Hazrat moulana jlaluddin rumi (ra)

Leap over your shadow.

That which God said to the rose,
And caused it to laugh in full-blown beauty,
He said to my heart,
And made it a hundred times more beautiful.

Rumi.
1 Contents
2 Biography of Rumi ..................................................................................................................... 3
2.1 Introduction:............................................................................................................................ 3
2.2 Major Life Events in Chronological Order: ............................................................................ 3
2.3 Early Life: ............................................................................................................................... 4
2.3.1 From Khorasan to Anatolia: ............................................................................................ 4
2.3.2 Laranda and Konya: ........................................................................................................ 4
2.4 Education: ............................................................................................................................... 5
2.4.1 Career in Konya: ............................................................................................................. 6
2.5 Turning Point Of Rumi’s Life:................................................................................................ 6
2.5.1 Salahuddin Zarkub: ......................................................................................................... 6
2.5.2 Demise: ........................................................................................................................... 6
2.6 Mawlana Rumi's tomb in Konya, Turkey: .............................................................................. 7
2.7 Understanding The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH): ................................................................. 7
3 Theme Of Rumi’s Poetry: ........................................................................................................... 7
4 Major works: ............................................................................................................................... 8
4.1Poetic works ................................................................................................................................... 8
4.2 Prose works ........................................................................................................................... 11
5 History of Rumi’s poetry: ......................................................................................................... 13
6 Teachings of Rumi: ................................................................................................................... 15
6.1 Key Sufi Principles: .............................................................................................................. 16
6.2 God’s Nature and Will: ......................................................................................................... 17
6.3 Direct Spiritual Experience: .................................................................................................. 17
6.4 The Three Souls: ................................................................................................................... 17
6.5 Overcoming the Nafs: ........................................................................................................... 18
6.6 Equality of Man: ................................................................................................................... 18
6.7 Equality of Women: .............................................................................................................. 18
6.8 The Perfect Man:................................................................................................................... 19
7 Rumours about Rumi ................................................................................................................ 20
7.1 Rumi as a Homosexual: ........................................................................................................ 20
7.2 Rumi as an Alcoholic: ........................................................................................................... 23
7.3 Rumi was Not a Sufi: ............................................................................................................ 24
8 Corruption in Rumi’s Poetry: .................................................................................................... 25
8.1 From Versions by Coleman Barks ........................................................................................ 25

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 8.2 Versions by John Moyne....................................................................................................... 26
8.3 Versions by Andrew Harvey ................................................................................................. 26
8.4 From Versions by Johnathan Star ......................................................................................... 27
8.5 Versions By Shahram Shiva ................................................................................................. 27
8.6 Versions by Kabir Helminski ................................................................................................ 27
8.7 Versions by Nevit Ergin........................................................................................................ 28
8.8 Versions by Azima Kolin...................................................................................................... 28
9 WAS RUMI SUFI: ................................................................................................................... 28
10 Who is the real Rumi?............................................................................................................... 29
11 CONCLUSION: ........................................................................................................................ 29

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 2 Biography of Rumi

2.1 Introduction:
Maulana Jalaluddin Rumi was a 13th century Persian poet, an Islamic dervish and a
Sufi mystic. He is regarded as one of the greatest spiritual masters and poetical intellects.
Born in 1207 AD, he belonged to a family of learned theologians. He made use of everyday
life’s circumstances to describe the spiritual world. Rumi’s poems have acquired immense
popularity, especially among the Persian speakers of Afghanistan, Iran and Tajikistan.
Numerous poems written by the great poet have been translated to different languages.He
was also often referred to by the Persian title, Khodawandgar ("great Master").
Mawlana is widely regarded as not only one of the greatest Sufi poets but has also
been described by Western orientalists as "the most eminent Sufi poet whom Persia has
produced"the greatest mystical poet of Islam and even "the greatest mystical poet of any
age."
He is the author of the famous Mathnawi, a poem of 25,700 couplets, considered his
greatest work that was composed in his later years, containing a great number of stories and
anecdotes of diverse styles. His second best known work is the Diwan-i Shams-i Tabriz,
totaling some 40,000 couplets, which is a collection of poems describing the mystical states
and expounding various points of Sufi doctrine. The Diwan is a collection of ecstatic
utterances, with most of the ghazals (or "lyric poems of love") composed spontaneously by
Mawlana during the sama (whirling meditation), a practice still performed today by the Sufis
of the Mevlevi order.
2.2 Major Life Events in Chronological Order:
 1152 Birth of Hazrat Bahauddin Walad, father of Mawlana Rumi
 1200 Hazrat Alaulddin, brother of Mawlana Rumi, is born to Hazrat Mo'mene Khatun and
Hazrat Bahauddin
 1207 Mawlana Rumi is born to Hazrat Mo'mene Khatun and Hazrat Bahauddin
 1212 Hazrat Bahauddin and family living in Samarqand
 1216 Family leave Khorasan for Baghdad and Mecca (March)
 1217 Brief stays in Damascus and Malatya (summer)
 1218 Family stay in Aqshahr near Erzincan for four years
 1221 Mongol army sack Balkh
 1222 Family in Laranda for seven years. Death of Hazrat Mo'mene Khatun, Mawlana Rumi's
mother (between 1222 and 1229)
 1224 Marriage of Mawlana Rumi to Gowhar Khatun
 1226 Birth of Mawlana Rumi's son, Hazrat Sultan Walad
 1229 Family settles permanently in Konya
 1231 Death of Mawlana Rumi's father, Hazrat Bahauddin Walad
 1232 Arrival of Hazrat Burhanuddin Muhaqqiq al-Tirmidhi in Konya. Mawlana Rumi studies
in Syria (c.1232-7) and returns to Konya as accomplished scholar
 1241 Death of Hazrat Burhanuddin Muhaqqiq
 1244 Arrival of Hazrat Shams Tabrizi in Konya (November 29). Mawlana Rumi takes up
sama and composes lyrical poems during this period
 1246 Hazrat Shams quits Konya for Syria (March 11). Mawlana Rumi stops composing
poetry but resumes with five or six poems after receiving word from Hazrat Shams
 1247 Return of Hazrat Shams to Konya (April) where joyful banquets are held. Mawlana
Rumi composes new poems
 1247 Marriage of Hazrat Shams to Kimia (sometime between October and December)

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 1247-8 Hazrat Shams disappears from Konya forever. At least two trips to Syria in search of
Hazrat Shams. Mawlana Rumi chooses Hazrat Salahuddin Zarkub as his successor.
 1258 Death of Hazrat Salahuddin Zarkub (December 29)
 1262 Hazrat Alauddin, Mawlana Rumi's eldest son, dies (mid-September). Composition of
the Masnavi begins
 1264 Book two begins (sometime between November 1263 and October 1264)
 1272 Birth of Hazrat Ulu Arif Chelebi, son of Hazrat Sultan Walad by Fateme Khatun,
daughter of Hazrat Salahuddin
 1273 Death of Mawlana Rumi
2.3 Early Life:
Originally it was thought he was born in Balkh, in the province of Khorasan in
northern Persia (now Afghanistan). However, recent scholarship suggests that at the time of
his birth, his father is said to have been living some 250km north-east of Balkh, in the small
town of Wakhsh, situated in modern Tajikistan, where his father lived and worked as a jurist
and preacher between 1204 and 1210.
Much of Mawlana's formative years were spent traveling with his family. After his
birth, the family left Khorasan and lived in various Middle Eastern cities for about a decade.
Various explanations are given for the family's departure from Khorasan. Some say Hazrat
Bahauddin left because of a premonition about the impending Mongol invasion, which
devastated much of the area, whilst others say his departure was due to the hostility of
Fakhruddin Razi, the philosopher and influential courtier of the Khwarizmshah.
At the time that Hazrat Bahauddin emigrated westwards, his family consisted of a
daughter, Fatima Khatun, an eldest son, Husayn, both of whom probably stayed behind in
Khorasan, along with Hazrat Bahauddin’s elderly mother. The family members he took with
him included his wife, Mu’mine Khatun, and two sons, Hazrat Jalaluddin and Alauddin.
According to some scholars, Mawlana encountered one of the most famous mystic Persian
poets, Hazrat Fariduddin Attar, in the Iranian city of Nishapur after leaving Samarkand.
Hazrat Fariduddin, appeared to have been deeply impressed by the young Hazrat Jalaluddin
Rumi and presented him with a copy of his Asrar-nama (Book of Secrets). As Hazrat
Bahauddin set off again with his young son following behind, Hazrat Fariduddin is said to
have remarked: "There goes a river dragging a mighty ocean behind it."
As a child, Mawlana Rumi was quick, intelligent and full of curiosity. One such story
highlighting his spiritual prowess during his childhood relates that at the age of six when, in
response to a request from his playmates to jump to a neighboring terrace, he is reported to
have replied:
“ My brethren, to jump from terrace to terrace is an act well adapted for cats, dogs and
the like to perform; come now, if you feel disposed, let us spring up to the heavens, and visit
the regions of God's realm. ”
2.3.1 From Khorasan to Anatolia:
From Khorasan, the travellers journeyed on to Baghdad, where it is suggested they
arrived in 1217 and stayed for about one month,[From Baghdad, Mawlana went to Syria with
his father, visiting Damascus and Aleppo before undertaking the pilgrimage to Mecca. The
family arrived at Aqshahr, near Erzincan (on the upper reaches of the Euphrates) in eastern
Anatolia, between late 1217 and early 1218 [7]. There Hazrat Bahauddin is said to have
taught for four years in a college (madrasah) built for him by the wife of Fakhruddin
Bahramshah, the local ruler and a great patron of learning.
2.3.2 Laranda and Konya:
From Aqshahr, the party went to Larinda, which was situated in the central Anatolian
province of Rum (the "Roman land" from which the name Rumi is derived from). The family
remained there for about seven years, during which time Hazrat Bahauddin taught in the
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madrasah under the patronage of Amir Musa, the local governer. The period in Laranda was
also marked by two deaths, a marriage, and two births in the family. Hazrat Alauddin, the
elder brother of Mawlana Rumi and Mu’mine Khatun, his mother, both died.
At the age of 17, Mawlana married Gowher Khatun, the daughter of Sharfuddin of
Samarqand and, in due course, Mawlana’s wife gave birth to two sons – Alauddin, named
after his recently deceased older brother, and Sultan Walad, who was named in honour of his
grandfather. The two boys were born about a year apart.
While in Laranda, Hazrat Bahauddin received an invitation from the Seljuq ruler,
Alauddin Kayqubad, to teach in Konya, where the family settled in 1229 when Mawlana
Rumi was 22 of age.
Hazrat Bahauddin evidently intended Mawlana Rumi to succeed him as mufti
(preacher) and he introduced him to his congregation and students and gave him the
opportunity to preach. Hazrat Bahauddin taught in the madrasah in Konya until his death, two
years later, in February 1231 when he was about 80 years old.
2.4 Education:
Mawlana Rumi’s father had appointed his own trusted disciple, Hazrat Burhanuddin
Muhaqqiq al-Tirmidhi, as a tutor responsible for his son's education during his infancy.
A year after the death of Hazrat Bahauddin, Hazrat Burhanuddin arrived in Konya, unaware
of the fact that his Master had passed away. Having had lost his teacher, Hazrat Burhanuddin
was reunited with Mawlana Rumi and assumed a role that he had had some nineteen or so
years previously when he had been tutor to the infant Mawlana Rumi, this time being placed
in charge of Mawlana Rumi's spiritual education.
Mawlana surrendered himself completely to his teacher during a period of intensive
training lasting nearly nine years in which he later recalls with a glowing tribute to his
teacher:
Be mature and transcend all change
And become the light incarnate like Burhan Muhaqqiq.
When you escape from yourself you become Burhan,
When you say, 'I am a slave,' you become a king.
Hazrat Burhanuddin sent Mawlana Rumi to Halab (Aleppo), where studied at
Madrassa Halawiyya (a college of the Ḥanafi school of Sunni Islamic law) and then to
Damascus in order to further his studies. During his stay in Syria, Mawlana Rumi pursued a
traditional course of religious studies, including Fiqh, Tafsir, Arabic language and literature,
Hadith and theology.
After spending seven years in Syria, Mawlana Rumi returned to Kayseri (ancient
Caesarea) where he was instructed by Hazrat Burhanuddin in undertaking the spiritual
practices of the Sufis, such as fasting, and it was after a particularly rigorous fast during
which Mawlana Rumi is said to have performed three forty-day fasts in succession, Mawlana
Rumi also began to study and deeply treasure his father’s spiritual journal, absorbing its
mystical accounts, as well as the spiritual notebooks and Quran Tafasir (commentaries) of
Hazrat Burhanuddin.
Hazrat Burhanuddin then directed Mawlana Rumi to start his mission of assisting and
preaching to those who had gone astray in Konya, while he himself resumed preaching duties
in Kayseri until he later passed away in 1241. Thus, Mawlana Rumi became a fully-fledged
successor to his father.
Not long after Mawlana's return to Konya, in 1242 or 1243, his wife Gowhar Khatun
passed away. Between 1240 and 1245, Mawlana's teenage sons went to Damascus to acquire
an education like their father's, under the protection of their maternal grandfather, Hazrat
Sharfuddin. After they returned, Hazrat Sultan Walad would sometimes sit near his father

5
during his lectures and people would mistake them for brothers, rather than father and son, on
account of their relatively small age difference.
Mawlana was later remarried to a widow named Kerra Khatun (d.1292) with whom
he had a third son, Muzaffar al-Din Amir Alim Chelebi (d.1277), and a daughter, Malika
Khatun (d. 1303-1306).
2.4.1 Career in Konya:
In Konya, Mawlana Rumi took over his father’s old position as teacher in the
madrasah.
2.5 Turning Point Of Rumi’s Life:
Rumi was already a teacher and a theologian, when in 1244 AD he came across a
wandering dervish named Shamsuddin of Tabriz. The meeting proved to be a turning point in
his life. Shamsuddin and Rumi became very close friends. Shams went to Damascus, were he
was allegedly killed by the students of Rumi who were resentful of their close relationship.
Rumi expressed his love for Shamsuddin and grief at his death, through music, dance and
poems. For nearly ten years after meeting Shamsuddin, Rumi devoted himself in writing
ghazals. He made a compilation of ghazals and named it Diwan-e-Kabir or Diwan-e Shams-e
Tabrizi. Thereafter, Rumi encountered a goldsmith - Salaud-Din-e Zarkub - whom he made
his companion. When Salaud-Din-e Zarkub died, Rumi befriended one of his favorite
disciples named Hussam-e Chalabi. Rumi spent most of the later years of his life in Anatolia,
where he finished six volumes of his masterwork, the Masnavi.
2.5.1 Salahuddin Zarkub:
Following the disappearance of Hazrat Shams, Mawlana found a new spiritual
companion in the form of a goldsmith called Hazrat Salahuddin Zarkub. Mawlana Rumi was
already acquainted with Hazrat Salahuddin, who had come to Konya in 1235. He, like
Mawlana himself, had previously been a disciple of Hazrat Burhanuddin Muhaqqiq; later he
had gone back to his village and had married before returning to the capital where he was
reunited with Mawlana.
2.5.2 Demise:
In the autumn of 1273, Mawlana Rumi fell ill. The Sultan, his vizier and other
officials came to visit him on his sickbed, and two physicians were in attendance, constantly
checking his pulse and consulting their medical books. For forty days before his demise,
Konya had been shaken by earthquakes and people flocked to him to ask for his intercession
to prevent any impending disaster. Mawlana assured them that no harm would come to the
town and they needn't worry. He explained that the earth was hungry for a juicy morsel and it
would soon be satisfied. He consoled those closest to him by reminding them that death is not
separation but liberation of the soul:
Don't cry: "Woe, parted!" at my burial -
For me, this is the time of joyful meeting!
Don't say "Farewell" when I'm put in the grave -
It is a curtain for eternal grance! [18]
On 17 December 1273 (5 Jumada al-Thani, 672 AH) at sunset, at the age of 66,
Mawlana Rumi left this world and was reunited with his Lord, an occasion which is referred
to by his followers as his ‘wedding night’, or ‘night of union’. That evening, preparations for
the burial were made and the following day, his body was lifted up on a bier and carried
through the city. Mawlana Rumi was mourned by the entire city of Konya, and his funeral
was attended by people of all ages, races and religions: men, women and children; Turks,
Greeks, and Arabs; Muslims, Jews and Christians.

6
 When non-Muslims were asked why they were attending the funeral of a Muslim
saint, they replied that ‘they had learnt from him more of the mysteries shrouded in their
scriptures, than they had ever known before,
2.6 Mawlana Rumi's tomb in Konya, Turkey:
A short while after Mawlana Rumi's death, the Seljuq Sultan, Alam al-Din Qaysar,
approached Hazrat Sultan Walad about erecting the Green Dome, the building which houses
the mausoleum of Mawlana Rumi, for which he required 30,000 dirhams. Several times this
amount was collected and thus Badr al-Din Tabrizi, an architect and disciple of Mawlana
Rumi who was described by Mawlana as “the second Socrates and Greek Plato” supervised
the construction of the shrine.
2.7 Understanding The Prophet Muhammad (PBUH):
Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi was profoundly devoted to the Prophet. Mawlana’s deep
love, respect and devotion to Muhammad (PBUH) were based on these reasons:
The greatness of his name and worth.
His superior, worthy, respectable and influential personality.
His beautiful virtue, his being subject to divine grace and favor, and the universality
of the great mission and message he brought.
Mawlana Jalaluddin Rumi (1207-1273) is a soldier and volunteer (on the path of
Truth) who dedicated his life to knowledge, wisdom, and virtue, in short, to Allah and the
people. Taking the beautiful morality of the Prophet as his example, he attempts to teach man
the roads to virtue and excellence in all of his works.Mawlana frequently touches on the
prophets, their struggles and the beauty of their virtue in his works. He mentions by one
means or another almost every prophet who is named in the Quran. He bases his description
of the Prophet mainly on the Quran, hadiths, historical events and narrations. By adding
poetical expressions of his profound love to this material, Rumi presents a rich discourse. We
see that he refers to and describes our prophet in this order: Ahmed, Muhammad, Mustafa,
Prophet, Messenger, Ahmed-i Muhtar, Nebi, Ambassador of Allah, Highest of the Prophets,
Sultan, Padishah and Yasin.

3 Theme Of Rumi’s Poetry:

The general theme of Rumi's thought, like that of other mystic and Sufi poets of
Persian literature, is essentially that of the Sufi concept of Towheed – ‫ توحید‬- Ultimate
mystical union of a Sufi mystic lover with Beloved (God) – from Whom he or she has been
cut off and become aloof – thus the lifelong longing and desire of the seeker to annihilate Self
and become One with the One and Only (God).
It is often said that the teachings of Rumi are ecumenical in nature. For Rumi, religion
was mostly a personal experience and not limited to logical and dogmatic arguments or
perceptions of the senses. Rumi believes that creative love, or the urge to rejoin the spirit to
divinity, is the ultimate goal towards which a believer moves.
The main theme and message of Rumi's thoughts and teachings is the Love of God
and His creatures. The focus of Rumi's philosophy is humanity and his objective is to achieve
and to help others reach the state of perfect human being. Rumi founded the Mevlevi Sufi
mystic order, commonly known as the "Whirling Dervishes" and created the Sema rite, a
ritualistic sacred dance to symbolically seek the divine truth and maturity. Rumi's message
and teachings continue to inspire people from all religions and cultures today and show us
how to live together in peace and harmony.
The world of Rumi is not exclusive, but is rather the highest state of a human being -
namely, a fully evolved human. Rumi offends no one and includes everyone, as a perfect
human being who is in search of love, truth and the unity of the human soul. Rumi's very

7
broad appeal, highly advanced thinking, humanism and open heart and mind may derive from
his genuinely cosmopolitan character, as during his lifetime he enjoyed exceptionally good
relations with people of diverse social, cultural and religious backgrounds. Rumi was familiar
with the core message of all of them and therefore was appreciated by believers of many
religions.

4 Major works:
Rumi’s poetry is often divided into various categories: the quatrains (rubayāt) and
odes (ghazal) of the Divan, the six books of the Masnavi, The Discourses, The Letters, and
the almost unknown Six Sermons.
Poetic works
Rumi’s major work is the Maṭnawīye Ma’nawī (Spiritual Couplets; ‫)معنوی مثنوی‬, a six-
volume poem regarded by some Sufis as the Persian-language Qur’an. It is considered by
many to be one of the greatest works of mystical poetry. Rumi’s other major work is
the Dīwān-e Kabīr (Great Work) or Diwan-e Shams-e Tabrizi|Dīwān-e Shams-e Tabrīzī (The
Works of Shams of Tabriz; named in honor of Rumi’s master Shams.
Prose works
Fihi Ma Fihi (In It What’s in It) provides a record of seventy-one talks and lectures
given by Rumi on various occasions to his disciples. It was compiled from the notes of his
various disciples, so Rumi did not author the work directly. An English translation from the
Persian was first published by A.J. Arberry as Discourses of Rumi(New York: Samuel
Weiser, 1972), and a translation of the second book by Wheeler Thackston, Sign of the
Unseen(Putney, VT: Threshold Books, 1994).
Majāles-e Sab’a (Seven Sessions) contains seven Persian sermons (as the name
implies) or lectures given in seven different assemblies. The sermons themselves give a
commentary on the deeper meaning of Qur’an and Hadeeth. The sermons also include
quotations from poems of Sana’i, ‘Attar, and other poets, including Rumi himself. As Aflakī
relates, after Shams-e Tabrīzī, Rumi gave sermons at the request of notables, especially Salāh
al-Dīn Zarkūb.
Makatib (The Letters, Persian) is the book containing Rumi’s letters in Persian to his
disciples, family members, and men of state and of influence. The letters testify that Rumi
kept very busy helping family members and administering a community of disciples that had
grown up around them.

Poetic works:
Masnavi Manavi - ‫مثنوی‬ ‫معنوی‬ :
Rhyming Couplets of Profound Spiritual Meanings;
"The Masnavi, or Rhymed Couplets, is Rumi’s last and most famous work. It consists
of six lengthy books of poetry (each containing several thousand lines of text), set up in a
teaching-style format designed to convey important spiritual lessons. It's the only one of
Rumi’s works that he deliberately composed in chronological order for a single purpose.
Rumi's Masnavi consists of a collection of around 25,000 rhyming couplets and 440
mystical/spiritual stories divided into 6 books. It contains thousands of rhyming couplets (a
type of poetry called, in Arabic, Mathnawî) with stories, ethical teachings, and deeply
spiritual Sufi teachings. The Masnavi weaves fables, scenes from everyday life, Quranic
revelations and exegesis, and metaphysics into a vast and intricate tapestry. The Masnavi is

8
deeply permeated with Quranic meanings and references, which is why it has been so famous
and well-loved for so many centuries all across the Muslim world.
The Masnavi is set up in the classic style of a Sufi teaching manual. It conveys its
message almost entirely through stories of varying length. The material which makes up the
Masnavi is divisible into two different categories: theoretical discussion of the principal
themes of Sufi mystical life and doctrine, and stories of fables intended to illustrate those
themes as they arise. Like many such collections that came before it, Rumi's Masnavi
contains within its tales references to the Quran, the sayings of Prophet Muhammad, Muslim
history, famous saints and sinners, poetic allusions, and tales of animals and fantastic events.
In the Masnavi, Rumi deals with many of the major questions of Islamic theology,
addressing himself not primarily to learned scholars, but to ordinary people, using lively and
accessible arguments to capture their attention. The aim is to explain the very roots of
spirituality and the meaning of religion as understood by those who tread the mystical path,
and thus to provide a guide for the thinking person to resolve everyday moral and
metaphysical quandries as a true Sufi might. Rumi does not approach his theology in any
systematic fashion; rather, the Masnavi is composed of parables nested within stories,
interrupted by funny anecdotes or bawdy jokes, designed to reel in his audience. Rumi puts
these dramatic vignettes to good purpose, drawing from them theological conclusions,
pointing them with morals that illustrate his spiritual and mystical perceptions, and
admonishing his readers to deeper understanding and higher aspiration.
The eminent 15th century Persian Sufi poet, Jami called Rumi's Masnavi 'The Quran
in Persian Language'. Rumi's Masnavi is unanimously considered as one of the greatest
works of mystical poetry and religious literature."
In the prologue to the Masnavi, Rumi writes:
"This is the Book of the Masnavi, which is the roots of the roots of the roots of the
Way in respect of unveiling the mysteries of attainment and of certainty; and which is the
greatest science of God and the clearest way of God and the most manifest evidence of God.
The likeness of the light thereof is as a niche in which is a candle shining with
radiance brighter than the dawn. It is the heart’s Paradise, having fountains and boughs, one
of them a fountain called Salsabil among the travelers on this Path; and in the view of the
possessors of stations and graces, and it is best as a station and most excellent as a resting-
place. There the righteous eat and drink, and there the free are gladdened and rejoiced; and
like the Nile of Egypt it is a drink to them that endure patiently, but a grief to the people of
Pharaoh and the unbelievers, even as God has said, He lets many be misled thereby and He
lets many be guided thereby. It is the cure for breasts, and the purge of sorrows, and the
expounder of the Quran, and the abundance of gifts, and the cleansing dispositions; by the
hands of noble righteous scribes who forbid None shall touch it except the purified.Falsehood
does not approach it either from before or behind, since God observes it and watches over it,
and He is the best guardian and He is the most merciful of them that show mercy.And it has
other titles of honor which God has bestowed upon it."

Divan-e Shams Tabrizi or Divan-e Kabir

9
‫دیوان‬ ‫شمس‬ ‫تبریزی‬ ‫یا‬ ‫دیوان‬ ‫کبیر‬ :
Rumi's Great Collection of Lyrical Love Poems dedicated to his mystical lover and Sufi
master, Shams of Tabriz;
"Rumi's second best known work is the Divan-e Shams Tabrizi or Divan-e Kabir,
totaling some 35000 couplets, which is a collection of poems describing the mystical states
and expounding various points of Sufi doctrine. While the Masnavi tends towards a didactic
approach, the Divan is rather a collection of ecstatic utterances. It is well known that most of
the ghazals/odes of the Divan were composed spontaneously by Rumi during the Sama or
"Mystical dance." This dance, which later came to be known as the "Dance of the Whirling
Dervishes," is an auxiliary means of spiritual concentration employed by the Mevlevi Sufi
Order, a means which, it is said, was originated by Rumi himself.
Besides approximately 35000 Persian couplets and 2000 Persian quatrains, the Divan
also contains 90 ghazals/odes and 19 rubaiyat/quatrains in Arabic, a couple of dozen or so
couplets in Turkish (mainly macaronic poems of mixed Persian and Turkish), and 14 couplets
in Greek (all of them in three macaronic poems of Greek-Persian). The Divan is the
inspiration of Rumi’s middle-aged years. It began with his meeting Shams of Tabriz,
becoming his disciple and spiritual friend, the stress of Shams’ first disappearance, and the
crisis of Shams’ final disappearance. It is believed that Rumi continued to compose poems
for the Divan long after this final crisis– during the composition of the Masnavi.
The Divan is filled with ecstatic verses in which Rumi expresses his mystical love for
Shams as a symbol of his love for God. Shams of Tabriz was the man who transformed Rumi
from a learned religious teacher into a devotee of music, dance, poetry, and founder of the
Whirling Dervishes. Shams stayed with Rumi for less than two years when upset by the
hostility of Rumi's disciples, spearheaded by Rumi's own son, Alauddin, one day Shams left
unannounced. After the final disappearance of Sham of Tabriz, Rumi was consumed by an
extended period of soul-searching. He continued to compose poems and odes to assuage his
wounded heart, and this ever-growing body of work formed the basis of his book, Divan,
which he dedicated to the memory of Sham of Tabriz. These beautiful and emotional poems
spoke of a platonic form of love between a student and his lost master. Rumi roamed the city
at nights and danced spontaneously around uttering verses in ecstasy and lamenting the
separation from his master, while his students recording the muse. This valuable wealth of
mystic poetry, over 50,000 verses, are preserved in the form of what is known as Divan-e
Shams Tabrizi --Rumi uses Shams as nom de plume in the poems as a glowing tribute to his
mystical lover and Sufi master, Shams of Tabriz.

In the ghazal/ode 1720 from his Divan-e Shams, Rumi writes:

We come spinning out of nothingness,
Scattering stars like the dust.
The stars form a circle,
And in the center we dance.
Shams of Tabriz,
This love of yours thirsts for my blood.

10
I head straight to it,
Blade and shroud in hand!
4.1 Prose works

Fihi Ma Fihi - ‫فیه‬ ‫ما‬ ‫فیه‬ :

Discourses of Rumi;
"It contains a collection of 71 talks and lectures given by Rumi at various occasions -
some formal and others informal - to his disciples. Fihi Ma Fihi is a record of those 71
spiritual discussions that often followed music and dance, the reciting of sacred poems and
phrases, and the now famous Whirling Dance of Sufi Dervishes that Rumi originated to bring
spiritual awakening to the masses. Like Masnavi, it was written during the last few years of
Rumi’s life. Fihi Ma Fihi or The Discourses was compiled from the notes of his various
disciples, so Rumi did not author the work directly. An English translation from the Persian
was first published by A.J. Arberry as Discourses of Rumi (1972), and a translation of the
second book by Wheeler Thackston as Sign of the Unseen (1994).
In the preface to A.J. Arberry’s translation of “Fihi Ma Fihi”, Doug Marman writes:
‘It’ refers to God. Therefore God is what God is. This is the same as the Muslim saying,
‘There is no God but GOD.’ In other words, Rumi asks, ‘What more is there to say?’ All the
words here, all the stories and explanations are saying nothing more than this. There is no
more to reality than reality. God is. Reality is. It is what it is. Explanations cannot explain it.
Words cannot reveal it. “Fihi Ma Fihi” refers to the “Immanent” aspect of the Cosmic
Consciousness. Immanence, derived from the Latin in manere – “to remain within” – refers to
the divine essence permeating the whole Cosmos and forming the basis of existence and life.
Without this essence there is no existence and there is no life. The life giving essence is at the
core of each entity from elementary particles to the entire Cosmos and from viruses to human
beings. This essence is also known as the Soul. Unit Souls and the Cosmic Soul seem
different but they are reflections of that nameless indescribable ocean of love and bliss. Rumi
experiences this infinite ocean, he is unable to explain it and unable to describe it. He simply
says “It is what It IS.”

Majalis-e Saba - ‫مجالس‬ ‫سبعه‬ :

Seven Sermons of Rumi;
"It contains a collection of seven Rumi Sermons or Lectures given in seven different
assemblies. The Sermons themselves give a commentary on the deeper meaning of Quran and
Hadith. The Sermons also include quotations from poems of Sanai, Attar, and other Persian
Sufi poets, including Rumi himself. As his hagiographer, Aflaki relates, after Shams Tabrizi,
Rumi gave sermons at the request of notables, especially his second deputy, Salah al-Din
Zarkub. Throughout his life, Rumi gave many Sermons in the mosques of Konya and many
addresses and speeches to gatherings of his students, followers, and others. On seven of these
more auspicious occasions, either Rumi’s son, Sultan Walad, or his last deputy, Husamuddin
Chelebi, recorded what the Master said. These seven recorded Sermons, together, are known
as the Majalis-i Saba’, which translates as the Seven Sermons. Each of these seven speeches
centers upon an important saying, or hadith, of Prophet Muhammad and is expounded upon

11
with a wide variety of anecdotes, examples, and persuasive arguments. In tone, these
speeches are more businesslike and less like the poetry that characterizes Rumi’s other works.
Here is a brief summary of the contents of each of the Seven Sermons of Rumi. They appear
as well-organized speeches in all respects:

Sermon 1: Believers should follow the example and way of Prophet Muhammad. Untold
rewards will accrue to the benefit of those who adhere to the Prophet’s way in uncertain
times.

Sermon 2: Whoever preserves himself from falling into sinful ways and who avoids
arrogance, one of the worst sins, will gain spiritual richness from God. Real wealth is a
contented heart. Followers of the Truth avoid greed, arrogance, and revenge, and they
advance their knowledge through education.

Sermon 3: Pure and sincere faith will propel a person toward honest worship of God.
Prayers should be performed in a humble frame of mind, and God’s help should be sought in
all affairs.

Sermon 4: God loves those who are pure at heart. God favors those who are humble and
who love Him rather than the material world. God loves those who repent to Him if they ever
commit a sin. God accepts the repentance of the sincere and erases their sins.

Sermon 5: The only way a person can be saved from the pitfalls of the world is through
religious knowledge. Those who know nothing of religion are like an empty scarecrow.
Those who acquire religious knowledge are like doctors who heal others. Knowledge is the
weapon a believer uses against sin.

Sermon 6: The world is like a trap that captures any who cling too closely to it. Those who
focus themselves only upon the world of the present pass through life unaware of the bigger
picture. They are heedless and do not perform the tasks that God would have them do. They
can only expect destruction in the next life.

Sermon 7: The only way a person can understand his/her soul and how his/her motivations
work is through knowledge and reason. When a person uses his/her mind to delve deeply
within self, he/she can finally begin the journey towards becoming a true lover of God."

Maktubat - ‫مکتوبات‬ :
Letters of Rumi;
"It contains a collection of 150 of Rumi's Persian Letters to his family members,
friends, and men of state and of influence. The Letters testify that Rumi kept very busy
helping family members and administering a community of disciples that had grown up
around them. Islamic civilization had always placed a high value on preserving written

12
records. In Rumi’s time, it had already been a well-established practice to collect the letters
of scholars together and publish them in book form. Thus, Rumi’s students saved many of his
letters and collated about 150 of them in a book. This collection of letters is called the
Maktubat, or Letters. In keeping with Rumi’s religious and philosophical nature, all of these
letters are liberally sprinkled with references from the Quran, the sayings of Prophet
Muhammad, anecdotes, quotes from famous writers, and poems. Rumi’s Letters, which were
written to rulers, friends, students, and others, fall into three basic categories that can be
summarized as following:

Letters of Advice: These were most often addressed to government officials to exhort them to
remain righteous and to do good deeds in the conduct of their duties. Sometimes he wrote
letters of this sort to friends and relatives.

Letters of Recommendation: Like any well-respected professor, Rumi wrote letters of

recommendation to help people get jobs or receive grants from the government.

Letters of Religious Rulings: Rumi received many requests for religious guidance and rulings
on a wide variety of topics."

5 History of Rumi’s poetry:

The decisive moment in Rūmī’s life occurred on Nov. 30, 1244, when in the streets of
Konya he met the wandering dervish—holy man—Shams al-Din (Sun of Religion) of Tabriz,
whom he may have first encountered in Syria. Shams al-Din cannot be connected with any of
the traditional mystical fraternities; his overwhelming personality, however, revealed to Jalāl
al-Din the mysteries of divine majesty and beauty. For months the two mystics lived closely
together, and Rumi neglected his disciples and family.When Shams pushes Rumi’s books
into the fountain at their first meeting, including his father Bahauddin’s soul notes, he says,
“Now you must live what you’ve been reading and talking about.” Rumi relinquishes his
books, and he and Shams go into retreat. Rumi asks for burning. Shams say, I am fire. It is
that which refines the poems to their daring intensity and courage, to their setting out into
unknown regions, these heart-quadrants that are so subtle and multivalent.
Why should I seek more?
I am the same as he.
His essence speaks through me.
I have been looking for myself.
His scandalized entourage forced Shams to leave the town in February 1246. Jalāl al-
Din was heartbroken; his eldest son, Sulṭān Walad, eventually brought Shams back from
Syria. The family, however, could not tolerate the close relation of Jalāl al-Din with his
beloved, and one night in 1247 Shams disappeared forever. In the 20th century it was
established that Shams was indeed murdered, not without the knowledge of Rumi’s sons,
who hurriedly buried him close to a well that is still extant in Konya. Franklin Lewis claims
that the rumor Shams was murdered by jealous disciples of Rumi “arrives late, circulates in
oral context, and is almost certainly groundless.” What we know for sure is what we have, the
poems so filled with grief and ecstatic sentience. All the biographical scenarios, whichever
one chooses, are without sufficient evidence to be authoritative. No matter. We can let that
13
detective story rest awhile. We have the Shams, the Masnavi, the letters, Discourses,
sermons, the Rubaiyat, a generous plenty!
The central enigma of Rumi’s life, of course, is Shams Tabriz, the electrifying,
eccentric wanderer with the charisma of a desert wind, who knelt and prayed for a companion
on his own level of attainment. A voice came,
“What will you give?
“My head.” Jelaluddin of Konya is your Friend.’’
He said later that he came to Rumi when Rumi was ready to receive his secret. But it
was observed of Rumi and Shams that one could not tell who was the teacher and who the
disciple.
This experience of love, longing, and loss turned Rūmī into a poet. His poems—
ghazals (about 30,000 verses) and a large number of rubaiyat (“quatrains”)—reflect the
different stages of his love, until, as his son writes, “he found Shams in himself, radiant like
the moon.” The complete identification of lover and beloved is expressed by his inserting the
name of Shams instead of his own pen name at the end of most of his lyrical poems.
The Divan-e Shams (“The Collected Poetry of Shams”) is a true translation of his experiences
into poetry; its language, however, never becomes lost in lofty spiritual heights or nebulous
speculation. The fresh language, propelled by its strong rhythms, sometimes assumes forms
close to popular verses.
There would seem to be cause for the belief, expressed by chroniclers, that much of
this poetry was composed in a state of ecstasy, induced by the music of the flute or the drum,
the hammering of the goldsmiths, or the sound of the water mill in Meram, where Rumi used
to go with his disciples to enjoy nature. He found in nature the reflection of the radiant beauty
of the Sun of Religion and felt flowers and birds partaking in his love. He often accompanied
his verses by a whirling dance , and many of his poems were composed to be sung in Sufi
musical gatherings.
A few years after Shams al-Din’s death, Rūmī experienced a similar rapture in his
acquaintance with an illiterate goldsmith, Ṣālāḥ al-Din Zarkūb. It is said that one day, hearing
the sound of a hammer in front of Ṣalāḥ al-Din’s shop in the bazaar of Konya, Rumi began
his dance. The shop owner had long been one of Rumi’s closest and most loyal disciples, and
his daughter became the wife of Rūmī’s eldest son. This love again inspired Rūmī to write
poetry. After Salah- ud-Din's death, Rumi's scribe and favorite student, Ḥusām al-Din
Chelebi, assumed the role of Rumi's companion. One day, the two of them were wandering
through the Meram vineyards outside Konya when Hussam described to Rumi an idea he
had:
"If you were to write a book like the “ELLAHI NAMA”of Sanai or the Mantiq ut-
Tayr of 'Attar, it would become the companion of many troubadours. They would fill their
hearts from your work and compose music to accompany it."
Rumi smiled and took out a piece of paper on which were written the opening
eighteen lines of his Masnavi, beginning with:
Listen to the reed and the tale it tells,
How it sings of separation?
Hussam implored Rumi to write more. Rumi spent the next twelve years of his life in
Anatolia dictating the six volumes of this masterwork, the Masnavi, to Hussam. Ḥussām al-
Din Chelebi became his spiritual love and deputy. Rūmī’s main work, the Mas̄ navī-yi
Manavī, was composed under his influence. Ḥusām al-Din had asked him to follow the model
of the poets Aṭṭār and Sanā’i, who had laid down mystical teachings in long poems,
interspersed with anecdotes, fables, stories, proverbs, and allegories. Their works were
widely read by the mystics and by Rūmī’s disciples. Rūmī followed Ḥusām al-Din’s advice
and composed nearly 26,000 couplets of the Mas̄ navī during the following years. It is said

14
that he would recite his verses even in the bath or on the roads, accompanied by Ḥusām al-
Din, who wrote them down. The Mas̄ navī, which shows all the different aspects of Sufism in
the 13th century, often carries the reader away with loose associations of thought, so that one
understands what subjects the master had in mind at a particular stage of his life. The work
reflects the experience of divine love; both Ṣalāḥ al-Din and Ḥusām al-Din were, for Rūmī,
renewed manifestations of Shams al-Din, the all-embracing light. He called Ḥusām al-Din,
therefore, Ḍiyā’al-Ḥaqq (“Light of the Truth”); ḍiyā is the Arabic term for sunlight.
Rūmī lived for a short while after completing the Mas̄ navī. He always remained a
respected member of Konya society, and his company was sought by the leading officials as
well as by Christian monks. His burial procession, according to one of Rūmī’s
contemporaries, was attended by a vast crowd of people of many faiths and nationalities. His
mausoleum, the Green Dome, is today a museum in Konya; it is still a place of pilgrimage,
primarily for Turkish Muslims.
Ḥusām al-Dīn was Rūmī’s successor and was in turn succeeded by Sulṭān Walad, who
organized the loose fraternity of Rumi’s disciples into the Mawlawiya, known in the West as
the Whirling Dervishes because of the mystical dance that constitutes their principal ritual.
Sulṭān Walad’s poetical accounts of his father’s life are the most important source of
knowledge of Rūmī’s spiritual development.
Besides his poetry, Rūmī left a small collection of occasional talks as they were noted
down by his friends; in the collection, known as Fīhi mā fīhi (“There Is in It What Is in It”),
the main ideas of his poetry recur. There also exist sermons and a collection of letters
(Maktūbāt) directed to different persons. It is impossible to systematize his ideas, which at
times contradict each other, and changes in the use of symbols often puzzle the reader. His
poetry is a most human expression of mystical experiences, in which readers can find their
own favourite ideas and feelings—from enthusiastic flights into the heavens to matter-of-fact
descriptions of daily life.
In December 1273, Rumi fell ill; he predicted his own death and composed the well-
known ghazal, which begins with the verse:
How doest thou know what sort of king I have within me as companion?
Do not cast thy glance upon my golden face, for I have iron legs.
The best explanation for Rumi's popularity may simply be that he was a very
wonderful poet-uniquely capable of transcending "outward appearances" and conjuring up
the mystical "inward reality," yet entirely realistic and modest about the limitations of his
words-and there are very few such writers in the world. It also must be remembered that the
Mathnawi, Rumi's longest work, is a Persian classic and by itself would ensure his literary
immortality.
Rūmī’s use of Persian and Arabic in his poetry, in addition to some Turkish and less
Greek, has resulted in his being claimed variously for Turkish literature and Persian literature, a
reflection of the strength of his influence in Iran and Turkey. Rumı, although easy to enjoy in
Persian, is far from easy to translate. Much of the appeal of his poetry depends on the
musicality of his verse, which is bound to be lost in translation. The force of his passion and
the subtlety of his mystical sentiments, expressed in a somewhat unorthodox diction, is also a
constant challenge to the translator. The influence of his writings in the Indian subcontinent is
also substantial. By the end of the 20th century, his popularity had become a global
phenomenon, with his poetry achieving a wide circulation in Western Europe and the United
States.

6 Teachings of Rumi:
There is tremendous spiritual depth in the teachings of Rumi and he is also widely
accepted amongst non-Muslims as a great spiritual master - in September 2007 BBC called
15
him ‘the most popular poet in America’ for many years. 2007 was declared as the
‘International Rumi Year’ by UNESCO. There is a timelessness and universality to Rumi’s
teachings making them relevant in a modern world even after a passage of 800 years. Rumi’s
works are spiritual works – they are a reflection of him ‘living in God’ and being a mere
instrument in his hands – it reflects God’s brilliance. He says: This poetry. I never know what
I'm going to say. I don't plan it. When I'm outside the saying of it, I get very quiet and rarely
speak at all.
Sufism as a discipline is largely Islamic Sufism but Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, and
Jews can also be Sufis. Sufism is a philosophy, a spiritual discipline, a relationship between
master and disciple, a spiritual path. Sufi teachings are compatible with every religion and
are for everyone. God is like a picture being looked at by different people – depending on
where you’re standing you would describe it a bit differently and focus on different aspects –
this is religion. This does not change the nature of the picture which is the exact same for all
viewers. Rumi says that each religion has a different desire and design:
Christian, Jew, Muslim, shaman, Zoroastrian, stone, ground, mountain, river, each has a
secret way of being with the mystery, unique and not to be judged.

However, while the ways of different religions may vary, but the goal is one – all
roads led to God (Allah in Islam or Parvardigar in Sufism). Rumi says that while the prayer
of every religion is different, still, faith (knowingness) does not change from religion to
religion. The states that it produces, its place in life, and its effects are the same everywhere.
Rumi’s words underscore the universality of Sufism:
Why think thus O men of piety
I have returned to sobriety
I am neither a Moslem nor a Hindu
I am not Christian, Zoroastrian, nor Jew
Rumi believed in conveying the message directly and said that where elaborate words
are used their purpose is forgotten. He is indeed a perfect master. Rumi was a devout Muslim;
however, he was a perfect master and looked for the mystical inner meaning in words. He had
a refreshing tolerance of non-Muslims and intolerance of insincere pretenders of all religions
including his own.
Following are some other things which Rumi teaches:

6.1 Key Sufi Principles:

Sufi’s believe that Sufism is a divine knowledge
bestowed by God upon a selected few for the benefit of
humanity. Instead of focusing on the legal aspects of Islam
(fiqah), Sufism focuses on the internal aspects such as
perfecting the aspect of sincerity of faith and fighting one's
ego. The journey of the Sufi will usually consist of four stages – the first is gradual removal
of the ‘nafs’ or the animal spirit so that our higher qualities come to the fore, the second is the
cleansing of the heart and the creation of love for God alone, the third is constant
remembrance of God and the last stage is illumination in God or “Fana” (the passingaway of
the self and living in God). As Rumi says:
The heart is nothing but the sea of light…the place of the vision of God.
Fana happens through the spiritual master – so first is the union with the spiritual
master and then through him ultimately with God. In God’s presence two I’s cannot exist.
Rumi says:

16
That which God said to the rose, and caused it to laugh in full-blown beauty,
He said to my heart, and made it a hundred times more beautiful.

6.2 God’s Nature and Will:

Rumi said that God is all-pardoning, all-forgiving and terrible in retribution. He
controls both good and evil in this world. Good and
evil exist for man although from God’s perspective all
are good as he controls both forces. God in actuality
has no opposite. ‘I was a hidden treasure,’ God says,
‘and I wanted to be known’. So he created this world
of darkness for his light to become visible. The affairs of this world are an illusion - Rumi
says ‘This world is the dream of a sleeper’. So while all things appear in opposition, but to
the wise they all work together and are not opposed. As Rumi says ‘Show me an evil in this
world without good, or a good thing without evil.’
God teaches man through the opposites – pain and pleasure, happiness and sorrow.
Rumi says:
God turns you from one feeling to another and teaches by means of opposites, so that you
will have two wings to fly, not one.
Rumi says that the prophets did not attain prophethood through personal effort—they
gained that fortune through Divine Grace (a love and a certainty which spring from direct
knowledge and experience of God). Yet God still requires the prophets to live a life of
personal effort and virtue and set an example to others. The prophets and the saints forsake
their own desires and follow the desire of God. Whatever God commands, they do. Whoever
God denies grace, to them the saints are indifferent - indeed in their eyes such a one is an
enemy.

6.3 Direct Spiritual Experience:

For Rumi, spirituality was mostly a personal experience and was not limited to logical
arguments or perceptions of the senses. He says:
In the screaming gale of Love, the intellect is a gnat.
How can intellects find space to wander there?
By the time intellect has deliberated and reflected, love has flown to the seventh heaven.
Rumi says that the heart of knowledge lies with
God and this can be acquired only through direct spiritual experience. This
knowledge is also within ourselves but we cannot see it due to the veils. Direct spiritual
experience helps to lift these veils. When such spiritual knowledge is revealed then all our
other forms of knowledge (e.g. sciences,) acquire a soul like an empty body that springs to
life.
Rumi says that True Sufi's eat little, sleep little, speak little and their tongues are
empowered with the truth.

6.4 The Three Souls:

Rumi uses a metaphor to describe a human being as having a donkey's tail and an
angel's wings underscoring the coexistence of good and evil within every man. He says that
we are half angel, half beast. If our spiritual conscience overcomes our sensuality, we are
higher than the angels. If our sensuality overcomes our spiritual conscience, we are lower
than the beasts. He says:

17
The angel is saved through knowledge,
The animal - through ignorance.
Between the two struggle the people of this wor
Rumi says:
Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself
that you have built against it.
Rumi believed that thoughts have real effects and we need to control what we think to drive
out our negative and destructive thoughts. He regarded this as the true holy war.

6.5 Overcoming the Nafs:

The Nafs (ego or animal spirit) is both the cause of and causes the experience of
sorrow. It is at the centre of ‘veiling’ and is the evil within us. It is the ‘root cause’ and our
animal behaviour is merely a reflection of the nature of the nafs.
Rumi says that while working towards the removal of the nafs remember that ‘People
are passionate for whatever they are denied’. Those who have in them the natural quality not
to do evil, whether you prevent them or not, they will proceed according to their good
temperament and pure constitution. If they are the opposite, they will still go their own way;
trying to stop them in reality does nothing but increase their eagerness.
Also remember that as you get enlightened, your self-control will increase
automatically. You will also become more sensitive and things will affect you and become
visible, just as a little blackness shows on a clean white gown.

6.6 Equality of Man:

Sufis do not believe in discrimination based on beliefs, races, classes and nations.
Sufis believe that Sufi teachings are the essence of every
religion and of the evolution of humanity. Sufism
prohibits taking the life of an innocent person being just
because he is a non-Muslim. Sufism preaches infinite
tolerance irrespective of religion.
Rumi expresses this beautifully:
Come, come, whoever you are.
Wanderer, worshipper, lover of leaving.
It doesn’t matter. Ours is not a caravan of despair.
Come, even if you have broken your vow a hundred times.
Come, yet again, come, come.

6.7 Equality of Women:

Rumi believed that woman were the most perfect example of God's creative power on
earth. Rumi calls a woman, 'a ray of God'. She is not just the
earthly beloved; she is creative, not created.
Rumi says:
The Prophet said that women totally dominate men of
intellect and possessors of hearts. But ignorant men dominate
women, for they are shackled by an animal ferocity.
Rumi states that God has put more love and affection into women’s hearts than into
the hearts of men. God created women with this divine nature so that they may endure the
difficulty of childbirth and motherhood inspite of being physically weaker than men. Rumi

18
had female disciples which was rare in his time. His own life is an example of giving a
special status to women and treating them as sacred. The unity of being or oneness of
existence is at the core of Sufi beliefs. Rumi did not consider the soul of a woman inferior to
that of a man and believed that both man and woman can be spiritual aspirants.
Womanhood and the ability to give life and nurture the young were sacred qualities as
life itself was not possible without women and their pain and sacrifices.
Women therefore have a divine role.

6.8 The Perfect Man:

Iqbal says: Raise your self-being to the stage where
God, before writing your fate may ask you tell me my beloved
what is your will?
Rumi says that God will never abandon a perfect man
and will protect him and be in union with him in his work.
Rumi believe that our love for our spiritual work is a reflection of God’s blessing – if our
love weakened, it would be a sign of grace denied as God leads only those who are worthy
into those right attitudes that will earn spiritual rewards. Rumi says that where there is
generosity and compassion with genuine knowledge (knowingness) such a person is
incomparable.
The perfect man knows that happiness can only be found in the present – he does not
waste his time thinking about the past or the future. As Rumi says:
My friend, the sufi is the friend of the present moment. To say tomorrow is not our way.
Forget the future. I'd worship someone who could do that.
Rumi says that “God looks not at your form, nor at your deeds, but at your heart.”
Rumi says that whatever we keep hidden in our heart, God manifests in us outwardly
Rumi says that everything we possess whether it is skill, wealth and other material things,
were originally only a thought and a quest.
The perfect man understands the importance of keeping the mind free from evil
thoughts (includes anger, greed, lust, arrogance, pride, envy) while constantly remembering
his spiritual master.
As Rumi says:
Whenever you entrust your heart to a thought, something will be taken from you inwardly.
Whatever you think and acquire, the thief will enter from that side where you feel safe.
So busy yourself with that which is better, so that something less may be taken from you.
Rumi was a very wonderful poet-uniquely capable of transcending "outward
appearances" and conjuring up the mystical "inward reality," yet entirely realistic and modest
about the limitations of his words-and there are very few such writers in the world. It also
must be remembered that the Mathnawi, Rumi's longest work, is a Persian classic and by
itself would ensure his literary immortality.
Ḥażrat Mawlānā Rūmī’s message is timeless and universal. In his Mathnawī, this is
especially felt when he addresses esoteric subjects like mystical Love and the Ultimate
Reality. Then his language takes on a tone that transcends the boundaries and conventions of
formal religion. This makes these parts of the Mathnawī and his other works so appealing to
Western spiritual seekers. These esoteric passages yield a glimpse of who the inner Mawlānā
Rūmī really was. They reveal a mystic with an inner realization beyond measure, whose
message is not just intended for the Islamic world, but for people of all creeds and nations.
One can find the secrets of the gardens of the reality of Ummu’l-Kitāb which have
been manifested from the unseen World into the seen World. The gracious and supreme

19
beauty and subtlety of the secrets that reveal the Divine Light could not have been disclosed
without the blessing and the aid of God’s Chosen Saints.

7 Rumours about Rumi

There are certain criticisms about Rumi that emerged, are discussed below.

7.1 Rumi as a Homosexual:

The meeting of Rumi and Shams was a grand event in the mystical evolution of the
planet. With their friendship; categories of teacher and student, lover and beloved, master and
disciple, dissolved.
Jalaluddin Rumi was born in the remote town of Balkh, in what is now Afghanistan.
He lived most of his life in Konya, Turkey, which in the 13th century was a meeting point for
many cultures at the Western edge of the Silk Road, a place where Muslim, Christian, Hindu,
and even Buddhist travellers mingled.
Rumi, at the age of thirty-seven, had become an accomplished doctor of theology, the centre
of his own divinity school. He was a Venusians lover of the beautiful and the good, a scholar,
and artist.
Shams was a wandering dervish monk, rough-hewn and sinewy. A street bodhisattva
who mingled with labourers and camel drivers, he had no school. People spontaneously
gathered around him, though he was given to slipping out the side doors and leaving town
when it happened. He did not want followers or fame; he only wanted to find one person vast
enough in spirit to his companion. He met Rumi in Konya.
As Rumi was riding a donkey through the marketplace, surrounded by a knot of disciples, a
stranger with piercing eyes stepped from a doorway and seized his bridle. The stranger
challenged him:
“Who is greater, Muhammad or Bestami?”
Bestami was a legendary Sufi master given to ecstatic merging with God, then crying
out with mystical candour that he and the Godhead were one! Muhammad was the founder of
their tradition, the anointed one, but his greatness resided in his stature as messenger of God.
So who was greater?
Rumi gave the approved answer, “Muhammad.”
“But Bestami said, ‘I am the Glory!’ Muhammad said, ‘I cannot praise you enough!’”
As Rumi was about to reply, he realized that this was no seminary debate about the mysteries.
In a dusty marketplace in south central Anatolia, he had come face to face with the Mystery.
A doorway to eternity flickered open . . . And in one pure outrageous act of faith, Rumi dove
through. In an instant of mystical annihilation, fire met fire, ocean met ocean, and Rumi fell
into pure being. Later, he would say, “What I once thought of as God I met today as a human
being.”
To the outside world, it is only recorded that, at Shams’ question, Rumi “tumbled
from his saddle to the ground, unconscious.”
When Rumi revived, lying on the ground, he answered, “Bestami took one swallow of
knowledge and thought that that was all, but for Muhammad the majesty was continually
unfolding.”Shams felt the depth of the answer. This was the one he had sought.
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 The two began a series of months-long retreats into solitude where they entered into a
deep communion of words and silences called sohbet. Who can say what transpired there?
We can only guess that Rumi endured the refining fires of a deep spiritual purification.
But some of Rumi’s students saw their beloved teacher being spirited away by a madman,
and their intrigues forced Shams to leave Konya. After a time Rumi sent his son, Sultan
Veled, to bring Shams back. He found him in Damascus, playing cards in a tavern with a
young man from the West, the wastrel later to become Francis of Assisi. The young man was
cheating. When the entourage treated Shams like an emperor of the spirit, Francis confessed
and attempted to give Shams the money back.
“No,” said Shams, “take it to our friends in the West.”
Shams was forced into exile several times, but he always returned at Rumi’s request.
Finally on December 5, 1247, fanatics in the community took Shams’ life. The body
disappeared. Rumi wandered for months – desolate in disbelief that his companion was really
gone. One day in Damascus, he realized there was no longer a need to search. Shams was
with him, in him. Rumi embodied the Friendship. With this final illumination, he began
singing the spontaneous poetry of such beauty and perfection that is now loved and revered
across the world as revelation.

A Reply to Misunderstandings about Rumi and Shams:

First of all, it is necessary to understand that in Persian Sufi poetry, the word "lover"
means being a lover of God. And in the paths of Sufism that view the mystic seeker as the
lover and God as the Beloved, it means a true dervish. Therefore, "the lovers" are the lovers
of God. So in this sense Maulana and Shams certainly were "(spiritual) lovers."
Next, it’s necessary to consider how much the words "love" and "lover" have become
sexualized in the English language. Only thirty years ago, for example, "making love" in
popular songs meant no more than hugging and kissing. Now it always means "having sexual
relations." Similarly, "lovers" now always means "people who have or had sex together."
There is no longer any concept of lovers who don't engage in sex with each other: such as
"unrequited lovers," meaning people in love who are unable to be sexual; or "Platonic
lovers," who are in love, but choose not to have a physical relationship; or "spiritual lovers,"
such as the celibate Catholic nuns who view themselves as "married" to Christ. Next, it is
necessary to recall how much homosexuality has increasingly become accepted and viewed
as natural in our culture. As a result, it is more common to think/assume/suspect that men
who are exceptionally close to each other and enjoy spending time together might be
homosexuals or bisexuals.
As a result, when we read that when Maulana and Shams first met, they were so
enthralled with each other that they spent several months secluded together. For the Western
reader, the thought is almost irresistible to wonder if they might have had a sexual, as well as
a deeply spiritual, relationship. After all, we know how sexual energy builds up over time,
and they were so happy to be together, etc. Andrew Harvey, an openly gay author of books
on Rumi, is said to have proclaimed this in public lectures as a fact (at least in lectures he
gave while on the faculty of a private graduate school in San Francisco during the 1990's; see
also about his "Teachings").

21
 And distorted versions of Rumi's poetry (not only his) are largely responsible for
giving a false impression of "Rumi's sensual side," such as references to "nudism"-- in which
he is depicted as becoming so ecstatic that he would tear of all his clothes. (But public nudity
is forbidden in Islam and this "tearing" was done by dervishes during sama and involved
tearing one's cloak into pieces, or tearing the upper part of one's shirt or -- something done in
a symbolic way in the Maulevi sama when the shaykh turns in the centre while holding the
cloak as if just "ripped" from the collar to the lower chest.)
However, there is no evidence of a "physical relationship" between these two great
Sufi saints, and it is a suspicion or assumption with no basis. And it is an also Western
misunderstanding of Persian poetry and Persian culture in the context of Islam and Islamic
mysticism. In Islamic societies there has been a general segregation of men and women for
over a thousand years. As a result, men are closer to each other than we can readily
understand-- and they are so without being any more homosexual (in a religion that strongly
condemns it).
In terms of traditional themes and imagery in Persian Sufi poetry, it is very common
for the beloved to be praised as having beautiful tresses of hair, eyes, cheeks, moles,
eyebrows, etc. And when Maulana used such images in his poems expressing his spiritual
love for Shams, this can be mistakenly interpreted as some kind of "evidence" of homosexual
love. However, this was a centuries-old convention in Persian poetry that was long adopted
by sufis who understood the various imagery in praise of the beloved as symbols of mystical
love.
In the context of Islam, Maulana and Shams were both very pious Muslims. Maulana
was a religious authority who inherited the mantle of religious scholarly authority from his
father. He also earned income to support his family as an Islamic teacher and judge. He was a
Sunni Muslim who followed the Hanafi School of Islamic law. We have more information
about Shams now, from his Discourses, a collection of excerpts from his talks written down
by his disciples. We know that he was not an uneducated, "wild", or "heretical" dervish. He
was a Sunni Muslim, with a solid Islamic education in the Arabic language, who followed the
Shafi School of Islamic law. There are translated quotes from Shams in which he criticized
other Sufi teachers as "not following" the example of the Prophet sufficiently. We know that
Maulana was married during the time he knew Shams. And we know that Mauling arranged
for Shams to marry a young woman raised in Maulana's household, Kimiya.
It is also helpful to understand their relationship in terms of the Sufi teaching of the
stages of "passing away" or "annihilation". In this particular Sufi path, the disciple is
encouraged to cultivate love for the spiritual master within the heart, to visualize the master
in the heart or seated in front of one, and to remember the master frequently. This practice is
said to lead to mystical experiences of seeing the spiritual master (or "beloved") everywhere
and the master's beauty expressed in all things waking or dreaming). Maulana seems indeed
to have been in this type of "passing away in the spiritual presence of the master [fana fi-sh-
shayk], because he wrote thousands of verses expressing his spiritual love for Shams in his
Divan. Part of this particular teaching is that if this closeness with the spiritual goes on too
long, it can become a barrier to "annihilation in God" [fana fi 'llah]. And Shams suggested
directly to Maulana that he might have to go away for Maulana to progress further. After
Shams disappeared permanently, and after Maulana recovered from his loss, it is said that
22
Maulana found Shams in his own heart. And in his last years, Maulana composed thousands
of couplets (the Mathnawi) in which he describes many unitive mystical experiences (usually
spoken by one of the characters in a story), and rarely mentions the name of Shams. This is
very much like "annihilation in God" following "annihilation in the master."
Also, in the context of mystical Islam, the dervishes obviously loved to spend time
with each other, doing ritual prayer, zikru 'llah, etc. Although Islam strictly condemns
homosexual behaviour, yet homosexual relations would occur sometimes between men and
adolescent boys, due to the segregation of unmarried males together (and this continues down
to the present day). Maulana condemns homosexuality among dervishes. And Mevlana,
Shams, and Mevlana's father have all been quoted as condemning a practice engaged in my
some Sufis involving homoerotic gazing at attractive young adolescent boys (a type of
"Platonic love" in which the gazer contemplates Divine Beauty in a lovely "beardless
youth").
Maulana condemns sodomy and effeminate behaviour in numerous places in the
Mathnawi. He said, "The (true) Sufi is the one who becomes a seeker of purity; not from
(wearing) garments of wool and sewing (patches) and sodomy. With these vile people, Sufism
has become stitching and sodomy and that is all". This contrast between purity and sodomy
would appear to echo one of the passages in the Qur'an.
Professor Franklin Lewis has given an excellent rebuttal to Western fantasies of the
relationship between Mauling and Shams in his excellent book, He points out that Mauling
was about 37 when he met Shams, and that according to Maulevi tradition Shams was 60
years old. He described how the homoeroticism in the Persian culture of Malan’s time was
very different from the homosexuality in ours. A dominant male, who had been attracted to
androgynous boys also desired women and would eventually marry and have children.
"When a boy passed a certain age and grew facial hair, he himself became a member
of the sexually dominant class and would no longer submit to penetration. Violation of these
social norms led to scandal and legal prosecution.
The suggestion that the relationship between Shams and Rumi was a physical and
homosexual one entirely misunderstands the context. Rumi, as a forty-year-old man engaged
in ascetic practices and teaching Islamic law, to say nothing of his obsession with following
the example of the Prophet, would not have submitted to the penetration of the sixty-year-old
Shams, who was, in any case, like Rumi, committed to following the Prophet and opposed to
the worship of God through human beauty. Rumi did employ the symbolism of homoerotic,
or more properly, androgynous love, in his poems addressed to Shams as the divine beloved,
but this merely adopts an already 300 year-old convention of the poetry of praise in Persian
literature.The intended aim of the world's existence is the encounter of two friends (of God),
when they face each other (only) for the sake of God, far distant from lust and craving.

7.2 Rumi as an Alcoholic:

“This drinkness began some other tavern.
When I get back around to that place,
I’ll completely be sober.”
“Drink the wine that moves you as a camel moves when it’s been united,
And is just ambling about.”

23
“Your name is spring,
Your name is wine.
Your name is nausea,
That comes from the wine.”
"Wine" as it appears in the poetry of Rumi is a common Sufi metaphor for love of
Allah, rapture before the beauty of Allah etc. Neither he nor Shams Tabrizi drank wine, and
when someone suggested to Shams that hashish was halal because it is not explicitly
prohibited in the Qur'an, Shams replied that hashish was not available to the Prophet and his
companions, but if they had taken to using it he would have ordered that they be killed.
Rumi has used this metaphor in 33 of his poems. Considering that his poems are written with
symbols n metaphors, that twists and changes from line to line, it seems reasonable to assume
that his references are more. He used these metaphors so we could understand ourselves and
Our Beloved, better. He uses the wine and drunkenness to represent our limited worldly
experiences. In this human state, we are too often drunk with ego and arrogance. From this
perspective, he’s showing the limitations of wine and why don’t we need it.

7.3 Rumi was Not a Sufi:

Rumi was a professor, a theologian and a scholar for most of his life. He was nearly
40 when he met the wild dervish named Shams who transformed his life. Until then he led a
quiet, disciplined life of an orthodox religious figure from an elite family who was an
incredibly popular university professor.
Going back eight hundred years and the life expectancy not being so great, 40 by the
standard of the time was considered mature age. So, in essence his life should have remained
the same for the remainder of his days, had he not met and embraced Shams.
What it means to be called a Sufi. To be a Sufi, is the same as belonging to any cult or
sect or small religious or spiritual group that has a structure and a system of hierarchy. There
is the master at the top, then officers below him and then the disciples. The master has
complete and total control over the group. His or her word is considered a command and is
obeyed by all the disciples blindly. Unless the organization has grown very large to include
multiple locations, no new student can join the group until deemed worthy by the master.
Also, joining such groups means adhering to strict rituals and routine practices formulated by
that cult.
Sufism is a relative newcomer in the region that dates back many thousands of years
and is rich with culture, spirituality, mysticism and the desire to explore the mysteries of
humanity and the universe, being a mystic in Mideast doesn't necessitate in being a Sufi. For
example many dervishes in Iran trace their heritage back to at least 5,000 years and would
clearly distinguish themselves from Sufism, which is only a several hundred year old
tradition.
Based on the above, Rumi certainly was not a Sufi, According to certain critiques. He
didn't belong to any such sect neither did he pay homage to any particular master--short of
Shams, who was not a Sufi and had no other followers. Lastly Rumi knew Shams for only a
couple of years before Shams was killed in the hands of Rumi's youngest son.
Rumi was a universal soul appearing as a Persian mystic poet, with an incredibly brilliant
mind, who lived by his own code. Many years after he passed away, the order of Whirling

24
Dervishes was formed in his honour and that often confuses people as though he was part of
such a sect. But if we look through Rumi’s Biography, he practised Sufism for about nine
years as a disciple of Burhan-ud-din until the latter died in 1240 or 41.

8 Corruption in Rumi’s Poetry:

A major problem is the misleading books that popularize Mawlana Rumi's poetry in
English written by authors who do not know Persian, these books mislead the public by
claiming to be "translations." These are, more correctly, "poetic interpretive versions." The
most popular of these authors, an American, admits that he deliberately omits the word "God"
as much as he can and eliminates or minimizes the Islamic contents of Mawlânâ's verses in
his versions--as other version-makers also do); he is faithful to the literal translations he uses
only when it suits him and does not hesitate to alter the meanings when it suits him--or
sometimes to make up his own "Rumi verses" in order to make his versions sound more
pleasing. Other popularized books are by authors whose native language is Persian but who
are deficient in knowledge of classical/medieval Persian, seem ignorant of the Islamic
contexts, and who deliberately minimize the Islamic contents of Mawlana,s poetry.
Jalaluddin Rumi is the most popular poet in America. This is largely due to American
authors, such as the poet Coleman Barks who has rendered literal translations of Rumi into
free verse "American spiritual poetry" without knowing the original persian language leading
to the frequent distortion of Rumi's words and teachings. The public has been deceived by the
publishers of many of the popular books, who proclaim their authors as "translators" of
Rumi-- when, in fact, very few of them can read Persian.
Reliable translations have been made by Simone Fattal (from translations into
French from Persian),Muriel Maufroy, Nicholson, J.Arberry, Ibrahim Gamard and Rawan
Farhadi.
Version-makers used literal translations with a "free hand" to interpret however they
wished (often according to how they imagined they would like Rumi to speak) and that their
"creative" renderings were the final ones.The most responsible are Kabir and Camille
Helminski (versions of Masnavi and Ghazals, based on translations by Nicholson and
Arberry, but only indirectly acknowledged). Others are Coleman Barks (based on translations
by John Moyne, the translations of Nicholson, Arberry, and Nevit Ergin), Daniel Liebert (no
source translations mentioned), Andrew Harvey (no source translations mentioned) ,James
Cowan (based on translations by Nicholson, but not acknowledged), Jonathan Star (based on
translations by Shahram Shiva), Deepak Chopra.
One of the major corruptions that the version makers have made is that they have
changed Rumi’s spiritual poetry into sensual one.

8.1 From Versions by Coleman Barks

1. "Let the beauty we love be what we do. There are hundreds of ways to kneel and kiss the
ground." (Open Secret," 1984, p. 7)
Accurate translation: "There are a hundred kinds of prayer, bowing, and prostration For
the one whose prayer-niche is the beauty of the Beloved."( Rumi's Quatrain no. 81,
translated by Ibrahim Gamard and Ravan Farhadi)
The poem involves a mystical interpretation of the Islamic ritual prayer. The sufis pray, not
just five times a day, but pray to God, the Source of Love and Beauty, in hundreds of ways
throughout the day. The original Persian does not mention "kissing" or "the ground." It can be
seen that Barks' often-quoted words, "Let the beauty we love be what we do," are his words
and are not Rumi's words at all.

25
2. "If you don't have a woman that lives with you, why aren't you looking? If you have one,
why aren't you satisfied?"( "Open Secret," p. 71)
Accurate translation: "If you have no beloved, why do you not seek one. And if you
have attained the Beloved, why do you not rejoice?("Mystical Poems of Rumi: Second
Selection," pp.142-43.)

3. "You say you have no sexual longing any more. You're one with the one you love."(
Open Secret," 1984, p. 19) .Accurate translation: "You say, 'With the body, I am far and
with the heart, with the Beloved'(Translation by gamard and farhadi).
The error here is in interpreting, "I am far from the body" to mean "I'm out of touch with my
bodily desires"-- the opposite of Rumi's meaning of being spiritually focused on love of God
and not being focussed on the body and physical concerns, such as hunger, comfort, etc.

4. "This night . . . is not a night but a marriage, a couple whispering in bed in unison the
same words. Darkness simply lets down a curtain for that"(Unseen Rain," 1986, p. 17 )
Accurate translation: "Tonight . . . is not a 'night,' Rather, it is a wedding (festival) for
those who seek God. It is an elegant companion for those who testify to (God's) Unity.
Tonight is a lovely veil of happiness for those with beautiful faces"(from Rumi's Quatrain
no. 287, translated by Gamard & Farhad)
The error is in interpreting the words "wedding" and "night" in a sexualized way. However,
Rumi's meaning has to do with those who seek God. The veil, or curtain, is not to give lovers
privacy on their wedding night, but to veil mystics who are in an ecstatic state of affirming
Divine Unity.

8.2 Versions by John Moyne

1. "We have picked the essence of the Koran throwing away the skin to the dogs. We have
thrown out our cloak turban theology debate all into the river. With the help of instinct
We have hit the bull's eye!"( Rumi and the Sufi Tradition," p. 70)
Accurate translation "My turban and gown, and (even) my head -- all three together --
Were valued at a penny, (or) something less. Have you not heard my name in the world? I
am nobody, I am nobody, I am nobody. (Rumi's Quatrain no. 1284 translated by Gamard
and Farhadi)
Moyne combined this quatrain with an inauthentic "Masnavi verse" (misleadingly-- as if
both were a single poem of Rumi's, neither of which he identified) in a very biased manner,
which portrays Rumi as scornful toward Islam (which must be Moyne's viewpoint, since it is
not Rumi's).

8.3 Versions by Andrew Harvey

1. "Last night I touched your beauty/ Woke an alchemist.” ("Speaking Flame: Rumi,"
1989, p. 71)
Accurate translation: "Until the love of my faithful idol seized me, I was copper.It
seized me like an alchemical elixir. I searched for him with a thousand hands;/ (But) he
stretched out an arm and seized me by the foot." (Rumi's Quatrain no. 411, translated by
Gamard and Farhadi)
A possibly sexual interpretation (the word "beauty" does not appear in the original) which
presents the lover as the active one and emerging as a "master of Alchemy." In contrast,
Rumi's words depict the lover as being seized and transformed by the alchemy-like love of
the beloved.

26
 2. "All my mysteries are images of you -- Night, be long! He and I are lost in Love(
"Love's Fire," 1988, p. 57). "Accurate translation: "The secrets of my heart are all
thoughts of (my) beloved. O night, don't pass quickly, for there is work for me (to do)."(
Rumi's Quatrain no. 204, translated by Gamard and Farhadi)
The interpretation sounds sexualized, whereas the original meaning has to do with the
lover staying awake all night, busy with thoughts of the beloved
3. "What a miracle, You and I, entwined in the same nest; What a miracle, You and I: one
Love, one Lover, one Fire, In this world and the next, in an ecstasy without end." (The
Way of Passion," p. 33)
Accurate translation: "This is the greatest wonder, that thou and I, sitting here in the
same nook, / Are at this moment both in 'Irâq and Khorâsân, thou and I." (Nicholson's
1898 translation, "Selected Poems from the Dîvâni Shamsi Tabrîz," p. 153)
In these famous lines, Rumi depicts himself and his spiritual teacher Shams-i Tabriz
as being physically apart yet united in soul. Harvey portrays them as physically
"entwined" together in a fiery ecstasy (he likes to exaggerate "Rumi's passion" by
adding words such as "fire," "fiery," "boiling," etc.). Here, Harvey manusfactures
"evidence" for his baseless (public, not published) assertions that there was a
homoerotic relationship between this famous spiritual disciple and his famous
spiritual master.
8.4 From Versions by Johnathan Star
1. "Tonight we go to that place of eternity. This is the wedding night-- a never-ending
union of lover and Beloved. We whisper gentle secrets to each other and the child of the
universe takes its first breath."("A Garden Beyond Paradise," 1992, p. 80).
Accurate translation: "Tonight is a night for those of endless good fortune. It is not a
'night.' Rather, it is a wedding (festival) for those who seek God. It is an elegant
companion accompanying those who testify to (God's) Unity. Tonight is a lovely veil
for those with beautiful faces." ( from Rumi's Quatrain no. 287, translated by Gamard &
Farhad)
The original poem depicts the joy of the "wedding celebration" of those who seek God and
declare His Divine Unity. In contrast, the second two thirds of the version are made-up by the
versioner.

8.5 Versions By Shahram Shiva

"Any spot that I place my head, He is the cushion. In all the six directions and out, He
is the deity." ("Rending the Veil," p. 36)..Accurate translation: "Anywhere I bow
(my) head, the object of prostration is He . In the six directions, and beyond them, the
object of worship is He." (from Rumi's Quatrain no. 319, translated by Gamard &
Farhad)
The error here is mistranslating "the object of prostration is He" (Musjud) as "He is the
cushion." This absurd translation is apparently based on lack of knowledge.
8.6 Versions by Kabir Helminski
This human face is a shape tethered in the stall of pain: part god, part angel, part
beast... a secret charm, rarely released." ( The Knowing Heart," p. 7).
Accurate translation: "This human form which has been put together is a picture which has
been put on the stable (wall) of grief. Sometimes (it is) a demon, sometimes an angel, and
sometimes a wild beast. What is this (magic) talisman which has been put together?" (Rumi's
Quatrain no. 664, translated by Gamard and Farhad)
This poem refers to the classical view of human nature as resembling a combination
of the qualities of angels, devils, and beasts. The error was interpreting the word "dêw/dîv"

27
(Persian for devil or evil jinn) incorrectly with a positive meaning of "divine." To say that a
human being is "part god" is pagan and alien to Islam and Islamic mysticism (sufism).

8.7 Versions by Nevit Ergin

What would happen to the eye That sees the beautiful One Who created beauty? See and
understand what would happen To your sight, once you looked at God." "Divan-i Kebir:
Meter 2 Pg 52.
Accurate translation: "From seeing a beautiful one who has created beauty-- by God! Take
a look at what comes into (your) glance!"( Rumi's Ghazal no. 852, translated by Ibrahim
Gamard)
The meaning of these lines ended up as misinterpreted. There is no "looking at God" in the
original Persian verse.

8.8 Versions by Azima Kolin

"From all that was familiar, I broke away. Now I am lost, without a place, wandering. With
no music like a fool I dance and clap my hands. How am I to live without You? You are
everywhere but I can't find You."( Whispers of the Beloved,"
Accurate translation: "You made me without name or trace, like the heart and soul. (And)
you made me hand-clapping without hands, like joy. I said, "Where am I going, since my
soul is in no place?" You made me without "place" and "going" like the spirit."(Rumi's
Quatrain no. 1712, translated by Gamard and Farhadi)
It can be seen that the last lines of the version divert significantly from the original meaning
(which emphasizes the sufi theme of "passing away from self" and not the theme of being
unable to find God).

9 WAS RUMI SUFI:

Rumi was a professor, a theologian and a scholar for most of his life. He was nearly
40 when he met the wild dervish named Shams who transformed his life. Until then he led a
quiet, disciplined life of an orthodox religious figure from an elite family who was an
incredibly popular university professor.
Going back eight hundred years and the life expectancy not being so great, 40 by the
standard of the time was considered mature age. So, in essence his life should have remained
the same for the remainder of his days, had he not met and embraced Shams.
To be a Sufi, is the same as belonging to any cult or sect or small religious or spiritual
group that has a structure and a system of hierarchy. There is the master at the top, then
officers below him and then the disciples. The master, whether it's a small Christian cult in
the Midwest of the US, or an ultra-orthodox Hasidic community in Jerusalem, or a small Sufi
sect in Egypt, or a Guru in an ashram in a village in India, has complete and total control over
the group. His or her word is considered a command and is obeyed by all the disciples
blindly.
Unless the organization has grown very large to include multiple locations, no new
student can join the group until deemed worthy by the master. Also, joining such groups
means adhering to strict rituals and routine practices formulated by that cult.
Keep in mind that Sufism is a relative newcomer in the region that dates back many
thousands of years and is rich with culture, spirituality, mysticism and the desire to explore
the mysteries of humanity and the universe. Being a mystic in Mideast doesn't necessitate in
being a Sufi. For examples many dervishes in Iran trace their heritage back to at least 5,000

28
years and would clearly distinguish themselves from Sufism, which is only a several hundred
year old tradition.
Based on the above, Rumi certainly was not a Sufi. He didn't belong to any such sect
neither did he pay homage to any particular master--short of Shams, who was not a Sufi and
had no other followers. Lastly Rumi knew Shams for only a couple of years before Shams
was killed in the hands of Rumi's youngest son.
Rumi was a universal soul appearing as a Persian mystic poet, with an incredibly
brilliant mind, who lived by his own code. Many years after he passed away, the order of
Whirling Dervishes was formed in his honour and that often confuses people as though he
was part of such a sect.

10 Who is the real Rumi?

Was he religious,or a progressive thinker ,or a hip spiritualist believing in the occult
,or was he a scholar or a professor? The correct answer is all of the above. Due to his
incredibly long and prolific creative life he has covered every topic imaginable from erotica
to deeply philosophical; hence he has become a projection of the reader's own mind.
For example Rumi talks about God in some of his poems and then dismisses him in many
others. His prime message is that God is found in your own heart. He recited hundreds of
poems where he mentions that he would set fire to Ka'ba and any temple or church, because
God is not found there. He then encourages the reader to look into his or her own heart
instead.
Due to the fact that Rumi recited poetry for about 25 years and 70,000 verses, he has
covered every morsel of emotion, thought, idea and topic. Therefore, he can't be pinned in
one saying. Also because of the long duration of his creative expression he changed his mind
often. Hence, you have poems where he praises God and then poems where he outright
destroys any such concept.
In 800 years of popularity, Rumi has become a mirror projecting what the reader
imagines. An orthodox or a religious reader, or a university professor, or a New Age type, or
an advanced progressive thinker, all embraces Rumi as one of their own
Understood the necessity of a righteous path to live a purposeful and dignified life. Maulana
and his family had experienced displacement and exile and journeyed through unfamiliar
lands to reach their final destination in Konya.
He also understood that despite the impermanence, uncertainty and mortality inherent
in human life, it had to be lived according to a divine plan; and that path had been set out by
Muhammad (PBUH). It was necessary to become dust on rah-e-Muhammad (path of Prophet
Muhammad) to fulfill the divine scheme.
The verses of Maulana Rumi and the pamphlet are two different pathways: one is a way of
inner reality and the other of outer form; one is a way of clemency and the other of
mercilessness; and one is a way of inclusion and the other of exclusion. Finally, the rhythm of
Maulana’s verses subdued the inner clamor provoked by the pamphlet:

11 CONCLUSION:
The universal message of Rumi is a hopeful alternative to the ignorance and lack of
spirituality in modern times. Rumi's writings of the thirteenth century advocate an
understanding that there is something beyond religion and scholarly learning that can open
our eyes to the reality beyond this existence; for Rumi we must climb a spiritual ladder of
love. Furthermore, Rumi envisioned a universal faith, embodying all religions, because he
understood that the cause of every religious conflict is ignorance. Rumi implies that
religiosity consists in something other than outward religions. Real belief is apparent only on

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the inside of a person, which is not visible. Therefore, Rumi makes it clear that the religion of
love involves loving the eternal and invisible source of existence.
There are thousands who believe that Rumi’s presence (baraka) still exists today, and
still teaches. If this is true, it is certainly largely due to the remarkable vitality that can be
found in his writings and poetry, and a relevancy they contain that reaches to our inner core.
Rumi’s poetry has captured the hearts of spiritual seekers around the world because of its
depth and beauty. His verses sketch out the whole panorama of life, from human sorrow and
devotion, to the universal breadth of God’s hidden plan. His poetry seems fathomless and
endless.
Rumi's reference to God is always deeply personal. Whether he uses the masculine
term "Allah," or refers to God as "The Beloved," it is nearness and closeness to God that
Rumi is expressing. Unfortunately, the English language has no personal, neutral pronoun for
God. To always use "He" in referring to God, to mankind, or to any general person, was
common practice when Barberry released his edition, but seems too masculine today. In
Rumi's Persian language, "God" has no gender, and Rumi's symbolic portrayal of God uses
images of the Lover, and the Ocean, as often as the King. Therefore, I have used "It" to refer
to God in places, to help rise above gender, but have also used "He" and "Beloved" to give
the personal closeness of Rumi's message
Likewise, when Rumi refers to Islam, he is talking about The Way. He is not talking
about the preconceived notions that people have about Islam today, or even in his day, but the
spiritual path itself and the religious tradition. It is not always easy to understand this as Rumi
meant it, just as Rumi’s use of Mohammed as the Prophet and Voice of God is easily
interpreted as traditional belief, which is only the outward cloak of what Rumi is really
saying. It is just this sort of blindness that Rumi is speaking to when he says, in discourse
Seventy: “Wherever men or women put a big lock, that is a sign of something precious and
valuable. Just like the snake that guards a treasure do not regard what repels you, but look
instead at the preciousness of the treasure.”
The scholars who have studied Rumi admit that there was no more beautiful tribute to
Rumi's universality than his funeral, a 40-day marathon of grieving attended by distraught
and weeping Muslims, Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists and Zoroastrians who mourned in
such a manner that one would have believed that Rumi belonged to each one of them."

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