Ismaili Heritage
In his April 2003 address  restored by the  in Delhi, India, His Highness the Aga Khan observed that its chahar-bagh (lit. four gardens) construction, the first in the sub-continent to surround a Mughal tomb, was
an attempt to create a transcendent perfection — a glimpse of paradise on earth.
Speaking about the restored gardens becoming ‘the fulcrum and catalyst for socio-economic development as well as an irreplaceable resource for education,’ the Aga Khan went on to assert that ‘Whether through neglect or wilful destruction, the disappearance of physical traces of the past deprives us of more than memories. Spaces that embody historic realities remind us of the lessons of the past.’
‘How,’ he asked, returning to Humayun’s Tomb 18 months later in November 2004 for the , ‘do we protect the past and inspire the future?’
This and related questions on the vital role of heritage in human flourishing led to a proposal in 2007 to document Ismaili heritage sites globally as a Golden Jubilee initiative.