Description

A decorative Islamic talisman, repeating the name of Allah and prayers in circles, surrounded by passages from the Quran. The four smaller circles contain four names of Allah: The Pure (القدوس), The All-Hearing (السميع), The Wise (الحكيم) and The All-Knowing (العليم).

Such portable talismans, with repeating words, the names of the God, prayers and passages from the Quran were and are still exceedingly popular among the Muslims. The history goes back to Ahmad al-Buni (Muḥyi al-Din Abu al-Abbas Aḥmad ibn Ali ibn Yusuf al-Qurashi al-Sufi, more known as Ahmad al-Buni, died 1225), an Arab philosopher and mathematician, who authored a highly influential book Shams al-Ma’arif (شمس المعارف or The Sun of Gnosis / The Sun of Knowledge), a manual for achieving esoteric spirituality as well as communication with angels and spirits through geometrical forms and charts with repetitive patterns of names, letters and words.