by SUDHA RAMACHANDRAN
Ismailis regard themselves as “proper Muslims”. However, Sunnis and Shi’ites in Pakistan (and other countries where Ismailis live) believe they are “different”. For one, they seem quite “Westernized”. Ismaili women are not expected to wear the burqa (veil). In their congregation halls, women pray alongside men – on separate but similar and adjacent carpets, denoting equality between the sexes. The schools run by Ismailis are co-educational. A distinct Hindu influence is also discernible in their style of worship.
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