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

The critical examination of the extant sources shows that the Ismailis resided in large number in the villages inside Iranian Baluchistan. It is related that a group of nomad Ismailis entered into the Indian Baluchistan and settled in the southern coast of Lasbela when Jam Ali Khan (d. 1766), one of the chief of the Aliani family of the Jamot tribe of Arab, established his power in Lasbela in 1742. He was succeeded by his eldest son Jam Ghulam Shah (d. 1776) and his younger brother, Jam Mir Khan I (d. 1818) became the third ruler. He was followed by Jam Ali Khan (d.

Juma Jan Muhammad was born possibly in 1850 in Bombay, where he got his early education. He was a leading leather merchant in Bombay and a commission agent. He was also an owner of a tannery at Dharavi. He extended his business as far as Europe and Burma.

The renowned Lakha family traces their descent back to their forebear, named Surji. His son was Jairaj, and whose son was Manji. The son of Manji was Lalji, who had four sons, Punja, Virji, Lakha and Kalyan. They dwelt in the village, called Berberaja, about 12 miles from Jamnagar, Kutchh.

Kara Ruda came from the village of Shishang in Saurashtra, India, but there are also reports that show Kara Ruda's birthplace to be in Mengani, Virpur or Lodika in 1881. He however spent many years in Rajkot, where acquired his education.
His name was Kader Ali, and he became known as Karabhai. When the people found him compelling in religious beliefs, they called him Kara Ruda (Kara, the true), making him known as Kara Ruda, or Bhagat Karabhai.

Hooda Vali Mohammed Nanji was the son of Nanji Amarsi, a well-known
religious man. Nanji Amarsi passed most of his lifetime in Limadi and also went
to live in Pretoria. He had taken due care of the religious and secular
education of his son, Vali Mohammed. He died at the age of 73 years on August
28, 1933. His son, Vali Mohammad Nanji Hooda, known as V.N. Hooda was born in
Bombay in 1889. Nothing is known of his early life. He was however a
well-educated and a learned scholar, teacher and editor.

V.N. Hooda’s appearance in the arena of the community service began in

Mukhi Muhammad, surnamed Bhojani was famous for his piety and generosity in Kathiawar and was the head of the Vartej village, about 5 miles from Bhavnagar on behalf of the Bhavanagar State. He was also the Mukhi of Vartej Jamatkhana and played significant role in its construction. He and his family members are also known as the Bhojani family. Imam Hasan Ali Shah had visited Bhavnagar and was highly impressed with his devoted services. His son Jusab also served the Vartej jamat and donated a piece of land to extend the premises of the Jamatkhana.

Ibrahim Nathoo was born in Nairobi on March 13, 1905. He was educated at Government Indian School, Nairobi, then in Esplanade High School, Bombay; St. Xavier's College, Bombay; Trinity Hall, Cambridge; and Owen's College, Victoria University, Manchester. He was a prominent freemason, holding Grand Lodge honours and District Grand Lodge Honours.

Ibrahim Rahimtullah was a son of Rahmatullah Kadar, a well-known merchant in Bombay. Sir Ibrahim Rahimtullah was born in Bombay on May, 1862 in a family having no political tradition. He took his education in Elphinstone High School. He was a diligent student and showed particular aptitude for arithmetic, algebra and geometry. His failure in the Matriculation examination in 1897 marked an end of his scholastic career, and he joined his elder brother, Muhammad Rahmatullah in business.

Dewan Sir Eboo Pirbhai, the first Chairman of the Leaders' International Forum, was born at Bombay on May 27, 1905. His father, Pirbhai Gangji belonged to a noble family.
He came in Nairobi in 1910 with his family, where he took his early education at the Duke of Gloucester School. Without much formal education, he became a taxi owner-driver in 1926.

Ibrahim Suleman's ancestors came from Kutchh, and a certain Rahim among his forefathers took his abode in Jerruk, Sind. Rahim had two sons, Haji and Merali. The son of the latter was Alidino, known as Aloo, who was present during the ascension ceremony of Imam Sultan Mohammed Shah at Bombay in 1885. The former Haji had a son, called Ghulam Hussain, also known as Ghulu or Wazir Ghulu. Since he was the breeder of the hawks, the people also called him Ghulu Ba'azwala in Jerruk. He was well-versed in Persian, therefore, Imam Hasan Ali Shah took him to Bombay in 1844 as an interpreter.

Nur Muhammad was a devout Ismaili, who lived in Jimpir, Sind. His son Khalikdina however took up his abode at Jerruk. Khalikdina had three sons, Piru, Yonus and Juma. The elder son Piru, also called Pir Muhammad, was the Mukhi in Jerruk. Mukhi Piru had four sons, Fadhu, Aziz Ali, Amir Ali and Ghulam Hyder. The most prominent among them was Fadhu.

Gangji, the father of Ismail was one of the famous and dedicated social workers in Junagadh jamat. He had never gone to school, his family members called him gang i.e., unlettered, and became known as Gangji, making his original name disappeared in the records. He was however a man of middle class. His son Ismail is supposed to have been born around 1788 and his fame soon reached incredible heights as the Varas of Junagadh.

Muhammad bin Zain al-Abidin bin Karbalai Daud Khorasani, was also known as Fidai Khorasani and Haji Akhund in Iran. He was born in 1850 in Dizbad, a village located in the mountains between Mashhad and Nishapur. He traced his descent from Khaki Khorasani (d. 1646), the famous Ismaili poet. Fidai Khorasani took his formal education in Dizbad and studied in Bakiriya Madrasa in Mashhad. He was knowledgeable in religion since childhood and explored rare historical documents on Ismailism.

The Revered Noble Personality of Africa, known as Kamadia Ismail Kassimani was born in Zanzibar in 1853. He was a talented and active since childhood, and he soon became a leading merchant. In 1883, he came to Bombay on a business trip. His kind manner, intelligence and his personality made him an important individual both within the community and outside the Ismaili community in Bombay.
Upon the death of Kamadia Muhammad Choth in Hasanabad, Bombay on October 2, 1892, Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah appointed Ismail Kassimani as the Kamadia for Hasanabad Jamatkhana with Mukhi Ladakbhai Haji.

Ghulam Ali Allana traced his descent from a certain Haji, and whose son, Vali was a small merchant in Lahari Bandar, Sind. When the port of Lahari Bandar dried up, Vali came in Jerruk, where he lived with his son Saleh. The son of Saleh was Aloo, whose business expanded as far as Bhuj, Kutchh. Natho, the son of Aloo lived for some time in Bhuj, Kutchh and then settled down in Mulla Katiar, Sind. Natho's son was Khalfan, who migrated towards Karachi with his wife, called Lakhanni. Khalfan was the care-taker (jamatbhai) in the Kharadhar Jamatkhana.

Mukhi Rai Abajibhai Nathu Bhalwani was the Mukhi of Sanosara jamat in Saurashtra. He was a hakim by profession and treated the Ismailis free of charge. His wife Galabai (d. 1907) was also a dedicated social worker. Mukhi Rai Abajibhai died on February 10, 1956 and left behind four sons, in which Jaffer Ali Bhalwani was most prominent figure among the Ismailis.

Ghulam Ali Shah was the son of Sayed Muhammad Shah, a native of Qaimpur, about 10 miles from Khairpur in Bhawalpur State, founded by Qaim Khan Arabni in 1747. Sayed Muhammad Shah was a famous landowner. He was a Twelver and well rooted in Islamic studies, and he had over 6000 followers in his village.

Jaffer Ali Muhammad Somji, surnamed Sufi was born at Karachi in 1908, where he took his formal education, both religious and secular. He started his career as a religious teacher as well as a supervisor of Wazir Rahim Boarding School. He also became a regular missionary in Karachi, and then moved to East Africa.
In 1932, Jaffer Ali Muhammad Somji was appointed as a religious teacher of Boys High School in Mombasa, where he also established The Young Ismailia Recreation Club Institute, and also started a periodical, called Gulshan-e-Ilm.

Devji, the son of Lalji was a native of Junagadh, India. He was an eminent wool merchant, having immense devotion in social services. According to the available information, Devji is said to have joined the Ismaili caravan in Bhuj, Kutchh headed by a certain Dharamsi Punjuani which was bound for Iran for the didar of Imam Shah Khalilullah (1792-1817) in Yazd at the beginning of 1817. They started from the port of Mandavi, Kutchh and boarded for Muscat and landed at Port Abbas, and reached Yazd on camels. Yazd is situated between Isfahan and Kirman on the route leading to Baluchistan.

Jaffer Rahimtulla was the younger brother of Sir Ibrahim Rahimtullah (1862-1942). He was born in 1870 and after the death of his father, his brother Ibrahim Rahimtullah gave him adequate education. After his matriculation in 1888, he joined the university and passed B.A. (Hon.) in Philosophy and Logic. He then proceeded to London in 1894 for high education in laws and eventually became the barrister. He studied in London the laws of inheritance of the Ismailis for about 30 months, and intended to compile a book for it.