Introduction to Classical Arabic Calligraphy
This is a semester-long course that immerses the student in the classical way of learning Arabic calligraphy as practiced for hundreds of years, with regular feedback provided on one’s work by our master calligrapher Shahryanshah Sirajuddin.
Time & Location
Time is TBD
Online
Course Details
MEETING INFO:
September 9 - December 16, 2021
Times: 10 PM UTC | 5 PM CDT | Course Format: Online
ABOUT THE COURSE:
The most important aspect of this class is correcting your work by a master calligrapher, not continually copying mistakes in your practice. The Islamic arts are transmitted through the Ijaza system, and this methodology has preserved calligraphy for over 1000 years. Our teacher, Shahryanshah Sirajuddin, is an award-winning master calligrapher in the Osmanli (Ottoman) tradition of the Riqa, Diwani, Jali Diwani, Naskh, Thuluth, and Jali Thuluth scripts.
Shahryanshah Hoca will start with the Riqa script as it is the easiest one to learn, and most students gain proficiency in about three months. Until the early 20th century, Riqa was the handwriting script used daily in Osmanli lands, so everyone who started learning calligraphy already knew it. When you start learning calligraphy, you are initially learning how to hold a qalam, sharpen it, dilute your ink, how much ink your qalam holds, and learn the pressure needed to transfer the ink from the qalam to the paper. You are also learning subtleties of the angles, measurements, lines, and twists while writing the letters.
The Divinely inspired purpose of calligraphy is to learn the mechanics of writing the letters, which are based on philosophical and spiritual understandings and are also a means of disciplining the nafs. "Learn calligraphy with your soul" is a message Shahryanshah Hoca often repeats to his students. It is considered an Islamic science (akin to Fiqh and Tafseer) because it preserves the written Word of Allah, and it is a means of