America’s Journey of Light — The Visit of Prince Rahim Aga Khan V, Houston’s Historic Moment, and Dallas’s Sacred Anticipation
By Raja Zahid Akhtar Khanzada
In recent days, something in the air has shifted for the Ismaili community across the United States. There is a quiet fragrance of prayer in the atmosphere, a sense that a gentle light has stepped onto this land without announcement. Many within the community describe this moment as if history itself has turned a new page. This visit of Prince Rahim Aga Khan V, his first to the United States since assuming the office of Imamat—is both spiritually significant and culturally meaningful. Whether in Houston, Dallas, or Austin, the pulse of the community has quickened, as though an inner lamp has been kindled and refuses to dim.
Houston saw this light first. The United States’ inaugural Ismaili Center an idea conceived in 2006, today stands completed, dignified, and resplendent. Spread across 11 acres, it is more than a building; it is an entire manuscript of civilization. Its stonework, its courtyards, its water features each element carries its own narrative. When Prince Rahim remarked during the inauguration that the Center is not only for Ismailis but for all who seek reflection, knowledge, and dialogue, the sentiment animated the structure itself. Buildings anchored in intention cease to be stone; they become character. And this Center is destined to become a defining presence in America’s landscape of dialogue, pluralism, and civic harmony for decades to come.
This visit has also cast new light on the role of the Ismaili community in the United States. The community is not merely present here it is woven into the cultural, social, and ethical framework of the country. Few communities enjoy the level of institutional trust and civic respect that the Ismailis do. Their service is quiet but enduring. In moments of natural disaster, social distress, or national crisis, the Ismaili community has repeatedly stepped forward like a dependable shelter. Their blood drives, food programs, volunteer networks, educational initiatives, and their presence in hospitals and relief operations have earned them recognition as a “model community”one that helps shape a positive and responsible image of Muslims in America.
Their greatest capital lies in business acumen, education, and civic leadership. In the world of commerce, they have maintained a strong and visible presence through businesses, startups, corporate leadership, and economic initiatives that pulse with the rhythm of the American economy. In education, too, they remain at the forefront. For generations they have regarded knowledge as a form of inherited wealth, and today young Ismailis occupy leading positions in the nation’s top universities. They are doctors, engineers, researchers, legal scholars, scientists, financial experts, and technology innovators a talented generation contributing to America’s progress not with noise, but with consistent effort and impeccable discipline.
Politically and socially, their presence is marked by balance, civic responsibility, and an enduring commitment to dialogue. Their engagement with local governments, state institutions, interfaith coalitions, and nonprofit sectors has earned them a position of trust across the United States. When the mayors of Houston and Sugar Land presented Prince Rahim with the Key to the City, it was not a ceremonial gesture alone it was the recognition of a relationship decades in the making.
For me, this community is not a distant subject. My connection with the Ismaili community has always been one of affection and respect. Many of my close friends belong to it, and over the years I have witnessed their ethic of service, courtesy, and responsibility from up close. In Dallas, figures like Amir Makhani are not just friends they represent the finest possibilities of human generosity. Through the “Makhani Welfare Center” in Pakistan, he has personally supported technical education for women and young girls, enabling hundreds to step into economic independence. His work with the Aga Khan community’s foundation consistently reflects commitment rather than display.
Similarly, Barkat Basaria an anchor of the Dallas Jamaat Khana is not only a respected figure within the Ismaili community but across the wider Pakistani-American community. For nearly half a century he has played an indispensable role in religious, social, civic, and political spheres. Governors, congressmen, senators, and judges count him among their trusted friends. His contributions to the establishment of the U.S. Jamaat Khana in Euless and his sustained efforts in resolving community issues remain a significant chapter in the civic life of Dallas. It is friendships like these marked by sincerity and depth that bind me personally to the joys of this community, making their celebrations my own.
And now, the most delicate and sacred moment of this entire journey is set to unfold in Dallas tomorrow. For weeks, the city has carried a quiet luminosity, as though its skyline has been holding its breath and its winds have slowed to a gentle wait. Thousands of murids will gather on Monday for the Imam’s didar, and as he arrives tomorrow, the anticipation has reached a point where words feel insufficient. Homes are aglow, families are preparing, children carry a sense of wonder, elders whisper silent prayers, and hearts across the city carry a calming warmth. This is a moment whose resonance extends across generations a moment those present will remember for a lifetime.
Downtown Dallas, where the Imam will deliver his address, is poised not merely to host a gathering but to open into a space of spiritual expanse. When the Imam steps onto that ground, time will seem to pause. The moment of didar will draw a quiet stillness across the crowd a stillness in which every heart will feel its long-held prayer being answered. This is more than a meeting; it is a season of devotion. A harvest nurtured by years of faith, longing, and love.
What gives this entire spiritual journey its deepest meaning is the continuity of mission. Prince Rahim Aga Khan V carries the same message that Imam Ali delivered, and that the chain of Imamat has preserved for centuries. The message has never changed—only eras have shifted, geographies have moved, and languages have evolved. The essence remains constant: keep the doors of knowledge open, make service the adornment of faith, uplift the vulnerable, refuse to separate religion from humanity, and shape society with justice, compassion, and dialogue.
It is this message that has shaped not just religious followers, but dignified citizens, community builders, and guardians of humanity. The light of the Imamat still moves with the same grace with which it once traveled through the streets of Kufa; today it moves through the skies of Houston and Dallas with that same ancient clarity.
Houston was a beginning a chapter that laid the foundation for a new era of dialogue, culture, and spiritual harmony in America. But Dallas is the page that will remain illuminated. It is not simply a moment of encounter; it is a bond one that strengthens generations, unifies hearts, and leaves the soul with an assurance beyond language.
The didar in Dallas will be remembered for years to come. It is a moment in which affection becomes worship, devotion becomes illumination, and the Imam imparts the same timeless message at the heart of the Imamat: to uplift humanity is the highest form of faith, and to extend light is the true mission.
This is the radiance that concludes this journey and the radiance that begins the next.
