Moshaf Yaghout

Description

The Yaghout Sacred Volume

Majid Fadaeian

The diverse collection of works of art that after Bisat (the appointment of Muhammad to the post of Prophethood) hugely influenced the great civilizations of the time from Egypt and China to Iran, provides a historical perspective on Islamic art. This collection has a main axis, which is the «calligraphic art». Without knowing the Islamic scripts, the achievement of Islamic art is almost impossible, therefore it is said that «script» is a pure prophetic art. In fact, the art of writing scripts, due to its necessity and public accessibility, is considered to be one of the most important forms of art developed by mankind. With the advent of Islam, the art of calligraphy reached the highest level among Islamic arts and never encountered any objections or limitations. The art of calligraphy, as a cultural tool with a variety of aspects, illustrates the aspirations and beliefs of countless many artists. Unlike the Latin script, in the Islamic world, script is used to complement all kinds of art including handicrafts, transcription and tilework (Kashikari). In addition to transcription and decorating objects, the art of calligraphy, have also had many applications in the interior and exterior design of the religious places and palaces. Therefore, knowing and understanding the significance of the applied aesthetics of calligraphy in Islam is the key to the proper understanding of the Islamic art. Although the use of script in Islamic art has gained a decorative function, it has encountered no limitation. In fact, the illustration of ideas and imaginations by artists has provided the context for the freedom of action, has stimulated creativity in embodying ideas in the realm of calligraphy, and has left behind an enduring legacy for the future.

On the other hand, the Qur›anic transcription, often performed with the purpose of the development of the art of calligraphy and keeping the name of the sponsors alive, was always considered a spiritual undertaking. Therefore, many of the great calligraphers in the Islamic world often spent their precious time on the transcription of the Holy Qur›an. The Holy Qur›an itself has acted as a powerful incentive for the invention of various scripts and the calligraphic innovations in Islamic calligraphy and has provided an inspiring context for achieving the best scripts. With the establishment of administrative offices in the Umayyad and Abbasid regimes, it was necessary to use a simple script. Ibn Muqllah Abu Ali Mohammed ibn Ali Farsi, the Minister of Caliph Al-Muqtadir, who was himself an eminent figure in the art of calligraphy and had formulated some calligraphic principles, provided the world of calligraphy with a geometric order by prescribing the point as the scale for measuring the size of the letters. As Safavi states, «The category gave scientific accuracy to the art of calligraphy.» Following Ibn Muqllah›s principles, Ibn Bawab Irani and then Yaqut al-Musta›simi and his students developed the art of Islamic calligraphy.

Perhaps the most important reason underlying the survival of a number of Quranic manuscripts against the wars, book burnings, natural disasters, humidity and the passage of time, was the particular way of protecting these texts. Back then, it was largely believed that these texts were the words of God and their maintenance was obligatory. Therefore, all calligraphers in different periods attempted to clearly show the heavenly nature of the verses, and among them, the different scribes tried to portray the beauty of the verses in such a way that the sanctity and divine power were transmitted to the readers through the scripts. But in addition to the visual significance of the scripts, it was the creativity in transforming and modifying the scripts to promote the readability of the text that encouraged the readers to focus on many parts of the text. In Islamic culture, the belief that looking at the pages of the Quran brings blessing and joy to man, made those who could not read the Qur›an ask God for blessing and mercy by looking at the verses. When they looked at the Qur›an, they would send blessings/greetings (Salawat) on Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Regarding the transcription and the ornamentations of the present sacred volume, it should be said that from the beginning to the present day, the founders of this sacred volume have spared no effort to maintain, repair and complete it, and their efforts should be acknowledged. This sacred volume has been well-preserved like a precious jewel and all its repairs, from the reconstruction of the margins, sentences and illuminations to the repair of the defects and the elimination of the imperfections, has been done in a magnificent way.

Today, following the efforts of the early founders of this collection (Neirizi, Noor and Yaqut sacred volumes and etc.) to spread the word of the God through Iranian-Islamic art of calligraphy, an effort is made to revive Iranian-Islamic arts. Germany-based Toranj Group, meeting the international standards for printing exquisite books, put in a great deal of effort to achieve the best result in terms of similarity to the original. It is worth noting that the printing (eleven colors) and binding of this book have been done by relying on tradition and using the latest available methods and the best material. Toranj group (Mr. Shahab and Mahdi Matin-Reza) has been in charge of the book-bindery. The Stamped browned binding performed is one of the most enduring examples of contemporary bookbinding.

I would like to extend my gratitude to Mr. Arash Rezaei Baran and his colleagues, Ms. Maryam Baran, Ms. Maral Afsarpour and Ms. Hayedeh Ebrahimi. I would also like to thank Ms. Parvin Heidarnesb, Seyedeh Tahereh Faghihi and Mr. Rajab Jalali for their help in the translation and preparation process. Also, I am very grateful for the continuous support of the people in Rasch publishing agency in Germany for the printing and preparation of this volume. Last but not least, I would like to thank Seyyed Mohammad Sadegh Kharazi and Haj Abbas Iravani, the two founders of this magnificent work. My God bless them all.