Understanding the Ismaili Constitution 2025 – Study Series
The Ismaili Imamat, the Imam, and the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat
The Ismaili Constitution is ordained by the Imam and forms part of the constitutional framework governing the affairs of the Jamat. The Constitution is to be read together with Farmans, and where there is a conflict in or between the constitution and Farmans, a later Farman prevails. The Constitution also recognises the law of the land and that prevails.
The 2025 Constitution contains important clarifications regarding the distinction between the Imam, the Ismaili Imamat, and the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat. While these are closely connected, they are not identical.
1. The Imam and the Ismaili Imamat
The Constitution defines the Ismaili Imamat as:
“The institution or office of the Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslim.”
This definition is significant. The Constitution does not define the Ismaili Imamat as the individual person of the Imam. Rather, it defines the Imamat as the institution or office through which the authority, continuity, and responsibilities of the Imamate are exercised under the Constitution.
Mawlana Hazar Imam is the hereditary spiritual leader of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslims, providing religious interpretation and guidance through Farmans.
The Ismaili Imamat is the enduring institution that represents the continuity of the Imamate from the time of Hazrat Ali and the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) through the succession of Imams to the present day.
As Mawlana Hazar Imam, Prince Karim Aga Khan IV, explained:
“Ismaili Imamat is a supra-national entity, representing the succession of Imams since the time of the Prophet Muhammad. The role of the Ismaili Imam is a spiritual one; his authority is that of religious interpretation.”
This distinction helps explain how the Ismaili Imamat, as a body, can enter into agreements, maintain diplomatic relations, establish delegations, and undertake institutional functions while the Imam continues to exercise his divinely ordained spiritual authority as the designated Imam of the Time.
2. The Ismaili Imamat as a Constitutional and Legal Entity
The Constitution establishes the Ismaili Imamat as a supranational institution operating under inherent Imamat authority, historical right, and ancestral tradition.
Article 6 authorises Mawlana Hazar Imam to:
* Enter into treaties, agreements, accords, conventions, and memoranda of understanding with states, governments, and international organisations.
* Appoint ambassadors, envoys, representatives, and delegations.
* Establish Delegations of the Ismaili Imamat to represent the Imamat in public, diplomatic, and institutional affairs.
Examples identified in the Constitution include:
* The Canada Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat in Ottawa.
* The Portugal Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat in Lisbon.
These constitutional provisions demonstrate that the Ismaili Imamat functions as a recognised institutional entity capable of maintaining formal relationships with governments and international bodies.
The Agreement between the Portuguese Republic and the Ismaili Imamat provides a contemporary example of this distinction. The agreement recognises the Ismaili Imamat as an institution with an international presence and establishes its Seat in Portugal while also recognising the spiritual and hereditary role of the Imam of the Time.
3. The Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat
The Constitution separately identifies the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat.
Article 4.2 states that the existing Seat, known as the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat, acts as a locus for the Imamat for:
* Its engagement with the Jamat.
* Its wider institutional interactions, diplomatic relations, and discourse.
* Its endeavours to foster human flourishing.
* Such other purposes as Mawlana Hazar Imam may determine.
The First Schedule identifies the current Seat as:
Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat
Rua Marquês de Fronteira
Lisbon, Portugal
The Diwan should therefore be understood as the constitutional Seat of the Ismaili Imamat. It is not the Imam himself.
Rather, it is the institutional centre through which the Ismaili Imamat carries out constitutional, diplomatic, administrative, and representational functions for the benefit and service of the Jamat.
4. Guidance and Implementation
A useful way to understand the relationship is:
* The Imam provides spiritual authority, guidance, and Farmans.
* The Ismaili Imamat is the institution through which the continuity and responsibilities of the Imamate are exercised.
* The Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat serves as the constitutional Seat and institutional locus of the Imamat.
* The institutions of the Jamat implement Farmans, including policies and constitutional provisions established by the Imam.
This distinction does not separate the institutions from the Imam. Rather, it clarifies their respective roles.
The institutions derive their authority from the Imam and operate under his guidance while carrying out legal, administrative, diplomatic, educational, social, and development functions for the benefit of the Jamat.
5. Why This Distinction Matters
Understanding these distinctions helps explain:
* How the Ismaili Imamat can enter into international agreements.
* How delegations and diplomatic representatives can be appointed.
* How intellectual property can belong to the Ismaili Imamat as a constitutional body.
* How constitutional institutions operate under the authority of the Imam while remaining distinct from the Imam as an individual person.
* How the Imamat engages with states and international organisations while the Imam’s primary authority remains spiritual and religious.
It also helps to appreciate that the Constitution describes both the authority of the Imam and institutional governance, both operating for the benefit of the Jamat.
The Imam remains the source of authority, while the Ismaili Imamat and its constitutional bodies provide the institutional framework through which that authority is exercised in service of the Jamat and broader goals of human dignity, pluralism, peace, and human flourishing.
6. Intellectual Property and the Distinction Between the Imam and the Ismaili Imamat
Article 23.4 provides another important example of the Constitution distinguishing between Mawlana Hazar Imam and the Ismaili Imamat.
The Article requires that any display or use of the Imam’s image, photograph, persona, voice, writings, or heritage must preserve the dignity of Mawlana Hazar Imam and must not infringe the intellectual property of either “Mawlana Hazar Imam” or “the Ismaili Imamat.”
This wording is significant because it recognises two related but distinct holders of rights and responsibilities. The Constitution does not treat the Imam and the Ismaili Imamat as identical terms. Rather, it refers separately to the Imam as the hereditary spiritual authority and to the Ismaili Imamat as the enduring institutional office of the Imamate.
This distinction is consistent with other constitutional provisions relating to the Seat of the Ismaili Imamat, the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat, diplomatic practice, delegations, and institutional governance.
Article 23.4 does not prohibit the use of the Imam’s image, voice, writings, or heritage. Rather, it sets out conditions governing such use, requiring that it remain consistent with dignity and not be used for commercial exploitation, advertising, publicity, propaganda, or similar purposes that would infringe the intellectual property rights of either Mawlana Hazar Imam or the Ismaili Imamat.
The Article therefore reflects a broader formulation than that found in the 1998 Constitution. Whereas the earlier Constitution focused primarily on the protection of the Imam’s name, symbols, flags, and photographs, the 2025 Constitution expressly includes persona, voice, writings, heritage, and intellectual property protections for both the Imam and the Ismaili Imamat.
From a doctrinal perspective within the Ismaili tradition, Farmans occupy a distinct and unique position. Mawlana Hazar Imam has stated:
“The fundamental principles and values of our faith have not changed. We learn them from the Qur’an, from the example of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and from the Farmans of the Imams.”
— Imam Shah Rahim al-Husayni (a.s.), 27 August 2025
In this context, Farmans are understood by murids as spiritual guidance conveyed through the authority of the Imam, rooted in Qur’anic principles and the continuity of the Imamate. This theological framing is distinct from, but may intersect with, questions of institutional administration and intellectual property as understood in modern legal frameworks.
For this reason, some murids may distinguish between intellectual property protections applied to institutional, administrative, educational, commercial, or representational materials, and the dissemination of Farmans as religious guidance intended for the spiritual and material benefit of the Jamat.
Whatever interpretive approach is taken, Article 23.4 clearly demonstrates that the Constitution recognises both Mawlana Hazar Imam and the Ismaili Imamat as distinct entities whose dignity, heritage, writings, and intellectual property are to be respected and protected.
Study Reflections
When reading the 2025 Constitution, it is helpful to ask:
* Is a provision referring to the Imam personally?
* Is it referring to the institution of the Ismaili Imamat?
* Is it referring to a constitutional body such as the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat or a Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat?
The Constitution frequently distinguishes between these concepts. Understanding those distinctions provides a clearer picture of how the Imam’s guidance, Farmans, constitutional governance, diplomacy, and institutional administration operate together within the contemporary Ismaili tradition for the spiritual and material benefit of the Jamat.
A request has been submitted to the Leaders for any comments or clarification. If received they will be shared in this forum too.
References and Caveats
Primary Sources
1. Constitution 2025 – Global Constitution.
2. Farmans of Mawlana Hazar Imam.
3. Ismaili Imamat official publications and website.
Caveats and Limitations
1. The amended National Constitutions, Rules and Regulations referred to in the 2025 Constitution have not all been made publicly available. Requests for access remain outstanding.
2. Not all Farmans have been made available to murids in every jurisdiction. Readers should therefore be aware that this study is based upon the materials currently available.
3. This study is intended as an educational analysis of constitutional texts and publicly available sources. Readers should consult original constitutional documents, Farmans, and official publications wherever possible.
Relevant Source Quotations
The following extracts are reproduced for reference and study purposes:
Constitution 2025 – Definition of the Seat of the Ismaili Imamat
“The existing Seat of the Ismaili Imamat as provided in Article 4, and more particularly described in the First Schedule.”
Constitution 2025 – Definition of the Ismaili Imamat
“The institution or office of the Imam of the Shia Imami Ismaili Muslim.”
Constitution 2025 – Article 4: Seat of the Ismaili Imamat
Article Four SEAT OF THE ISMAILI IMAMAT
4.1 In accordance with inherent Imamat authority, historical right and ancestral
adition, Mawlana Hazar Imam may designate one or more Seats of the Ismai
namat, for such purpose and for such duration as Mawlana Hazar Imam ma
determine.
4.2 The existing Seat, known as the Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat as more particularly
described in the First Schedule, acts as a locus for the Imamat for:
(a) its engagement with the Jamat;
(b) its wider institutional interactions, diplomatic relations and discourse;
(c) its endeavours t o foster human flourishing; and
(d) such other purposes as Mawlana Hazar Imam may determine.
Constitution 2025 – Article 6: Diplomatic Practice
Article Six DIPLOMATIC PRACTICE
In accordance with inherent Imamat authority, historical right and ancestral
tradition, Mawlana Hazar Imam may:
6.1 enter into treaties, conventions, charters, agreements, accords, protocols
and memoranda of understanding with states, governments, international
organisations and such other authorities as Mawlana Hazar Imam may
determine;
6.2 appoint Personal Representatives, Senior Officials, ambassadors, envoys,
delegations, or other representatives t o states, governments, international
organisations and such other authorities as Mawlana Hazar Imam may
determine, with such accreditation and guidelines a s may be conferred from
time t o time b y Mawlana Hazar Imam and who shall hold office for such period
a s Mawlana Hazar Imam may determine; and
6.3 designate as a "Delegation of the Ismaili Imamat" institutions established
to serve a representational role for the Imamat, for building relationships,
enabling diplomacy and public engagement, reflecting the spiritual dimensions
of Islam and the endeavours of the Imamat for human progress, the existing
such Delegations being more particularly described in the Fourth Schedule.
Constitution 2025 – Article 23.4
23.4 Display o f Mawlana Hazar Imam's image, photograph o r persona, or rendition
o f his voice, writings or heritage, in each case through any medium including
digital, electronic, print, or recorded media or in any format, in domestic or commercial premises, shall b e in keeping with the dignity of Mawlana Hazar Imam and shall not be such as to allow the display or rendition to lend itself
to commercial, advertising, publicity, propaganda or similar purposes or in any way to infringe the intellectual property of Mawlana Hazar Imam or the
Ismaili Imamat. The requirements of this Article shall extend to and include
any period prior to Mawlana Hazar Imam's accession to the Ismaili Imamat and in equal measure to any of his predecessors both before and after their accession to the Ismaili Imamat.
Prince Karim Aga Khan IV – Parliament of Canada, 2014
“Ismaili Imamat is a supra-national entity, representing the succession of Imams since the time of the Prophet Muhammad.
The role of the Ismaili Imam is a spiritual one; his authority is that of religious interpretation.”
Lisbon Interview, July 2018
“AC: I would also like to ask you what the Portuguese can expect, by having the Seat of the Ismaili Imamat in Lisbon?
When problems arise, and they are not here, but they arise in other countries, it is when religious institutions and national goals are not compatible. That is when we have trouble. However, Portugal has been very smart to work with religious institutions. We are not the only religion with which the Government works.
AK: Well … the context is between the relationship between religious institutions and modern governance. This is the real context. A context in which religious institutions are improved in what they do, that is, they need a safe environment to enable them to function. These institutions, such as humanitarian institutions, have taken on certain objectives and developed their civil society capacity. And it is very important that country laws allow religious institutions to thrive, as it is even in the national interest. And Portugal is the ideal country for this relationship and has been extremely considerate to me, as Imam.
I think the country has been very intelligent, in what concerns the building of bridges so that religions work well and always with a result that is of national interest. When problems arise, and they are not here, but they arise in other countries, it is when religious institutions and national goals are not compatible. That is when we have trouble. However, Portugal has been very smart to work with religious institutions. We are not the only religion with which the Government works. There is a very, very strong national precedent for this relationship to work. As a religion, we are working in the domain that is already very well positioned for the two sides to work together and as it should be. We are very grateful and honoured for that.”
Aga Khan Interview July 2018
viewtopic.php?p=63707&sid=ef2ab0169080f ... 3cf#p63707
Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat Ordination – 11 July 2018
Hazar Imam ordained in a Firman, the "Diwan of the Ismaili Imamat", and signed the constitutional legal instrument on 11 July 2018
Link to the video
http://ismaili.net/timeline/2018/2018-0 ... -didar.mov
Link
http://www.ismaili.net/html/modules.php ... 3583#63583
Excerpts of the Constitution will also be periodically read in Jamatkhana for the Jamat’s awareness.
- without exception.
*Ismaili Constitution*