Who was Rumi
Jalal al-Din Rumi (1207–1273) was a Persian-language poet, scholar and Sufi teacher. He is often said to have been born in Balkh, in present-day Afghanistan, though some sources name nearby places. His family moved westward, and he spent most of his adult life in Konya, in present-day Turkey, where he trained as a religious scholar and preacher. He is also known as Mevlana (“our master”). He is one of the best known figures of Sufism.
Shams of Tabriz
A turning point in the traditional account is Rumi’s meeting with a wandering mystic, Shams of Tabriz, around 1244. The relationship was intense and, according to the accounts, changed Rumi from a respected scholar into a poet of ecstatic love. Shams disappeared, probably around 1247, in circumstances that are uncertain. Rumi’s grief and longing became themes in his poetry.
Major works
- The Masnavi (Mathnawi): a long poem in rhyming couplets, often described as a collection of teaching stories and reflections that explore spiritual life. Many readers treat it as a commentary on Sufi thought, though it is not a simple manual.
- The Divan-i Shams-i Tabrizi: a large collection of lyric poems, many of them ecstatic, dedicated in spirit to Shams.
- Fihi ma fihi: recorded talks attributed to Rumi.
Core teachings
Interpreters highlight several themes:
- Love as the path. Love of God and love through a human teacher is a central road toward the divine.
- Longing and separation. The opening of the Masnavi has a reed flute lamenting its separation from the reed bed, a metaphor for the soul’s yearning for its source.
- Union. Rumi’s poetry points toward being united with the divine, using images of the ocean and the drop, the moth and the flame.
- Annihilation of ego. Pride and self-centeredness are barriers, and surrender opens the heart.
- Tolerance and breadth. Rumi is often quoted as speaking widely about the unity of seekers, though readers should keep in mind that he was firmly an Islamic teacher rooted in the Quran.
Rumi’s imagery of intoxication is poetic; see whether Sufis can drink alcohol. His emphasis on the lover’s path fits the broader outline of mystical stages, although he did not write in that scheme.
The Mevlevi order and the Sema
After Rumi’s death, his followers formed the Mevlevi order. It is best known for a ritual of turning, the Sema. See whirling dervishes and the Sema ceremony. Traditions say that Rumi himself was moved to turn in ecstatic states, though how much of the later ritual goes back to him is a question for historians.
Rumi in translation
Many English readers know Rumi through loose “versions” that simplify or remove Islamic references, and some scholars criticize them. More literal translations, such as those by A. J. Arberry and Reynold Nicholson, are widely used for study. Quotations attributed to Rumi online are often inaccurate, so check the source before relying on one. For others in this tradition, see famous mystics through history.