Chapter 10 The first section is about the manuscripts, engravings and Chinese translations of the Qur'an

Chinese Muslims have spread Islam through copying for thousands of years, and regard copying as a religious good deed.Therefore, a large number of beautifully written and exquisitely bound manuscripts circulated among Chinese Muslims. Many manuscripts among Chinese Muslims are well known in the Islamic world.The earliest manuscript found so far is a cultural relic of the Yuan Dynasty, which is now preserved in the Dongsi Mosque in Beijing.The time of copying is the 718th year of the Islamic calendar, that is, the fifth year of Yuan Yanyou (AD 1318), and has a history of 670 years.The scribe's name was Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abdurrahman.

Chinese Muslims copy the scriptures very carefully, especially the manuscripts written with brushes, the fonts are thick and round, and they have the style of Chinese calligraphy.They take pride in the beautiful writing of the scriptures, and decorate the cover with monochromatic or colorful patterns, which are beautiful and elegant, and very precious.There was a 30-volume manuscript in the court of the Qing Dynasty, covered with yellow satin leather and sapphire blue paper.There is a manuscript in Niujie Mosque that compares Arabic and Persian languages. The two languages ​​are written in black and red respectively. The handwriting is beautiful, accurate, and beautifully bound. Chinese and foreign scholars praised it as "priceless treasure".

With scripture education, copying scriptures became a compulsory course for students, and more manuscripts appeared.It is not only a religious classic, but also a rare art treasure.There have been many excellent copyists among Chinese Muslims.The manuscript written by Hua Baba, a scribe in the late Qing Dynasty, was once presented to King Ford I of Egypt by Imam Ma Songting when he visited Egypt, and was deeply loved by the king.The China Islamic Association, Beijing Niujie Mosque, Dongsi Mosque, etc. all have manuscripts from the Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties.This is an important cultural treasure of Chinese Muslims.

Chinese block editions, as far as we know, appeared in the middle of the 18th century.In the first year of Tongzhi (1862 A.D.), Du Wenxiu (1827-1872 A.D.), the leader of the Hui uprising in Yunnan, published 30 volumes of "Grand Marshal Du Xin Engrave" and "Bao Ming Zhen Jing", woodcut and thread-bound, each volume has 28 or 29 pages , light blue cloth papered hard book cover, simple and exquisite binding, unique.This is the earliest woodcut book in China.After the Qing army captured Dali in the eleventh year of Tongzhi (AD 1872), the engraved version of "Bao Ming Zhen Jing" was destroyed by the war, and only the original version used by Du Wenxiu was preserved.

In the 21st year of Guangxu (1895 A.D.), Ma Lianyuan, a famous Buddhist scripture educator in Yunnan, engraved another 30 volumes of "Bao Ming Zhen Jing".Tian Jiapei Haji, a famous scripture teacher in Yunnan, copied all the scriptures, checked and corrected by Ma Lianyuan, and sent them to Kunming for publication.More than 30 engravers are famous craftsmen from Sichuan.This woodcut book has 30 volumes, 1946 engravings, and 3571 pages. It is now preserved in the Nancheng Mosque in Kunming, and is a precious cultural heritage of Chinese Muslims. Translation of the Holy Quran.In the late 18th century, selected translations appeared to meet the needs of Chinese Muslims.For example, in the eighth year of Guangxu (AD 1882), Yu Haiting translated "Sinology Heting"; in the middle and late 19th century, Ma Zhiben translated "Children's Interpretation", and Ma Fuchu translated five volumes of "Bao Ming Zhen Jing Zhi Jie" (actual translation 20 volumes, It was later destroyed in a fire, and only five volumes survived), and so on.