Volume 1, Issue 3 (11-2025)
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amani H. A Critique of Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s Views on Islamic Illumination and Calligraphy. مکتب نقدنظر 2025; 1 (3) : 4
URL: http://jcr-sj.com/article-1-38-en.html
URL: http://jcr-sj.com/article-1-38-en.html
Abstract: (125 Views)
From the Traditionalist perspective, calligraphy is regarded as the noblest and most distinguished of the Islamic arts, serving as the foundation for the visual arts in the Islamic world. The views of Seyyed Hossein Nasr, published in his essay “The Spiritual Message of Islamic Calligraphy,” have been widely adopted by researchers as established fact. However, it appears that in several respects, his assertions are inconsistent with the historical trajectory of the evolution of illumination and calligraphy. Therefore, the present critique, employing a descriptive-analytical approach and a comparative method, seeks to answer the following question by examining historical evidence—such as surviving scripts, inscriptions, and manuscript sources—and comparing the collected data: How do Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s views on Islamic illumination and calligraphy align with the historical course of the development and evolution of script and calligraphy?
By comparing Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s views on traditional Islamic illumination and calligraphy with historical written sources and extant examples, it becomes evident that his opinions on these arts are, in certain cases, incompatible with their recorded history. It thus appears that the origin of Nasr’s thought is based less on history and more on futuwwat-nāmehs (manuals of chivalry) and treatises on calligraphy and illumination. Some of the content in these texts, articulated in general and esoteric (abstract) terms, was primarily formulated and expanded to legitimize the status and significance of calligraphy within Islamic civilization as a vessel for recording the divine revelation.
By comparing Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s views on traditional Islamic illumination and calligraphy with historical written sources and extant examples, it becomes evident that his opinions on these arts are, in certain cases, incompatible with their recorded history. It thus appears that the origin of Nasr’s thought is based less on history and more on futuwwat-nāmehs (manuals of chivalry) and treatises on calligraphy and illumination. Some of the content in these texts, articulated in general and esoteric (abstract) terms, was primarily formulated and expanded to legitimize the status and significance of calligraphy within Islamic civilization as a vessel for recording the divine revelation.
Article number: 4
Keywords: Critique of Traditionalist Views, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Islamic Calligraphy, Islamic Art, Illumination (Tadh’hīb).
Type of Study: Research |
Subject:
General
Received: 2025/10/1 | Accepted: 2025/11/1 | Published: 2025/11/1
Received: 2025/10/1 | Accepted: 2025/11/1 | Published: 2025/11/1
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