Refuge Before Speech

Arabic: فَإِذَا قَرَأْتَ ٱلْقُرْءَانَ فَٱسْتَعِذْ بِٱللَّهِ مِنَ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنِ ٱلرَّجِيمِ English Rendition: “So when you recite the Qur’an, seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan,” Qur'ān, Surah An-Nahl (16:98).   1 of 1 original work by award-winning calligrapher Ahmet Namazi using natural pigments on hand-treated banana paper.   Before every recitation begins, there is a pause, a breath drawn in awareness. This piece captures that threshold between silence and sound, the inward stillness that precedes the word of God.   The verse unfolds in Jalī Thuluth, gathered into an elliptical istif, a balanced composition that mirrors the cadence of Qur’anic recitation: steady, contained, and alive with rhythm. The form invites the eye inward, toward a center of calm, much like the believer gathers themselves before speech.   Rendered in deep black ink upon subtly textured paper, the work contrasts focus before utterance, peace before sound.