The Conference of the Birds: A Study of Farid ud-Din Attar’s Poem Using Jali Diwani Calligraphy - Tapa dura

The Conference of the Birds, written in the 12th century by the Persian poet and mystic Farid ud-Din Attar, tells how the birds of the world gather in order to search for a mythological king, the Simorgh. Each of the birds represents a different human type – a coward, a lover – and much of the poem consists of tales told by their leader in answer to their objections to the journey or their questions about it. Farah K. Behbehani has selected stories from this great work of Persian literature (in English verse translation) about thirteen of the birds and their journey, illustrating the Arabic name of each bird in Jali Diwani calligraphy, an ornamental cursive script developed by the Ottomans which is characterized by its profuse embellishment.A line from the Arabic version of the poem that captures the essence of each bird’s story is also illustrated calligraphically and explained by a graphic system that enables the reader to understand the flow of the text in each composition.This exquisite and beautifully designed book concludes with a glossary of the Arabic alphabet in Jali Diwani script and interpretations of the letters according to Sufi mystical values.

Farah K. Behbehani was educated at Boston University and Central St. Martins College of Art and Design in London. She has studied with the renowned calligrapher Khaled al-Saai and recently won an award at the Sharjah Biennial of Calligraphy. She lives in England.