| Part of a series on the |
| Apostles of Baháʼu'lláh |
|---|
 |
Mírzá Ḥusayn-i-Isfahání (surnamedMis͟hkín-Qalam (مشكین قلم) meaning "jet-black pen"; 1826 – 1912) was a prominentBaháʼí and one of the nineteenApostles of Baháʼu'lláh, as well as a famouscalligrapher of 19th-centuryPersia. He is the author of a calligraphic rendering of theGreatest Name, used by Baháʼís around the world.
Mishkín-Qalam was born inShíráz but was a resident ofIsfahán, which is where he first heard of theBaháʼí Faith.[1] A few years later he travelled toBaghdad and learned in more detail fromZaynu'l-Muqarrabín andNabíl-i-Aʻzam, but was not confirmed until he later travelled toAdrianople and metBaháʼu'lláh.[1]
Before becoming a Baháʼí, he was aSúfí of theNi'matu'lláhí order.[1]
Mishkín-Qalam was sent by Baháʼu'lláh to Constantinople (Istanbul), where he began attracting people through his art and vigorously teaching the Baháʼí Faith. The Persian ambassador began to complain to the Sultan's vazirs and soon had him arrested.[2] When Baháʼu'lláh was exiled to ʻAkká, Mishkín-Qalam was exiled to Cyprus with the followers ofSubh-i-Azal, where he remained a prisoner inFamagusta from 1868 to 1877.[1]
Cyprus eventually leftOttoman control and Mishkín-Qalam was released. He made his way to ʻAkká in 1886, and remained there until Baháʼu'lláh died in 1892, after which he travelled to Egypt, Damascus and India.[1] He remained in India until 1905, and then returned to Haifa until his death in 1912.[1]
Mishkín-Qalam was a renowned calligrapher.[1]ʻAbdu'l-Bahá called him a secondMír ʻImád, a 16th-century calligrapher of theSafavid dynasty who is perhaps the most celebrated Persian calligrapher.
Mishkín-Qalam enjoyed a special position among the court ministers ofTihrán, and he became widely known for being adept at every calligraphic style. WhenE.G. Browne was in Persia, he was told that Mishkín-Qalam's works
When visiting Baháʼu'lláh in Adrianople, he would often write out the phrase Yá Baháʼu'l-Abhá (O Glory of the All-Glorious) in many different forms, some taking the form of a bird, and send them everywhere. One of his renderings of this phrase is now one of the three common symbols of the Baháʼí Faith, known as theGreatest Name.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Baháʼí Faith topics | ||
|---|---|---|
| Central figures | | |
| Baháʼí teachings | ||
| Baháʼí literature | ||
| Baháʼí administration | ||
| History | ||
| People | ||
| Places | ||
| Other topics | ||
| Attempted schisms | ||
