World  Sacred  Scriptures

History and calligraphy of The Quran

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The Quran : History

Qur’an or Koran (krn´, –rän´) (KEY) [Arab.,=reading, recitation], the sacred book of Islam. Revealed by God to the Prophet Muhammad in separate revelations over the major portion of the Prophet’s life at Mecca and at Medina, the Qur’an was intended as a recited text, and was not compiled as a single volume during the life of the Prophet. The establishment of the canonical text is attributed to the 3d caliph, Uthman, who appointed a committee (651–52) to reconcile the conflicting versions then available, under the direction of Zaid ibn Thabit, one of the Prophet’s scribes. The internal organization of the Qur’an is somewhat ad hoc. Revelations consisted of verses (ayat) grouped into 114 chapters (suras). The arrangement of the suras is mechanical: the first, al-Fateha or “the Opening,” is a short prayer exalting God that has become an essential part of all Islamic liturgy and prayer. The rest are graded generally by length, from longest to shortest. It is thus impossible to tell from the book the chronological order of revelations; generally, however, the shorter suras, more electric and fervent than the rest, are the earlier, while many of the longer ones (and all of those revealed at Medina) are later. The Qur’an refers to religious and historical events but seldom provides comprehensive accounts. Its focus is their significance, rather than their narration. God in the Qur’an speaks in the first person. Tafsir, Qur’anic exegesis, initially emerged as a branch of the science of Hadith, in the attempt to gather Muhammad’s elucidations of obscure Qur’anic passages, then developed into a separate discipline with the introduction of etymological and literary analysis tools. Being the verbatim Word of God, the text of the Qur’an is valid for religious purposes only in its original Arabic, cannot be modified, and is not translatable, although the necessity for non-Arabic interpretations is recognized. This has made the Qur’an the most read book in its original language and preserved a classical form of Arabic as an Islamic lingua franca and medium of learning.

  
  
  


The Quran : Calligraphy

Quran
Chinese Turkestan, 1830
Quran
Fateha
Quran
Surah 49
Quran
Probably North Africa, 10th century Double page from the Holy Qur'an Gouache and gold on vellum Each page 11 l/2 x 15 3/4. in Riyadh, Rifaat Sheikh El-Ard collection
Quran
Probably Damascus, circa 1345 -1350 AD Double page from the Holy Qur'an Ink, gouache and gold on paper Each page 18 3/4 x 1 3/4 in Malaysia, private collection Sotheby's (1980 a), lot 153, p. 66
Quran
Ottoman Turkey, circa 1500 - 1510 AD Qur'an Ink, gouache and gold on paper Binding in embossed and gilt leather 15 1/2 x 10 1/2 x 2 1/2 in Prince Saduddin Agha Khan collection Wlech, Anthony (1972 - 1978), vol. II, 5, p. 35; Lings and Safadi (1976), 129, p. 79; Wlech, Anthony (1979)29, p.92; Falk (1985), 105, p. 133.
Quran
India, 15th century Qur'an Page Ink, gouache and gold on paper Binding in embossed and gilt leather 22 x 10 1/4 in. Geneva, Jean-Paul Croisier collection. Sotheby's (1978), 6, p. 6.

The Quran : Links

Islam / Sufism, Abd el-Kader, Abou Bakr As-Siddiq, Abu Bakr al Sabbak, Abu Sa'id, Adda Bentounès, Ahmad Al-Alawi, Al Nuri, Ali Ibn Abou Talib, Al-Junayd, Araqi, Attar, Baba Kuhi of Shiraz, Bistami, Cheikh Ahmed Tidiane Sy, Cheikh Al Islam Niass, Cheikh Bamba Dieye, Dhu-l-Nun, Frithjof Schuon, Ghazzali, Hallaj, Hujwiri, Ibn 'Arabi, Ibn' Ata' Allah, Iman Ali, Iraqi, Jami, Kalabadhi, Khaled Bentounès, Muhammad, Nazir, Others Sufis Teaching, Rabia al-Adawiyya, Rumi, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Shabistari, Shaykh Al Arabî al-Darqawî, Sheikh Badruddin, Sheikh Muzaffer, Sidi Hamza al Qâdiri al Boutchichi, The Quran, Umar al-Khattab, Umar Ibn Al-Farid, Uthman ibn Affan, etc.

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