REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- A Quran embroidered on fabric by craftsmen in the Ninxia Special Autonomous Province of China handed over to the Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, on the eve of the Nuzulul Quran commemoration on Monday. Nuzulul Quran is the moment when the Quran descended in full content from the Lauh Al Mahfudz (a well-guarded tablet) that settled in the seventh sky to the Bait al Izzah (House of Nobility).

The embroidered Quran is a gift from the chairman of the Cheng Ho Institute for Multi-Cultural and Educational Foundation based in Malaysia, Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew.

At a dialogue on Islam-Confucianism here on Monday, Tan Sri Lee, who is a follower of Confucianism, said he chose to give this Quran to Indonesia because the country had the largest Muslim population in the world.

"I think Islam is one of the best religions in the world. Muslims have the Qur'an as medicine and vitamins, not only for Muslims but also non-Muslims," Tan Sri Lee asserted, adding that Islam and Confucianism had similarities in that both taught their adherents to be good people.

The President's Special Envoy for Interreligious Dialogue and Cooperation, Prof Din Syamsuddin, said the embroidered Quran, a goodwill gesture from a non-Muslim and a symbol of China and Islam, was very large in size. It took 40 craftsmen three years to make.

"This prize contains a very strong message. There are non-Muslims who are interested in the Quran as they see the Quran as a medicine. It is a wake-up call for Muslims that we should follow the Quran," Prof Din said.

The Quran is embroidered, using the classical Chinese Hui method, on white satin-silk fabric with the inscriptions in the thick "khat naskh" style usually used in Pakistan. Naskh is a specific style of the Arabic alphabet believed to be invented by the Persian calligrapher Ibn Muqlah Shirazi (died 940).

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