge and gnosis (ma‘rifa).

• Fulfilling Spiritual Longing: He is the “eternal spring” who fulfills the untold hopes of the faithful by appearing to them as “pure light”.

Eschatological Triumph

The sources also link the Resurrector to significant events in sacred history and eschatology. According to traditions attributed to Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq, Nawruz is the day on which:

• The Resurrector appears alongside his deputies.

• He triumphs over the Antichrist (Dajjal), symbolizing the ultimate victory of light over darkness and truth over falsehood.

Ushering in the “Supreme Spring”

The Imam as Resurrector is the source of the “Supreme Spring” (Bahar-i nur-i a‘zam). While physical spring is a “worn-out” cycle that eventually fades, the resurrection brought by the Imam is an “eternal spring” safe from fading. This role involves guiding the “sincere seeker” from the “decrepit well of darkness” into a state of union with the divine.

Ultimately, the Imam’s role as the Resurrector is to act as the “Sun of Religion” whose “luminous manifestation” (nurani tajalli) provides the light necessary for the believer to “cross to the other shore” of spiritual realization.

4. How can a believer transform their life to experience Nawruz?

To experience the spiritual Nawruz—the “New Day” of the inner self—a believer must move beyond the external celebration of the seasons and undergo a profound transformation of their actions, deeds, and very existence. While the physical Nawruz occurs automatically through nature, the esoteric Nawruz requires awareness, effort, and divine grace.

According to the sources, this transformation involves several specific ethical and spiritual shifts:

Spiritual Realization over Blind Following

A believer must abandon the “darkness of blind following” (taqlid) in favor of the “light of true spiritual search and realization” (tahqiq). This involves recognizing that the heart, soul, and intellect constitute a “microcosmic earth” that must be revived by the “Spiritual Sun,” the Manifest Imam.

Ethical and Behavioral Transformation

The Tazyeen al-Majalis outlines several key exchanges a believer must make to “mend their ways”:

• From Heedlessness to Struggle: Transform “heedlessness into consummate struggle,” recognizing that this world is the “sowing ground” for the next. One must actively sow seeds of goodness rather than whiling away time.

• From Worldly Attachment to Divine Love: Replace worldly attachments, which are the “root of all evil,” with a singular love for the Imam. Worldly wealth is described as a delusion that can reduce acts of worship to dust.

• From Gossip to Virtuous Speech: Supplant gossip—described as “more loathsome than adultery”—with speaking well of others to find refuge in the “company of gnosis”.

• From Arrogance to Humility: Exchange arrogance for submissiveness and humility, as those who consider themselves greater than others are barred from the “sanctuary of divine splendour”.

The “Unspeakable Mystery” of Non-existence

A deeper level of transformation requires exchanging “existence for non-existence”. This involves:

• Burning the Ego: In the “fire of unity,” the believer must burn the ego of “I” and “we” to overcome the “eye of multiplicity”.

• Acting Against Whims: One must act contrary to the “inclinations of your ephemeral nature” and the “desires of your carnal whims and lusts”. By “ceasing to exist” in this ego-driven sense, a believer can “light [their] candle with faith”.

Following the Guidance of the Imam

The soul’s “blossoming” is ultimately tied to the Imam’s presence and direction:

• Following Decrees (Farmans): Mowlana Sultan Muhammad Shah advised that the “(real) Navroz” begins for a seeker when they follow the Imam’s farmans.

• Seeking Gnosis: Believers are encouraged to “burnish” their hearts with the “polishing rays of the righteous teacher’s guidance” so they may shine with the light of gnosis.

• Longing for Illumination: The transformation is fulfilled through the “luminous manifestation” (didar) of the Imam, whose light guides and revives the soul.

Ultimately, the sources distinguish between the “people of falsehood,” who merely change their clothes for the holiday, and the “people of verity,” whose Nawruz lies in changing their actions. By seeking the “glory of the Creator” within rather than just the “glory of creation” without, the believer’s life-breath can “blossom like a flower

5. How did Muslims Cultures Observe Nawruz?

Muslim societies have observed Nawruz through a combination of imperial pageantry, religious reinterpretation, and specific cultural rituals, though attitudes toward the festival have varied across different scholarly and dynastic traditions.

Imperial and Dynastic Celebrations

Historically, major Muslim dynasties celebrated Nawruz with significant pomp and pageantry. These included:

• The Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates: Observed the festival as a grand occasion.

• The Fatimid Empire: Celebrated the day with royal splendor.

• Various Muslim Dynasties: Continued the tradition across different regions and eras.

Exoteric (Outward) Customs

For many, the observation of Nawruz focused on the exterior (zahir) or physical aspects of the “New Day.” Common outward practices included:

• Festive Attire: People of “exterior forms” marked the day by wearing “all manner of bright and colourful garments and ornaments”.

• Public Displays: The celebration often involved dazzle and glitter and joyful festivities.

• Agricultural Timing: Farmers and those focused on the physical world viewed Nawruz as the specific time when fields are to be sown.

Religious and Scriptural Reinterpretation

Many Muslim scholars sought to ground Nawruz within Islamic history rather than just its pre-Islamic roots.

• Connection to Prophets: Al-Maqrizi linked the day to Prophet Abraham’s escape from the fire, Prophet Moses’ confrontation with Pharaoh’s magicians, and the recovery of Solomon’s ring.

• Shi‘i Sacred History: Traditions attributed to Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾ identify Nawruz as the day God accepted the covenants of His servants, the day Noah’s ark grounded on Mount Ararat, and the day the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ ordered his companions to pledge allegiance to ‘Alī⁽ᶜ⁾ as Commander of the Faithful.

• Eschatological Significance: It is also viewed as the day on which the Resurrector (Qā’im) shall appear and triumph over the Antichrist (Dajjal).

Ismaili Observance: The Spiritual Nawruz

In Ismaili Muslim societies, the observation is characterized by a balance between the outward (zahir) celebration and a deep esoteric (batin) meaning.

• Recitation of Literature: In South Asia, the festival is marked by the recitation of ginans, specifically those by Pir Sadr al-Din and Sayyid Fath ‘Ali Shah Shamsi, which symbolize the Imam as “Spring Eternal”.

• Internal Transformation: For “people of interior meaning,” the day is observed by “changing their actions” rather than just their clothes. This involves exchanging sins for virtues, such as replacing gossip with speaking well of others and arrogance with humility.

• Recognition of the Imam: The festival is observed as a “symbolic reminder of Luminous illumination” and the “luminous manifestation” (nurani tajalli) of the Imam of the time.

Scholarly Debates

Observation was not universally accepted; some scholars, such as al-Ghazali, “frowned upon” the prominence of Nawruz customs due to their pre-Islamic origins. However, many others embraced it by “sacralising” the symbols of spring to convey spiritual knowledge.

Video Overview

Ya ‘Ali Madad,
Khayāl ‘Aly
3/20/26

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— Imām Shāh Raḥīm al-Ḥusaynī⁽ᶜ⁾
(Dallas, Texas, November 10, 2025)

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Original Article Link

Welcome to Episode 5 of Ismaili Gnosis Chats with Max and Mikayla. Each episode draws on original research from Ismaili Gnosis articles.

Scroll down to play the podcast. After listening, you’ll find additional Q&A, a video overview, and a link to the original article.

Podcast Summary

What if the Night of Power is not only a sacred night in history—but a profound spiritual state the human soul can actually become?

In this episode, we explore hidden, esoteric dimensions of Laylat al-Qadr, unveiling it as a moment of deep spiritual reset and revival that reaches far beyond annual rituals or commemorations. Drawing on the wisdom of Ismaili Gnosis, this conversation illuminates the inner journey of spiritual resurrection—the transformative process through which the human soul evolves from a latent potential into an awakened, angelic reality.

Along the way, listeners are invited to contemplate a powerful possibility: that the descent of angels described in the Qur’an is not only a cosmic event, but something that can unfold within the microcosm of the human soul itself

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We are pleased to share below two recorded academic talks of Dr. Khalil Andani (PhD Harvard, Assistant Professor of Religion) on the Ismaili Muslim interpretations (ta’wil) of Laylat al-Qadr grounded in the ta’wili teachings of the Fatimid Ismaili Hujjahs and Da‘is. In these lectures, Dr. Andani draws on Ismaili teachings to show how Laylat al-Qadr in its esoteric meaning alludes to a hidden spiritual personality who unveils hidden truths.

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“Whether you are giving to an Imamat institution or to any other organization which works for good, these are the same in my eyes. All giving is an act of faith. All giving is of spiritual benefit.”

— Imām Shāh Raḥīm al-Ḥusaynī⁽ᶜ⁾
(Dallas, Texas, November 10, 2025)

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Excerpts from Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī’s Rawda-yi Taslīm, translated by S.J. Badakhchani as Paradise of Submission: A Medieval Treatise on Ismaili Thought (London and New York, 2005), 126–133 (translation slightly modified). Section headings have been added for clarity.

Knowledge of the Imam: Four Categories of Recognition (Ma‘rifat)

Knowledge (ma‘rifat) of the Imam, from the point of view of his real being as Imam, is impossible for mankind; but in terms of [his] relation with mankind, knowledge of him has been arranged into four categories so that no one may be deprived of recognising him according to the degree he has in the scale of being.

1. The first is the knowledge of the person of the Imam in his physical (jismani) form. Animals share this [kind of] recognition [with humans], as do [his] enemies. If this recognition did not exist, when [his followers] want to prostrate before him, how can they know before whom they should prostrate and towards whom they should place their faces on the ground?

2. The second is the knowledge of his common name (ism-i ‘amm) and physical genealogy. This recognition is shared alike by the followers of truth (muhiqqan) and the followers of falsehood (mubtilan), by hypocrites and faithful believers. If this kind of knowledge did not exist, when they want to perform their prayers, they would not know who is to be named in their prayers (du‘a) and to whom they should address their prayers for forgiveness and repentance.

3. The third is the knowledge of his Imamate and faith in and submission (taslim) to him. In this [kind of] recognition there is a radical distinction made between the follower of truth and the follower of falsehood. The good become distinguished from the bad through dissociation (tabarra) [from them] and by expressing their love (tawalla) [for the Imam] are admitted into his congregation.1

4. The fourth is the knowledge of his essence (dhat) through [recognition of] the reality of his attributes. This [type of] knowledge is obtained by one’s affirmation of the divine transcendence (tanzih) and holiness (taqdis) and is utterly unlike all other forms of knowledge [so far mentioned]. [Here], even the holy souls and enlightened minds lack the power to gaze directly upon the sun of this knowledge, [such that] “Minds are perplexed without reaching him, eyesight is blinded, speculation is nullified, knowledge is defeated, holy souls have perished and illuminated minds are brought to nought.”2 (Paradise of Submission, 126–127).

Index of Truth: The Truth Follows the Imam

[…] In all periods and at all times the welfare of mankind depends on what he orders. (Paradise of Submission, 128).

[…] The following is one of the sayings [of the Imams]: “Our affair is one of intense hardship, our secret a dreadful mystery. No one can bear it except an angel close [to God], a Prophet sent as a messenger, or a believer whose heart God has tested with faith.”3 And the following is [another] saying — upon his mention be peace (li-dhikrihi as-salam): “You will be sifted like grain in a sieve, boiled like water in a pot, mixed up, until you are turned completely upside-down.”4 … This means you will be subjected to afflictions and perplexities of trials and tribulations; you will be turned upside-down, so that your essence (khulasa) will [be purified and] remain on top, leaving whatever is left on the bottom. (Paradise of Submission, 128).

[…] Anyone who reasons to himself that the Imam — upon his mention be peace — should act according to the prescriptions of the founder of the religious law in order to be Imam and in order to be impeccable (ma‘sum), that he should adhere to the canons of ascetic piety and holy chastity which ordinary people consider to be piety and chastity, [such a person] can be numbered among those who are described, when discussions about human intelligence are broached, as [possessing] ‘such denial, such devilry, which resembles reason, but is not reason!’5 Such a person does not have even an iota of understanding regarding the condition of the Imamate.

When such people witness the behaviour and actions of the Imam — upon his mention be peace — they become delirious, thinking these to be terrible transgressions, uttering things ‘whereby the heavens are almost torn asunder’ (Qur’an 19:90). For the Imam — upon his mention be peace — exercises his judgement in a manner that is beyond the comprehension of mankind. Therefore, only that person of whom it can be said that ‘The believer has been created from [the Light of] God, and when God orders him something, he will recognise it’6 will be able to disclose this mystery by the light of his primordial conscience (nur-i fitrat). Such a person knows, beyond any shadow of doubt or suspicion, that it is the truth which follows the Imam, not the Imam who has to follow the truth. This is because the Imam is the lord of truth (khudawand-i haqq), and his will and desire have no need to be justified or motivated by any secondary cause; from his perspective, the cause, the caused and the causation are all the same.

Similarly, such a person will understand that [the Imam] is truthful in essence (muhiqq-i bi-dhat), such that all those who become adepts in truth have been vouchsafed their truthfulness through his influence and grace. All that the worldly folk deem to be truth, when he declares it false, they also apprehend it to be false; and all that the world regards as false, when he declares it to be truth, they consider it to be true. Thus, it is the Imam who is the index of truth (nishan-i haqq) in every situation and time, not his [transient] words and deeds. They consider truth without him as infidelity (kufr), and to set it [i.e., truth] besides him as polytheism (shirk). By this means, such a person can attain to the supreme height [of understanding] which is the abode of the most advanced adepts (sabiqan). However, as for the one of whom it is said that ‘the infidel (al-kafir) is created from the sins committed by the believer,’ he will fall into everlasting nothingness and eternal humiliation due to his own obstinacy, denial and opposition to the Imam. We seek refuge from this in God. (Paradise of Submission, 129–130).

Call the Imam: He Is All Things

Now, you may call the Imam — upon his mention be peace — either ‘Imam’, or the ‘eternal Face of God’ (wajh Allah al-baqi), or the ‘Supreme Attribute’ (sifat-i a‘zam), or the ‘Great Name of God’ (nam-i buzurg-i khuday), or the ‘Manifestation of the Supreme Word’ (mazhar-i kalima-yi a‘la), or the ‘Truthful Master of the Age’ (muhiqq-i waqt). For he is all things even without creation, whereas all creation devoid of him is but nothing. All these titles have one and the same meaning. (Paradise of Submission, 133).

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Translator’s Notes (S. J. Badakhchani)

The Question

What is the meaning and significance of dasond (zakat) in the modern context, and is it necessary today?

The Answer

The meaning and purpose of dasond (zakat) has not changed in modern times. It remains the same as it was at the origin of the practice in Islam. In the Qur’an, the command “Establish the salat (prayer) and give the zakat” appears in more than twenty verses. The fact that zakat is repeatedly mentioned alongside prayer highlights its central religious and spiritual importance in early Islam. This pairing shows that zakat is not a marginal or optional act, but a foundational obligation directly connected to one’s relationship with God.

Today, many people assume that zakat simply means charity or almsgiving, and that its primary purpose is the redistribution of wealth to the poor. From a Qur’anic perspective, however, this understanding is incomplete and ultimately incorrect. While helping the poor is certainly a virtuous act, the Qur’an does not define zakat as charity in the ordinary sense of voluntary giving.

It is true that later Muslim jurists developed legal frameworks in which zakat came to be treated as a form of obligatory charity. However, the Qur’anic concept of zakat itself has a distinct meaning that is not identical to charity. In the Qur’an, zakat refers to a religious act of purification and growth, tied directly to faith, obedience, and spiritual discipline, rather than merely to social welfare. Understanding this distinction is essential for grasping the true significance of dasond.

Key Terms

• Zakat is best understood as “purification due(s)” rather than charity. The term is linguistically related to the Arabic verbs zakkā (form II) and tazakkā (form V), both of which mean to purify. These verbs are used throughout the Qur’an specifically in relation to the spiritual purification of the human soul, not merely the transfer of wealth. For example, Qur’an 35:18 and 91:9 use these verbs explicitly to describe the purification and growth of the soul. This establishes zakat as a religious act aimed at inner purification.

• By contrast, the Qur’an uses the verb anfaqa (form IV), and particularly the phrase infaq al-mal (spending one’s wealth), when referring to the act of financially supporting the poor, relatives, travelers, and others in need. This terminology clearly describes material assistance and social responsibility, rather than spiritual purification itself.

• The word sadaqah is a broad and inclusive term meaning “offering.” In Qur’anic and Islamic usage, it can refer to any form of financial offering, including zakat as well as voluntary charitable giving. As such, sadaqah functions as an umbrella term and should not be confused with the more specific Qur’anic meaning of zakat.

It must be emphasized that in the Qur’an, giving zakat is not the same act as giving one’s wealth to the less fortunate. The Qur’an consistently distinguishes between these two practices. For example, the following verse speaks explicitly about spending wealth on those in need:

“They ask you, [O Muhammad], what they should spend. Say, ‘Whatever you spend of good is [to be] for parents and relatives and orphans and the needy and the traveler. And whatever you do of good — indeed, God is Knowing of it.’”

— Qur’an 2:215

This verse clearly addresses material spending for social and familial support. However, other verses make it equally clear that this type of giving is distinct from zakat.

Two Qur’anic passages in particular explicitly differentiate charitable giving from zakat:

“So give the relative his right (haqqahu), as well as the needy and the traveler. That is best for those who desire the Face of God, and it is they who will be the successful. And whatever you give for interest to increase within the wealth of people will not increase with God. But what you give in zakah, desiring the Face of God—those are the multipliers.”
(Qur’an 30:38–39)

“Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is [in] one who believes in God, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets, and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveler, those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves; and who establishes prayer and gives zakah.”
(Qur’an 2:177)

In both verses, giving wealth to relatives, the needy, and others is mentioned as a separate act from giving zakat. While zakat does involve the offering of wealth, its primary purpose is not social redistribution, but rather the purification of the soul. This is consistently reinforced by Qur’anic verses that directly link zakat to spiritual purification:

“And the righteous one will avoid it [Hell]: he who gives of his wealth to purify himself (yatazakka).”
(Qur’an 92:18)

“He has certainly succeeded who purified himself (tazakka) and remembers the Name of his Lord and prays.”
(Qur’an 87:14–15)

The Qur’an further clarifies the nature of zakat by explaining to whom it was given and how it functioned. Zakat was not an offering given directly to the poor; rather, it was an offering (sadaqah) that believers were required to submit to the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ himself. Notably, the Qur’an does not specify any fixed percentage for zakat. Instead, it outlines the entire practice and purpose of zakat in a passage describing believers who had committed wrongdoing and were seeking God’s forgiveness:

“And there are others who have acknowledged their faults. They mixed a righteous action with another that was bad. It may be that God will relent toward them. Indeed, God is Forgiving, Merciful. [O Prophet] take offerings (ṣadaqah) from their wealth, and purify them (tuṭahhiruhum) and sanctify them (tuzakkīhim) by means of it, and pray/send blessings over them (ṣalli ‘alayhim). for them. Indeed, your prayer/blessing (salataka) is a source of peace (sakan) for them. And God is the Hearing, the Knowing. Do they not know that it is God who accepts repentance from His servants and receives the offerings, and that God is the Accepter of repentance, the Merciful?”
(Qur’an 9:102–104)

In this passage, those who committed sins are instructed to offer sadaqah from their wealth to the Prophet. The Prophet is commanded to take these offerings and, through them, purify and sanctify the believers. He is also instructed to offer his special prayer or blessing upon them. The verse explicitly states that the Prophet’s prayer is a source of inner peace (sakan) for the believers. Significantly, the Arabic word salat is used here in the sense of both prayer and blessing.

The verb used for “sanctify them” is tuzakkihim, a conjugation of zakka (form II), which refers to purifying another person. This verb shares the same root as zakat itself. Elsewhere in the Qur’an, this same verb is used to describe God purifying human beings (e.g., 4:49; 2:174) and the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ purifying the believers (2:129; 2:151; 3:164; 62:2). This confirms that zakat is a specific ritual offering given to the Prophet for the purification of sins, accompanied by his prayer and blessing, which gives them inner peace.

Through this process, believers receive forgiveness from God, because the Prophet acts as the divinely authorized mediator of this purification. Indeed, Qur’an 9:104 explicitly states that God Himself receives the offering and accepts repentance through this practice. In this ritual, the Prophet effectively manifests and represents God’s mercy and acceptance. For further reading on the spiritual roles of the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾, read this article.

Early Muslim exegetical traditions — both Sunni and Shi‘i — recognize this understanding of zakat. Classical commentaries consistently identify Qur’an 9:103 as describing the purpose and function of zakat. There are many hadith in the Sunni corpus that describe how the Prophet received the zakat / sadaqa from the people and blessed them in turn:

Ibn Abi ‘Awfa said: My father was one of those Companions who took the oath of allegiance at the hand of the Prophet⁽ˢ⁾ beneath the tree. The Prophet⁽ˢ⁾ said when the people brought him their sadaqah: “O Allah, bless the family of so and so. When my father brought him his sadaqah he said O Allah bless the family of Abu ‘Awfa.”
(Sunan Abi Dawud Book 9, Hadith 35)

Modern scholarship has also noted this. Suliman Bashear summarizes early Muslim interpretations of sadaqa / zakat as follows:

“One must note here that the position of the exegetes (ahl al-tafsīr) and most legal scholars (al-fuqahā’) that this verse implied the ordaining of regular zakāt upon the Muslims, had to face the more general meaning implied by it, i.e. that the aim of zakāt/ṣadaqa was the purification of sins. And this difficulty is clearly reflected in the variant reading of tuṭahhirhum/taṭhuruhum in reference to either the Prophet or to the ṣadaqa itself as the purifier of sins.

Also noteworthy is the second part of verse IX:103 in which the Prophet was ordered to pray for those who pay the ṣadaqa (wa-ṣalli ‘alayhim inna ṣalātaka sakanun lahum). Ibn Qutayba (d. 276/889) understands prayer here as supplication (du‘ā’).

From the exegetical commentaries on this verse we learn that whenever zakāt/ṣadaqa was paid, the Prophet prayed for the cleansing/forgiveness of the donor’s sins. In the words of Ṭabarī, what was meant by it was that “your (= Muḥammad’s) supplication [du‘ā’] and request for their forgiveness is tranquillity (ṭuma’nina) to them that God has forgiven them and accepted their repentance.”

— Suliman Bashear, “On the Origins and Development of the Meaning of Zakāt in Early Islam,” Arabica 40, no. 1 (1993): 97–98.

In the Shi‘i Ismaili tradition, the essential purpose and meaning of zakat has remained faithful to its Qur’anic foundation, even as its external forms and rates have evolved in response to historical, legal, and intellectual contexts. Writing in the late eleventh century, the Ismaili sage Da‘i Nasir-i Khusraw explains in Wajh-i Din that zakat is an offering through which both the property and the souls of believers are purified by the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ and, subsequently, by the Imam who inherits the Prophet’s authority.

By Sayyidna Nasir-i Khusraw’s time, the legal forms of zakat had become relatively detailed. In simplified terms: zakat on agricultural produce was 10 percent (ʿushr); zakat on livestock such as camels, sheep, and cattle was approximately 2.5 percent (one-fortieth); and zakat on precious metals such as gold and silver was typically 5 percent (one-twentieth). While these forms varied, the spiritual meaning of zakat remained constant.

Despite centuries of persecution, concealment, and political danger, the Nizari Ismaili community consistently maintained the practice of delivering zakat directly to the Imam. Even during periods of warfare and extreme risk, Ismaili murids (initiated disciples) continued to submit their zakat, often at the cost of their lives. This historical reality underscores the spiritual centrality of zakat in Ismaili life: it was understood not as a financial contribution, but as a sacred obligation essential to salvation.

A concise description of this situation in the fourteenth century is provided by Shafique Virani

“The Ginans confirm that religious dues continued to be submitted to the Imam in this period [mid fourteenth century] and that propagation activities were conducted in secret. … Of the sum collected, 20 percent was for local use, while the remaining 80 percent was dispatched to the Imam… emissaries (rāhī) traveled… to convey the funds to the Imam, who was in concealment (alop).

Such a system of delivering religious dues is presumed in the Counsels of Chivalry (Pandiyāt-i Jawānmardī) of the fifteenth century Imam Mustansir bi’llah. Similarly, the sixteenth-century Ismaili author…Khayrkhwah Harati, also refers to the comings and goings of Ismaili dignitaries… to see the Imam as well as to submit religious dues.”

— Shafique N. Virani, The Ismailis in the Middle Ages: A History of Survival, A Search for Salvation (New York: Oxford University Press, 2007), 41.

In modern times, Ismaili Muslims give zakat in the range of 10% to 12.5% of net income, commonly referred to among South Asian Ismailis as dasond (literally, “one-tenth”). While the form and calculation of dasond has changed with the modern economy, the essence of zakat has not. As defined by the Qur’an, zakat remains a “purification due” given to the Imam of the Time, through which the Imam bestows his prayers, blessings, and spiritual purification upon the murids—just as the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ did during his lifetime.

Modern historical scholarship has increasingly affirmed this original understanding. Fred Donner, for example, argues that zakat in the Qur’an is better understood as a purification payment, rather than charity in the modern sense:

Later Muslim tradition refers to such charity under the terms zakat or sadaqa, usually rendered “almsgiving”; these two terms are closely associated with prayer in numerous Qur’anic passages, and later Muslim tradition considers them, like prayer, to be one of the “pillars of the faith” that define a Believer.

Recent research suggests, however, that the original Qur’anic meaning of zakat and sadaqa was not almsgiving, but rather a fine or payment made by someone who was guilty of some kind of sin, in exchange for which Muhammad would pray in order that they might be purified of their sin and that their other affairs might prosper.

Indeed, even in the [Qur’anic] verse [2:177]… one notes that payment of zakat is mentioned after prayer, suggesting that it was something different than the giving of wealth to the poor (what we usually mean by almsgiving), which is treated in the verse before mention of prayer.

This understanding of zakat or sadaqa as a payment for atonement or purification of sins is clearest in the following verses: “Others have confessed their sins … Take from their property sadaqa to cleanse them, and purify [tuzakki] them thereby, and pray for them, indeed your prayer is a consolation to them. God is all-hearing, all-knowing” (Q. 9:102-103); the verb “to purify” is from the same Arabic root as zakat.

The fact that Believers were sometimes required to make such purification payments, however, underscores how the community was, in principle, focused on maintaining its inner purity, on being as much as possible a community that lived strictly in righteousness, so as to set themselves apart from the sinful world around them and thus to attain salvation in the afterlife.

— Fred M. Donner, Muhammad and the Believers: At the Origins of Islam (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2010), 64.

In the Qur’an, zakat is given to the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾, who alone was divinely authorized to receive it and determine its use. Likewise, in Ismaili Islam, zakat or dasond is the exclusive right of the Imam of the Time, who inherits the Prophet’s spiritual and temporal authority. From this perspective, donations to charitable organizations or NGOs—however noble—do not constitute zakat, because zakat is defined by its divinely designated recipient and its function of spiritual purification, not by social benefit alone.

The Imams have consistently emphasized that when they accept zakat, they do so not out of need, but to purify their murids. Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾ states:

“[If] I take a dirham from one of you, and even though I am one of the wealthiest people in Medina, in doing so I wish nothing else than that you should be purified (tuṭhirū).”

— Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾, al-Kulayni, Usul al-Kafi, Book 2, p.44

A well-known narration recorded by the Ismaili da‘i Qadi al-Nu‘man further illustrates this principle. When al-Mufaddal b. ‘Umar brought offerings to Imam Ja‘far al-Sadiq⁽ᶜ⁾, the Imam explicitly stated that he accepted them “only as a means of purifying the donors,” not out of material need. He then revealed a jewel of extraordinary value, demonstrating that the Imam possessed wealth far beyond any worldly requirement (Qadi al-Nu‘man, Da‘a’im al-Islam, tr. Fyzee and Poonawala, The Pillars of Islam, Vol. 1, pp. 75–76).

In the modern period, numerous Farmans from the Kalam-i Imam-i Mubin [KIM] of Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah⁽ᶜ⁾ reaffirm and further describe the purpose and importance of zakat or dasond (summarized below):

• Dasond must be given willingly, sincerely, and with full trust in the Imam to yield spiritual and worldly benefit (KIM, Farman No. 1, Bombay, September 1, 1885).

• The Imam alone determines distribution of dasond (KIM, Farman No. 1, Bombay, September 1, 1885).

• Without dasond, acts of worship (‘ibadat) are incomplete and not accepted (KIM, Farman No. 2, Bombay, September 8, 1885).

• Giving dasond is a covenantal obligation of every murid and a means to spiritual liberation (KIM, Farman No. 2, Bombay, September 8, 1885).

• Failure to give dasond — the right of the Imam — entails accountability before God on the Day of Judgment (KIM, Farman No. 21, Manjevadi, January 2, 1894).

• One’s earnings and sustenance become lawful (halal) only after giving dasond (KIM, Farman No. 24, Amdavad, December 2, 1896).

• Faith (iman) is safeguarded through dasond (KIM, Farman No. 125, Nairobi, October 6, 1905).

• Through accepting dasond, the Imam forgives the sins of the murids (KIM, Farman No. 125, Nairobi, October 6, 1905).

• Without giving dasond, all other deeds lack spiritual validity, and one attains nothing in the hereafter (KIM, Farman No. 155, September 22, 1899).

Having clarified zakat as purification dues rather than charity, it follows that zakat belongs exclusively to the Imam, who is the purifier of the believers. From a spiritual perspective, how the Imam uses zakat is irrelevant to the murid. The act of purification occurs through the faithful submission of zakat to its rightful recipient — the Imam of the Time — and does not depend on knowledge of its subsequent use. The Imam’s allocation of zakat has no moral or spiritual effect on the giver.

Nevertheless, both modern Imams and historical scholarship have discussed the practical uses of zakat/dasond. This question will be explored in a forthcoming article.

Ya ‘Aly Madad,
Ismaili Gnosis
February 14, 2026

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Q. Did the Nur of Imamat “transfer” from Mawlana Shah Karim to Mawlana Shah Rahim on Imamat Day (4 February 2025)?

Technically speaking, the Nur of Imamat does not literally “transfer” from one Imam to the next Imam in the sense of a material asset or “baton” being transferred from one body to another. This is because the Nur of Imamat, as the primary and eternal creation of the absolutely transcendent God, is a spiritual or metaphysical reality; it is not a physical object. Physical things are confined to a particular space, place and time; when they move to a new place or location, they depart their original location and are no longer present there. But this is not the case with the Nur of Imamat. Spiritual realities such as the Nur of Imamat, the Universal Soul, the Angels, and even human souls are not confined to one place or another and can be omni-present. Therefore, the Nur of Imamat does not literally “transfer” to the next Imam; the next Imam already bears the Nur of Imamat in his pure soul long before the passing of the prior Imam. What actually “transfers” and is “handed over” upon the death of one Imam to the next Imam is the “authority” or amr of the Office of Imamat.

The truth of this matter is that the Nur of Imamat is present, reflected, and manifested within all of the Holy Imams simultaneously – past, present, and future – by being reflected within their perfect souls. The pure souls of the Imams were created before the creation of the physical world. The perfect souls of the Imams, by their very nature, are the mirrors or loci of manifestation (mazahir) of the Nur of Imamat, even prior to their births in the physical world. This is explained by our 23rd Imam, Mawlana Hasan ala-dhikrihi al-salam⁽ᶜ⁾ as follows:

“The Imams, both outwardly and inwardly, both exoterically and esoterically, issue from the pure line and loins of the Imam, one after another. The Imam is perfect when still in the form of sperm in the loins of his father and the pure womb of his mother. An Imam is always an Imam and always perfect. Otherwise, why should he say, ‘The Imam knows from drop of sperm the Imam after him will come?”

Imam Hasan ‘ala-dhikrihi salaam⁽ᶜ⁾,
(Nasir al-Din Tusi, The Paradise of Submission, 125)

The special tasbih – recited by Ismailis on the 80th birthday and Diamond Jubilee of Mawlana Shah Karim⁽ᶜ⁾ and on the Takht-nishini day of Mawlana Shah Rahim⁽ᶜ⁾ – invokes the salawat upon the “Pure Imams” of the past, present, and the future:

“O Allah, send blessings upon Muhammad the chosen, and upon ‘Ali the favored, and upon the Pure Imams and those among them who are waiting to come until the Day of Judgment (wa ‘ala l-a’immati l-tahirin wa l-muntazirin minhum ila yawm al-din), and upon our Present and Living Imam, Mawlana Shah Rahim al-Husayni⁽ᶜ⁾.”

The above salawat refers to the future Imams as “those among them [the pure Imams] who are waiting to come” – which means the future Imams already exist as pure souls and as Imams before they are born in the physical world. The future Imams are already the bearers or mazhars of the Nur of Imamat; but their status as Imams is not known to the public.

The future Imam during the lifetime of the present Imam is called a “silent Imam” (imam samit) while the Imam of the Time, his father, is called a “speaking Imam” (imam natiq). The Imam of the Time – the speaking Imam – has the sole authority or command (amr) to exercise the office of Imamat and lead the Jamat while the silent Imam remains under the authority of the speaking Imam. However, both the speaking Imam and silent Imam are bearers or mirrors of the Nur of Imamat; even when the status of the silent Imam is not known to the Jamat or the public.

There are numerous examples in Ismaili history where the speaking Imam, the Imam of the Time, was accompanied by one or more silent Imams. Ismaili sources always refer to the silent Imams – the future successors – as “Imams” in their own right. Imam al-Mahdi⁽ᶜ⁾ and his son, Imam al-Qa’im⁽ᶜ⁾, were always accompanying one another and were “co-rulers” of the Fatimid Caliphate. During this time, Imam al-Qa’im⁽ᶜ⁾ was the silent Imam and Ismaili Da‘i Ibn al-Haytham referred to al-Qa’im⁽ᶜ⁾ as “the shining moon and the glittering light” and the “light of the world” (tr. Wilfred Madelung and Paul E. Walker, Advent of the Fatimids, 166-7).

In one famous account, Mawlana Imam al-Mahdi⁽ᶜ⁾ – who was the speaking Imam – gathered three silent Imams, his son Imam al-Qa’im⁽ᶜ⁾, his grandson Imam al-Mansur⁽ᶜ⁾, and his great grandson Imam al-Mu‘izz⁽ᶜ⁾, with himself under a cloak and proclaimed that “there is not a majlis more illustrious on earth than this one, as four Imams are gathered here” (Jiwa, Towards a Shi’i Mediterranean Empire, 29). In another moving account, Imam al-Mahdi⁽ᶜ⁾ confided to al-Qadi al-Nu‘man that his son al-Qa’im⁽ᶜ⁾ and grandson al-Mansur⁽ᶜ⁾ were also Imams: “He (al-Nu‘man) said: ‘O Commander of the Faithful, three Imams in one age?’ the [number] astounded him. Then Imam al-Mahdi bi’llah showed him al-Mu‘izz li-Din Allah⁽ᶜ⁾ who was a babe in his cradle and said, ‘And this is the fourth of us, O Nu’man!’ (Imad al-Din, tr. Shainool Jiwa, The Founder of Cairo, 52).

When the Imam of the Time passes away, what “transfers” to the next Imam is only the authority (amr) of the office of Imamat, not the Nur of Imamat. The Nur of Imamat is already present in the next Imam and is always present in every Imam – the Imams of the past, present and future.

For a more detailed explanation of the Imamat Succession, see the following:

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“The Mazhar of Allah’s Amr”
By: Khayal ‘Aly
(2/2/26)

The Sovereignty of Allāh
is expressed through His Command.
The Maẓhar of Allāh’s Amr
is manifest upon the land.

Actually, let me back up —
The Command is the Source of creation.
The Exalted Word of God
begins the process of emanation.

God’s Command or His Word
originates the luminous creature.
Divine Authority
manifests through the Nūr of the Teacher.

The Master of mankind
causes creation to remain upright.
Seekers of perfection
search until they merge in His Holy Light.

Imamat Day Mubārak to all readers and seekers of Ismaili Gnosis!

We hope you found the above poem a meaningful offering — written in reverence and awe for the Ḥujjat al-Amr (Proof of the Divine Command), Ṣāḥib al-Zamān wa’l-‘Aṣr (Master of physical and spiritual time), Nūr Mawlānā Shāh Rahīm al-Ḥusaynī Aga Khan V, ṣalawātu’llāhi ‘alayhi — and in gratitude for the divine reality he manifests as the maẓhar (locus of manifestation) of Allāh.

The selected passages that follow are intended to deepen our understanding of the key concepts invoked—explicitly and implicitly—in the poem. They remind us, and for some may newly illuminate:

• the function of the Divine Command (Amr-i Ilāhī) or Exalted Word (Kalima-i A‘lā) as the Source (Mabda’) of emanation and creation;

• the reality of the Manifest Imām, who, as God’s Maẓhar, makes His sovereignty and authority present in the world of humanity;

• the Imām’s role as the Perfect and Universal Teacher (Mu‘allim-i Kull), through whom humanity is preserved and guided morally, spiritually, and intellectually;

• and the significance of our own esoteric mission as sincere believers (mu’mins)—to elevate and complete our souls by uniting with the Sacred Light (Nūr-i Muqaddas) of the Maẓhar of Allāh’s Amr, the Imām of the Time.

All of the excerpts presented below are drawn from two major works of the renowned 13th-century Muslim polymath and Ismā‘īlī dā‘ī, Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī. The first selections come from Sayr wa Sulūk, translated by S. J. Badakhchani as Contemplation and Action: The Spiritual Autobiography of a Muslim Scholar. The second are taken from Rawḍa-yi Taslīm, a collaborative work to which Sayyidna Ṭūsī contributed, translated by S. J. Badakhchani as Paradise of Submission: A Medieval Treatise on Ismaili Thought.

By sharing these carefully chosen passages, we hope not only to enrich the reader’s appreciation of the poem offered on this blessed occasion, but also — through a deeper recognition of the bāṭinī ḥaqīqa of our Imām-i Zamān — to inspire a return to these original texts. Without them, neither the poem nor the reflections in this post would have been possible.

Ya ‘Aly Madad,
Khayāl ‘Aly
2/3/2026
khayal.aly@gmail.com

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“Verily, His Command,
when He desires a thing,
is to say to it
‘Be’ and it is.”

Innamā amruhu
idhā arāda shay’an
an yaqūla lahu
kun fayakūn

« Holy Qur’an 36:82 »

The Ta‘līmiyān [i.e. Ismā‘īlīs] believe that all beings issue forth from God, the exalted, Who is the First Origin (mabda’-i awwal), through the mediation of something which…is called His Command (amr) or His Word (kalima).

[T]he First Cause of the Universal Intellect (‘aql-i kull), which is the First Effect, is God’s Command (amr), because God is altogether beyond (munazzah) cause or effect.

[…] This verse [“Verily, His Command, when He desires a thing, is to say to it ‘Be’ and it is” (36:82)] makes it clear that the issuing forth of existents from God depends on the expression ‘Be’ (kun), and…the Command (amr) is an expression for that Word (kalima).

[…] There is no doubt that this aspect, the Command (amr) or the Word [of God] is not something additional to His [i.e. God’s] sacred essence, in so far as He is He, the exalted…but from the point of view where [the Command] is the cause of an effect, it is something additional.

This additional entity, in reality, is the cause of the First Effect [that is, it is the cause of the Universal Intellect], because…there can be no cause without a corresponding effect, and no effect without a corresponding cause.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 35-37

It is an error to speak of the First Cause in relation to God, but it is correct to apply it [i.e., the term “First Cause”] to His Command (amr), which is the source of all existents.

In fact, whatever attribute has been ascribed to the “First Cause”…is a reference to His Command (amr), one facet of which is directed to the world of pure, eternal unity, [and] the other to the world of multiplicity and contingency; but God as such is free from, and exalted above, both these facets.

As has been expressed in the words of [one of] the Leaders of the truthful… “Whatever pertains to God, pertains to us [the Imāms].”

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 38

In the sciences of the truth (‘ulūm-i ḥaqīqī), it has been perceived that beyond the world of the senses there is another world — that of the Intellect — which is related to the former in the same way as the soul is to the body. This is why it is called the spiritual world and the other the physical world.

Corresponding to each sensible thing in this [physical] world is an intelligible entity in that [spiritual] world, and corresponding to each person here is a spirit there, and corresponding to every manifest thing (ẓāhir) here, is a hidden one (bāṭin) there.

Similarly, corresponding to every intelligible entity there is a sensible one here, and corresponding to each spirit there is a person here, and corresponding to each hidden entity there is a manifest one here.

That intelligible entity is the source (maṣdar) of this sensible one, and this sensible thing is the manifestation (maẓhar) of that intelligible one.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 40

As for the Word (kalima) of the exalted Creator — which is the sustainer of existents in the world and that by which each of them reaches its perfection, originating from it and returning to it — if it [i.e. the Word] had no connection (ta‘lluq) to the sensible world, the latter would have never come into existence.

Since there is such a connection, which is of the same kind and therefore has to be perceptible to the senses, the Command (amr) and the Word (kalima) must inevitably be manifest in this world, and the locus of its manifestation (maẓhar) must be in the form of an individual human being who appears to be like other humans, [one who] is born, grows old and succeeds to the one before him in a continuous line, so that it [i.e., the Command or the Word of God] will be preserved in perpetuity [among mankind]:

“And had We made him [the Prophet] an angel, We would have certainly made him a man, and disguised [him] before them in garments like their own” (6:9).

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 40-41

In the world of pure spirituality, it [i.e. the Command of God] is the possessor of infinite knowledge and power; all forms of knowledge and perfections pour forth from it upon the intellects and souls....

This being is the Command (amr) or the Word (kalima) of God; its rank is higher than that of possible things and effects, both of which are obedient and subservient to His Command: “None is there in the heavens and the earth but he comes to the All-merciful as a servant’ (19:93).

As for God as such, He is above both the worlds; He is free and absolved from [the oppositions of] unity and multiplicity, similarity and differentiation, reality and relativity: “Glory be to thy Lord, the Lord of majesty. [He is] above what they describe” (37:180).

Any perfection that exists potentially in souls and individuals in the two realms is brought from potentiality to actuality by [His Command], by the light (nūr) of its instruction (ta‘līm) and the illumination of its guidance (hidāyat): “[Our lord is He] who gave everything its existence, then guided it” (20:50).

Since in the beginning the existents came forth from the Command (amr) and by it they attain their perfection, it is their origin (mabda’) and to it is their return (ma‘ād); it is the first (awwal) and the last (ākhir), and in it the circle of existence is completed: “He is the first and the last, the manifest and the hidden; He has knowledge of all things” (57:3).

[The Command], therefore, has necessarily three aspects: first, it is a person like any other; second, it is the cause, the instructor, the perfect one, and the others are its effects, the instructed, those who are lacking in perfection; and third, it [the Command] is itself, and nothing other than it is worthy of being the cause of existence.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 41-42

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The followers of ta‘līm [Ismā‘īlīs]…believe in the principle that everyone, whatever his degree may be, knows his own instructor, who in turn knows his own instructor [and so on] to the First Instructor [mu‘allim-i awwal], who knows God through God. As a result, everyone also comes to know God through God.

In the Fuṣūl-i Muqaddas [Sacred Chapters of Imām Ḥasan ‘alā dhikrihi al-Salām] it is written: “Everyone must know [God] through knowing me, since a person becomes a knower (‘ārif) through my knowledge and becomes a monotheist (muwaḥḥid) through my monotheism. Then the reality of knowledge (ma‘rifat), union (ittiḥād) and oneness (waḥdat) comes completely into existence, and the reality of worship becomes evident”.

The evidence for such a judgment in the revealed law and the exoteric aspect of revelation is the text of the Qur’ān: “Those are they whom God has guided, so follow their guidance” (6:90).

And there is also the fact that in the realm of religious law, knowledge of God is not judged by the mere profession of the formula ‘There is no god but God’, unless the confession of ‘Muḥammad is His Messenger’ is added to it.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 44-45

Souls, despite their various ranks, emanate from one origin and share in the same essence (māhiyyat), but they are perpetuated [individually] by virtue of the forms they acquire, which is the cause of their coming into this world.

So if the form which is represented in the soul of the disciple is identical to that which is represented in his instructor’s soul, and if his position is such that he knows through the knowledge of his instructor, and the instructor is in agreement with his return, there will be no differentiation and multiplicity between their souls; and when the veil is removed, he will reach his instructor and be united with his oneness, and then he [the disciple] will have reached [his place of] return.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 45-46

To sum up, from the above premises and the testimonies of intellect and religious law (‘aqlī wa shar‘ī), it became evident to me that the final step on the path of the seekers after truth is to be blessed with success in knowing their instructor and to become knowledgeable through his knowledge, as it is expressed in the Fuṣūl-i Muqaddas: “Knowledge of God is [through] knowledge of the Imam.”

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Contemplation and Action, 47

I conceive the source (mabda’) of existence to be one, and that one [is] His Almighty and Holy Command (amr-i ū ta‘ālā wa taqaddas), which is also called the Word (kalima).

The first being, which came into existence through absolute origination (ibdā‘-i maḥḍ) from the Command without any mediation, was the First Intellect (‘aql-i awwal) [i.e., Universal Intellect].

Other things came into existence through intermediaries from the Command, such as the [Universal] Soul (nafs) through the mediation of the [Universal] Intellect, and Matter (hayūlā), Nature (tabī‘at) and Body (jism) through the mediation of the [Universal] Soul.

[…] The Divine Command (amr-i ilāhī)...is one pure light (nūr-i mahḍ), one uncontaminated emanation, one bounty and one generosity which, in the primordial past was the cause for the existence of the 18,000 worlds, and, in the subsequent future will be the cause for the perfection (kamāl) of their essences.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Paradise of Submission, 19-20

The Prophet — peace be upon him — appears at the beginning of the cycle of origin (dawr-i mabda‘). He encompasses it so that through him the lights of the Almighty’s Command (anwār-i amr-i ū ta‘ālā), in the form of acts of obedience and worship, collectively prescribed to the generality of humankind, may reach them.

As the majority of people in this world are, in the first instance, veiled from accepting and responding to the Divine Command in good faith, and can only perceive what is connected with the senses, fanciful estimation and imagination, the divine providence has decreed that these divine lights — which are absolute intelligible realities (ma‘qūlāt-i muṭlaq) and pure divine graces (ta’yīdāt-i maḥḍ) — should become apprehended through the Prophets, their family and offspring, and by the senses, estimation and imagination, according to the principle that revelation (tanzīl) is [given in proportion to] the degree corresponding to that stage.

Human beings accepted these things as a result of [their] affinity to the senses, estimation and imagination, and applied themselves to them…while the souls of the elect within the community became capable of acquiring [spiritual] perfection by such ways and means, thus [enabling them to] progress from religious practices (‘amaliyyāt) to religious knowledges (‘ilmiyyāt), and from that on to purely intelligible realities (‘aqliyyāt).

The Imām — may salutations ensue upon mention of him — is situated at the commencement of the cycle of perfection (dawr-i kamāl), encompassing both the origin and the perfect fulfilment. The lights of the divine creative volition (anwār-i amr-i ibdā‘ī), by his command, shine upon those souls who harbour an aptitude to apprehend the perfection of the Divine Command, taking the form of distinctive and true gnosis (ma‘rifat), love (maḥabbat), obedience and devotion.

And by the grace of the Imām — may salutations ensue upon mention of him and his family and offspring — in accordance with [the saying], “Spiritual exegesis (ta’wīl) is the restoration [or returning] of things to their origin” (al-ta'wīl radd al-shay’ilā awwalihi) — these sensible, estimative and imaginal realities become one and the same with the absolute intelligible realities and sheer divine supports (ta’yidāt-i maḥḍ).

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Paradise of Submission, 111

There is one who is beyond both learning and unlearning, who is the lord of all these (khudāwand-i īn hama) and the bestower of that knowledge (ma‘rifat) through which the perfection of reason is obtained.

Such a one [i.e. person] is the manifestation of the sublime Word (maẓhar-i kalima-yi a‘lā), who bestows that knowledge which is the perfection of the intellect.

The whole purpose of his work is that people should come to know and love him and so become members of his party, company and community (jamā‘at). He is the Imām — may salutations ensue upon mention of him.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Paradise of Submission, 131

It has been said: “just as the gnosis of God in reality depends on the man of God (mard-i khudā), so the recognition of the Imām in reality depends on the man of the Imām (mard-i imām)” and so on...everyone possesses a different degree in gnosis, as is stated in the Qur’ān: “And none of us is there, but has a known station” (37:164).

The highest station [of gnosis] is that one knows God through God (khudā rā bi-khudā shināsand): “God bears witness that there is no God but He” (3:18). This station can only be that of the “man of God” [i.e. the Imām], who is the manifestation (maẓhar) of the Divine Command (amr) and the Word (kalima) of God and the mediator (mutawwasiṭ) between God and creation — such that, with the face that he has towards God, he can recognise God, and with the face that he has towards people, he can cause people to reach God, so that through his gnosis they become cognisant of God.

Since the Divine Command and the Word are from the realm of Unity — “And Our command is but one” (54:50) — the “man of God” [i.e. the Imām] will always be that unique truthful master who does not and cannot have any partner or like in the world: “He is one without a partner” (6:163).

After this, the next station is to know God through the “man of God” [i.e. the Imām]. This may be the rank and degree of the bābs (gates) and the supreme ḥujjats (proofs), who are manifestations of the First Intellect and First Effect. They are also the first receivers, so that whatever they accept from the “first man” (mard-i awwal) [i.e. the Imām], they cause to reach other human beings.

Since there is only one mediator between them and God, they know God through that mediator [i.e. the Imām]. And because multiplicity (kathrat) is potentially embedded in the First Effect, the number of people who hold this class in every age can be more than one….

[…] Beneath this station, there are stations of multiple degrees which pertain to the ranks within the community (maqāmhā-yi jamā‘ati). Between them and God there are several mediators.

The spiritual knowledge (ma‘rifat) of this community lies in the fact that each person, according to the station he possesses, is cognisant of the spiritual knowledge of his own teacher in such a manner that the form of his soul is identical with that which is in his teacher’s soul.

So, ultimately all acts of cognition are united by the cognition of the one who is truly cognisant (‘ārif-i bi-ḥaqīqat), that is, the “man of God” [i.e. the Imām of the time]: “And to Him are returned all affairs” (11:123).

— Imām ‘Alā’ al-Dīn Muḥammad⁽ᶜ⁾, as quoted in Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Paradise of Submission, 176-7

Now, you may call the Imām — may salutations ensue upon mention of him —either ‘Imām’, or the ‘eternal Face of God’ (wajh Allāh al-bāqī), or the ‘Supreme Attribute’ (ṣifat-i a‘zam), or the ‘Great Name of God’ (nām-i buzurg-i khudāy), or the ‘Manifestation of the Supreme Logos’ (maẓhar-i kalima-yi a‘lā), or the ‘Truthful Master of the Age’ (muḥiqq-i waqt). For he is all things even without creation, whereas all creation devoid of him is but nothing. All these titles have one and the same meaning.

— Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Paradise of Submission, 133

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“Whether you are giving to an Imamat institution or to any other organization which works for good, these are the same in my eyes. All giving is an act of faith. All giving is of spiritual benefit.”

— Imām Shāh Raḥīm al-Ḥusaynī⁽ᶜ⁾
(Dallas, Texas, November 10, 2025)

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Forever Expanding: From Information to Illumination

The poem “Forever Expanding” reflects a central insight of Ismaili spirituality: that faith unfolds through levels of understanding, and not all religious writings serve the same spiritual function. While prayer, ethical conduct, and foundational teachings are essential, the poem urges the seeker not to stop at outward forms alone, but to pursue deeper, inner meaning through taʾwīl — the unveiling of spiritual realities beneath the surface of religious language.

This emphasis on deeper understanding is not new. It stands firmly within the guidance of the Imams themselves. Mawlānā Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾ emphasized the transformative power of true religious knowledge, saying: “If you study the books of religious knowledge and act upon them, you will be angels.”1

He further taught that genuine understanding comes through guided engagement with inner meaning, rather than surface reading alone:

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Abstract

This abridged, open-access version of “Will Your Soul Be Accepted or Rejected After Death?” presents the core argument of the full, premium article. Drawing on Ismaili teachings and the poem “The Fate of Your Soul,” it argues that the soul’s fate is shaped by knowledge, action, and spiritual orientation in this life. Through ethical refinement and recognition of the Imām of the Time, the soul may rise from potentiality to union with its Source and attain acceptance by the Universal Soul; without this alignment, it risks spiritual loss. The article examines how the life one lives now prepares—or endangers—the soul’s return

“The Fate of Your Soul”
By: Khayal ‘Aly
(11/21/19)

Your body and your soul
will eventually separate.
Upon your soul’s departure,
your body will degenerate.

While your body is temporal,
your soul is indestructible.
Don’t let that lead you to believe
your soul is incorruptible.

With every deed you engage in,
your soul is thereby fashioned and affected.
Even your thoughts will determine
whether your soul is accepted or rejected.

Rejected by who?
You may inquisitively inquire.
By the Universal Soul,
or the Angel who is higher.

Your soul may require
a thorough reformation,
unless your time on Earth
was well spent in preparation.

So get your soul ready already
to merge with the Source of Creation.
Make sure you gain some benefit
over the course of your emanation.

The Soul Between Potentiality and Actuality

The opening lines of the poem, which describe the soul’s separation from the body, reflect a core teaching of Ismaili gnosis: the soul is superior to the body, survives it, and directs it. Yet survival alone does not guarantee fulfillment. As the medieval Ismaili work Paradise of Submission explains, the soul begins in potential and must become what it was created to be.

“The ultimate perfection of the human being exists in potentia in the soul. The soul’s particular activity is to become, gradually and by degrees, an immaterial form (ṣūrat-i mujarrad) whose very life is actualized in God Almighty.”

— Paradise of Submission, 36

Because the soul’s perfection exists only in potential, its fulfillment depends on how one lives. A life “actualized in God” is not granted automatically at death. Rather, as Paradise of Submission teaches, souls differ according to their knowledge, character, habits, and actions:

“All the substances of human souls are of a single genus. The difference between them is due to…knowledge, character, habits, and actions…. Each of these states assumes a form [that moulds] the substance of each soul….”

— Paradise of Submission, 36

Everything a person does in life—actions, habits, and even thoughts—shapes the soul.

Ethical Refinement: Gateway to Knowledge and Salvation

Ismaili teachings stress that the soul’s ascent begins with ethical purification, not abstract thought. Without refinement of character (tahdhīb al-akhlāq), the soul remains ruled by the senses and habits, and is therefore veiled from its true purpose.

“When man sets out to acquire perfection of the soul, the first step he takes, by which he…gradually reaches the rank of recognition of the Imam and thereby the recognition of God, is the refinement of character (tahdhīb-i akhlāq).

[When] the…soul assumes the governance of the human body, the soul is extremely weak…the senses become more dominant, and…domination of these faculties increase. Consequently, the soul becomes increasingly veiled from its original function, which is the comprehension of objects of knowledge and roaming freely throughout the wide expanse of intelligible matters.

Thus, as long as one’s character (akhlāq) has not been refined and…the soul emancipated from enslavement to the powers of nature, bestial impurities, [and] the temptations of habit…neither well-being in this world will be achieved nor can salvation in the Hereafter be expected.”

— Paradise of Submission, 93

The Ismaili ṭarīqa teaches that the pursuit of true knowledge and wisdom must be joined to ethical and spiritual discipline. Awareness of the soul’s purpose therefore requires struggle against the lower soul and release from base desires, so that the soul may regain its true function: understanding salvific knowledge and higher realities.

For this reason, Ismaili tradition places strong emphasis on ethical living, especially in the early stages of the soul’s development. Moral discipline weakens the soul’s attachment to materialism and habit, which would otherwise confine it to lower states of being. Paradise of Submission describes these early obstacles and their lasting effects:

“During all [the] stages and degrees of perfections…any training that it [a child] receives from whatever teacher leaves its trace in his soul…. It is for this reason that natural impurities [and] temptations of habit…domineer over it.

Examples of natural impurities are the inclinations towards, and longings for, the physical world… immersion of the soul in material things, and domination by lust and greed for the sake of the pleasures of this perishable world.”

— Paradise of Submission, 73 (translation modified)

Through refinement of character (tahdhīb-i akhlāq), the soul and intellect are purified and strengthened, becoming open to true understanding and spiritual light. As purity grows, knowledge grows with it, raising the soul toward spiritual elevation.

Because the soul is shaped by those who influence and guide it, Ismaili teaching stresses the need for guidance from purified and enlightened souls—above all, the Imām’s great ḥujjats—who, having disciplined themselves through knowledge and practice, are able to guide others along the same path:

“By absorbing the excellence of knowledge, one soul excels others in strength until it attains the degree of the souls of the great ḥujjats who, by the purity of their essences, become capable of receiving the emanations of the light of the sublime Word (kalima-yi aʿlā) and…divine instruction (taʿlīm-i rabbānī).

By the grace of their teaching…they rescue from darkness the souls of men, who are bound in the ocean of matter and shackled by the ties of nature.”

— Paradise of Submission, 37

Beyond affirming the power of true knowledge, this passage warns against remaining “bound in the ocean of matter,” for such bondage may become the soul’s final state.

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The Fate of the Soul: Accepted or Rejected

This brings us to the doctrine of acceptance and rejection, which Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw explains as follows:

“The purpose of the Universal Soul in creating this world is knowledge and its defect is due to ignorance. […] The soul that leaves this world with knowledge will be compatible with the Universal Soul. Because of this, it will unite with the Universal Soul and be in eternal peace and bliss.

However, the soul that leaves this world ignorant will be incompatible with the Universal Soul. The Universal Soul will shun it…. Thus, when it finds the ignorant, it does not accept them….

We say that human beings become compatible with the Universal Soul by obedience to the Prophet who is sent by the Universal Soul through the ta’yīd [spiritual support] of the Universal Intellect, so that he may invite people to the knowledge of tawḥīd (oneness of God).

Thus, when they become wise by [attaining] this great knowledge [i.e. the knowledge of tawḥīd], the Universal Soul will ameliorate its defect through them. When people help the Universal Soul, it helps them. As God, may He be exalted, says: “O you who believe! If you help God, God will help you” (47:7).”

— Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Wajh-i Dīn, Discourse 401

Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw here defines both the purpose of creation and the role of human souls within it: the acquisition of salvific knowledge. His esoteric interpretation (taʾwīl) of Qurʾān 47:7 clarifies that “helping God” means aligning oneself with the activity and purpose of the Universal Soul, through which divine assistance is reciprocally received.

This alignment occurs through obedience to the Prophet, sent by the Universal Soul with the taʾyīd of the Universal Intellect to invite humanity to the knowledge of divine oneness (tawḥīd). By submitting to this guidance and orienting the soul toward its Origin (aṣl), the believer becomes compatible with the Universal Soul.

Nāṣir-i Khusraw expands this teaching in Knowledge and Liberation, explaining that the believer may not only attain compatibility with the Universal Soul but even come to resemble it in function and share in its exalted rank:

“The Universal Soul, by its creation of this world, has made its subtle knowledge dense, and then commanded the Messengers to give spiritual knowledge…by way of the dense sharīʿat and concrete parables…. When man strives to put the sharīʿat into practice, attains [understanding of] the science of taʾwīl [and] transforms the dense into the subtle…he becomes like the Universal Soul.

[…] And he who makes himself like the Universal Soul…the Universal Soul makes him like itself in knowledge. As God says: ‘O you who believe! If you help Allah, He will surely help you and make firm your feet’ (47:7).

Thus, when man does work with knowledge…and obeys the lord [Imam] of his time, he becomes like the Universal Soul, and when his soul leaves the body, it returns to the higher world, where it becomes sovereign over this world and rules it…..

As for [the word] thawāb (reward), it means to return. When the soul is obedient (farmān-bardār) it becomes wise, and…returns to its origin (aṣl)…because of the affinity which it has with that world, and it is thus liberated from the potential hell of this ignorant world.”

— Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Knowledge and Liberation, 103

This thawāb (reward) comes through acceptance by the Universal Soul, which is gained by righteous action and purification through true inner knowledge. In this way, the soul comes to resemble the Universal Soul, shares in its wisdom, and receives divine help—by which the believer’s “feet are made firm” (Q 47:7) on the path to liberation.

Those who oppose the Prophet and the true Imām, neglecting both outward obedience and inner knowledge, cut themselves off from guidance and the light of the Intellect. Their souls remain impure and unstable, unable to fulfill the soul’s true task: to become, step by step, an immaterial form (ṣūrat-i mujarrad) whose life is actualized in God.

As Nāṣir-i Khusraw teaches, only souls that are purified and refined receive the gifts of the Intellect and reach completion:

“The pure soul accepts the favours of the Intellect [which] are nourishment in order to bring forth the subtle form (ṣūrat-i laṭīf). […] Pure souls obey what the Intellect tells them…[and] are…accepted by the Intellect.… Impure and vile souls who do not obey what the Intellect tells them and do not abstain from what it prohibits and do not accept its favours, and follow their own desires, are driven out, cast away….”

— Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Wajh-i Dīn, Discourse 11

What may appear as a shift of acceptance and rejection from the Universal Soul to the Universal Intellect is in fact an expression of their hierarchy. The Universal Soul acts in submission to the Intellect, receiving its light and guidance; whether acceptance is attributed to the Soul or the Intellect, the criterion remains the same—conformity to the Intellect’s wisdom.

This is reflected in the poem’s question:

Rejected by who?
You may inquisitively inquire.
By the Universal Soul,
or the Angel who is higher.

In Ismaili esoteric thought, both the Universal Soul and the Universal Intellect are described as angelic realities, with the Intellect as the First (al-awwal) and Highest (al-aʿlā), whose light is reflected through all others. The Universal Soul’s acceptance or rejection of individual souls therefore depends on its own receptivity to the Intellect’s authority. Accordingly, those who unite outward obedience with inner purification, and pursue true knowledge under the guidance of the Imām, shape their souls in harmony with this order and attain completion. Those who do not remain incomplete. As Mawlānā Shāh Karīm al-Ḥusaynī⁽ᶜ⁾ observes:

“The Divine Intellect, ‘Aql-i Kull, both transcends and informs the human intellect. […] It is the light of Intellect which distinguishes the complete human being from the human animal.”

To attain the rank of the “complete human being” through the light of the Intellect is the soul’s true reward (thawāb): a return to the world of wisdom, freed from the ignorance that constitutes its potential hell. By contrast, souls that refuse or fail to receive the Intellect’s light remain in the state of the “human animal” and suffer the punishment (‘iqāb) of failing to reach their Origin (aṣl):

“As for the word ‘iqāb, it means to remain behind — that is, whoever remains behind in the rank of humanity, [the purpose of whose existence] is to become wise, and instead reverts to animality, [such a person is in a state of] punishment because he lags behind from [reaching] the subtle abode.”

— Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Knowledge and Liberation, 98-100

Ismaili teachings present human life as both a responsibility and an opportunity. Each soul is called to fulfill its purpose as a partial manifestation of the Universal Soul by rising from potentiality to actualization, from animality to angelicity, through the path revealed by the Prophets and the Imāms.

Life as Preparation: Not Returning Empty-Handed

Nāṣir-i Khusraw explains that human life stands between two paths: angelicity, reached through true knowledge (maʿrifa) and alignment with the Universal Intellect, or animality, which comes from ignorance of one’s origin and purpose. Life in this world is therefore not an end in itself, but a critical time in which the soul shapes its future.

For this reason, believers are urged to use their time well. Souls that pursue knowledge, obedience, and ethical discipline prepare themselves for the Hereafter—a truth echoed in the poem:

“Your soul may require
a thorough reformation,
unless your time on Earth
was well spent in preparation.”

Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw teaches that the soul enters the world ignorant but equipped to acquire knowledge, and warns—citing Qurʾān 6:95—that it must not return empty-handed but bearing knowledge.

“Man’s indeterminate state [between angelicity and animality] is due to his ignorance, because the human soul comes to this world ignorant…and receives here organs such as eyes, ears, heart…by which knowledge can be acquired and understood […] so that when he returns to the subtle abode…he should not be as he was on the day he came here.

As God says: ‘And indeed you have come to Us alone as We created you at first, and you have left behind what We bestowed on you’ (6:95) — that is, He says to the ignorant and unfortunate ones: ‘You come to Us as We had created you, but you desisted [from using] the organs which We had given you and which you have left behind.’

Thus…when his soul leaves the body, it cannot find any of [these organs] again and therefore it remains perplexed, like someone who has neither eyes, ears, heart….

But if man sees with his eyes that which he is commanded to see, hears with his ears that which he is commanded to hear…and knows with the heart that which he is commanded to know, then when his soul leaves the body, [it retains the faculties of] eyes, ears, heart…so that in the abode of delights he will possess them in their entirety.

As God says: ‘If you do good, you do good for your own selves, and if you do evil, it is against your own selves.’ (17:7)

Therefore…when the soul is ignorant and leaves this abode of ignorance, it cannot reach the abode of wisdom in the the hereafter….”

— Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Knowledge and Liberation, 98-100

Though one may enter and leave this world with nothing materially, this must not be true of knowledge. As Nāṣir-i Khusraw teaches, the soul is sent into the world to acquire true knowledge and disciplined action through the faculties entrusted to it. When the soul returns to its Lord—the Universal Soul, sustained by the Universal Intellect—it must return bearing what it was sent to obtain.

Failing to cultivate these faculties is not only a moral loss but a spiritual one: the soul is deprived of its subtle capacities in the Hereafter and remains blind and incapacitated. To “see,” “hear,” and “know,” therefore, does not mean mere sensory perception, but obedience to God as conveyed through the Prophet and the Imāms.

Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw offers a practical measure of right guidance: it is shown not by claims, but by practice—listening to true knowledge, living according to the Prophet’s law, and seeking the inner meaning (taʾwīl) disclosed by the Imām of the Time. Through this union of knowledge, action, and recognition, the soul shows that it has accepted God’s guidance and becomes fit to return to the Universal Soul:

“It is necessary for the soul of the believer to possess a sign of having accepted the Speech of God, and this sign is to listen to the knowledge of truth and to abandon falsehood… and when it reaches the next world, the Universal Soul will see its traces in it and accept it by virtue of their compatibility.

It is also necessary for the believer to…accept the esoteric teachings (taʾwīl) of the legatee (wāsī, i.e., Imām ʿAlī⁽ᶜ⁾)…so that he may deserve to drink the water of eternal life and last forever.”

— Pīr Nāṣir-i Khusraw, Knowledge and Liberation, 112

In this way, the believer uses earthly life as preparation for the soul’s return to the Universal Soul. By cultivating knowledge and obedience in accordance with divine wisdom, the soul returns bearing the marks of readiness and compatibility. This is why the poem concludes by urging the reader:

“So get your soul ready already
to merge with the Source of Creation.
Make sure you gain some benefit
over the course of your emanation.”

The Opportunity of This Life: Spiritual Completion and Union

From all that has been shown, it is clear that life in this world must not be wasted. It is here that the soul is given a rare opportunity: to gain true knowledge, live by it, and move from potentiality to actuality. In doing so, the soul fulfills the purpose of its creation by coming to resemble the Universal Soul and attaining a life “actualized in God.” Through purification, true knowledge, and reflection of divine light, the soul becomes fit for acceptance rather than rejection.

To return to one’s Lord empty-handed is therefore a state of loss—not because God is severe, but because the soul has failed to prepare itself for acceptance. Yet Ismaili teaching also affirms divine mercy. As the 48th Imām, Mawlānā Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾, explains, souls that do not complete themselves fully in this life may still undergo “further triumph” beyond the human form; in such cases, completion is delayed, not denied.

At the same time, the Imām makes clear that the highest realization need not be postponed. Even in this life, through ethical discipline, love, and true recognition (maʿrifa) of the Imām of the Time—the bearer of the Sublime Light (nūr-i aʿlā) of the Divine Intellect—the soul may, as the poem declares, “merge with the Source of Creation.”

In response to a question concerning rebirth and spiritual progression, the 48th Imām states:

“Obviously reborn means in a higher sphere than this earth. Without going to the final spiritual sphere there will be further triumph before the highest points are reached, unless those highest points are reached in this world and on this earth by the general rules of the Ismaili faith beginning with kindness, gentleness, etc. and going up to highest love of union with Imam.”

— Mawlānā Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾, as quoted in “Subjects Discussed by the Religious Study Group of Mombasa”, 88

May we all reach the highest point of love and union. Āmīn, yā Rabb al-ʿĀlamīn.

Yā ʿAlī Madad.
Khayāl ‘Aly
January 16, 2026

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(Dallas, Texas, November 10, 2025)

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In the traditional exoteric (zahir) understanding of the Mi‘raj, the Prophet Muhammad⁽ˢ⁾ first undertook the Night Journey (al-Isra), traveling from the Ka’bah in Makkah — the “sacred masjid” — to the site of the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem — the “farthest masjid” — upon the winged steed Buraq. There, after leading all the Prophets in prayer, he ascended through the seven heavens in the Mi‘raj until experiencing a direct encounter with God.

In Ismaili prophetic philosophy, however, this widely accepted zahiri account of the Night Journey and Mi‘raj is understood symbolically, pointing to a deeper esoteric (batin) meaning revealed through ta’wil (revelatory hermeneutics).

What Is the Inner Meaning of the Prophet’s Night Journey in the Qur’an?

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What does Qiyāma mean in Ismaili spirituality? Rather than the end of the world, it is understood as illumination—a spiritual awakening of the human intellect and soul, in which relative outward forms give way to sublime inner realities.

Through a short poem and reflections drawn from classical Ismaili thought, this essay explores Qiyāma as a Cycle of Unveiling, inviting seekers to consider how the Imām’s ta’wīl (esoteric interpretation) leads from the veil of religious law toward the realization of true submission and spiritual contentment.

“Unveiling the Resurrection”
By: Khayal ‘Aly
Written: January 5th, 2026

During the Era or Cycle of Sharī‘a,
how could the great secrets
of Ḥaqīqa be revealed?
It’s true some ta’wīl
was understood and written,
but deeper esoteric wisdoms
were mostly left concealed.

Of course, there always were
Knowers who knew the Truth,
who uttered the most perfect words
that could be spoken.
Those sages anticipated
the Great Resurrection,
when, like today,
humanity was ready to be awoken.

Without a doubt, even now,
not everybody is yet ready —
since the entire Cycle of Qiyāma
will take some time.
But if you wish to be included
in the group of true seekers,
come discover sublime realities
of the Lord Most High.

Unveiling the Resurrection in the Light of Ismaili Gnosis

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Ta’wīl of Qur’ān 3:45 - Esoteric and Spiritual Meaning of The Messiah (al-Masīh)

[al-Qāḍī al-Nu‘mān writes in his book on Ismaili esoteric interpretation, Asās al-Ta’wīl:]

His [i.e. God’s] saying [about Jesus], “His name is the Messiah” (al-masīḥ) (Q 3:45) means that he [i.e. Jesus] “polishes” or “clears” (yamsaḥ) the apparent (ẓāhir) and the hidden (bāṭin). In Arabic, the term masḥ means to clear, remove or wipe away something. This is why we pray for the sick by saying masaḥa llāh ḍarrak, or “may God remove (masaḥa) your ailment,” in the sense of, “may He remove it from you and purge you of its affliction.”

In this manner, Jesus removed (masaḥa) the impurities of those who responded to him, that is, the ailments of their faith, whether apparent (ẓāhir) or hidden (bāṭin). This is why he is called a masīḥ or “messiah”; and he too was clear and pure of such things.

— Shafique N. Virani, “Hierohistory in Qāḍī l-Nuʿmān’s Foundation of Symbolic Interpretation (Asās al-Ta’wīl ): The Birth of Jesus.” Chap. 5. In Studies in Islamic Historiography. Edited by Sami G. Massoud. Islamic History and Civilization, pp. 164-165.

Luminous Touch of The Messiah

Question 505: In the wise Qur’ān the complete name Ḥazrat ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ in verse 3:45 is “al-Masīḥu ‘Īsā ibnu Maryam”. The word al-Masīḥ is mentioned in eleven different places of the Qur’ān and it was granted by Allāh. Please tell us its meanings.

Answer:

• Scholars hold different opinions in this connection. Nonetheless, it is true that when Ḥazrat ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ touched the lepers they were cured, and thus, he is called al-Masīḥ, i.e. the one who touches.

• Ḥazrat ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ al-Masīḥ was the living supreme Name of Allāh in his time, and according to the du‘ā’-yi nūr (the prayer of light), waves of light were running in his personality. Thus, if spiritual diseases have been cured by the luminous currents of the Nāṭiq [i.e. Law-giving Prophet], the Asās [i.e. Foundation or First Imam after the Nāṭiq]. and the Imām, why should one be surprised by him curing the lepers!

— ‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Ṣanādiq-i Jawāhir, tr. Faquir Muhammad Hunzai, Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai, Caskets of Pearls, vol. 2, Question 505, p. 2.

Sūrah-yi Āl-i ‘Imrān (Family of Imran)

And [God] will make him [i.e. Jesus] a messenger unto the Children of Israel, (saying): ‘Lo! I come unto you with a sign from your Lord. Lo! I fashion for you out of clay the likeness of a bird, and I breathe into it and it is a bird, by Allah's permission. I heal him who was born blind, and the leper, and I raise the dead, by Allah's permission....’

« Qur’an 3:49 »

Ta’wīl of Qur’an 3:49 and 5:110 - Jesus’ Miracles of Spiritual and Intellectual Healing

The gist of what is said in verse 3:49 is that Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā [Jesus]⁽ᶜ⁾ in his time used to make a figure of a bird out of clay and used to breathe ism-i a‘ẓam [the supreme name of God] into it and it used to become a bird by Allāh’s command. He also used to heal those born blind, lepers and used to raise the dead by Allāh’s command.

In the above-mentioned miracles, the ta’wīl of the clay is the status of a mu’min [faithful believer], and that of bird is an angel and a spiritual entity (rūḥānī). The ta’wīl of making clay, mixing water with dust, is to mix ‘ilmu'l-yaqīn (knowledge of certainty) with the belief and faith of a mu’min, and that of making a figure of a bird out of clay is creating the capacity and zeal for angelicity and spirituality in that mu’min. The ta’wīl of breathing into the figure of the bird is to grant the dhikr [remembrance] of ism-i a‘ẓam and special ‘ibādat [worship] to a prepared mu’min, and that of becoming a bird is the spiritual birth of a mu’min, namely, the beginning of the angelic and spiritual life and the flight in the world of spirituality.

The ta’wīl of healing the one born blind is to grant the open inner eye to a new Muslim, giving him the above mentioned kind of spiritual training. The ta’wīl of healing a leper is to improve (the condition of) a mu’min who is trapped in the extremely intense light and white luminousness in the beginning of spirituality. And the ta’wīl of raising the dead is to revive spiritually and restore to their previous position those who used to live in the life of the spirit of faith (rūḥu'l-īmān) and then had died with respect to rūḥu'l-īmān. This is the ta’wīl and wisdom of the above-mentioned miracles of Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾.

Now, the question arises whether the Chief of the Prophets, Ḥazrat Muḥammad Muṣṭafā⁽ˢ⁾ also performed such miracles, or not? You will certainly reply, why not? For, he possessed all the perfect qualities of all the prophets and was the closest friend of God. These ta’wīlī miracles are such that they are related not only to the Prophet, but also to the holy Imāms.

— ‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Qur’ān awr Rūḥāniyyat, tr. Faquir Muhammad Hunzai, Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai, The Qur’ān and Spirituality, 24-25.

It is among the realities of the Qur’ān that Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ was manifesting the same Divine Spirit breathed into Ḥazrat-i Ādam⁽ᶜ⁾ and which manifests from the Divine Word. Thus, from the following verse you can determine what kind of miracles manifest from the Perfect Men into whom the Divine or Holy Spirit is breathed. See verse 5:110 of the Holy Qur’ān:

“When Allāh will say: O ‘Īsā, son of Maryam! Remember My favour on you and your mother; how I helped you with the Holy Spirit, so that you spoke to the people in the cradle and when grown up, and how I taught you the Book and Wisdom and the Torah and the Gospel; and when you made out of clay the likeness of a bird by My permission (idhn), and breathed into it and it became a bird by My permission, and you healed those born blind and the lepers by My permission; and when you raised the dead (from the graves) by My permission” (5:110).

The ta’wīl of the above-mentioned miracles of Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ is as follows: When the luminous birth of Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ took place in the personal world of the ḥudūd-i dīn [hierarchs of religion], he started to speak immediately in their personal world. This continued, and when he became mature, he started to show spiritual miracles in their personal worlds. The Book, or al-kitāb, is that living light whose signs (āyāt) are the Pen, the Tablet and the Writing (raqīm). This Book contains profound wisdom and all heavenly Books.

Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ gave ism-i a‘ẓam to the ḥudūd-i dīn [i.e., living hierarchs of religion]. One Qur’ānic name of ism-i a‘ẓam is “idhnu’llāh (God’s permission)”, through which at the station of ‘Izrā’īl⁽ᶜ⁾ (maqām-i ‘Izrā’īl) [i.e., the angel of death], his personality became an image and a mould into which the Holy Spirit was cast and consequently an angel like him came into existence and began to fly.

To heal a person born blind means to bring someone who is lost, to the straight path and to give him the inner eye by God’s permission. A leper means someone who has remained in the initial light of spirituality* for a long time and who does not realise that its real stages are further ahead, and particularly someone who has seen this light without the Imām of the time’s guidance. Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ used to help such people to progress further in the stages of spirituality. This is the ta’wīl of healing a leper.

The ta’wīl of raising the dead from the graves is that, the particles of soul used to resurrect from the living graveyards of human beings and come towards Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ when he was passing through the personal resurrection.

* Translator’s note: If someone practices arduous mystical exercises without faith in and guidance of True Guide, he can undoubtedly see the light of the dissolving carnal of animal soul. This is the place where deviation from the straight path reaches its climax, because most people consider this God’s light.

— ‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Gang-i Girān-Māyah, tr. Faquir Muhammad Hunzai, Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai, Precious Treasure, 78-79.

Ta’wīl of Clay, Water, Bird, and Miraculous Birth

Interpreting certain Qur’ānic verses on Adam and Jesus (Q 3:49 and 59; 15:29; 38:72), Ja‘far b. Manṣūr [al-Yaman] compares the actions of Jesus and God, in kneading clay and breathing life into it, to the process of initiating hierarchy members into higher ranks. According to this interpretation, the Adam depicted in these verses was initiated by God (by whom Ja‘far b. Manṣūr means the Imām of his age) from the mustajīb-ship to a rank even higher than that of other dignitaries.

According to Ja‘far b. Manṣūr, these dignitaries were the angels in the Qur’ān who originally refused to recognize Adam. In this process of initiation, God (the Imām of his age) kneaded “the clay” (by which is meant the mustajīb [Adam]), with His two hands (His spiritual substance [māddatu-hu] and “support” [ta’yīdu-hu]) and led him to a “spiritual birth” (al-wilādah al-rūḥānīyah).

This process was not carried out by any lāḥiq or lieutenant playing the role of an initiator or spiritual parent, but by the Imām of the age himself. This is, Ja‘far b. Manṣūr implies, the inner meaning of Adam’s birth without parents, i.e., parents in this scheme representing of course the lieutenants. These lieutenants play the role of initiators in the elevation of the members of the hierarchy: their role is compared to parentage in the initiation as spiritual rebirth.

Likewise, just as with the Imām of Adam’s age, the fifth Nāṭiq, Jesus, “kneaded” the “clay” (i.e., mustajīb) with the “water”, an act which is interpreted as ‘ilm al-ta’wīl (the knowledge of esoteric interpretation). Then he made it a living “bird” which here stands for the person initiated into the rank of dā‘ī muṭlaq (authorized missionary). This is, Ja‘far b. Manṣūr implies, the meaning of verse Q 3:59, which stresses the resemblance of Jesus to Adam (“Truly, the image of Jesus, in God’s sight, is as Adam’s image”).

Thus, Ja‘far b. Manṣūr contends that a Nāṭiq and an Imām, who are compared to God, may occasionally elevate low-ranked members of the hierarchy to a higher rank by bypassing the spiritual parentage of lieutenants.

— Shin Nomoto, Early Ismā‘īlī Thought on Prophecy According to the Kitāb al-Iṣlāḥ by Abū Hātim al-Rāzī (unpublished Ph.D Thesis, McGill University), 279-280.

Ta’wīl of Jesus⁽ᶜ⁾ Breathing Life into a Clay Bird

Question 95: What is the ta’wīl of when Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ used to make a figure of a bird from clay, then used to breathe something into it, it used to become a bird by the permission of God?

Answer:

Dust and clay, which in Arabic are called turāb and ṭīn respectively, signify two ranks of mu’mins. One is the rank of belief (‘aqīdah) or faith (īmān) of an elementary nature, which has essential importance for the people of da‘wat – which is exemplified by dust. The other is that of the faith with some knowledge, which is exemplified by clay. Thus the ta’wīl of Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ making a bird’s figure from clay, is that he used to appoint a mu’min with faith and some knowledge to the rank of ma’dhūn, at which time the latter was nothing but a silent figure of that rank. However, when Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ breathed something into this figure it used to become a bird by God’s permission. This means that, step by step, Ḥazrat-i ‘Īsā⁽ᶜ⁾ was breathing the soul of knowledge of ta’yīd (spiritual help) into this ma’dhūn and he was becoming a spiritual bird, i.e., a soul or an angel. The holy Prophet had given Mawlā ‘Alī⁽ᶜ⁾ the title of Abū Turāb (the father of dust). The ta’wīl of this title is that after the holy Prophet⁽ˢ⁾, Mawlā ‘Alī⁽ᶜ⁾ was the spiritual father of the faithful men and women, for dust means the people of faith as mentioned above.

— ‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣīr Hunzai, Rūḥ Kya Hai?, tr. Faquir Muhammad Hunzai, Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai, What is Soul?, 75.

The Father and the Son: Is Jesus the Son of God?

[Ḥakīm Nāṣir-i Khusraw writes in his Kitāb Jami‘ al-Ḥikmatayn]

”We say that the sun of the macrocosm is at the level of the heart of the microcosm, which is man, and that the moon of the macrocosm is at the level of the brain in the microcosm. The five planets in the macrocosm, which philosophers call ‘the great man’ (insān-i kabīr), are on a level with the five senses in man, whom they call ‘the little world’. I mean that Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, and Mercury in this world are at the rank of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch in man. And since man in his body is the child of the macrocosm and in his soul the child of Universal Soul, then the macrocosm is, as it were, the body of the Universal Soul with all those implements (ālat-hā) which we have mentioned.

It was with this in mind that Jesus, son of Mary —upon him be peace — said, ‘I am going to my father who is in heaven.’ What he meant was that ‘My individual soul is returning to the Universal Soul which is in heaven.’ The ignorant in his community imagined that he said, ‘I am the son of God.’

— Eric Ormsby, Between Reason and Revelation: Twin Wisdoms Reconciled. An annotated English translation of Nāṣir-i Khusraw’s Kitāb Jami‘ al-Ḥikmatayn, p. 248.

[Hamīd al-Dīn Kirmānī writes in his Rāhat al-‘Aql]

“…the [spiritual] Intellects of the abode of ibdā‘ [transcendent world of origination, i.e., the spiritual world] purify the souls in the corporeal world and reach the souls once their essences (dhawāt) are purged of the evil of natural urges and gains perfection for them, and goodness and awe and elevation, and purifies them and treats them with mercy such as a father treats his child. That is why Jesus the son of Mary, God’s blessings be with him, said: “I am the son of the One in heaven.”

— Sayeh Meisami, Knowledge and Power in the Philosophies of Hamīd al-Dīn Kirmānī and Mullā Sadrā Shīrāzī [bracketed text inserted], p. 44.

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Your soul’s fate is not predetermined—it is shaped by every thought, action, and choice you make. In this article, an extended commentary on his poem “The Fate of Your Soul”, Khayāl ‘Aly explores how Ismaili teachings illuminate the path to spiritual acceptance and warn against rejection by the Universal Soul. Through ethical refinement, true knowledge, and recognition of the Imam of the Time, the soul may ascend from mere potentiality to ultimate union with its Source. But the dangers are real: a soul that remains impure, ignorant, or misaligned risks rejection and spiritual deprivation. Learn how your life today shapes your soul’s eternal destiny—read the full article to prepare for the journey beyond this world.

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Imām Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾
on the True Miracle of
Ḥazrat ‘Alī⁽ᶜ⁾

“Murtazā ‘Alī performed miracles (mu‘jiza), but miracles are things that human beings can learn, and even magicians (jāḍūgaro) are able to produce them. The true miracle
of Murtazā ‘Alī was that he caused a person to reach his own spiritual station (potānī jagyā) — the original abode of Truth (ḥaqīqat nā aṣal makān).”

— Mawlānā Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾
(Kalām-i Imām-i Mubīn, Farmān 160
Dar-es-Salaam, September 29, 1899)

True Miracles and Pseudo-Miracles

Excerpt from Naṣīr al-Dīn Ṭūsī, Rawda-yi Taslīm, translated by S.J. Badakhchani as Paradise of Submission: A Medieval Treatise on Ismaili Thought, 115-117.

Let us now discuss the miracle (muʿjizāt). Common people have said a lot of things concerning the miracles of Prophets, most of which is related [to the realm of] the supernatural (kharq-i ʿādāt, lit. ‘the breaking of habits’). When someone wants to have rational proofs for their existence, they say that thinking about them is wrong, and that it is useless to try to find the meaning and reality of them.

What the adepts of truth (ahl-i ḥaqq) say regarding the significance of miracles is that since the Prophets — may the peace of God be upon all of them — act as the intermediary link (wasīṭa) between the Divine Command (amr) and creation (khalq), due to that position (maṭḥabat) each [Prophet] manifests a trace of the Divine Light (anwār-i rubūbiyyat) according to his innate aptitude and capacity. Thus, it is nothing extraordinary if they [i.e. the Prophets] are graced by the emanation of divine matter (mawadd-i ilāhī) and assisted by spiritual forces (rūḥānīyāt) in order to govern the affairs of the physical realm.

Thus, each one of them is specially vouchsafed miracles or marvels as has been narrated regarding the miracles of each Prophet. However, they [i.e., the adepts of truth, ahl-i ḥaqq] add [that] one should not rest with only this outer appearance (ẓāhir) but should seek out the spiritual realities (ḥaqāʾiq) of each [miracle], for appearances correspond to flesh and realities to the spirit.

Concerning miracles and the thaumaturgic powers (karāmāt) of the Prophets, they [the adepts of truth] also state that, from the point of view of the domain of genus (ḥayyiz-i jins), the Prophets share with other men — in accordance with “I am a man like you” (Qur’ān 41:6) — everything that belongs to the physical creation and bodily composition, appearance and form, food, drink, apparel and marriage. However, from the point of view of the domain of differentia (ḥayyiz-i faṣl) — in accordance with “Nor does he speak of his own desire; it is just a revelation sent down to him” (Qur’ān 53:3–4) — the Prophets differ from others.

The true miracle is the miracle of knowledge and rational proof (ʿIlm wa Ḥujja), not the one of action and power. When someone dominates the whole world through power [and brute force], it is possible for a wolf or a lion to overpower him, yet one cannot say that the wolf or lion is superior to him. But in so far as knowledge is concerned, it is possible for someone to furnish an intellectual proof whereby the lips of all rational people in the world are sealed, being rendered incapable of defeating him through argument, unable to utter a single word by way of rebuttal.

In this world, there are both miracles and pseudo-miracles (shibh-i muʿjiz), that is to say, sorcery and talismans. Both [miracles and pseudo-miracles] look alike in the realm of similitudes, yet it is improper to confound the two. One must clearly distinguish between them and the distinction must be made by means of knowledge and intellectual proof, rather than by power and brute force….

[…] Undoubtedly, one has to accept that [the sort of prophetic] miracles [discussed here] are a kind of ability or power of which others are incapable. But as long as one does not comprehend the furthest limit of humankind’s powers and abilities, how can one know what powers and forces exceed it? Therefore, if someone seeks to know a Prophet through the miracles he performs, he should first truly ascertain the limits of each human individual’s abilities and powers, and apprehend what constitutes pseudo-miracles, such as sorcery, talismans and similar things.

Once his knowledge encompasses this, he will be able to apprehend which force and power is superhuman, and which can thus be understood to be a miracle. And it is obvious that this [understanding] is beyond the power of any man, and if it be within someone’s power, what need would he have for a Prophet?

Thus, it is only a Prophet who can distinguish [the real] miracle from the pseudo-miracle, and that person who demands a miracle from a person who makes a claim to prophethood is setting up his own reason (ʿaql) as the measure, thus weighing himself against the divinity of God and the prophethood of the Prophet. Hence, when he comes to have faith in the Prophet through a miracle, he is putting his faith in his own intellect and not him.

Miracles and Symbolic Exegesis

Excerpt from Khalil Andani, “Evolving Creation: An Ismaili Muslim Interpretation of Evolution”, Zygon Journal of Religion & Science: New Frontiers in Islam and Evolution (vol. 52, issue 2).

According to [the Ismaili dā‘ī] al-Sijistānī and Ismaili philosophers in general (Poonawala 1988, 211), Quranic verses about divine actions involving natural phenomena (sun, moon, stars, water, heaven, earth, earthquakes, horses, and so on) and the miracles of prior Prophets cannot be taken literally if their outward meaning contradicts what the intellect knows about the natural world and its laws. Al-Sijistānī maintains that all prophetic miracle stories are symbolic and would be rejected by truly intelligent people (al-Sijistānī 2011, 204). He also maintains that God performing miracles would falsify the divine wisdom (al-ḥikma) that He has established throughout His creation and that this in turn leads to the denial of God as the creator (al-Sijistānī 2011, 207).

In other words, the Ismailis see the regularities of the Cosmos as the manifestation of divine wisdom that cannot be altered. Accordingly, Ismaili exegetes interpret miracle accounts in the prophetic stories through spiritual symbolic exegesis: the great flood was a flood of knowledge and Noah’s Ark symbolizes Shem, the Imam appointed by Noah to guide his community to truth; Abraham’s sacrifice of his son Ishmael was Abraham’s designation of his son as the next Imam; Moses seeing a fire was his perception of the light of divine inspiration within his soul; Jesus birth without a father was his “spiritual birth” or religious initiation and not his physical birth; his creation of birds from clay means his spiritual training of novice disciples to make them into learned missionaries (al-Nu‘mān 1960, 78, 124–25, 192, 300, 303).

Wisdom-Filled Signs and Miracles

Excerpt from ‘Allāmah Naṣīr al-Dīn Naṣir Hunzai,“Investigation of Muʿjizāt (Miracles)” in Mifāt al-Ḥikmat, trans. Faquir Muhammad Hunzai and Rashida Noormohamed-Hunzai as A Key to Wisdom, 26.

“The hour (resurrection) has come near and the moon is rent asunder (spiritually). If they see a sign (āyat, miracle) they turn away, and say: ‘(This is the same) magic continuing’, and belie (it) and follow their own vain desires; while every affair has an appointed time. Verily there have come to them tidings deterring them (from evil), (containing) consummate wisdom (ḥikmatun bāligha); yet warnings were of no avail. So (O Muḥammad) withdraw from them.”

—Holy Qur’ān 54:1-6

One of the purports of the above-mentioned verses is that the miracles which were demanded of the Prophet of the Last Time will happen in different forms of the Resurrection, because one prominent distinction between the previous Prophets and the Holy Prophet is that he, as the Seal of the Prophets, is the Prophet of the cycle of Resurrection. Therefore, the intellectual miracles of the Awliyāʾ of the entire cycle and the last miracles of the great cosmic Resurrection, are all his miracles.

Another clear purport of these verses is that the sensory miracles which needed to be shown externally, have already been shown in appropriate times of the cosmic cycle. The news of these miracles have been conveyed to those who came later and their taʾwīl [esoteric interpretation] as a whole can be found in the consummate wisdom (ḥikmat-i bāligha). Another name of this consummate wisdom is “abundant good” (khayr kathīr), as the Qur’ān says:

“He gives wisdom (ḥikmat) to whom He wills. And he who is given wisdom is indeed given abundant good (khayr kathīr). But none remembers except men of intellect.”

— Holy Qur’ān 2:269

By reflecting upon these two verses in the light of intellect and wisdom, we come to know the comprehensive point that, just as the place of miracle is at the apex of the sensory wonders, the place of wisdom is at the apex of intellectual wonders. Then, at the conjunction of the sensory and intellectual height, they (miracle and wisdom) are as connected to one another as the human body and soul. That is, the external act of wisdom is called miracle and the internal (esoteric) knowledge of miracle is called wisdom, and the name in which their complete and real implications are found together, is called āyat, the plural of which is āyāt, as mentioned in the Qur’ān:

“Verily We gave to Mūsā nine clear miracles (āyāt), so ask the children of Israel when he [Mūsā] came to them, and Pharaoh said to him: ‘Verily, I think that you, O Mūsā, are bewitched.”

— Holy Qur’ān 17:101

From the Qur’ānic verse it is clear that what is called miracles (muʿjizāt) in general terms, are called āyāt in special terms. The wonders or miracles which Mūsā had shown to the Pharaoh and his people to frighten them were: rod, drought, deluge, locusts, white hand, lice, blood, frogs, and dearth of fruits. These sensory trials were called āyāt, i.e., miracles, not only because they had appeared extraordinarily, but also because taʾwīl, i.e., wisdom, was hidden in their appearance, and which is still there [for ta’wīl of these nine miracles, click here].

Thus, it is true to say that a collection of Qur’ānic words is also called an āyat, but not only because it is a collection of letters and words, but also for the reason that it is the speech of God in which lies wisdom (ḥikmat).

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Investigation Of Miracles

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Imām Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾
on Strengthening the Soul
and Performing Miracles

Train your soul so that it always performs good and virtuous deeds. When your soul becomes accustomed to righteous actions, it will become like a strong champion, and it will become like an angel — indeed, it will reach a state even higher than the angels. Then you yourself will be able to perform miracles. We offer prayers for you. Strengthen your soul through steady spiritual discipline so that it becomes capable of performing miracles, and so that you may come to recognize your true essence (asal jāt).”

— Mawlānā Sulṭān Muḥammad Shāh⁽ᶜ⁾
Kalām-i Imām-i Mubīn, Farmān 125,
Nairobi, October 6, 1905.

Ya ‘Ali Madad,
Khayāl ‘Aly
December 9, 2025

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Divine Diversity and the Inner Meaning of Taqwa: Esoteric Reflection on Qur’an 49:13

Shortly after the opening ceremony of the Ismaili Center in Houston, a member of the Jamat asked:

“Could anyone share about the Qurʾanic verse recited at the Houston Ismaili Centre opening? Perhaps its meaning is obvious, but I’d love to hear others’ reflections.”

What follows is a reflection on Qurʾan 49:13 from an esoteric Ismaili and Sufi perspective, with a particular focus on the inner, spiritual meaning of taqwa —righteousness or God-consciousness.

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Why do Ismailis regularly pray to the Imams and seek their blessings in du‘a’ and tasbihs? This is a question that many Ismailis and non-Ismailis ask today.

Many people are unaware that the majority of Muslims, including Sunnis and Shi‘a, accept and practice “intercessory prayer” or istighatha.

Intercessory prayer, in which a person directs a personal du‘a’ or supplication to the Prophet Muhammad, the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt, or the “Friends of God” (awliya’ Allah), was widely accepted by the vast majority of premodern Sunni and Shi‘i Muslims and remains mainstream today. It is only the Wahhabi / Salafi sect of Islam, which began in the 1700s, that rejects intercessory prayer as being shirk (idol worship).

In a newly published book chapter, Dr. Khalil Andani explores how both Sunni and Shi‘i Muslim scholars accept and justify intercessory prayer or istighatha based on the verses of the Qur’an, the Hadith and Islamic metaphysics. The chapter contains many examples of Sunni, Twelver Shi‘i, Sufi, and Ismaili prayers where a person calls on the Prophet, Imams, and Saints for help.

Dr. Andani’s chapter may be downloaded below or accessed via academia.edu:

Intercessory Prayer in Islam by Khalil Andani

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Dr. Andani’s chapter was published in I of the Heart, an academic volume dedicated to Professor Seyyed Hossein Nasr.

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