Source: The Ismaili
Details of an Islamic garden gifted by Mawlana Hazar Imam to the University of Alberta were revealed today at a special ceremony.
The event also included the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the University of Alberta and the Aga Khan University.
When it opens in 2018, the spectacular new Aga Khan Garden, Alberta will feature “stepped terraces that change with the seasons, geometric water features that stream into wetlands and a spectacular orchard of local plants,” according to a jointly issued press release from the University of Alberta and the Aga Khan University. It will occupy 4.8 hectares within the University of Alberta Botanic Garden, offering opportunities for research and learning.
“On the 150th anniversary of Canada, it is appropriate that we are creating together a Mughal-style garden, which echoes the great contributions that Muslims have made to world heritage,” said Mawlana Hazar Imam in a written statement. The gift celebrates both Canada’s sesquicentennial and Hazar Imam’s Diamond Jubilee, which commences on 11 July 2017 and marks 60 years since he inherited the Ismaili Imamat.
“The Mughals built the Taj Mahal and Humayun’s Tomb and the gardens around them, so the university’s embrace of this project is an inherently pluralistic act,” Hazar Imam’s statement continues. “The creation of this garden therefore both deepens an existing partnership and illustrates the pluralistic nature of this country. Measures like this should be encouraged, both here and abroad.”
Read more – Dated: 7 April 2017
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