Aga Khan claims to his followers that he brings an esoteric (baatini or hidden) meaning of the Quran which has not been understood by anyone else in the Muslim ummah.
However, Aga Khan’s esoteric interpretation of Quran is drastically opposite to teaching of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and goes against the understanding of all scholars of ummah and all other sects of Islam. Such is the extent of mismatch between the Nizari Ismailis and the rest of the Muslim ummah, that Ismailis are well-known rejecters of the Muslim prayer (salah), fasting (sawm), charity (zakat) and pilgrimage (hajj) as prescribed by the Quran and demonstrated by the Prophet (pbuh).
Aga Khan claims that Salat is been changed to the Ismaili Holy Du‘a’ by Allah for current times.
Ismailis’ Rejection of Friday Muslim Prayer
The Quran commands us as follows in Chapter 62, Verse 9:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِذَا نُودِيَ لِلصَّلَاةِ مِن يَوْمِ الْجُمُعَةِ فَاسْعَوْا إِلَىٰ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَذَرُوا الْبَيْعَ ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ تَعْلَمُونَ
Translation:
O you who have believed, when [the adhan] is called for the prayer on the day of Jumu’ah [Friday], then proceed to the remembrance of Allah and leave trade. That is better for you, if you only knew.
However, Ismailis are never ‘called’ for prayer through the Prayer Call (adhan, أَذَان) as adhan is never called in their ‘Jamatkahanas’ and they do not offer any Friday prayers in line with the Sunnah of the Prophet (pbuh) and his companions, including Ali (ra) who they revere. Instead, Ismailis offer their usual 6 ‘paats’ of Holy Du’a on Friday as they do any other day.
The Prophet (pbuh) said, as narrated in Sahih Muslim, Book 4, Hadith 1882:
لَيَنْتَهِيَنَّ أَقْوَامٌ عَنْ وَدْعِهِمُ الْجُمُعَاتِ أَوْ لَيَخْتِمَنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَى قُلُوبِهِمْ ثُمَّ لَيَكُونُنَّ مِنَ الْغَافِلِينَ
Translation:
People must cease to neglect the Friday prayer or Allah will seal their hearts and then they will be among the negligent.
Ismailis cannot argue that their Holy Du’a is a supererogatory (additional) prayer to the Muslim Salah since the timings of both Salah and Du’a overlap each other and no person can claim to offer both the Islamic Salah as well as the Ismaili Dua.
Ismailis might claim that their Holy Du’a offered on Friday evenings after sunset are equivalent to the Friday prayer. However, the following hadith proves that the usual Ismaili Holy Du’a offered by the Ismailis on Friday is not equivalent to the Jum’a prayer as offered by the Prophet (pbuh) as narrated in Sahih Muslim, Book 4, Hadith 1903:
عَنْ جَابِرِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، قَالَ جَاءَ سُلَيْكٌ الْغَطَفَانِيُّ يَوْمَ الْجُمُعَةِ وَرَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَخْطُبُ فَجَلَسَ فَقَالَ لَهُ يَا سُلَيْكُ قُمْ فَارْكَعْ رَكْعَتَيْنِ وَتَجَوَّزْ فِيهِمَا – ثُمَّ قَالَ – إِذَا جَاءَ أَحَدُكُمْ يَوْمَ الْجُمُعَةِ وَالإِمَامُ يَخْطُبُ فَلْيَرْكَعْ رَكْعَتَيْنِ وَلْيَتَجَوَّزْ فِيهِمَا
Translation:
Jabir b. ‘Abdullah reported that Sulaik Ghatafani came on Friday when the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was delivering the sermon. He (Sulaik) sat down. He (the Holy Prophet) said to him: O Sulaik I stand and observe two rak’ahs and make them short, and then said: When any one of you comes on Friday, while the Imam delivers the sermon, he should observe two rak’ahs and should make them short.
The Ismailis have no concept of rak’ahs (units of prayer) in their Holy Du’a. Instead they have six ‘paats’ in their prayer. They also have no concept of two Friday Khutbahs in their Jamatkhanas.
Ismailis claim to follow Ali (ra) and his descendants. However, Ali (ra) never used to go to a Jamatkhana and he diligently observed, and during this time as Caliph, led the Muslim Friday prayer. It is mentioned in Nahjul Balagha (The Peak of Eloquence) that Ali (ra) instructed in his letter to Harith Hamdani:
“Never start on a travel on Fridays without attending Friday prayers unless you are going out for Jihad or there is no alternative for you but to set out.”
Friday Prayer is proven from Quran and from the teachings of Prophet (pbuh) but Ismailis do not offer Friday prayers in line with the Quranic commandments, Prophetic (pbuh) traditions or the tradition of the Prophet’s (pbuh) companions (ra) including Ali (ra).
Adoption of the Sunni Muslim Eid Salah and the Funeral Salah
Strangely enough, Ismailis do offer the Eid salah in the way Prophet taught us. Ismailis do Ruku in their Eid salah while they neglect the Ruku in their Holy Du’a. Similarly, upon decease of any Ismaili, the funeral salah is offered in the method of Sunni Muslims.
Rejection of the Muslim Qibla
Allah says in the Holy Quran, Chapter 2, Verse 144:
قَدْ نَرَىٰ تَقَلُّبَ وَجْهِكَ فِي السَّمَاءِ ۖ فَلَنُوَلِّيَنَّكَ قِبْلَةً تَرْضَاهَا ۚ فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ ۚ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّوا وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُ ۗ وَإِنَّ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ لَيَعْلَمُونَ أَنَّهُ الْحَقُّ مِن رَّبِّهِمْ ۗ وَمَا اللَّهُ بِغَافِلٍ عَمَّا يَعْمَلُونَ
Translation:
We have certainly seen the turning of your face, [O Muhammad], toward the heaven, and We will surely turn you to a qiblah with which you will be pleased. So turn your face toward al-Masjid al-Haram. And wherever you [believers] are, turn your faces toward it [in prayer]. Indeed, those who have been given the Scripture well know that it is the truth from their Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what they do.
Duing the Ismaili Du’a, the leader (mukhi) of the Jamatkahana and the worshipers are facing each other while during the Eid salah and during Funeral prayers, Ismailis along with their mukhi face the Muslim Qibla.
One might think that if the Ismaili Holy Du’a has replaced the Islamic Salah, then why do Ismailis offer the Eid salah? Why do Ismailis offer the funeral salah like the Muslims do? What is the reason of such illogical and contradictory interpretation of the Quran and the Sunnah?
The reason is that Eid and funeral prayers held openly for the non-ismailis to observe, while the Holy Du’a is offered in the restricted “Ismailis Only” Jamatkhanas and Ismaili Centers worldwide. Inside these closed doors the Ismailis can freely offer their shirk-infested Holy Du’a.
Click here to view a complete video of the complete shirk-infested Ismaili Holy Du’a offered in Jamatkhanas today (includes English transliteration and translation).
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