Ahwal Al-Ma'rifa – Special

The French Orientalist Étienne Dinet, who adopted the name Nasir al-Din after embracing Islam, wrote:

“Arabic calligraphy is one of the sublime arts produced by the human imagination. Perhaps it is the only art of which we can say, without exaggeration, that it possesses a spirit. It is like the human voice, expressing the thoughts within the soul. It does not draw its inspiration from the external world, no matter how organized and harmonious that world may be. In this respect, it belongs to music, and appears to be a symbol of meanings that live within the hearts.”

Thus, Dinet connected the aesthetics of Arabic calligraphy, with all its letter-based and artistic dimensions, to the imagination, spirit, and heart of the human being. Arabic calligraphy here seems to express the music of the human self and its very being. It is not merely letters, inscriptions, and ornaments, but a living musical and vocal expression that has traveled through a long artistic and spiritual journey, from writing on paper, fabric, leather, stone, and rock to writing on walls. Calligraphers throughout the Arab and Islamic world produced an unparalleled historical art of ornamentation, with Arabic calligraphy in all its forms and decorative styles engraved on the walls, domes, and minarets of mosques, as well as on Islamic architectural structures throughout different parts of the Islamic world. It continues to be used in Islamic architecture to this day.

The flexibility of Arabic letters in calligraphic composition has led to the emergence of more than 100 types of Arabic scripts. Dinet says:

“Look at these letters, drawn from right to left in swift horizontal lines, then turning around themselves in calm or violent undulations, as though they were moving according to the desire of a hidden inner spirit. Then they rise, suddenly stop, and stand proudly in intersecting straight forms, only to return once again to a wild rush, untying the forms that had become intertwined.”

Historical Overview:

Arabic writing is considered one of the noblest forms of writing because the Book of God Almighty was recorded in no other script. Scholars discovered the beauty of calligraphy in written texts and recognized the characteristics of written language through their interaction with the art of calligraphy and their observation of its aesthetics. The aesthetics of calligraphy developed its own terminology, while the influence of the Holy Qur’an on the eloquence of calligraphy remained evident, particularly through the writing of Qur’anic manuscripts. Among the most famous early calligraphers were Ibn Muqla, Yaqut al-Musta'simi, and Ibn al-Bawwab.

Some researchers believe that the Arabs acquired their writing from the Nabataeans, who lived in northern Arabia. Accordingly, Arabic calligraphy developed from the Nabataean script. Inscriptions discovered in southern Hauran in Jordan, the Namara inscription in the ancient kingdom of al-Hirah in the Middle Euphrates region, and an inscription in Jabal al-Druze provide evidence of this. Historians generally agree that the first person to introduce writing to Makkah was Harb ibn Umayyah ibn Abd Shams, who learned it during his travels. The Aws and Khazraj were also known for writing, and it is said that writing entered Madinah before Makkah. From there, Muslims took an interest in teaching and spreading it.

Ibn al-Nadim narrated in his book Al-Fihrist that the first people to write in Arabic were three men from Bulan, a tribe of Tayyi’ who lived in the region of al-Anbar. They gathered and developed connected and separate letters. They were:

Mararah ibn Marrah, Aslamah ibn Sidrah, and Amir ibn Jadrah.

The Naskh script later emerged through the efforts of the vizier Ibn Muqla and his brother Al-Hasan.

Among the countries that write their languages using the Arabic script are Malaysia, Java, Madagascar, Iran, Afghanistan, India, and Pakistan, as well as Urdu-speaking regions in Kashmir and Jammu.

Turkey also continued to use the Arabic alphabet until Mustafa Kemal, who compelled the Turks to adopt the Latin alphabet. Russia likewise used the Arabic alphabet for a long period before transitioning to Latin and later replacing it with the Slavic script.

The Character of Arabic Calligraphy:

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) praised beautiful handwriting, saying:

“Beautiful handwriting makes the truth clearer.”

Ali ibn Abi Talib said:

“You should have beautiful handwriting, for it is a key to livelihood.”

Al-Qalqashandi said:

“Calligraphy is that by which the forms of individual letters, their configurations, and the manner in which they are composed are known.”

The Arabs became renowned for beautiful, refined, and varied calligraphy. The Naskh script emerged through the efforts of the vizier Abu Ali Muhammad ibn Muqla (272–328 AH) and his brother Muhammad, and their beautiful handwriting became proverbial. Arabic calligraphy took on artistic forms and became closely associated with decorative art. The earliest ornamental scripts included Kufic, from which geometric forms developed, including polygonal, vegetal, braided, and other styles. Other decorative scripts also emerged, such as Tughra, Persian, and Diwani.

According to the Al-Sharikh Archive, more than 210 studies and articles on the aesthetics of Arabic calligraphy were published in Arab periodicals during the twentieth century. Researchers highlighted the various aesthetic dimensions of Arabic scripts. Atif Abdul Sattar described Arabic calligraphy as:

“A spiritual geometry with a physical instrument.”

Meanwhile, Musaddiq Al-Habib described it as:

“A source of endless dreams and magic.”

The German Orientalist Ernst Kühnel, born in 1882, said:

“I consider Arabic calligraphy, as an art, to be one of the noblest of the arts.”

Muhammad Tahir al-Kurdi defined calligraphy as:

“A discipline through which the movement of the fingertips with the pen is controlled according to specific rules.”

Farouk Bassiouni believed that:

“Arabic calligraphy is a stimulus for creativity.”

Dr. Ismail Farouk stated:

“Among the peoples of Mesopotamia and among the Hebrews, Hindus, Greeks, and Romans, including the Arabs themselves, no one attempted to discover the aesthetic value of the word. Islam, however, opened new horizons for the word as a means of artistic expression. Islamic genius is incomparable. This script became a form of arabesque and developed into a purely Islamic work of art.”

Enduring Aesthetics:

Walid Al-A'zami identifies a number of characteristics of Arabic calligraphy, including composition, dotting, the direction of letters, measurement, and proportions.

Arabic calligraphy is divided into two categories. The first consists of hard, straight letters, represented by the various forms of Kufic script. It takes beautiful geometric forms such as squares, pentagons, stars, angles, arches, and braids. The second consists of soft and flexible letters that respond to the movement of the pen during writing, including flattened, inclined, rounded, and curved forms. These are manifested in scripts such as Thuluth, Muhaqqaq, Murakkab, Ijazah, Naskh, Ruq'ah, and Diwani.

Among the types of Arabic calligraphy are Simple Kufic, Kufic with Ornamental Heads, Foliate Kufic, Floral Kufic, Velvet Kufic, Braided Kufic, Square Kufic, and Architectural Kufic. Other scripts include Naskh, Thuluth, Ijazah, Ruq'ah, Diwani, Ghubari, Muthanna, and Persian.

A number of calligraphers became renowned in the modern era, including Nasser Al-Maimoun, Mahmoud Hammad, Muhammad Ozçay, Hashim Muhammad Al-Baghdadi, Walid Al-A'zami, Uthman Taha, Masum Muhammad Khalaf, Fahd Al-Mujahidi, Abdulrahim Amin, Abdulrazzaq Khouja, and Uthman Al-Khuzaim, among others.

Mosque Murals:

Islamic architecture researcher Afif Bahnassi believes that reading the architectural text of a mosque requires a semiological and symbolic approach aimed at revealing a fundamental element of Islamic aesthetics, integrating it with other elements in pursuit of constructing an aesthetic and static philosophy based on the principle of tawhid, or divine unity.

Because the mosque became the center of spiritual radiance in the Islamic city, according to Bahnassi, many mosques have the Verse of Light inscribed on their domes:

“Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The example of His light is like a niche containing a lamp; the lamp is in a glass; the glass is as if it were a shining star, lit from a blessed tree.”
(Qur’an, Al-Nur 24:35)

It was inscribed at the highest points of the domes as an enduring sign of the mosque's spirituality, derived from divine perfection.

Here, the beauty of Arabic calligraphy emerges visually in this noble verse. Because the spacious dimensions of mosques allow for extensive walls, in addition to columns, domes, and towering minarets, the visual and spiritual dimension remained present in the imagination of the builders of these mosques. Their architectural designs made the qiblah, or direction of prayer, the first spiritual image of the encounter between worshippers and their Creator. From here, the upper sections of the walls were adorned with Qur’anic verses, giving them their spiritual, aesthetic, and visual dimensions.

Afif Bahnassi states:

“The additions that enriched the spiritual meaning of the mosque became organically integrated into its structure after Islamic culture deepened and Islamic thought became richer. The most important of these additions were the minaret, dome, mihrab, and arches, followed by ornaments and muqarnas. Thus, the mosque became a small universe: its sky is the dome, its space is the courtyard, and its stars are the windows and niches.”

While colored decorations occupy a large visual space in many mosques, such as the Grand Mosque, the Prophet’s Mosque, the Great Mosque of Córdoba, the Mosque-Madrasa of Sultan Hasan, Al-Rifa'i Mosque, Al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, and the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Istanbul, the Arabic calligraphy used to inscribe Qur’anic verses, particularly in Thuluth and Tughra, is found in almost all major mosques. These decorations, or arabesque designs, which cover the walls and ceilings of many mosques, serve as aesthetic visual elements that complement the inscriptions of Qur’anic verses written in various Arabic scripts.

Arabic calligraphy is considered an essential element of Islamic architecture. It adorns the walls, arches, and domes of mosques, bringing together visual beauty and spiritual meaning through Qur’anic verses and Prophetic traditions.

The Grand Mosque, with its sacred status, is a beacon of architectural beauty. Its details embody the artistry of authentic Arabic calligraphy that adorns its surroundings. Three principal scripts have been used to write Qur’anic verses in the Grand Mosque: Thuluth, Kufic, and free-form calligraphy.

The inscriptions and calligraphy decorating the walls of the Prophet’s Mosque embody a unique combination of artistic beauty and the eloquence of the Arabic language, serving as an enduring testament to the magnificence of Islamic art and the richness of its civilizational heritage.

The calligraphic inscriptions on the walls of the Prophet’s Mosque are among the most magnificent examples of Arabic calligraphy. Their scripts are distinguished by the beauty of their composition and the precision of their arrangement. These inscriptions contain verses from the Holy Qur’an, noble Prophetic traditions, and the Beautiful Names of Allah, expressing the spirituality of the sacred place.

Arabic calligraphy appears on mosque murals as a profound spiritual state, taking on a sacred dimension because it carries Qur’anic verses. The Arabic letters are honored by bearing the noble Qur’anic text, with all its meanings, implications, and interpretations.

Arabic calligraphy, as Afif Bahnassi notes, rose to the summit of aesthetic eloquence through the compositions of the Thuluth pen. Its eloquence was indebted to the eloquence of the verses of the Holy Book. The organic structure of the Arabic language gives individual letters, even before they are embodied in meaningful words, an influence that asserts itself upon the word. Thus, the field of interpretation becomes broad, and the role of calligraphy in interpreting mosque architecture becomes significant, further enhancing the importance of the mosque's spiritual function.

Footnotes:

• Dr. Mustafa Muhammad Rashad: The Aesthetics of Arabic Calligraphy and Its Applications in Graphic Designs and Publications, Alam Al-Kutub, 2014.

• https://journals.ekb.eg/article_241884.html

• https://archive.alsharekh.org/SearchResult

• Mahmoud Al-Husniyah: Writing and the Development of Arabic Calligraphy, Al-Adib Magazine, Beirut, Issue 9, September 1969.

• Walid Al-A'zami: Characteristics of Arabic Calligraphy, Journal of the Iraqi Scientific Academy, Issue 2, April 1980.

• Rifaa Hilal Habib: Arabic Calligraphy: The Aesthetics of the Letter and the Miracle of the Pen, Al-Rafid Magazine, August 2024.

• https://arrafid.ae/Article-Preview?I=EOnZGMi5G64%3D&m=5U3QQE93T

• https://alharamain.gov.sa/public/?module=subj-ar&main_subject=nw&subject=subject_305234