Mystical Poems of Rumi

Mystical Poems of Rumi
by Jalal al-Din

A book of poems written in the 1200’s AD by Jalal al-Din, best known as Rumi.  The book is a series of translated poems, aptly called Poems. Rumi was a teacher and he shares his philosophy, wisdom, and life’s lessons through a collection of religious proverbs, imagery, and understanding of the human condition.  His work is deeply entrenched in the Muslim tradition. There are over 100 short poems and two-page stories.  Listed below are some of my favorite lines taken from his work:

If you don’t have enough madness in you, go and rehabilitate yourself

Fear is an attribute of the slave to lust and appetite

Listen when your crown reminds you of what makes you cold toward others, as you pamper the greedy energy inside

How many an evil that you see in others is but your own nature reflected in them

Rumi’s poems focused on what it means to be a human, frail and impure.  His poems give opportunity for reflection on how we can improve ourselves using a higher being as a guidepost for our own spiritual journey through life. 

The poems’ brevity allows the reader to quickly focus on the content and its meaning, unlike many of the books of poems I have read previously.  I never lost my focus reading and thought the translation into English was clear and easy to comprehend.  It provides great context into what was going on in the minds of the leaders in the day it was written.  A good read.