Hikmat al-Ishraq ila Kitab al-Afaq
- Author died
- 1205 AH
- Editions
- T al-Madani
Hikmat al-Ishraq ila Kitab al-Afaq (The Wisdom of Illumination for the Scribes of the Horizons) is a specialized treatise on Arabic calligraphy, writing instruments, and the history of calligraphers composed by the lexicographer and hadith scholar Murtada al-Zabidi (1145–1205 AH / 1732–1790 CE) .
Purpose and Background
The work forms part of the classical tradition of literature dedicated to the scribal arts, continuing the trajectory of earlier works such as Adab al-Kuttab by Abu Bakr al-Suli (d. 336 AH), the chapters on script in al-Fihrist by Ibn al-Nadim (d. 385 AH), and the encyclopedic treatment in Subh al-A'sha by Ahmad al-Qalqashandi (d. 821 AH) .
Al-Zabidi composed the treatise as a presentation for the collection of the master calligrapher Amir Hasan Efendi (known as al-Rushdi), who had been appointed head (shaykh) of the guild of scribes and calligraphers in Egypt following the death of Isma'il al-Wahbi . Al-Zabidi also referenced the treatise in his major lexicon, Taj al-Arus, specifically directing readers to its detailed discussion regarding the techniques and angles of trimming the reed pen's nib (qatt al-qalam) .
Structure and Contents
The treatise is organized into ten thematic chapters followed by a two-part epilogue :
- Chapter 1: The origin and earliest inventors of writing, and the joining and separation of letters (fi dhikr man wada'a al-khatt wa-aslahu wa-waslahu wa-faslahu) .
- Chapter 2: The virtue and merit of handwriting and literary sayings regarding it (fi fadl al-khatt wa-ma qila fih) .
- Chapter 3: The pen and the philosophical aphorisms transmitted concerning it (fi al-qalam wa-ma lahum fihi min al-hikam) .
- Chapter 4: The inkwell (al-dawah), its characteristics, and writing implements (fi al-dawah wa-sifatiha wa-alatiha) .
- Chapter 5: Inks and pigments (fi al-midad wa-al-hibr) .
- Chapter 6: Sharpening and trimming reed pens (fi bary al-aqlam) .
- Chapter 7: Diacritical dotting (fi al-naqt) .
- Chapter 8: Vocalization marks and short vowels (fi al-shakl) .
- Chapter 9: The letters of the alphabet and their numerical values (fi dhikr huruf al-mu'jam wa-sirriha fi ta'yin al-'adad) .
- Chapter 10: Biographies of notable scribes and calligraphers from the era of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ down to the author's own lifetime (fi dhikr al-katabah al-kiram min ladun zaman al-Nabi ﷺ ila zaman al-mu'allif) .
The epilogue (khatimah) consists of two concluding sections: the first on the proper conduct and etiquette of the student toward the master calligrapher (adab al-tilmidh ma'a al-shaykh), and the second providing general counsel and professional advice to calligraphers (nasiha li-sa'ir al-khattatin) .
Transmission and Publication
The text has been preserved in manuscript form and was published as an edited treatise within the multi-volume collection Nawadir al-Makhtutat (edited by Abd al-Salam Muhammad Harun), where the title also appears in some manuscript witnesses as Hikmat al-Ishraq fi Kitab al-Afaq .
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