An Illustrated Biography in Rhyme
According to Islamic tradition, the personage of Muhammad ﷺ, his wives, sons, daughters, grandchildren and that of his closest companions (the rightly guided caliphs) will not be depicted.
Embedded in every civilisation is a poetic history of its people. The stanzaic, metric, rhythmical structure has shaped, ordered, and re-ordered our understanding of humanity since the beginning of language. Many biographers have written about Muhammad, the Prophet of Islam, but none have employed this literary device to relate his story in detail.
The Beloved Prophet: An Illustrated Biography in Rhyme is a story overflowing with emotion and sentiment, presented in the most compressed literary style. This is not the only element that sets this unique biography apart. Combined with these verses are beautiful hand-drawn artwork that further animates the spirit of this profound story. The book comprises fifty-two chapters, each with its corresponding artwork, 624 stanzas and 2,496 verses to delight a variety of palates ranging from the young to the old.
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The seeds of this project took root while I was contemplating the importance of reading. I had launched ‘Call to 1st Verse’, a campaign inviting all to embody that first glorious Quranic commandment, ‘Read’.
How apt that calling to the first verse should lead me to write a book about the caller of the first verse.
There once was a man inspired by Words
Those words became a book, and it changed the World.
Writing these words sparked this project into motion.
Written without revealing the personage creates within the reader or listener the need to know who this man was. So the question is asked, who was this man? My answer to this question developed into the first two stanzas of a poem. The second verse, ‘Those words became a book and changed the world’ was later changed to ‘Arabic of superlative form struck high chords’ and became the opening couplet of a biographical poem on the life of the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ.
Seeing the potential and originality of creating a biography of the Prophet ﷺ in rhyme and illustration for both young and old, I engaged Saaid Rahbeeni, a talented local illustrator. I had successfully worked with Saaid on We Love to Play Pray, a delightful children’s book which I co-wrote with Nurah, my wife.
We had envisioned a particular style of illustration for the book. Saaid immediately connected with the developing poem and felt that the sketching technique was perfect for the project. We got excited when he showed us similar artwork he had done.
Zaahied Sallie, author
The Beloved Prophet – An Illustrated Biography in Rhyme, is published by Claritas Books, an independent publishing house showcasing a wide range of dynamic and credible voices on Islam and the Muslim faith in the 21st Century.
Based in the UK and USA, Claritas Books specialises in scholarly and children’s books, including a comprehensive range of titles.
Claritas is a division of the Deventi Group, which also owns Awakening Records, the award-winning global music and entertainment company.
