Our Ismaili friend's history begins in the 7th Century with Muhammad, a middle-aged merchant-cum-philosopher who received in a cave several visions from, he believed, the angel Gabriel. Our Ismaili friend, however, is a Shi'a Muslim (10-20% of Muslims worldwide) and as such has more affinity with Ali, nephew and brother-in-law to Muhammad.
He may not know much about Shi'a tradition, about how Ali was Muhammad's right-hand man, commander of his armies and eventually his disputed successor. She will, however, know a little about some of the stories of Ali's superhuman strength that paint a picture of Ali as a demi-god. It is these stories that help him understand a little about his Imam today.
Unlike other Shi'a Muslims, our Ismaili friend believes the line of succession skipped Ali's eldest son and jumped straight to his second, Hussein. Nonetheless, she won't participate with the rest of the Shi'a world in the annual festival that commemorates the murder of Hussein. For our Ismaili friend, his identity is found in what makes Ismailis unique. His history really begins in the middle of the 8th Century ...
Originally published 2 years ago