The present contribution is an attempt to investigate the conception of Word’s multiple states
of manifestation (and non-manifestation) as stemming from the works of some of the most prominent
exponents of ʿilm al-ḥurūf, “the science of letters”. More specifically, it focuses on the notion of marātib
al-ḥurūf, “degrees of letters” in order to establish a connection between different marātib al-wuğūd,
“levels of existence”, and distinct marātib al-kalām, “Word’s states”. The result is the emergence of a
fascinating vision that sees God’s Word originally lying in an unmanifest state before/beyond creation
and then passing through the three worlds of manifest existence to eventually take the shape of human
language. The study emphasizes the theoretical significance of ʿilm al-ḥurūf for the investigation of some
of the fundamental principles that inform the Islamic metaphysics of language and the overall Islamic
Sprachanschauung.
