Ismaili.NET - Heritage F.I.E.L.D.

Autobiography ; MM.LXXIX

A Warning to Missionaries ; MM.LXVIII

Dissimulation ; MM XXXIII

title: Dissimulation (taqiyyah); Shi ites are allowed, in case of danger, to disguise their adherence to the minority faith in order to escape persecution. Ismailis made particular use od this.

Line 55: Ramadan; the month during which fasting from dawn to sun-down is obligatory for all Muslims.

Line 67: Shari ite; i.e. followers of the Shari ah, the Sacred Law.

In Yamgan ; MM.IX

Line 163: the hoopoe; Solomnon understood the language of the birds. The hoopoe was his messenger.

The Decline od Khorasan ; MM.XXXVII

Line 17: alif; the first letter of the Arabic alphabet; symbolic of uprightness and good stature.

Line 21: nun; this letter of the alphabet is often contrasted with alif, and compared with a hunchback or an old man.

Line 65: Kipchak; a Tartar Tribe.

Line 79: Zahhak; in the Shah-namah, the evil enemy of Feraydun.

Line 85: Aaron the Alexandrian; Hellenistic philosopher famous for his erudition.

Retirement ; MM.XCVII

Line 16: Kashghar; city in Turkestan, central Asia.

The Exile s Lament ; MM.CCVIII

Line 19: the Companion; i.e. of the Prophet. NK means he is accused of being the enemy of such of the Companions as Abu Bakr, Umar and Uthman, the first three caliphs, recognised by the Sunnis but not by the Shi ites, who believe, Ali should have been the first caliph.

Line 59: Grand Mufti; chief religious authority.

Line 60: Nayshapur and Herat; two important cities of Khorasan, the former now in Iran, the latter in Afghanistan.

Line 73: Badakhshan is still famous for its rubies.

Line 75: Viziers; Prime Minsters. Teheran; actually Rayy, which is now a suburb of Tehran but was for many centuries the metropolis.

Line 82: the Gulf; i.e. the Persian Gulf, still famous for its pearls.

Letter from an Acquaintance ; MM.XC