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my name is red-我的名字叫红-第23节

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corpses  sliced  in  two;  the  clash  of  opposing  armies;  the  soldiers  of  the 
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miserable  infidels  quaking  before  our  cannon;  the  troops  defending  the 
crenellated towers of besieged castles; rebels being decapitated and the fury of 
horses attacking at full gallop。 I mit everything I behold to memory: a new 
coffee grinder; a style of window grating that I’ve never seen before; a cannon; 
the trigger of a new style of Frankish rifle; who wore what color robe during a 
feast; who ate what; who placed his hand where and how…” 
“What  are  the  morals  of  the  three  stories  you’ve  told?”  asked  Black  in  a 
manner that summed everything up and ever so slightly called me to account。 
“Alif;” I said。 “The first story with the minaret demonstrates that no matter 
how talented a miniaturist might be; it is time that makes a picture ”perfect。“ 
”Ba;“  the  second  story  with  the  harem  and  the  library;  reveals  that  the  only 
way to escape time is through skill and illustrating。 As for the third story; you 
proceed to tell me; then。” 
“Djim!”  said  Black  confidently;  “the  third  story  about  the  one…hundred…
and…nieen…year…old  miniaturist  unites  ”Alif‘  and  “Ba’  to  reveal  how  time 
ends for the one who forsakes the perfect life and perfect illuminating; leaving 
nothing but death。 Indeed; this is what it demonstrates。” 
 
 
   
84 
 
I AM CALLED “OLIVE” 
 
After  the  midday  prayers;  I  was  ever  so  swiftly  yet  pleasurably  drawing  the 
darling  faces  of  boys  when  I  heard  a  knock  at  the  door。  My  hand  jerked  in 
surprise。 I put down my brush。 I carefully placed the work…board that was on 
my knees off to the side。 Rushing like the wind; I said a prayer before opening 
the door。 I won’t withhold anything from you; because you; who can hear me 
from  within  this  book;  are  much  nearer  to  Allah  than  we  in  this  filthy  and 
miserable  world  of  ours。  Akbar  Khan;  the  Emperor  of  Hindustan  and  the 
world’s richest shah; is preparing what will one day bee a legendary book。 
To plete his project; he sent word to the four corners of Islamdom inviting 
the world’s greatest artists to join him。 The men he’d sent to Istanbul visited 
me yesterday; inviting me to Hindustan。 This time; I opened the door to find; 
in  their  place;  my  childhood  acquaintance  Black;  about  whom  I’d  forgotten 
entirely。 Back then he wasn’t able to keep our pany; he was jealous of us。 
“Yes?” 
He said he’d e to converse; to pay a friendly visit; to have a look at my 
illustrations。 I weled him so he might see it all。 I learned he’d just today 
visited Head Illuminator Master Osman and kissed his hand。 The great master; 
he  explained;  had  given  him  wise  words  to  ponder:  “A  painter’s  quality 
bees evident in his discussions of blindness and memory;” he’d said。 So let 
it be evident: 
 
Blindness and Memory 
 
Before the art of illumination there was blackness and afterward there will also 
be blackness。 Through our colors; paints; art and love; we remember that Allah 
had manded us to “See”! To know is to remember that you’ve seen。 To see 
is   to   know   without   remembering。   Thus;   painting   is   remembering   the 
blackness。 The great masters; who shared a love of painting and perceived that 
color and sight arose from darkness; longed to return to Allah’s blackness by 
means  of  color。  Artists  without  memory  neither  remember  Allah  nor  his 
blackness。  All  great  masters;  in  their  work;  seek  that  profound  void  within 
color and outside time。 Let me explain to you what it means to remember this 
darkness; which was revealed in Herat by the great masters of old。 
   
85 
 
Three Stories on Blindness and Memory 
 
ALIF 
In  Lami’i  Chelebi’s  Turkish  translation  of  the  Persian  poet  Jami’s  Gifts  of 
Intimacy;  which  addresses  the  stories  of  the  saints;  it  is  written  that  in  the 
bookmaker’s workshop of Jihan Shah; the ruler of the Blacksheep nation; the 
renowned  master  Sheikh  Ali  Tabrizi  had  illustrated  a  magnificent  version  of 
Hüsrev and Shirin。 According to what I’ve heard; in this legendary manuscript; 
which  took  eleven  years  to  plete;  the  master  of  master  miniaturists; 
Sheikh Ali; displayed such talent and skill and painted such wonderful pictures 
that  only  the  greatest  of  the  old  masters;  Bihzad;  could  have  matched  him。 
Even  before  the  illuminated  manuscript  was  half  finished;  Jihan  Shah  knew 
that he would soon possess a spectacular book without equal in all the world。 
He  thus  lived  in  fear  and  jealousy  of  young  Tall  Hasan;  the  ruler  of  the 
Whitesheep  nation;  and  declared  him  his  archenemy。  Moreover;  Jihan  Shah 
quickly sensed that though his prestige would grow immensely after the book 
was  pleted;  an  even  better  version  of  the  manuscript  could  be  made  for 
Tall  Hasan。  Being  one  of  those  truly  jealous  men  who  poisoned  his  own 
contentment  with  the  thought  “What  if  others  e  to  know  such  bliss?” 
Jihan Shah sensed at once that if the virtuoso miniaturist made another copy; 
or  even  a  better  version;  it  would  be  for  his  archenemy  Tall  Hasan。  Thus;  in 
order to prevent anyone besides himself from owning this magnificent book; 
Jihan Shah decided to have the master miniaturist Sheikh Ali killed after he’d 
pleted  the  book。  But  a  good…hearted  Circassian  beauty  in  his  harem 
advised  him  that  blinding  the  master  miniaturist  would  suffice。  Jihan  Shah 
forthwith  adopted  this  clever  idea;  which  he  passed  on  to  his  circle  of 
sycophants; until it ultimately reached the ears of Sheikh Ali。 Even so; Sheikh 
Ali  didn’t  leave  the  book  half  finished  and  flee  Tabriz  as  other;  mediocre 
illustrators  might’ve  done。  He  didn’t  resort  to  games  like  slowing  down  the 
progress of the manuscript or making inferior illustrations so it wouldn’t be 
“perfect”  and  thereby  forestalling  his  imminent  blinding。  Indeed;  he  worked 
with even more ardor and conviction。 In the house where he lived alone; he’d 
begin  working  after  the  morning  prayers  and  continue  illustrating  the  same 
horses; cypresses; lovers; dragons and handsome princes by candlelight in the 
middle of the night again and again until bitter tears streamed from his eyes。 
Much of the time; he’d gaze for days at an illustration by one of the great old 
masters of Herat as he made an exact copy on another sheet。 In the end; he 
pleted  the  book  for  Jihan  Shah  the  Blacksheep;  and  as  the  master 
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miniaturist  had  expected;  he  was  at  first  praised  and  showered  with  gold 
pieces;  before  being  blinded  with  a  sharp  plume  needle  used  to  affix  turban 
plumes。 Before his pain had even subsided; Sheikh Ali left Herat and went to 
join Tall Hasan the Whitesheep。 “Yes; indeed; I am blind;” he explained to Tall 
Hasan;  “yet  I  remember  each  of  the  splendors  of  the  manuscript  I’ve 
illuminated for the last eleven years; down to each mark of the pen and each 
stroke  of  the  brush;  and  my  hand  can  draw  it  again  from  memory。  My 
Excellency; I could illustrate the greatest manuscript of all time for you。 Since 
my eyes will no longer be distracted by the filth of this world; I’ll be able to 
depict all the glories of Allah from memory; in their purest form。” Tall Hasan 
believed the great master miniaturist; and the master miniaturist; keeping his 
promise; illustrated from memory the most magnificent of books for the ruler 
of  the  Whitesheep。  Everyone  knew  the  spiritual  power  provided  by  the  new 
book  was  what  lay  behind  Tall  Hasan’s  subsequent  defeat  of  the  Blacksheep 
and the victorious Khan’s execution of Jihan Shah during a raid near Bing?l。 
This magnificent book; along with the one Sheikh Ali Tabrizi made for the late 
Jihan Shah; entered Our Sultan’s treasury in Istanbul when the ever…victorious 
Tall Hasan was defeated at the Battle of Otlukbeli by Sultan Mehmet Khan the 
Conqueror; may he rest in peace。 Those who can truly see; know。 
 
BA 
Since  the  Denizen  of  Paradise;  Sultan  Süleyman  Khan  the  Lawgiver;  favored 
calligraphers  over  illustrators;  unfortunate  miniaturists  of  the  day  would 
recount  the  present  story  as  an  example  of  how  illustrating  surpasses 
calligraphy。 However; as anyone who pays close attention will realize; this tale 
is actually about blindness and memory。 After the death of Tamerlane; Ruler of 
the World; his sons and grandchildren set to attacking and mercilessly battling 
one another。 In the event that one of them succeeded in conquering another’s 
city; his first action was to mint his own coins and have a sermon read at the 
mosque。 His second act as victor was to pull apart the books that had e 
into  his  possession;  a  new  dedication  would  be  written;  boasting  of  the 
conqueror  as  the  new  “ruler  of  the  world;”  a  new  colophon  added;  and  it 
would  all  be  

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