His Highness Prince Karim Al-Hussaini, The Aga Khan IV, the 49th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismai'li Muslim Community, died at the age of 88 on Tuesday, 4 February 2025, in Lisbon, Portugal. He was the 50th generation direct descendant of Prophet Muhammad, and inherited the Nizari imamat and title of Aga Khan from his grandfather in 1957, at the age of 20. Refered by his religious title Mawlānā Hazar Imam by his followers, and recognized as a titular royal by the British & Iranian monarchs, the Aga Khan used his influence, and extended wealth to forge a dialogue within the muslim religion and way of thought as well as a foundation & development network named after him, to assist the less privileged in countries across four continents, by investing in education, health, economic development, pluralism of mass media, and patronages for the arts & architecture. A billionaire & socialite, Prince Karim had several citizenships, including (British & Portuguese) and owned a series of real estate buildings, an island in the Bahamas, yachts, and race-horses, the breeding of whom made him famous among the high-profile British elites. His eldest son, Prince Rahim Al-Hussaini, was announced as his successor on February 5 (with the Imami title of Aga Khan V) and Prince Karim was laid to rest on February 9 in a Mausoleum built by his grandfather in Egypt, after a funeral ceremony the previous day at the Ismaili center of Lisbon. The new Imam was formally enthroned on February 11 in Lisbon.
Prince Karim Al-Hussaini was born on 13 December 1936 in Geneva, the eldest son of Prince Aly Khan & Princess Taj-ud dawlah (the British model Joan Yarde-Buller). He was raised in Nairobi, Kenya, and attended a boarding school (Institut Le Rosey) in Switzerland, after his grandfather, Sir Sultan Muhammed Shah (The Aga Khan III) vetoed his decision to enroll to Harvard University. On 11 July 1957, The Aga Khan III died, leaving a will that his grandson (who grew up into the new atomic age) and none of his two sons should succeed him as 49th Imam of the Nizairi Ismailis (who comprise an approximately 20% of Shia Muslims worldwide). The 20-year-old Prince Karim was installed on 19 October, and recognized as "His Highness" by Queen Elizabeth II (a tradition followed since the first Aga Khan) & as "His Royal Highness" by ShahanShah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi (successor to the Qajar Shahs, who expelled the Ismaili Imams from Persia in the past). The Aga Khan eventually enrolled to Harvard & graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Islamic History in 1959. A keen sportsman & downhill skier, he represented Iran in the 1964 Winter Olympics (& Britain in FIS Alpine World Ski Championships in 1962).
The Aga Khan IV entered a new approach into the Ismailist way of thinking, his material wealth never conflicting with the spiritual sacrity of his role. He established the Aga Khan Foundation in 1967, bringing together human, financial & technical resources to address the challenges of poverty & marginalization of communities around the world. The Aga Khan Development Network came later to bridge the agencies of Aga Khan's non-profit enterprise, together with national & international resources, aiming at the elimination of global poverty, promotion & implementation of pluralism, advanement of the status of women and honoring Islamic Art & Architecture. The network begun operating in the most vulnerable countries with a significant number of Nizari Ismailis (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Tajikistan), before expanding its work to countries in East Africa, central Asia, The Middle East & elsewhere, as the members of the Nizari community settled to those regions and beyond to Europe, North America & Australia in recent decades. More than 200 schools & 700 health facilities have been established in the poorest countries of Asia & Africa, where the Network's annual budget was up to 1 billion US$, while some 96,000 people from those countries have been employed, and numerous volunteers helped to practically implement the Network's projects. And while The Aga Khan invested tens of millions of US$ in developing local economies, he never thought of it as an act of humanitarianism - but rather a duty as a privileged, spiritual leader of his community; which members feel the moral obligation to donate up to 12,5% of their income to the Imam, as their steward.
The fortune of Prince Karim Al-Hussaini Aga Khan was estimated as more than US$13,3 billion over a decade ago, making him one of the world's wealthiest royals (who was treated as Head of State). Part of his possesions were luxurious hotels in Europe & East Africa, fast cars, yachts & racehorses, including Shergar - the Irish-bred, winning horse of 1981 Epsom Debry, who was kidnapped in 1983 (probably by IRA) & never returned as the demanded ransom was refused to be paid. As Imam - & de-facto Monarch - the fourth Aga Khan sought for opportunities to turn challenges into chances for a global dialogue. He assisted the 1985 talks between Reagan & Gorbachev in Geneva, and constructively responded to global leaders' (including Pope Benedict XVI's) claims of islamic values being anachronistic & non-aligned to reason. He used his Silver (1982), Golden (2007) & Diamond (2017) Jubilees of Imamat to establish, finance and extend more his foundation's programs for health, education & faith, while in 1986 he introduced an universal constitution across the over 25 countries of Ismai'li diaspora (in four continents), amended in 1998. Prince Karim Aga Khan IV formally designated the Henrique de Mendonça Palace in Lisbon as The "Diwan (Seat/Court) of Ismaili Imamat" in July 2018, was hosted by Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle for his Diamond Jubilee in March that year, while the Jubilee Games, organized ten years earlier (in 2008) have since became a regular form of cultural sport among Nizairi Ismailis. Furthermore, in 2006, His late Highness co-founded with the Canadian Government The Global Center for Pluralism, and funded an empire of Independent Media Columns operating in Eastern African countries (often) in the midst of (& sometimes beyond) iliberal government & dictatorships.
HH Prince Karim Aga Khan IV had been married twice; first, to (fashion model) Sarah Frances Croker Poole, who assumed the name Begum Salimah, from 1969 to 1995; and second to Gabriele Renate Thyssen (née Homey), who took the name Begum Inaara, from 1998 to 2011. He had four children (one daughter & three sons) in total and both of his marriages ended in divorce. His eldest son, Prince Rahim Al-Hussaini (b. 12 October 1971 in Geneva), was named his father's successor as the 50th hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, becoming the Aga Khan V, following the Unsealing of the late Imam's Will, announced Wednesday, 5 February, 2025, having succeeded him immediately upon his death in the evening of Tuesday, 4 February (2025). A direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad - through his daughter, Hazrat Bibi Fatima and cousin & son-in-law, Hazrat Ali (the fourth Caliph of Islam & first Shia Imam) - Rahim Aga Khan was educated in The US, obtaining a bachelor degree in comparative literature from Brown University (1995) and completing graduate studies in management & administration from IESE Business School, University of Navarra (Spain, 2006). He has been involved into the governance of The Aga Khan Developing Network (AKDN), boarding the executive committees of their agencies & affiliated structures, and overseeing its programs & other projects in person. Prince Rahim was married to Princess Salwa Aga Khan (née Kendra Irene Spears, a fashion model) from 2013 until their divorce in 2022; they have two sons, Prince Ifran & Prince Sinan.
The Funeral of Mawlana Shah Karim Al-Hussaini, The late Aga Khan IV, took place over the weekend after his death. Members of the global Ismaili community assembled in Jamatkhanas (places of worship & gathering) to witness live streaming from the Ismaili Centre in Lisbon, where the funeral ceremony took place on Saturday, February 8 (2025) at 11:00am. The late Imam's casket, drapped in a white cloth with a gold-embroidered personal standard on it, was carried into the hall by Isma'ili community volunteers, for dignitaries & world leaders (including The King Emeritus of Spain, The Emir of Qatar, The President of Portugal & The Prime Minister of Canada) to pass by & pay their last respects, amid prayers & the recitation of blessings, invoked on Prophet Muhammad. Prince Rahim, The Aga Khan V, led the congregation, carrying his father's casket outside the center, with his two sons, siblings, uncle & other relatives watching over; before they all flew to Egypt, for a private burial in Aswan, on Sunday 9 February 2025. The region's government welcomed The Aga Khan's family in person & ordered the closure of roads to facilitate the dignified procession (following the funerary van on foot) towards the banks of the River Nile, to which he participated. From there the coffin of the late Prince Karim was transferred by boat to a private domain of Villa Nour El Salam. Then the casket was carried on hand in a final procession, on top of the hill where The Mausoleum, build by Aga Khan III is situated. The Aga Khan IV was laid to rest next to his grandparents, where he will remain buried, until a resting place dedicated to him, will be adjusted. Following the end of the burial, the Mayor symbolically presented The Aga Khan V with a key to the City of Aswan; Egypt was once the center of the Fatimid Caliphate, ruled by The Ismaili Imams-Caliphs (during the 10th - 11th centuries), who built its present-day capital, Cairo.
Following his ascension to the Ismai'li Imamate, Prince Rahim Aga Khan V was granted the style of: "His Highness" by King Charles III of The United Kingdom on Monday, 10 February, 2025. The next Day, Tuesday, February 11 (2025), the Takht-nishini, formal enthronement ceremony of Mawlana Shah Rahim Al-Hussaini Hazar Imam, took place at the Diwan of The Ismai'li Imamat in Lisbon, in presence of representatives of the global Jamat - Chair of The Ismaili Leaders' International Forum (LIF), while for the first time in history, ordinary people could see the live screening of the event from all Jamatkhanas, at 10:00am GMT. The Hazar Imam was first presented with the khilat (ceremonial robes) of his predecessor, alongside his chain & signet ring, as well as ceremonial symbols of authority - Holy Qur'an, Ismaili Constitution, ceremonial sword, intricate parasol & inkwell - all under the rendition of Nashid al-Imamah (The Ismaili Anthem). Then verses from The Holy Qur'an (including the prayer for the 'light' - ayat al-Nur) were recited, followed by renditions of two poems (qasidas & munajat) in four languages. Everyone rose as the LIF Chair gave his loyalty address on behalf of the global Jamat, before everyone of The Councils' Presidents in attendance submitted bay' a (oath of allegiance) to Mawlana Hazar Imam in turns. Then His Highness The Hazar Imam signed the Constitutional Instrument in his name, confirming his position as Imam-of-the-Time & reaffirming the preservation of the current Ismaili Constitution created by his late father. The ceremony was concluded by The Aga Khan's first address to the Jamat as its 50th hereditary Imam, during which Farman Mubarak he paid tribute to his father, thanked his family for the support, spoke on the the principles of Ismai'li Muslim faith, reminded on the spiritual & material values, set up his Imamate's goals and offered prayers for mushkil-asan. Finally, the leaders of the Jamat presented their 50th Imam with a commemorative gift, a manuscript (titled "Munajat Hazrat Ali Amir al-Mu'minin") encompassing a selection of prayers from the time of the First Imam, embroidered with a series of Perso-Arabesque guilded mottifs of flora & fauna. In the days after his Takht-nishini, HH Prince Rahim Aga Khan V received delegations of State & Community leaders offering both Condolences & Congratulations.
A message of graditude & reassurance by The Aga Khan V two weeks after becoming Imam, completed the whole process of The Transition of Mawlana Hazar Imam of The Nizairi Ismai'list Muslim Jamat.
Videos:
Sources:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c9vmlk4rzzjo
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https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/citys-ismailis-celebrate-aga-khan-vs-rise/articleshow/118283146.cms
