MEDICINE AND THE ARTS
Divine Penmanship — Calligraphy of the Arabic Script
Calligraphy from Dr . M . Saleem Seyal
“
Recite
, in the name of your Lord ” was the unexpected , terror-inducing exhortation when divine decree , thru the intermediary of Archangel Jibreel , directed Muhammad in the Hira cave , in 610 in the austere , barren mountains on the outskirts of Mecca . Muhammad was an almost 40-year-old merchant who had attained financial security but found his life unfulfilled , and for several years he used to leave the comfort of his home to spend time in Hira cave for contemplation and meditation . The encounter was the beginning of his prophethood , and the divine revelations would come sporadically over the next 22 years . Since he was unlettered ( he could not read or write ), there was a cadre of scribes around him who would memorize and write his utterances on leaves , bones , wood and parchment pieces for posterity . The revelations were collated and compiled into what eventually became the archetypical book - the Quran - after the prophet ’ s death . Arabic was thus ennobled for being the language of revelation .
Frithjof Schuon ( 1907-1998 ), a Swiss metaphysician and a Sufi who belonged to the Perennialist School of philosophy , called the Quran the “ great theophany ” ( a visible manifestation of God ). Memorization of the Quran and its sonorous manifestation in the form of lyrical recitation ( tajweed ) progressed in earnest . The late
10 LOUISVILLE MEDICINE by M . SALEEM SEYAL , MD , FACC , FACP
professor Ismail Rajai Al-Faruqi ( 1921-1986 ) considered the Quran as an Exemplar , the sublimest expression and the masterpiece of Islamic Art , and added “ There is not a Muslim in the world who has not been moved to his or her very depths by the Quran ’ s rhythm , composition and eloquence .” Muhammad Marmaduke Pickthall ( 1875-1936 ), a British Muslim convert and early English translator of the Quran stated , “... The book , the Glorious Quran that inimitable symphony , the very sound of which moves men to tears and ecstasy .”
The art of Islamic calligraphy is deeply inspired by the Quran and is considered akin to worship , and as the visual embodiment of the divine message . Over the last millennium and a half , a wide variety of scripts or styles have evolved in different parts of the Islamic world and Islamic calligraphy has survived and thrived brilliantly in all its majesty and elegance . In addition , the art of calligraphy is utilized to render hadith ( sayings of the prophet ), proverbs and gorgeous poetry in Arabic , Persian , Urdu , etc .
Writing God ’ s Word in beautiful form became the profession of calligraphers who embellished the grace and beauty of the language as a foundation of the visual culture that permeated the nascent yet ever-expanding civilization of Islam . Ali Ibn Abi Talib , the Prophet ’ s cousin and the fourth Caliph , is considered the first Master Calligrapher . Late Professor Annemarie Schimmel ( author of Calligraphy and Islamic Culture , NYU Press 1984 ) maintains , “ As in Sufism , the spiritual pedigree of the calligraphers invariably leads back to Hazrat Ali .” She quotes a famous 15 th century master of Khatte Nastaliq , Sultan Ali Mashhadi of Iran , who reverentially