Manuscript. Persian. Title supplied by cataloger. Scribes not identified. Written in India. Paper; coarse, cream color laid paper with no visible chain lines or watermarks; black ink with rubrication on some texts; catchwords. Work contiains: [1]. A collection of letters and notes by Muhammad Bahadur Shah II, King of Delhi, 1775-1862 (dated 1855) -- [2]. Unidentified historical treatise (undated) -- [3]. One leaf numbered leaf 20 from an unidentified work -- [4]. Daftar-i avval from the Mukātabāt-i ʻAllāmī by Akbar, Emperor of Hindustan, 1542-1605 (dated 1257 [1841 or 1842]). Nastaʻliq; various lines in written areas of varying size. Fol. 1a-39a, 1a-117b, 1 leaf, fol. 1b-125a. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, M96. [Other physical details, binding] Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress website.
Manuscript. Persian. Title determined by comparison with editions of Saʻdī's Gulistān. Written by ʻAbd al-Bārī Muḥammad Maḥmūd Lārī. Probably written in Iran. Date from colophon written in pencil in a later hand. Paper: cream colored lighly polished laid paper with no visible chain-lines or watermarks; unwan in gold, blue, red, white and green; text enclosed blue and gold ruled border; black ink with rubrication; some marginal corrections; catchwords on rectos. Nastaʻliq; 11 lines in written area 11.5 x 5.7 cm. Fol. 1b-160a. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, M83. Contemporary dark brown leather envelope binding with elaborate gold embossed design covering most of the front and back covers and flap. Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress website. Explicit/Colophon: ... كتبه العبد البارى محمد محمود لاري عفو عنه.
Manuscript. Persian; first 67 leaves have Turkish translation and there is a brief poem in Ottoman Turkish at end. Title based on comparison with printed editions of Saʻdī's Gulistān. Name of scribe not indicated. Probably written in Iran. Paper; cream color lightly polished laid paper with horizontal chain lines and no visible watermarks; black ink with rubrication; manuscript is incomplete lacking an unknown number of leaves at the beginning; leaves 1a-67b have interlinear Turkish translation and extensive marginal notes; catchwords. Nastaʻliq; 13 lines in written area Fol. 1a-134a, 2 leaves. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript. Contemporary brown leather binding with embossed center medallions.
Manuscript. Persian. Title based on comparison with printed edtions. Name of scribe not indicated. Probably written in Turkey. Papaer; light cream color lightly polished laid paper with horizontal chain lines and no visible watermarks; text enclosed in and divided by single red lines; gold unwan; black ink with section headings in red ink; catchwords. Manuscript appears to be unfinished as section titles end at the first section on fol. 17a; blank section dividision title box blank through the rest of the work. Naskh; 17 lines in written area 12.3 x 6.7 cm. Fol. 1b-29a. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, M129. Contemporary deep red morocco Turkish binding with gold borders and center gold medallion. Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress website.
Manuscript. Persian. Each work has separate title ; title of first work fol. 1b; title for second work, fol. 82a. Each section has different date: Makhzan al-asrār dated 28 Rajab 954 [9 September 1547]; second section dated 4 Shaʻbān 954 [19 September 1547]. Name of scribe not indicated. Probably written in Iran or India. Paper: thick, cream color Oriental paper; text in columns in black ink with section headings and some marginal notes in red ink; second work has some section headings in gold ink ; text is surrounded by many marginal notes; no catchwords. Pasted label on page 2 of cover: "(1) Makhzan-al-asrār. (2) Ṣubḥat-al-asrār. (3) K̲h̲ulāṣat-al-khamsa. by Niẓāmī 945/1547. 22.3 c. 29.3 cms. 14 lines per page. 2 columns. Nastaʻlīḳ. Marginal notes." Nastaʻlīq; 14 lines in written area 10.5 x 6 cm. Folios 1b-121a. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, [number]. Binding in dark blue leather with embossed diamond pattern front and back. Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress website. Incipit: كتاب مخزن الاسرس حضرت شيخ نظامي عليه الرحمة. Explicit/Colophon: تمت الكتاب بعون الله الوهاب تاريخ 4 شهر شعبان 954.
Manuscript. Persian. Title supplied from container. Scribe not identified. Written in India? Paper; thin, lightly polished laid paper with vertical laid lines and no visible chain lines or watermarks; elaborate floral carpet page in blue, gold, pink, and black surrounded by three borders: the outer of a gold floral design, the next of a repeating design in blue and gold and the inner of a floral design of repeating flowers in alternating rose and pink on a gold background; remainder of text has outer ruled bord of thin blue, white, gold, red and dark blue; text block within ruled border in blue, white, red, blue, a wider floral border and an inner border of blue and red; sections separated by a horizontal block in gold; hemistichs divided by a wide dark blue vertical divider with gold highlighting; black ink; catchwords. Nastaʻlīq; 15 lines in written area 13 x 6.2 cm. Numerous miniatures throughout the text. Fol. 1b-466b (incomplete) Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, M19. Binding; disbound; text block and many pages loose in remainder of binding which is brown leather; spine lacking. Also available in digital form on the Library of Congress website.
Manuscript. Persian. Caption title on fol. 1b. Scribe not indicated. Gift of Amir Jafar and Parvindokt Hasheminejad, donated by their son, Mehdi Hasheminejad, item belonged to Amir Jafar Hasheminejad's collection and originated from Qajar era minister, Mehdi Lahooti, Badaye Negar's holdings. May 31, 2019. Written in Iran. Paper; cream color commercial paper with no visible watermarks; black ink; catchwords. Nastaʻlīq; 17 lines in written area 16.5 x 11.5 cm. 8 blank pages; fol. 1b-95a; 28 blank pages. Library of Congress. Persian manuscript, [unnumbered]. Binding; supple brown leather.
Gulshan-i rāz (The garden of mystery) is a 20th century text on the Nizari Ismaʻili belief system, written by Nadir Shah Kayani (circa 1897-circa 1971), a leader of the Ismaʻili community in Afghanistan. The title of this work deliberately echoes a celebrated Ismaʻili book of verse of the same name composed by Mahmud Shabistari in 1317. Nadir Shah's work is organized in 14 sections, each of which discusses a philosophical or religious topic such as nafs (the soul) or namaz (prayer). The first section, on tafakkur (the faculty of thought), is written as a commentary on a verse from the original Gulshan-i rāz. Kayani's leadership of the Ismaʻili community coincided with the reign of Muhammad Shah (Aga Khan III, 1877-1957). Much remains to be discovered about the Ismaʻili community of Afghanistan during this period. What is known is that Nadir Shah belonged to a family of Ismaʻili leaders based in the Kayan valley in northern Afghanistan. He was a prolific author who wrote both poetry and philosophical texts. The present work is a manuscript, most likely produced in Afghanistan. The script is nastaʻliq, written in black ink, 11 lines to the page, on a light-cream paper. The "third" in the title probably refers to Shabistari's original work as the first Gulshan-i rāz. The identity of the second Gulshan-i rāz is not clear; it could be a reference to the well-known commentary by Shams al-Din Lahiji, written in 1472-73. World Digital Library. Islamic topics in question and answer form, probabally written during early 20th century.