A universal TypeScript library for accessing and downloading Maktabah Shamela v4 APIs. The package runs in both Node.js and modern browsers, providing ergonomic helpers to interact with the Shamela API, download master and book databases, and retrieve book data programmatically.

• 🚀 Full data lifecycle – fetch metadata, download master and book databases, and query the results entirely in-memory.
• 🔐 Runtime configuration – configure API credentials, WASM paths, and custom fetch/logging implementations at runtime.
• 🧠 Content tooling – parse, sanitise, and post-process Arabic book content with utilities tailored for Shamela formatting.
• 🌐 Environment aware – automatically selects optimal sql.js WASM bundles for Node.js, browsers, and bundled runtimes.
• 🧪 Well-tested – comprehensive unit and end-to-end coverage to ensure reliable integrations.

• Features
• Installation
• Quick Start
  • Standard Node.js
  • Next.js / Bundled Environments
  • Browser (Full API)
  • Browser (Content Utilities Only)
• API Reference
  • Configuration
    • configure
    • resetConfig
    • getConfig
    • getConfigValue
    • requireConfigValue
  • Metadata & Downloads
    • getMasterMetadata
    • downloadMasterDatabase
    • getBookMetadata
    • downloadBook
    • getCoverUrl
  • Data Access
    • getBook
    • getMaster
    • denormalizeBooks
  • Content Utilities
    • parseContentRobust
    • mapPageCharacterContent
    • splitPageBodyFromFooter
    • removeArabicNumericPageMarkers
    • removeTagsExceptSpan
    • normalizeLineEndings
    • stripHtmlTags
    • htmlToMarkdown
    • normalizeHtml
    • normalizeTitleSpans
    • moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan
    • convertContentToMarkdown
  • Supporting Utilities
    • buildUrl
    • httpsGet
• Examples
• Data Structures
• Next.js Demo
• Troubleshooting
• Testing
• License

npm install shamela

bun add shamela

yarn add shamela

pnpm install shamela

For simple Node.js scripts (non-bundled environments), the library auto-detects the WASM file:

import { configure, getBook } from 'shamela';

// Configure API credentials
configure({
  apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY,
  // Configure only the endpoints you need:
  booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT,     // Required for book APIs
  masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT, // Required for master APIs
  // sqlJsWasmUrl is auto-detected in standard Node.js
});

// Use the library
const book = await getBook(26592);
console.log(`Downloaded book with ${book.pages.length} pages`);

For Next.js, webpack, Turbopack, and other bundlers, you need to explicitly configure the WASM file path.

1. Update next.config.ts or next.config.js:

import type { NextConfig } from 'next';

const nextConfig: NextConfig = {
  serverExternalPackages: ['shamela', 'sql.js'],
  // ... rest of your config
};

export default nextConfig;

2. Create a server-only configuration file:

// lib/shamela-server.ts
import { configure } from 'shamela';
import { join } from 'node:path';

configure({
  sqlJsWasmUrl: join(process.cwd(), 'node_modules', 'sql.js', 'dist', 'sql-wasm.wasm'),
  apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY,
  booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT,
  masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT,
});

export { downloadBook, getBook, getBookMetadata, getMaster, downloadMasterDatabase } from 'shamela';

3. Use in Server Actions:

'use server';

import { getBookMetadata, downloadBook } from '@/lib/shamela-server';

export async function downloadBookAction(bookId: number) {
  const metadata = await getBookMetadata(bookId);
  return await downloadBook(bookId, {
    bookMetadata: metadata,
    outputFile: { path: `./books/${bookId}.db` }
  });
}

Important: Only import shamela in server-side code (Server Actions, API Routes, or Server Components). Never import in client components or layout.tsx.

In browsers, the library automatically uses a CDN-hosted WASM file:

import { configure, getBook } from 'shamela';

configure({
  apiKey: 'your-api-key',
  booksEndpoint: 'https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/books',
  masterPatchEndpoint: 'https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/master_patch',
  // Automatically uses CDN: https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/npm/sql.js@1.13.0/dist/sql-wasm.wasm
});

const book = await getBook(26592);

If you only need the content processing utilities (sanitization, parsing, etc.) without the database functionality, use the lightweight shamela/content export:

import {
  mapPageCharacterContent,
  splitPageBodyFromFooter,
  removeTagsExceptSpan,
  parseContentRobust,
} from 'shamela/content';

// Process content without loading sql.js (~1.5KB gzipped vs ~900KB)
const clean = removeTagsExceptSpan(mapPageCharacterContent(rawContent));
const [body, footnotes] = splitPageBodyFromFooter(clean);

This is ideal for:

• Client-side React/Next.js components
• Bundled environments where you want to avoid sql.js WASM
• Processing pre-downloaded book data

Available exports from shamela/content:

• parseContentRobust - Parse HTML into structured lines preserving title spans
• mapPageCharacterContent - Normalize Arabic text with mapping rules
• splitPageBodyFromFooter - Separate body from footnotes
• removeArabicNumericPageMarkers - Remove page markers
• removeTagsExceptSpan - Strip HTML except spans
• htmlToMarkdown - Convert Shamela HTML to Markdown (title spans → ## headers)
• normalizeHtml - Normalize hadeeth tags to standard spans
• normalizeLineEndings - Normalize line endings to Unix-style (\n)
• stripHtmlTags - Strip all HTML tags from content
• normalizeTitleSpans - Handle consecutive title spans (merge, split, or hierarchy)
• moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan - Move pre-title text into the span
• convertContentToMarkdown - Full pipeline: normalize spans → move pre-title text → convert to Markdown

Available exports from shamela/transform:

• denormalizeBooks - Resolve relationships in MasterData to return rich book objects

You can import DEFAULT_MAPPING_RULES from shamela/constants to extend or customize the character mapping used by mapPageCharacterContent:

import { mapPageCharacterContent } from 'shamela/content';
import { DEFAULT_MAPPING_RULES } from 'shamela/constants';

// Extend default rules with custom mappings
const customRules = {
  ...DEFAULT_MAPPING_RULES,
  'customPattern': 'replacement',
};

const processed = mapPageCharacterContent(rawContent, customRules);

Initialises runtime configuration including API credentials, custom fetch implementations, sql.js WASM location, and logger overrides.

configure(options: ConfigureOptions): void

Example:

import { configure } from 'shamela';

configure({
  apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY!,
  booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT!,
  masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT!,
});

Clears runtime overrides and restores the default silent logger.

resetConfig(): void

Use this in tests or long-running processes when you need a clean configuration slate.

Returns the merged configuration snapshot combining runtime overrides with environment variables.

getConfig(): ShamelaConfig

Reads a single configuration value without throwing when it is missing.

getConfigValue<Key extends ShamelaConfigKey>(key: Key): ShamelaConfig[Key] | undefined

Retrieves a configuration entry and throws an error if the value is not present.

requireConfigValue(key: Exclude<ShamelaConfigKey, 'fetchImplementation'>): string

Fetches metadata for the master database, including download URLs for the latest patches.

getMasterMetadata(version?: number): Promise<GetMasterMetadataResponsePayload>

• version (optional): The version number to check for updates (defaults to 0)

const metadata = await getMasterMetadata();
console.log(metadata.url);     // Download URL
console.log(metadata.version); // Version number

// Check for updates from a specific version
const updates = await getMasterMetadata(5);

Downloads the master database containing all books, authors, and categories and writes it to disk or a custom writer.

downloadMasterDatabase(options: DownloadMasterOptions): Promise<string>

• options.masterMetadata (optional): Pre-fetched metadata to avoid an extra HTTP call
• options.outputFile.path: Output file path (.db, .sqlite, or .json)

// Download as SQLite database
await downloadMasterDatabase({
  outputFile: { path: './master.db' }
});

// Download as JSON
await downloadMasterDatabase({
  outputFile: { path: './master.json' }
});

Fetches metadata for a specific book, including patch release information.

getBookMetadata(id: number, options?: GetBookMetadataOptions): Promise<GetBookMetadataResponsePayload>

• id: Book identifier
• options.majorVersion (optional): Major version to check
• options.minorVersion (optional): Minor version to check

const metadata = await getBookMetadata(26592);
console.log(metadata.majorReleaseUrl);
console.log(metadata.minorReleaseUrl);

Downloads and processes a book from Shamela, writing it to JSON or SQLite on disk.

downloadBook(id: number, options: DownloadBookOptions): Promise<string>

• id: Book identifier
• options.bookMetadata (optional): Pre-fetched metadata to avoid re-fetching
• options.outputFile.path: Output file path (.db, .sqlite, or .json)

// Download as JSON
await downloadBook(26592, {
  outputFile: { path: './book.json' }
});

// Download as SQLite
await downloadBook(26592, {
  outputFile: { path: './book.db' }
});

Generates the URL for a book's cover image using the configured Shamela host.

getCoverUrl(bookId: number): string

const coverUrl = getCoverUrl(26592);
// Returns: "https://shamela.ws/covers/26592.jpg"

Retrieves complete book data as a JavaScript object, returning pages and title entries.

getBook(id: number): Promise<BookData>

const book = await getBook(26592);
console.log(book.pages.length);
console.log(book.titles?.length);
console.log(book.pages[0].content);

Retrieves the entire master dataset as a JavaScript object, including version information.

getMaster(): Promise<MasterData>

const master = await getMaster();
console.log(master.version);
console.log(master.books.length);
console.log(master.authors.length);
console.log(master.categories.length);

Resolves the relationships within the MasterData object, returning a flat list of books where author and category IDs have been replaced with their respective objects. It also parses complex fields like metadata and pdf_links.

denormalizeBooks(master: MasterData): DenormalizedBook[]

const master = await getMaster();
const books = denormalizeBooks(master);

const library = books[0];
console.log(library.name);
console.log(library.author.name);
console.log(library.category.name);
console.log(library.metadata.date);

Parses Shamela HTML snippets into structured lines while preserving title hierarchy and Arabic punctuation.

parseContentRobust(content: string): Line[]

const lines = parseContentRobust(rawHtml);
lines.forEach((line) => console.log(line.id, line.text));

Normalises page content by applying regex-based replacement rules tuned for Shamela sources.

mapPageCharacterContent(text: string, rules?: Record<string, string>): string

Separates page body content from trailing footnotes using the default Shamela marker.

splitPageBodyFromFooter(content: string, marker?: string): readonly [string, string]

Removes Arabic numeral markers enclosed in ⦗ ⦘, commonly used to denote page numbers.

removeArabicNumericPageMarkers(text: string): string

Strips anchor and hadeeth tags while preserving nested <span> elements.

removeTagsExceptSpan(content: string): string

Normalizes line endings to Unix-style (\n). Converts Windows (\r\n) and old Mac (\r) line endings for consistent pattern matching across platforms.

normalizeLineEndings(content: string): string

Strips all HTML tags from content, keeping only the text.

stripHtmlTags(html: string): string

Converts Shamela HTML to Markdown format. Title spans (<span data-type="title">) become ## headers, narrator links are stripped but text is preserved.

htmlToMarkdown(html: string): string

Normalizes Shamela HTML for CSS styling by converting <hadeeth-N> tags to <span class="hadeeth"> and closing </hadeeth> to </span>.

normalizeHtml(html: string): string

Normalizes consecutive Shamela-style title spans. Shamela exports sometimes contain adjacent title spans that would produce multiple headings on one line when converted to Markdown.

Some Shamela HTML exports contain adjacent title spans like:

<span data-type="title">باب الميم</span><span data-type="title">من اسمه محمد</span>

If you convert each title span to a markdown header, you can end up with ## باب الميم ## من اسمه محمد.

Use normalizeTitleSpans(html, { strategy }) (exported from the library) before converting title spans to markdown:

import { normalizeTitleSpans } from 'flappa-doormal';

const html = '<span data-type="title">باب الميم</span><span data-type="title">من اسمه محمد</span>';
const normalized = normalizeTitleSpans(html, { strategy: 'splitLines' });
// => "<span data-type=\"title\">باب الميم</span>\n<span data-type=\"title\">من اسمه محمد</span>"

Strategies:

• splitLines: each title span becomes its own line (recommended default)
• merge: merge adjacent titles into one (join with a separator)
• hierarchy: keep first as title, convert subsequent to data-type="subtitle" (you decide how to map subtitles in your converter)

normalizeTitleSpans(html: string, options: NormalizeTitleSpanOptions): string

Options:

• strategy: 'merge' - Combines adjacent titles into a single span with a separator
• strategy: 'splitLines' - Places each title on its own line
• strategy: 'hierarchy' - Converts subsequent titles to subtitles (data-type="subtitle")
• separator (optional) - Separator used when merging (default: —)

Moves text that appears after a line break but before a title span into the span. Useful when chapter numbers or prefixes are placed outside the title span in the source HTML.

moveContentAfterLineBreakIntoSpan(html: string): string

// Input:  "\r١ - <span data-type="title">الباب الأول</span>"
// Output: "\r<span data-type="title">١ - الباب الأول</span>"

Converts Shamela HTML to Markdown using the recommended transformation pipeline:

1. Normalizes consecutive title spans
2. Moves pre-title text into spans
3. Converts to Markdown format

convertContentToMarkdown(content: string, options?: NormalizeTitleSpanOptions): string

const html = '<span data-type="title">كتاب</span><span data-type="title">الإيمان</span>';
const md = convertContentToMarkdown(html);
// => "## كتاب\n## الإيمان"

Constructs authenticated API URLs with query parameters and optional API key injection.

buildUrl(endpoint: string, queryParams: Record<string, any>, useAuth?: boolean): URL

Makes HTTPS GET requests using the configured fetch implementation, automatically parsing JSON responses and returning binary data otherwise.

httpsGet<T extends Uint8Array | Record<string, any>>(url: string | URL, options?: { fetchImpl?: typeof fetch }): Promise<T>

import { downloadMasterDatabase } from 'shamela';

// Download as SQLite
const dbPath = await downloadMasterDatabase({
  outputFile: { path: './shamela_master.db' }
});
console.log(`Downloaded to: ${dbPath}`);

// Download as JSON
const jsonPath = await downloadMasterDatabase({
  outputFile: { path: './shamela_master.json' }
});

import { downloadBook, getBookMetadata } from 'shamela';

const bookId = 26592;

// Download book
await downloadBook(bookId, {
  outputFile: { path: `./book_${bookId}.db` }
});

// With pre-fetched metadata
const metadata = await getBookMetadata(bookId);
await downloadBook(bookId, {
  bookMetadata: metadata,
  outputFile: { path: `./book_${bookId}.json` }
});

import { getBook } from 'shamela';

const book = await getBook(26592);

console.log(`Book has ${book.pages.length} pages`);

// Display table of contents
book.titles?.forEach(title => {
  console.log(`${title.id}: ${title.content} (Page ${title.page})`);
});

// Access page content
const firstPage = book.pages[0];
console.log(firstPage.content.substring(0, 100));

import { getCoverUrl, getMaster } from 'shamela';

const master = await getMaster();

// Generate cover URLs for all books
master.books.forEach(book => {
  const coverUrl = getCoverUrl(book.id);
  console.log(`${book.name}: ${coverUrl}`);
});

type BookData = {
  pages: Page[];
  titles: Title[];
};

type MasterData = {
  authors: Author[];
  books: Book[];
  categories: Category[];
  version: number;
};

type Page = {
  id: number;
  content: string;
  part?: string;
  page?: number;
  number?: string;
};

type Title = {
  id: number;
  content: string;
  page: number;
  parent?: number;
};

• parseContentRobust(content: string): Converts Shamela page HTML into structured lines
• mapPageCharacterContent(content: string): Removes footnote markers and normalizes text
• splitPageBodyFromFooter(content: string): Separates page content from footnotes
• removeArabicNumericPageMarkers(text: string): Removes Arabic page number markers
• removeTagsExceptSpan(content: string): Strips HTML tags except span elements

A minimal Next.js 16 demo application is available in the demo/ directory.

Setup:

Create demo/.env.local:

SHAMELA_API_KEY=your_api_key
SHAMELA_API_MASTER_PATCH_ENDPOINT=https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/master_patch
SHAMELA_API_BOOKS_ENDPOINT=https://SHAMELA_INSTANCE.ws/api/books

Run:

bun run demo              # Development
bun run demo:build        # Production build
bun run demo:start        # Production server

Visit http://localhost:3000 to explore the API.

This occurs in bundled environments (Next.js, webpack, Turbopack).

Solution: Add explicit configuration:

import { configure } from 'shamela';
import { join } from 'node:path';

configure({
  sqlJsWasmUrl: join(process.cwd(), 'node_modules', 'sql.js', 'dist', 'sql-wasm.wasm'),
  apiKey: process.env.SHAMELA_API_KEY,
  booksEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_BOOKS_ENDPOINT,
  masterPatchEndpoint: process.env.SHAMELA_MASTER_ENDPOINT,
});

1. Add to next.config.ts:

   serverExternalPackages: ['shamela', 'sql.js']

2. Only import shamela in server-side code

3. Create a separate lib/shamela-server.ts for configuration

Ensure serverExternalPackages is set in your Next.js config for both development and production.

Adjust the WASM path based on your structure:

configure({
  sqlJsWasmUrl: join(process.cwd(), '../../node_modules/sql.js/dist/sql-wasm.wasm'),
  // ... other config
});

Run tests with Bun:

bun test src              # Unit tests
bun run e2e               # End-to-end tests
bun run test:exports      # Build-output validation
bun run format            # Format code
bun run lint              # Lint code

The scripts/ directory contains standalone reverse-engineering tools for extracting and decoding data from Shamela's desktop application databases. These are development tools, not part of the published npm package.

# Export narrators to JSON
bun run scripts/export-narrators.ts

# Export Arabic roots
bun run scripts/export-roots.ts

# Run script tests
bun test scripts/

• scripts/README.md – Quick start guide and reverse-engineering methodology
• scripts/AGENTS.md – Comprehensive documentation including:
  • Database schema discoveries
  • Character encoding algorithm (substitution cipher)
  • Validation approaches and coverage statistics
  • Common patterns and debugging techniques

MIT License - see LICENSE file for details.