Mir Ali Tabrizi — a genius of the art of letters

The calligraphy created by Mir Ali Tabrizi was not only an aesthetic revolution of his era but also a lofty spiritual heritage that has survived to this day. Even after centuries, his name, style, and particularly the nasta‘liq script which embodies both beauty and depth of thought remain alive. Today, this script is not only read but also admired, studied, and highly valued.

 

The British Museum, the National Library of Iran, and the National Library of Russia among the world’s most prestigious museums and libraries preserve manuscripts penned by Mir Ali Tabrizi as some of their rarest treasures. These works have not been lost through the centuries; rather, they have been preserved with reverence, becoming invaluable cultural heritage that is continually studied.

 

Indeed, every line written by Mir Ali Tabrizi is a vivid and moving expression of art. His letters reach the soul before the word, the heart before the eye. For this reason, Mir Ali Tabrizi’s name lives on not merely in museum exhibitions but in human thought and cultural memory.

 

The nasta‘liq script created by Mir Ali Tabrizi is a supreme example of the harmony of art, thought, and taste. He took the structured discipline of naskh, the free and flowing rhythm of ta‘liq, and in his own unique style produced a new form of writing unparalleled and meeting the highest aesthetic standards. This transformation was not merely a technical development in calligraphy but a progressive shift in cultural perspective. Through nasta‘liq, lines became more refined, and thoughts found a more beautiful and impactful expression in words.

 

His discovery and contribution to scholarship

 

Mir Ali Tabrizi’s greatest service was the creation of an entirely new, perfect, and aesthetically exquisite style of writing the nasta‘liq. He analyzed the finest qualities of the two existing scripts, naskh and ta‘liq, and fused them. The resulting synthesis was a true revolution for its time.

 

The nasta‘liq script is not only elegant and delicate in form but also maintains rhythm, clarity, and natural connection. Every letter links harmoniously to the next, and the balance between lines is preserved. This made it both easier to read and write, while at the same time transforming it into a script adorned with beauty.

 

Mir Ali did not stop at creating this style. He also composed a poetic treatise on the shape, balance, and connection of letters. This manual later became a key reference for calligraphers in Khorasan and Transoxiana.

 

Over time, nasta‘liq spread throughout the East in Iran, Transoxiana, Azerbaijan, India, and the Ottoman Empire. It became the main script not only for manuscripts but also for divans, poetic anthologies, scholarly works, decrees, and personal letters. It marked a new stage in the refined expression of words.

 

Manuscripts he transcribed

 

Mir Ali Tabrizi was not only the creator of a new writing style but also a master calligrapher who produced incomparable works in that style. His manuscripts are valuable not only for their elegant script but also for preserving the spiritual achievements of his time.

 

Among the works he transcribed are Saadi’s Kulliyat and Bustan, Kirmani’s Humay and Humayun, Kamalnama, Rawdat al-anwar, and the Khamsas of Nizami and Amir Khusrow Dehlavi. These are pearls of Persian-Tajik literature, which Mir Ali immortalized in his unique nasta‘liq hand, both literarily and spiritually.

 

Some of these manuscripts are preserved in the British Museum, others in the National Library of Iran and the National Library of Russia in St. Petersburg. For example, the 1396 copy of Humay and Humayun or the Khamsas remain important sources for researchers today, carrying the vibrant voice of Mir Ali’s pen across centuries.

 

These writings hold not only aesthetic value but also scientific, cultural, and educational significance. Every line he penned is imbued with the spirit, heart, and taste of his era. Thus, the manuscripts of Mir Ali Tabrizi are considered crucial cultural documents of Eastern civilization.

 

The spread and influence of Nasta‘liq

 

From the second half of the 15th century onward, the nasta‘liq style created by Mir Ali completely renewed the writing traditions of the East. In a short time, this script, with its aesthetic beauty, balance, and harmonious letter connections, captivated hearts. It was no longer confined to calligraphy it began to be widely used in literature, archival documentation, science, and education.

 

Poetry became the most sacred ground for nasta‘liq. This style was unmatched in elegantly conveying poetic emotions, images, and meanings. Works by great masters such as Saadi, Hafez, and Kamal al-Din Behzad lived on in nasta‘liq script.

 

Later, nasta‘liq was used not only in rare works but also in everyday correspondence, state decrees, and personal letters. This demonstrated that it had entered daily life and reached the hearts of the people.

 

Through nasta‘liq, not only words but also spirit, emotion, and aesthetic delight found expression. It transformed the pen into an art form and the paper into a stage.

 

The nasta‘liq style created by Mir Ali Tabrizi is not just a script—it is the written form of Eastern worldview, taste, mode of thought, and historical memory. Through letters, it connected peoples, harmonized cultures, and enriched spiritual life.

 

Mir Ali was not only a master who elevated the art of calligraphy to a new level but also an intellectual figure who shaped an entire cultural environment. His creation of nasta‘liq was not merely a stylistic innovation by one man, but an event that introduced a new cultural vision for expressing thought and word in Eastern civilization.

 

Today, his style is still actively used in calligraphy, design, museology, and cultural heritage restoration. This confirms the vitality of Mir Ali Tabrizi’s penmanship and the enduring significance of his innovation.

 

Thus, we must remember Mir Ali Tabrizi not merely as a calligrapher of the past, but as a spiritual architect who harmonized letters and thought.

 

Husan Tursunov

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