Hast-o-Neest Institute of Traditional Studies & Arts
A private, non-partisan and not-for-profit educational trust set up to provide an introduction to and a greater understanding of traditional thought, language, art, history & culture in the context of Pakistan.
A collective founded and primarily financed by a Board of Trustees, with annually audited accounts. It is a volunteer-managed collective in a spirit of commitment to a culture of knowledge, specifically of traditional thought, art and philosophy.
Background Image | Baithak Khushnawisan at Hujra Hast o Neest | Masjid Wazir Khan
ھست و نیست ادارہ براۓ روایتی علوم و فنون
The name ‘Hast-o-Neest’ is inspired by a couplet of Maulana Rumi illustrating the Islamic metaphysical principle seen to underlie all creation – including art – whereby an ephemeral medium - ‘non-being’ – becomes the locus reflecting or manifesting true ‘Being’/Haq.
‘Allah created not the heavens and the earth, and that which is between them, save with the truth [illa bil Haq]…’ Quran, Surah Rum, 08
The word ‘tradition’ is used to signify a sacred ‘world-view’ which sees both Nature and Man as manifestations of a Divine Source.
Additionally, it refers to that wisdom, knowledge and practice which is rooted in a Divine Revelation emanating from the same Divine Source.
Background Image | Sitar Morning Riyaz, Hast o Neest
يُؤتِي الْحِكْمَةَ مَن يَشَاء
Al-Baqarah 269
Background Image | Moti Masjid | Lahore Fort