ভূমিকা

(Holy Qur’an, 16:44) Without a doubt, the art of writing separates the truth from falsehood, maintains agreements, and reminds people of what has passed and many other important things. Even during the pre-Islamic era, writing was a rare but honored skill. According to Ibn Sa’d, “The accomplished among them in the time before Islam were those who wrote Arabic, mastered swimming, and mounted archery.”[^1] Various schools in Mecca, Madinah and Taif taught the difficult art of the Arabic script.

When Islam came, its teachings prioritized writing and the advancement of knowledge and imagery of books and writing permeate the verses of the Qur’an.

One of the first verses which Allah revealed was, “[He] Who taught by the use of the pen,” [^2] thus making the pen as an instrument used for a binding oath, such as in Surah al-Qalam , “By the pen and by what they write.” [^3] Therefore, despite the difficulties of writing at that time, gradually the jahiliyyah (pre-Islamic) society slowly became literate.

After establishing the mosque in Madinah, one of the priorities of the Prophet had was to appoint a teacher, Abdullah Ibn Sa’d al-Aas to teach reading and writing.

This skill was so important that the Prophet even allowed some of the captives taken during the Battle of Badr to earn their freedom in exchange for teaching ten Muslims how to read and write.[^4] Between forty-three and forty-five scribes recorded the revelations of the Qur’an at the Prophet’s request, and in addition, he would constantly urge the people to “write ( uktubu )”[^5] and “document ( qayyidu ),”[^6] and would advise, “Help yourself to memorize by writing.”[^7] Most significant, the Prophet commanded that his hadith (sayings and actions) be written down.