About the book Al-Jami' fi Khatt al-Ruq'ah (The Comprehensive Guide to Ruq'ah Script) by the Egyptian calligrapher Mohamed Hassan Ahmed
First: – Why it is named so
The book is called Al-Jami' (The Comprehensive) because it brings together the source (the work of the calligrapher Mohamed Ezzat) and its branches: the copybook of Abdel Razek Awad, a student of Mohamed Ezzat; that of Naguib Bey Hawaweeny, also his student; the Khatt al-Wadih copybook by Sheikh Mohamed Abdel Rahman, one of the pillars of the Egyptian school of Ruq'ah; and the Ruq'ah samples in the book Fann al-Khatt al-Arabi by Professor Sayed Ibrahim, another pillar of the Egyptian school.
The first part of the book also draws inspiration from the writings of these masters before 1942.
Second: - The idea of the book
The idea arose from seeing the difficulties of Ruq'ah students and scholars: the poor printing of Mohamed Ezzat's work because it was lithographed, missing letter connections such as those of sad, ta, ayn and lam, and the lack of detailed explanations for the remaining letters.
This opened the door to study and research: measuring some of these letters against others, completing what was missing, and writing detailed explanations of the secrets of forming letters and connections, following Mohamed Ezzat's method. To make things easier for Ruq'ah students, the idea followed of gathering the source, its branches and the pillars of the Egyptian school of Ruq'ah in one book, a reference for lovers and students of this art.
Third: - The structure of the book
The book opens with an introduction to Islamic arts and their flourishing, and to Arabic calligraphy and its role in serving the Holy Qur'an, society and individuals. Next comes the Ruq'ah practice by the author, the calligrapher Mohamed Hassan Ahmed, followed by the work of Mohamed Ezzat as the source, then the copybook of his Egyptian student Abdel Razek Awad, then that of his Syrian student Naguib Bey Hawaweeny, then Sheikh Mohamed Abdel Rahman's Khatt al-Wadih copybook, and finally the Ruq'ah in Professor Sayed Ibrahim's Fann al-Khatt al-Arabi from the reign of King Farouk.
Fourth: – Year of publication and page count
The book was published in early 2021 by Dar Midad, in cooperation with the Central Administration for Literary Affairs and Competitions at the Egyptian Ministry of Culture. It runs to 88 pages in medium format, printed in colour on glossy paper.
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