Quran Activist Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa, A Man of Inspiration
It also has educational colleges in the field of Islamic arts such as illumination, calligraphy, etc.
This Quranic center was established by Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa who is a prominent activist in the fields of Malaysian economy, culture, and politics. The center started its activities almost twenty years ago, and now with the museum and exhibition of the Holy Quran, publishes the Holy Quran in different languages according to the culture of East Asian countries.
The Islamic Arts Garden Complex in Shah ‘Alam, Malaysia, which operates under the supervision of Yayasan Restu of Malaysia and focuses on the Holy Quran and the relevant arts, is a center for educating calligraphers and illuminators of the Holy Quran. Also, the artists trained in this center work in the fields of designing, manuscript, and illumination of the Holy Book.
Of noteworthy points in this center is the presence of a research team of the manuscript and illumination of the Holy Quran for different cultures and tribes. The research team examines the culture of the target communities by examining the colors, symbols, and nature of their lives to design the motifs and use the colors in the design and manuscript of the Holy Quran to be closer to its audience in such a way that the experience and expertise of this center help other countries flourish their identity with the Quranic culture.
Team work for manuscript and designing the Holy Quran is important in this center. Based on the views of the managers of the center, it is like a factory in which everybody has a task: one person writes, one person designs, one is responsible for color, one makes the final check, and finally the Quran is ready to be published. After writing, designing, illuminating, and printing a copy of the Holy Quran, nobody can claim the Book is an individual work, and what is obtained is the result of a team’s effort and its proper management planning.
Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa is the director of the Malaysian foundation of the Quran manuscript and publishing (Yayasan Restu). Based on his personal interest and along with his other activities, such as running a factory producing desktop computers, importing and exporting meat from and to Mongolia, and ownership of a private airport in Selangor, Malaysia, he has chosen the Quranic activities as a full-time hobby.
He is also the cultural manager of the Malaysian non-governmental organization of supporting Palestine and went to this country at the peak of the attacks on Gaza, along with a team of his companions to help the people of Gaza. Regarding the activities in the field of Quranic arts, he believes that Quranic activities are the realm of spirituality and bring peace of mind for him and he tries to establish a Quranic museum in Malaysia in the future by training artists in the field of Quran.
Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa has developed this Quranic view in other areas of his activities such as tourism. He used the art of Quranic artists of the Yayasan Restu foundation in the design and building of one of Malaysia’s largest five star hotels in Malacca, called Mudzaffar Hotel. Opened in September 2017, this is the only fully halal and Islamic hotel in Malaysia.
He has also constructed a mosque using designs by the Quranic artists of Yayasan Restu and asked a thousand “salavats” written as inside and outside decorations of the mosque which created a marvelous development in the construction of a mosque on Pangkor Island that led to requests for building other mosques elsewhere in Malaysia designed by the artists of this center.
Sponsored by Malaysian government since 2015, Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa started to build the largest publishing and production center of the Holy Quran in the world after the Medina complex in more than six acres in Putrajaya, Malaysia’s political capital. Traveling to different countries to procure the needed equipment for publishing the Holy Quran and communication with Quranic activists in this field in different countries such as Iran are some of the activities of this great man in the field of the Quran.
He supervised the construction of this complex and the purchasing of printing machines to achieve his greatest goal. Finally, on May 20, 2017, with the presence of Ahmad Zahed Hamidi, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister, the first phase of this large complex was opened.
Addressing the opening ceremony of the Quran publication center, Hamidi said that the purpose of the establishment of this center is to compete with other countries active in this field. He added that the center is part of effort to highlight Malaysia as a country of moderation and its role in moving towards the development of Islam.
The cost of building this center was estimated 60 million Ringits (more than $14 million), which includes the construction of the building and purchasing the paging, binding, and printing equipment.
Statistics on the number of the Qurans expected to be published annually in this center are contradictory. In 2014 and at the time of the adoption of the budget, it was announced that one million copies of the Holy Quran would be published in this center and distributed throughout the world every year; but, the statistics provided by the Malaysian Prime Minister in 2015 put the number at three million copies. Also, at the opening ceremony, the Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs stated that one million copies are published in this center which will meet 70 percent of the domestic needs and 30 percent of the needs of Muslims elsewhere in the region.
This collection includes a Quran exhibition center, Quranic skill training spaces, a cafeteria, a printing section, administration office, and management section.
In a visit to the center at the invitation of Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa, I got familiar with the activities and efforts of this hardworking man in the Quranic field.
He is over 65 years old and with a keen interest explained the work and progress of the activities of this center.
In his comments, he added that the machines of this center can publish more than 1,500 copies of the Quran every hour. The manuscript, designing, and editing of the Quran are carried out in Yayasan Restu in Shah ‘Alam, and the publication of the Quran will continue at the publishing center in Putrajaya.
Noting that the construction of this center has not yet been completed, he said with great enthusiasm that it was impossible to wait for the completion of the building and that the publication center will continue its activities alongside the simultaneous construction process.
At the end of the visit, he hoped that the Islamic Republic of Iran and Iranian benefactors would also be able to contribute to the development of this great spiritual work by participating in the provision of some of the publication machineries of this center.
At a time of heightened religious extremism and hatred among Islamic countries, love, endeavor, and seriousness of people like Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa in the Quranic field contribute to enhancing solidarity and close relationship among Muslims and gives everyone hope. By the effort of people like Datuk Abdul Latif Mirasa, the message of spirituality and peace of the Muslim world will be heard throughout the world.
Images of Malaysian Largest Center of the Quran Publication
By Dr Abdolreza Alami
