What is the secret behind the Muslim artist’s tendency towards Arabic calligraphy, inventing various forms of it and continuing to develop, master and perfect it until he reaches this level of perfection?

The answer: The secret lies in some of the rulings of Islam that relate to the prohibition of pictures and statues.  Muslims turned away from decorating their homes and mosques with illustrated paintings, so the Muslim artist turned to Arabic calligraphy, in which he emptied his creative energies and took from it his material for painting and shaping, exploiting the capabilities of the Arabic letter in terms of grace and fluidity to create paintings of the utmost beauty and magnificence.  These beautiful paintings carried, in addition to the beauty of appearance and the pleasure of the eye, the sublimity of meaning and the magnificence of wisdom, and raised man to the highest levels of spiritual pleasure.

The Muslim artist has adapted some Quranic verses to depict many forms such as plants, animals and machines. The Bismillah depicts the form of a bird, and the phrase “ There is no god but Allah ” creates a scene made up of minarets and domes.

Arabic calligraphy has gained a status due to its association with the Quran.  Calligraphers have excelled and been creative in writing and decorating the Quran and writing its verses. They have paid special attention to writing the “Bismillah” in many wonderful images. Their first motivation for this creativity was their faith, as it is a verse from the Quran that opens every chapter of it.  It has a direct impact on the daily behaviour of the Muslim, as he repeats it on every occasion and when he does his work or eats and drinks, and writes it at the beginning of his books, letters, and sales and purchase contracts, as he is optimistic and optimistic about it. The Prophet’s (ﷺ) said in a Hadith, “Every action that does not begin with the name of Allah is incomplete,” meaning it is cut off from goodness and blessings.