By the Pen'!: Spreading 'ilm in Indonesia through Quranic calligraphy
Date
2019
Authors
Hooker, Virginia
Journal Title
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Volume Title
Publisher
University of Adelaide Press
Abstract
In the world’s largest Muslim majority nation, mainstream Indonesian Muslims are
seeking to deepen their knowledge of Islam. This was initially stimulated by the
transnational Islamic revival of the 1970s and strengthened by a concurrent policy of
Indonesia’s governing New Order regime. That policy restricted public expressions of
Islam to culture and education and forbade any political expression of the religion. In that
milieu, activities to spread knowledge of the Quran (ʿilm) proliferated through Quranic
study groups, Quranic recitation competitions, and exhibitions of Islam-inspired
calligraphic art. Responding to this thirst for ʿilm, Didin Sirojuddin, an internationally
recognised Indonesian calligrapher, established the Institute of Quranic Calligraphy
(LEMKA) in 1985. The institute is committed to spreading ʿilm through study of the
Quran and the practice of Quranic calligraphy or dakwah bi’l-Qalam (teaching Islam
through the pen). Its statement of purpose emphasises that when transmitting ʿilm
through the process of calligraphy, the calligrapher receives guidance, ethics, aesthetics,
and creative inspiration directly from the Quran. Sirojuddin teaches that once students
have acquired ʿilm, they must put it into practice in the form of good deeds (ʿamal) for
the benefit of the individual and society. In 1998, LEMKA established the only pesantren
in Indonesia devoted wholly to teaching Quranic calligraphy. The deliberate siting of
the pesantren in the mountains of West Java inspires students to remember the Quranic
teaching that Allah created the beauty of the universe as a source of pleasure and
enjoyment. To ignore that beauty, Sirojuddin teaches, is to ignore an aspect of Allah’s
greatness. To give expression to that beauty through calligraphic art bears witness to His
greatness. Sirojuddin believes that beautifully presented Quranic calligraphy makes the
themes and meaning of ʿilm even more beautiful and appealing than they already are,
so that when Muslims see the calligraphy they will be motivated to apply ʿilm through
good deeds in their everyday lives.
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Book chapter
Book Title
'Ilm: Science, Religion and Art in Islam
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Open Access
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Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License
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