Calligraphy in the Arab Emirates

 A short account of Tashi's visit to the Art & Cultural Emirates Sharjah.

A red carpet warm welcome
to the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial 2012

Every two years the government of Sharjah holds a prestigious event called the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial. For the second term running Tashi Mannox has been invited to exhibit his contemporary Tibetan calligraphy along-side not only Islamic calligraphy works from across Arab world but from other international destinations.

This year Tashi attended the opening celebrations where he met with eminent Sheikhs and other participants from Japan, Morocco, Norway and the USA.  

More than a 100 works by 160 artists is showcased during the month of April 2012 at the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial that is located at the Calligraphy Square Museum and the Sharjah Art Gallery.

Calligraphy Square

The opening ceremony was held in the named 'Calligraphy Square' (as above) in the old quarter of Sharjah away from the metropolis of Dubai in both distance and in contrast.

The Sheikh of Sharjah and his entourage arriving to meet the artists.

H.H. Sheikh Dr.Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qasimi presided over the opening, taking time to see each exhibit and meet with many of the participants.

Known in short as the Sheikh of Sharjah, the Sultan who is the crowned prince and deputy ruler of Sharjah; is a great believer and promoter of the arts and cultural values of his own traditions as well as encouraging a multi cultural dialogue. Indeed if it was not for his openness and generous attention to such values, there would not be such an opportunity of such a dynamic and vibrant show of works at the Biennial as well as other events across Sharjah.

It is little wonder of the enormous love and respect entrusted by his people, that for the past decade or so the Sheikh of Sharjah has established Sharjah as the Emirates of culture as well as the building of the vast University City that boasts excellent facilities equaled if not bettered than universities of the Western World. 

Tashi meets the Sultan of Sharjah to introduce his artworks.

Exhibited alongside other Islamic masterpieces in the exhibition hall of traditional calligraphy are Tibetan calligraphy works by Tashi Mannox. 

To the right of a contemporary Islamic calligraphy is Tashi's piece called
"the Great Perfection of Aa"

Another of Tashi's works called "The Ultimate and Relative Truths"

With over a thousand exhibits it would be impossible to show all the artworks on this short blog post, but there were many breath-taking and outstanding Islamic calligraphy pieces, below are just a few examples.

"Prayer" Islamic Calligraphy by Mustafa Falouth, Morocco.

"If words could kill" by Ayad Alkadhi, Iraq.

"love" 

Meeting with other international artist participants, from left to right: Japanese Sugi Yayoi and  Takenzawa Gyokurei, Julia Vance from Norway, Tashi Mannox from the UK and Imada Tokudou from Japan. 

The Japanese calligraphers went on to lead a workshop in painting giant calligraphy with huge brushes, an account of this activity can be seen here.

Sugi Yayoi stands next to one of her masterpieces, a poem that resembles a garden with the sun above.

Imada Tokudou with Tashi, flanking his Japanese calligraphy that reads "inner strength". 

The young and talented American Ebon Heath explains his 'mobile' calligraphy to a Noble Sheikh at the opening of his solo exhibition. More of Ebon's poetic works can be seen here.

Another solo exhibition is from Lalla Essaydi of Morocco, who combines Islamic calligraphy with the female form producing evocative photographic pieces. More of her works can be viewed here.  

Award winning Farah Behbehani from Kuwait explains her calligraphy "Tree of Life" to the Sheikh of Sharjah.

"The whole experience visiting Sharjah was a real eye opener to just how multi cultural and willing the Emirates are. In our present times of world politics and extremists, it is refreshing and heart warming to know that there is an organization such as the Sharjah Art and cultural department who contributes to bridging gaps between cultures and faiths, bringing together artists from around the world under the same desert sky.

While i was there, i had a distinct feeling of the equanimity of all people, regardless of their belief, in a way that made the world seem very small, but positively as brothers and sisters in one united family. 

I was made to feel very welcome,  the warmth and openness of the people of Sharjah in general was comforting. The organizers and helpers of the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial where most friendly and helpful.

I wish to especially thank H.H. The Sheikh of Sharjah, and my coordinator Moza Ali Al Shamsi for all her work in helping make my participation possible, plus a big thank you to the team of helpers such as below with a "beard of perfection" i ever did see! and to Radhwan who chauffeured me around to all the different events with a big smile"

-Tashi Mannox  

May peace prevail on Earth!

Giant Calligraphy Exchange

Uniting different cultures and art at the invitation of the government of Sharjah, UAE. 

Under 'The Eye of the Emirates' at Al Oasha, as part of the many Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial events, a workshop took place on the 3rd April 2012 called "Big Calligraphy Brush" that was lead by renowned Japanese calligraphy artists including master Sugi Yayoi as she is pictured in a red blouse below.

Among other artist, Tashi Mannox was invited to create a giant calligraphy piece; here choosing a suitable brush and bucket of Japanese Sumi ink with the help of Sugi Yayoi.

Only after taking a moment to blow a wondering insect from the enormous paper, Tashi deliberated the first mark with a certain gusto.

The first letter of the calligraphy is the Tibetan letter cha ཆ་ formed in one continuous brisk stroke. Sugi Yayoi applauds !

Below which a 'ü' vowel sign is added to complete the word chü ཆུ་ meaning 'water'.

The end of the vowel sign is artfully lengthened as if the flow of water or waves, ending with a fine wisp. 

And the final gesture is his signature, and with the absence of his personal seals the calligraphy was finished with three fingered print in red cinnabar seal ink. symbolizing three jewels.

Another guest to create a giant Islamic calligraphy was a noble Sheikh and participant of the Sharjah Calligraphy Biennial 2012, who managed with great care not to get a single drop of black ink on his pristine robes. 

A trend of marking the finished calligraphy with a red finger-print seems to have been set by Tashi, as this noble Arab takes great delight in his finished work.

Homage manuscript

This delightful manuscript is a multi scriptural and colourful display which pays homage to His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama bsten 'dzin rgya mtsho བསྟེན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ། Perhaps dating from the midd 20th century, the scroll was written and presented by the monastic community at Dongrub Ling below the Himalayan town of Kalimpong, which was the last Indian trading post before Tibet on the historic silk route through to China. 

The coloured canopy ornamentation called sgo Khyim སྒོ་ཁྱིམ་ incorporates the eight auspicious symbols with drapes and tassels, is traditionally placed above important titles and verses, which in this case are composed of four lined poem in praise of the Dalai Lama. These are repeated in five different script styles, which from top to bottom are 

1. Lantsa Sanskrit, 

2. Wartu Sanskrit, 

3. Tibetan Uchen phonetics and 

4. Tibetan translation in a high form of Drutsa script, flanking each side is 

5. the vertical Horyig script that is translated from the Tibetan translation. 

The above image shows the full length of the scroll that the majority script is an Umeh form called Tsugtung or Tsugmakhyug, a quicker hand writing style that is attractively uniformed with long flourished vowel signs.

An enlarged detail of the end of the manuscript shows that certain key words have been inked in red, which is often used to highlight a name of even to string together a hidden sentence of significant meaning relating to the content of the document. 

Taking Refuge

For Buddhists and especially Tibetan Buddhists, the three fold refuge ‘Buddha, Dharma and Sangha’ is known as ‘The Three Precious Jewels” དཀོན་མཆོག་གསུམ། 
This is typically illustrated as above and at the top of the below calligraphy art piece; as three round precious jewels seated on a moon disk and multi-coloured lotus flower, the three jewels are decorated with a radiating golden leaf like pattern.


To take refuge is to simply put ones trust or confidence in those who have fully liberated them selves from 'samsara' such as a Buddha, by following the Dharma teachings with the guidance of the Sangha on the path to enlightenment. Until i am free from confusion and suffering, i take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.

The Threefold Refuge:

"Homage to the Three Jewels" 57x84 cm ⓒ Tashi Mannox 2012.
Available as a limited edition print.

The above calligraphy art piece illustrates from top to bottom four classic calligraphy traditions of India, Tibet and Ireland:

~ Sanskrit Lantsa that reads namo buddha ya, namo dharma ya, namo sangha ya.
The Buddhas teachings were originally transcribed in Sanskrit belonging to India, that has evolved over the centuries into many different forms of script styles. Lantsa was a very early such style that many of the Buddhist manuscripts were created in. It was these Lantsa manuscripts that migrated into Tibet and formed the bases from which the Buddhist teachings where first translated into Tibetan.

~ Tibetan Uchen script this is a phonetic translation of the above Sanskrit that also reads as namo buddha ya, namo dharma ya, namo sangha ya.
It is said that the Uchen script style was evolved to accommodate the translation of Sanskrit manuscripts from India, indeed there are some similarities in construction and letter forms, though Tibetan is a totally different language to Sanskrit, many original Sanskrit terms and mantras where maintained phonetically in Tibetan, as to preserve the original sound and to up-hold what was considered a sacred language, such as Latin is to Christians. 

~ Petsug script that is a translation of the above in Tibetan that reads sange la chag-sal lo, chö la chag-sal lo, gendun la chag-sal lo, meaning to bow down with folded hands to the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. 
Petsug is one of many handwriting styles of Tibetan calligraphy, quicker to form than the Uchen script, it was commonly used to scribe manuscripts. 

~ Celtic English script that is a translation and phonetics of the original Sanskrit.
Perhaps a sacred English script; historically the great Christian manuscripts were scribed in Celtic scripts, which did not belong only to Ireland as we know it today, but the Celtic Christian influence spanned over Scotland, Wales, England and into Europe. 

Created for an exhibition in December 2012 at the Contemporary Calligraphy museum in Moscow. Chinese ink and Japanese mineral paint, 23.6ct gold leaf on Bhutanese tsasho paper, ⓒ Tashi Mannox 2012.

"homage mudra" 48cm diameter, ⓒ Tashi Mannox 2012.  

Another new piece by Tashi Mannox is to illustrate the 'mudra' of folded hands at prayer, painted in the way of traditional Thanka draftsmanship, there is a modern twist of folded back Western shirt sleeves and wrist watch on the traditional depicted arms and hands. 
Mudra means 'gesture' above the gesture of prayer is the word 'namo' meaning homage, this is in the Sanskrit Wartu script painted in a Japanese mineral earth red, below which in Tibetan Tsugmakhyug script translates as "hands held together at the heart in the gesture of prayer".

The Fourfold Refuge:

"Homage the the Fourfold Refuge, 54x84 cm
ⓒ Tashi Mannox 2012. 
Available as a limited edition print.

The main body of calligraphy of the above Four Refuges piece is painted in a historic 'high' form of Uchen, inspired by a 16th century manuscript from the seat monastery 'Tsurphu' of the Karmapa Lama's in central Tibet.

The Four Refuges: 'Lama, Buddha, Dharma and Sangha' are highlighted in rust red mineral paint. 

The first dark maroon characters 'na mo' in the Lantsa Sanskrit script translates as 'homage' at the end of the prayer is a 'full stop' character in the same Lantsa Sanskrit script.

The smaller lettering in red also at the end of the refuge prayer, translates as "the four fold refuge" 


In the Tibetan Buddhist system the Lama or Guru has become an equaled source of refuge, who a realized personal known as a 'root' teacher who has the ability to guide and point out the nature of ones mind, is called a Lama. 

Private collection. Chinese ink and Japanese mineral paint on Bhutanese Tsasho paper ⓒ Tashi Mannox 2012.

"namo guru benza dhara Ye"

Pronouncing the Tibetan alphabet

Watch and listen to the pronunciation the Tibetan alphabet, illustrated in the Tsugring script style.

Punctuation treasures

“Terma Motif “ 

'The indivisible unity of means and wisdom'

Chinese ink and mineral paint on Bhutanese  tsasho bark fiber paper, soaked in vermilion orange Japanese ink.  
35x52cm. ⓒ Tashi Mannox 2012.

The above art piece features a sign; made up of two small circles and a crescent moon shape ༔ is known in Tibetan as a Ter-tseg གཏེར་ཚེག་ When used as a punctuation mark at the end of a line of text or mantra, this tells us that the origin of the mantra or manuscript is a spiritual treasure called a Terma གཏེར་མ་ hidden by Guru Rinpoche or Yeshe Tsogyal for the benefit of future generations. 

A Terton is a title given to a spiritually realized person of the Guru Rinpoche linage who has the ability to discover or reveal Terma.

According to the vision of Terton Taksham Nuden Dorje, it is said the two circles symbolize means ཐབས་ and Knowledge/wisdom ཤེས་རབ་ and the crescent moon between them represents their indivisible unity ཟུང་དུ་འཇུག་པ། Although the Ter-tseg as a punctuation mark can also be written as only two ཿ circles without the crescent moon, such as Terma manuscripts from Mindrol Ling.

In the case of a Tibetan manuscript that is not a Terma, the ending of each line of text or mantra is a single vertical stroke called a shad ཤད་ = ། 

The Ter-tseg sign can also be called namche རྣམ་བཅད་ However, identical in appearance, it plays a different role in Tibetan scriptures. The namche has its origins in Sanskrit as two dots and can usually be found suffixed to singular syllables, such as the Sanskrit syllable hrīḥ ह्रीः Which in the Tibetan phonetics is written ཧྲཱིཿ 

In Sanskrit the two small circles called a visarga, has the effect on the root syllable of changing the pronunciation with a light out breath, that has been somewhat lost in the Tibetan pronunciation.

An example of the uses of both Ter-tseg and namche within the Tibetan written language is with the mantra of Guru Rinpoche, as shown below. Two circles are present with the second syllable of the mantra ཨཿ which originates from Sanskrit. The Mantra is then finished with a ter-tseg ༔ announcing that the mantra is of Terma in origin.

ཨོཾ་ཨཿཧཱུྂ་བཛྲ་གུ་རུ་པདྨ་སིདྡྷི་ཧཱུྂ༔

With thanks to the knowledgeable Jayarava for contributing to this short post.

Iconographies of Dharma

Photograph by Rebecca Von Ommen. 

America based 'Integral Life.com' Launches a new gallery called 'integral calligraphy', featuring a select 25 pieces of Tashi Mannox's works spanning the past decade. 

Michael Schwartz writes:

Integral Calligraphy

Calligraphy is the art of beautiful writing, the art of exquisite hand-written linguistic marks. Such is the aesthetic impact of the script that the verbal meaning need not be understood for the calligraphy to shine forth in profound significance.

Many world-historical cultures have evolved ramified calligraphic traditions, perhaps most well-known being those of Asia and Islam. Less popularly acknowledged amongst the Asian traditions, Tibet has its own remarkable lineages of calligraphy.

Tashi Mannox, an Englishman, and for many years an ordained Buddhist monk, has trained for decades in the arts of Tibetan calligraphy. Today he preserves this tradition as a vehicle to communicate and transmit dharma, all the while adapting and updating his approach within and for contemporary contexts. He identifies three streams in his work: (1) contemporary and traditional; (2) contemporary black on black, and (3) illuminated iconography.

In honoring contemporary contexts and concerns, some of his designs are presented as sacred tattoos. With certain commissioned work he offers the option of including bespoke seals that are specific to the calligraphic project and its patron. In all cases Tashi's art is an expression of his long and devoted meditative practice and spiritual realization, such that his art energetically transmits the Tibetan Buddhist View.

Several of the circular designs in the present exhibition approach the status of calligrams—the arrangement of script to form a picture—a device most often associated with strains of Islamic artistic practice and with experiments in Western modernism aligned with the poet Guillaume Apollinaire. A work like Emanate from Emptiness and Samsara—Cyclic Existence visually articulates the verbal meaning in a picture-like manner, amplifying rather than compromising the calligraphic beauty and integrity of the script itself. Indeed, the variety of Tashi's approaches is astonishing. With a work like Primordial Purity, Golden World, the pictorial is no longer built up from the script, but is an image in its own right, aspects of the script incorporated then meaningfully and expressively into the image. With Hum, Jyo-Protection, the mark-making itself is of a refined exquisite delicacy, the script streams and seals composed on the page to generate extraordinarily aesthetic coherence and expressive nuance.

Grounded thoroughly in the pre-modern Tibetan tradition, incorporating modernist visual schemes, and being multi-cultural and postmodern in drawing on other calligraphic lineages such as the spatial awareness proper to Zen calligraphic practice (while preserving the Tibetan core of style), Tashi Mannox's art is an authentic and exemplary instance of an integral calligraphy for our age.

February 2012