Category: Shia Branches of Islam
The Islamic Ithna-Asheri Jama’at (ISIJ) of Toronto is a Canadian Shia Ithna Asheri organization for about five thousand Shia Muslims living in Canada, mainly in Ontario. Currently, about two thousand people have membership and voting rights in the organization. The members of the organization are primarily from East African countries having Indian origins. The activities […]
The Ismaili Centers The main Shia Ismaili Centers are the places for Ismaili Shia Muslims to gather together and hold various cultural, religious and educational gatherings. These Centers are a type of the traditional ‘Jamatkhanas’, a place of gathering that existed among the Muslim societies throughout the Islamic history. The main purpose of these centers […]
Introduction An ‘Hawzah’ or ‘Hawzah Ilmiyah’ is an educational center of the Ithna Asheri Shias where religious studies and research is undertaken in the context of Islam. Although most prominent ithna asheri Islamic seminaries are located in Najaf and Qom, some smaller hawzahs are also present in cities like Mashhad, Isfahan, Karbala, Beirut, Lucknow and […]
The Ithna-Ashariyya Muslims who follow the Twelve Imams compose the largest group of Shia, existing in large numbers in Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, and Bahrain, with smaller numbers in many other Muslim-majority countries as well as minority communities in North America and Europe. They are referred to as Twelvers or Ithna-Ashariyya because of their […]
The most important Ismaili center in the UK is the Agha Khan center, a place where the Ismailis hold events for their social, cultural, and religious gatherings. It was established in 1951 at Kensington Court, London, United Kingdom but later a new place was acquired for building the new center at King’s Cross. It also […]
The Cemevis Introduction According to this branch of Shiism, the cemevis are Alevi houses of worship that have significant importance in Alevi Islam. A cemevi literally means “a house of gathering” that usually is a place for gatherings of Alevis where men and women hold the traditional worship ceremony called ‘cem’, a paradigm of Prophet […]
Origins of Pilgrimage among Shias Pilgrimage among Ismailis can be seen as a part of Shia pilgrimage which begins with the story of Karbala, an event largely focused on the sacrifice of bodies and the miracles associated with the martyrs. Stories about his head and its miraculous powers reflect the reverence Shi‘i Muslims have for […]
The Alevis is a sect of Shia Islam who follow the teaching of Twelve Imams and the mystic Haji Bektash Vali. They are mainly based in Turkey and follow rituals and beliefs that are similar to that of the Twelver Shias like the importance of the family of Propet (PBUH), mourning in the month of […]
To complete the previous post, there are some other festivals held by Ismaili Shias which need to be mentioned and briefly described: Navroz Navroz or Nowruz, is a nation-wide celebration that marks the beginning of a brand-new year and highlights spiritual and physical transformation. It is a time to gain a positive outlook on life […]
Events Celebrated by Ismaili Shias- part 1 After knowing about the Ismaili branch of Shiism, taking a look at the ceremonies celebrated by this sect can be helpful. In the following section we are further familiarized with different events celebrated by Ismaili Shias: Eid-e Ghadir This is a commemoration of the gathering of Ghadir Khumm […]