This month, members of the Nizari Ismaili branch of Islam celebrate 54 years since their leader took over.
Prince Karim Aga Khan the IV doesn’t exactly fit the profile you’d expect of a Muslim holy man. He’s a half-European billionaire, a former world-class skier, and the one-time stepson of Hollywood legend Rita Hayworth.
To his followers, he’s a living legend, a direct descendent of the prophet Mohammed. But he has also become a significant figure in international development, literally reshaping the landscape.
High up in the Pamir Mountains of Eastern Tajikistan, bulldozers are moving mounds of earth to make way for a new college campus. When it’s finished, people are expected to come from around Central Asia to study here.
Read at the source: http://www.theworld.org/2011/07/prince-karim-aga-khan-iv-and-the-ismaili-sect-of-shia-islam/
Ismailimail 