“… the planet is truly your home; openness, tolerance and inter-faith dialogue are your heritage. You have each made your mark on the contemporary world.
In paying tribute to you this evening, we are reminded that the Ismaili faith, through its message of peace and bridge-building, is more than ever at the forefront of dialogue between the great monotheist religions.
Wherever Ismailis live, we find the particular combination of meditation, tolerance and solidarity that characterises your community.
Since the nineteenth century the Ismaili faith has masterfully demonstrated, through its international network of charitable organisations, that its spiritual beliefs are anchored in the secular world.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
during the presentation of decorations to:
His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan
insignia of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters
(Commandant de l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres)
and
Prince Amyn Aga Khan
insignia of Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters
(Officier de l’ordre des Arts et des Lettres)
Paris, France
November 9, 2010
Please help locate the photograph of the Noorani Family with Begum Mata Salamat
We are looking for a higher resolution and better quality picture of this photograph of Noorani Family with Mata Salamat in it. We thank you in advance. Please send photos to akconstellations@gmail.com
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French Minister of Culture and Communication, M. Frédéric Mitterrand in this unique address, in addition to listing the accomplishments and contributions of Mowlana Hazir Imam – His Highness Prince Karim, Aga Khan IV (49th Imam of the Ismailis) and Prince Amyn Mohammed, profoundly honors the Noorani family: His Highness Aga Sir Sultan Muhammad Shah, Aga Khan III (48th Imam of the Ismailis), Begum Mata Salamat, Prince Aly Khan and Prince Sadruddin.
We believe the picture below captures the wonderful memory of the Noorani family that the French Minister pays tribute to.
Extracts from the speech, highlighting the contributions of the Noorani family follow, after the picture below.
Princess Yasmin Aga Khan (sister of the His Highness Aga Khan IV, daughter of Prince Alykhan and granddaughter of His Highness Aga Khan III)
Mowlana Sultan Mohammed Shah – His Highness Aga Khan III – 48th Imam of the Ismaili Muslims
Back row and standing (left to right)
Mowlana Hazar Imam – His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan – His Highness Aga Khan IV – 49th Imam of the Ismaili Muslims (elder son of Prince Alykhan and grandson of His Highness Aga Khan III)
Prince Aly Soloman Khan Aga Khan (elder son of His Highness Aga Khan III and father of His Highness Aga Khan IV)
Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan (younger son of His Highness Aga Khan III and uncle of His Highness Aga Khan IV)
Begam Mata Salamat (wife of His Highness Aga Khan III)
Prince Amyn Mohammed Aga Khan (brother of the His Highness Aga Khan IV, younger son of Prince Alykhan and grandson of His Highness Aga Khan III)
“These values have been upheld and embodied by your family to the highest degree.
In welcoming you here this evening we also pay homage to the memory of your grandfather, His Highness the 48th Imam, who had the onerous task of being Secretary General of the League of Nations in 1937 and 1938, in a political climate requiring courage from all who were advocates for peace.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
November 9, 2010
“We also recall his French wife, Begum Mata Salamat, Mother of Peace, who will always be remembered, particularly by all those she helped, and who rests by her husband’s side on the banks of the Nile in Aswan.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
November 9, 2010
“… and your father Prince Ali Khan, Pakistani Ambassador to the United Nations … beloved by all, whom fate did not permit to deploy his extraordinary culture and spirit of civilisation to their full extent.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
November 9, 2010
“I am also thinking of the much-missed Prince Sadruddin, your uncle, who was United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees at a key period in the history of this institution with its vitally important mission.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
November 9, 2010
“Prince Amyn Aga Khan,
It is an immense pleasure and a real honour to pay tribute tonight to a man of the arts, a man of refinement with a keen interest in heritage, and a passionate devotion to French and international culture.
A worthy heir to a family that continually expresses its support for cultural pluralism and has been involved in international work for several generations, you are today the head of many prestigious institutions working to improve the lives of peoples across the world.
Lastly I should like to recall, of course, your work as a patron of French culture and heritage.
The greatest French cultural institutions have benefited from your assistance. Reeling off a list of names is not sufficient to illustrate the scope of your engagement.
Since you are, among other things, the best minister of culture His Highness, your brother, could dream of, dear Prince Amyn, in the name of the French Republic, we present you with the insignia of Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
November 9, 2010
Photo: Farida Bréchemier / MCC
“Your Highness the Aga Khan,
I should like today to salute your exceptional cultural work, in all its richness and diversity, and in so doing I hope not to offend your modesty, as I know that, as a man of great worth, you are extraordinarily modest, often distancing yourself from your actions, working silently, far preferring influence to power, and discretion to the spotlight.
You are at once the illustrious descendant of a dynasty entrusted with a faith and a history, and a man resolutely grounded in your own time. A committed humanist, pragmatic idealist and businessman bursting with ideas, you have a thousand and one lives and projects, which you pursue always with the same ardour, convinced of the importance of vitality and creativity. You place your talents primarily at the service of others, and in particular your own people, the Ismailis. More than a passion, this is for you a vocation.
Many countries have benefited from your dynamism … Experts from the World Bank have made several trips to the aptly-named Karimabad to take note of the prodigious transformation of a difficult, isolated region into a land of plenty, where you have prioritised health, rural development and the education of women, in the shadow of the apricot trees and the soaring peaks of the Karakorams.
All these initiatives are carried out in line with the attention to perfection that is your hallmark; you apply the criteria of excellence to philanthropy. Your demanding standards are admired. Your hospitals, schools and banks are exemplary models, and organisations bearing the name Aga Khan offer a guarantee of quality to all.
The ambition of the great French princes has now been taken up by Your Highness; you have become the architect of a spectacular renaissance, which you mention with great modesty.
Your Highness, in the name of the French Republic, we present you with the insignia of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters.”
– M. Frédéric Mitterrand,
French Minister of Culture and Communication,
November 9, 2010
Celebrate by reading more at the source: Address of the French Minister of Culture and Communication, M. Frédéric Mitterrand at the presentation of decorations to His Highness the Aga Khan (Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters) and Prince Amyn Aga Khan (Officer of the Order of Arts and Letters)
Accelerate your awareness about:
- Mowlana Sultan Mohammed Shah – His Highness Aga Khan III – 48th Imam of the Ismaili Muslims
- Prince Alykhan
- Prince Sadruddin
- Mowlana Hazar Imam – His Highness Prince Karim Aga Khan – His Highness Aga Khan IV – 49th Imam of the Ismaili Muslims
- Prince Amyn Mohammed
Research, Insight & Perspective by A. Maherali
Ismailimail 
Friday, March 07, 2014
The French Minister of Culture and Communication, M. Frédéric Mitterrand, November 9, 2010, has said so rightly in his speech about His Highness the Aga Khan and the Noorani family!
The Shia Ismaili Muslims has been integrated in society in any country of their residency because of the diligence and the persistent effort on part of the Shia Ismaili Imamat. The Shia Ismaili Imamat in all ages of its existence has thrived to better the state of affairs of all people in our globe without seeking any kind of glare of publicity or laurels! Their exaltation and achievement is like praising the deity. It is an astounding beauty with majestic splendor.
His Highness the Aga Khan and His family has been unexceptional and unpretentious in all the social work, enhancing the lives of the people in Africa, Pakistan, India, and most part of our globe. The ‘AKDN,’ one of the Imamat Institutions, wherever it has set its foot, is to improve the well-being of the people in all marginal countries.
His Highness the Aga Khan has very categorically and undeniably stressed in His recent speech to the both house of parliament in Canada and in His interviews that the situation in some parts in our world is very fragile and He is deeply worried about it. He has emphatically said that the welfare of mankind totally depends upon a society which believes in pluralism, diversity, and collective interest in civil programs relating to all citizens’ participation.
As a Shia Ismaili Muslim, I have learnt from Shia Ismaili Imamat to be loyal to my country of adoption and become a trustworthy citizen!
Sincerely, Nizarali Shivji!
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This article is very well compiled, all encompassing, covers widely many important information which any person would love to read and know. Thank you IM , Mansur Dhanani
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I am proud of being an ismaili muslim from Afghanistan that we are the followers of his highness Agha Khan (Mawlana Shah Karim Al Hussaini Hazir Imam) who is a role model of humanity for all Muslim and non Muslims in era of 21st century …
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I am very proud to be an Ismaili muslim. We are honored and bestowed with the blessings of Imams of the time. Thanks for everything.
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