Islamic Art in Caligraphy

CALLIGRAPHIC TABLEAU WITH MIRROR SCRIPT – Bursa?/Turkey; dated 1289 H/1872 -73 CE. On the right side below the dervish cap of the Mevlevi order stands a religious invocation which is mirrored on the left side. The Mevlevis cultivate poetry and other arts in addition to calligraphy. This very balanced tableau in mirror writing shows the invocation “Allah hoo” – a religious formula recited by the dervishes. The typical peaked dervish cap (sikke) worn by the Mevlevis is situated prominently in the upper middle above the letters.

 

Fig 2: CALLIGRAPHIC PICTURE OF A MEVLEVI DERVISH CAP Turkey; dated 1322 H/1904-05 CE. The tall cap of the Mevlevi mystics is formed here by the letters of the invocation to Mevlana (Mawlana) Jalal ud-Din Rumi (d. 1273) who founded this order of ‘dancing dervishes’. The Mevlevis’ centre is the city of Konya in Anatolia. The characteristic form of the Mevlevi sikke is formed on this
reverse glass painting by Arabic letters of the invocation ya Hazret-i
Mevlana. The first and the last letters, ya and na, form the brim of the hat. In the upper part of the hat we read “qaddas Allahu sirrahu
a’la” – “God blesses his exalted secret”.

 

Fig 3: CALLIGRAPHIC PICTURE OF A BEKTASHI DERVISH CAP. Turky, 19th century. This printed composition with an invocation to the saint Haci Bektas is designed in the typical Ottoman manner in which the letters are shaped in ‘layered’ calligraphy (istif). The vertical letters are drawn upward and form the segments of the cap. A calligraphic composition in thuluth is printed on marbled paper (ebru) showing in compact form the outlines of the sikke of the Bektashis order known as the Huseyim tac (“Husain’s crown”). The extended verticals forming the folds of the cap are striking.

Fig 4: MIRROR COMPOSITION IN THE SHAPE OF A MOSQUE;
Turkey; First third of 20th century. The composition dedicated
 to praising

 ‘Ali is a popular theme in the pictorial art o f the Bektashi
 dervishes 

whose traditional Sufi order established itself 
in Anatolia in the 14th- 15th centuries and spread 
 from there to the Balkans, Egypt and Iran. 
Another example of the pictorial art of the Bektashis is 
a reverse glass image with 

a mirrored writing composition (‘Ali wa huwa), 
in whose centre a 

mosque with a green dome and two flanking minarets 
shaped like pencils

 is depicted. 
Next to a large round medallion with the name

 of God placed above the dome are four smaller
 medallions 

on the sides of the picture 
in which 

 Muhammad (bottom right, on a red background)

 and ‘Ali (bottom left, on green background)
 are invoked 

and the Prophet’s grandson Hasan 
(bottom right, on green background)
and Husain (bottom left, on red background) 
are named.
 This emphasizes the Shi’ite relationship
 to the Bektashi order.

 

 Fig 5: CALLIGRAPHIC PICTURE IN THE SHAPE OF A ‘TREE OF LIFE; 

Turkey; 

dated 131511/1897-98 CE. The text in this picture, 

harmoniously composed in mirror script, contains a pious

 invocation 

to the ‘Seven Sleepers’. 

The legend, of which there are numerous versions & which

 is also mentioned in the Qur’an tells of several young men 

and a dog who fall 

asleep in a cave.  

They awaken only after 309 years. A work of consummate

 harmony

 signed by the dervish Haqqi
describes the form of a ‘tree of life’ or a blossom.

 The text is an invocation to the 

“Seven Sleepers” (ashab al-kahf), 

mentioned in sura 18, verses 9 -2 6 of the Qur’an.

 Fig 6: BISMALAH IN THE SHAPE OF A FALCON;
 Turkey; dated 1310 H/1892-93 CE.
The popular invocation to God, the Merciful,
is written here in the shape of a falcon

which plays a special role as a soul bird in Islamic
mysticism.
  Special blessing power is attributed to
  the Bismalah everywhere in the Muslim world.

 The hunting falcon is an important symbol in Sufi art
 in mysticism it is regarded as a soul bird
 and model for the pupil’s strict education
 is written in the form of a falcon
whose head is turned to the right.’
by the master.
 9 In the eastern Muslim world the well-known 
Shi’ite protective prayer nadi’AIiyyan
 (“Call on ‘Ali, who works miracles ..”)
  On the reverse glass image shown here,
 however, the text contains the well-known Bismalah
(Turkish: besmele)
 “In the name of God, the Merciful,
the Compassionate.”
This formula is frequently found on devotional
pictures which are hung not only in
dervish lodges but also in
mosques or homes. 

Fig 7: TABLEAU WITH EMBLEMS OF THE 
BEKTASHI 
 SUFI ORDER; Turkey,
before 1826. 

This picture unites three important Bektashi 
symbols:  the dervish cap made of bright felt, the name 
 ‘Ali and the lion
 (with an enscripted double verse in Turkish),
 which also represents 
the Prophet’s cousin and son-in-law. 
 shows the typical cap of the order, 
the name ‘Ali (with the last letter extended
 in the form of double-edged sabre)’
 the figure of a lion at rest
 The lion (Persian: haidar) is
 a common symbol for the strength 
 and greatness of ‘Ali,
the fourth of the rightly
  guided caliphs and
 the first
 imam of the Shia who plays
 an outstanding role in Sufi tradition
 is praised as the “Lion of God.” 
  In the animal’s body is written 
the Turkish double verse:
  “As a necklace you put on 
  the chain of your locks.
 Pray tell, lion mine, 
  are you of the ,
People of Haidar?”






Fig 8: CALLIGRAPHIC TABLEAU WITH LION 
 AND DRAGON; Turkey
 dated 121011/1795-96 CE.

  Both animal figures are
 artistically formed by letters
formulating a double verse in
Persian by Farid ud-Din ‘Attar:  

“Destruction of evil desire is everyone’s ideal. 
I killed the snake, it is in Haidar’s claws.” 
This depiction thus reflects the core idea of Sufism,
namely that the lower animal soul  
(nafs) embodied by the dragon
 the ego of the mystic, is annihilated.


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