Mishkín-Qalam, the Calligrapher

A retelling drawn from Memorials of the Faithful, 'Abdu'l-Bahá's reminiscences of the believers in Bahá'u'lláh's circle. Phrases in quotation marks are 'Abdu'l-Bahá's own words in that book.

Mishkín-Qalam was the leading calligrapher of Persia. 'Abdu'l-Bahá writes that he was "well known to all the great" and held a special position among the court ministers of Ṭihrán. He was famed throughout Asia Minor, and "his pen was the wonder of all calligraphers, for he was adept at every calligraphic style." He had "a witty and subtle mind," and "for human virtues, a bright star."

He first heard of the Cause of God in Iṣfáhán, and he set out to find Bahá'u'lláh. "He crossed the great distances, measured out the miles, climbing mountains, passing over deserts and over the sea, until at last he came to Adrianople. Here he reached the heights of faith and assurance; here he drank the wine of certitude." He attained the presence of Bahá'u'lláh and spent some time under His care. There he wrote out the Most Great Name, Yá Bahá'u'l-Abhá, "O Thou Glory of the All-Glorious," "with marvelous skill, in many different forms," and sent the calligraphs everywhere.

He was then directed to go to Constantinople, where the leading Persians and Turks at first received him with honour and admired his art. When he began to teach the Faith, the Persian ambassador told the Sulṭán's ministers that he was an agitator. 'Abdu'l-Bahá answers the charge: "that mild and submissive man" was "occupied solely with his calligraphy and his worship of God," striving "not sedition but fellowship and peace." He was "a refuge to the hapless and a horn of plenty to the poor." Even so, he was jailed and sent to Gallipoli, and from there to Cyprus, where he was held prisoner in the citadel of Famagusta for about nine years.

When Cyprus passed out of Turkish hands he was freed, and he went to Bahá'u'lláh in 'Akká. There he lived "producing his marvelous calligraphs and sending them about," at all times "joyous of spirit, ashine with the love of God, like a candle burning its life away."

After the ascension of Bahá'u'lláh, Mishkín-Qalam remained "solidly established in the Covenant." 'Abdu'l-Bahá writes that he "stood before the violators like a brandished sword," and that "not for a moment did he falter, nor ever fail in service." After a journey to India he returned to 'Akká, and he was, in 'Abdu'l-Bahá's words, "at all times my close companion." 'Abdu'l-Bahá describes him this way: "He was a compendium of perfections: believing, confident, serene, detached from the world, a peerless companion, a wit—and his character like a garden in full bloom."

'Abdu'l-Bahá adds that had Mishkín-Qalam not been "in love with the Blessed Beauty," "every worldly pleasure could have been his," for "wherever he went, his many calligraphic styles were a substantial capital." Instead "he wanted neither comfort nor rest, he sought no wealth," and he was "free of all those other bonds," able to "float and soar in the spirit's endless sky."

This is a retelling. For the fuller account, see Memorials of the Faithful by 'Abdu'l-Bahá.

'Abdu'l-Bahá. (1915). *Memorials of the Faithful*. Bahá'í Publishing Trust. https://www.bahai.org/library/authoritative-texts/abdul-baha/memorials-faithful/