Böcker av Dr Farhad (The Institute of Ismaili Studies Daftary

The Ismailis are the second-largest Shi'i community in the world today, settled in over 25 countries across Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and North America. They are the only Muslims to follow a living spiritual guide of their community, the Nizari Ismaili Imam. This book is the first collection of biographies of all the Ismaili Imams, from the seminal Imams of early Shi'i Islam, through to those of the first 'period of concealment' when their public identities remained hidden, to the Imam-caliphs of the illustrious Fatimid dynasty, and those of the Alamut period, up to the Aga Khans of the modern period. The Ismaili Imams mines the rich scholarship of the developing field of Ismaili Studies, providing a simple and clear resource for the general reader, as well as a handy reference guide for scholars. This copiously illustrated book offers a snapshot of the lives, events, and legacies of all 49 Imams, and through them, of the Ismaili community's storied past.

Shi'i Muslims have played a crucial role, proportionally greater than their relative size, in furthering the civilizational achievements of Islam. Indeed, the Shi'i scholars and literati of various branches that have made seminal contributions to Islamic thought and culture.

Daftary traces the origins and early development of the legends of the Assassins of Northern Iran and Syria - as well as investigating the historical context in which they were fabricated and transmitted, culminating in Marco Polo's reports of the "Old Man of the Mountain".

Provides a comprehensive treatment of Ismaili medieval history. Discussing the different phases in Ismaili history, this book describes the early Ismailis, as well as the contributions of the later Ismailis to Islamic culture It is useful to scholars of medieval Islam.

Ismaili Studies represents one of the most recent fields of Islamic Studies. Much new research has taken place in this field as a result of the recovery of a large number of Ismaili texts.