The thirteenth-century poet Rumi is just one voice in the poetry of Sufism, the timeless Persian mystical tradition. The poems and epigrams collected in "Love' s Alchemy" represent all of the major poets, including Rumi, of this magnificent art. While many recent bestsellers have been interpretations from other English translations, Sabrineh and David Fideler work from the original Persian sources. The book offers faithful yet elegant translations from 170 of the best poems written in "ruba'i" form: concise, tightly focused meditations that span only four lines, but which reveal worlds of meaning. The poems explore many aspects of human life and the spiritual path, but center on the liberating power of love. Also included are an extensive introduction, a glossary, and notes that place these wonderful poems in cultural, historical, and religious context.

"The first collection of poems translated into English from the forbidden volume of the Divan of Rumi"--Provided by publisher.

Readers who swoon within the love-intoxicated poetry of Rumi must read the poetry of Shaikh Abil-Kheir. This renowned but little-known Sufi mystic of the 10th century preceded Rumi by over two hundred years on the same path of annihilation into God. He referred to himself as -- Nobody Son of Nobody his expression of the reality that his life was subsumed in the Divine, and that the individual self had disappeared in the heart of God: Under this cloak is nothing but God. Introduce me as Nobody, Son of Nobody.' These are 195 short selections translated from the original Farsi. These poems deal with the longing for union with God, the desire to know the Real from the False, the inexpressible beauty of Creation when seen through the eyes of Love, and the many attitudes of heart, mind and feeling that are necessary to those who would find the Beloved -- The Friend -- in this life.

This collection presents new translations of Rumi's poems by Barks, the man most responsible for making the 13th-century Sufi mystic the bestselling poet in America. This one-of-a-kind volume captures Rumi's beloved passion, daring, and insights into the longing of the heart as only Barks can.

Mantiqu't-Tair is one of the masterpieces of Persian literature of which a complete and annotated translation into English is here presented for the first time as The Speech of the Birds. The text revolves around the decision of the birds of the world to seek out a king. Their debilitating doubts and fears, the knowing counsel of their leader Hoopoe, and their choice of the Simurgh as a king, is in reality an allegory of the spiritual path of Sufism with its demands, its hazards and its infinite rewards. The poem contains many admonitory anecdotes and exemplary stories, including numerous references to some of the early Muslim mystics such as Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya, Abu Sa'id ibn Abi'l-Khair, Mansur al-Hallaj and Shibli, among others. In The Speech of the Birds, Peter Avery has not only given us a precise and moving translation, but also ample annotation providing much information to fill in what Attar would have expected his readers to know. The result is a fascinating insight into a remarkable aspect of Islam: the world of ecstatic love of the Persian mystics. The Speech of the Birds will be of interest to everyone who values great literature, as well as to all students of Persian and Sufism.

A new translation of the works of Rumi, a 13th century Persian mystic. In one poem, he wrote: "The infinite treasure is shining, the mighty ocean is roaring, the morning of grace has come--Morning? No! This is the eternal Light of God."

The life of Jalaluddin Rumi (1207-1273), a brilliant scholar and popular teacher, was forever changed when he met a powerful wandering dervish and began a new plateau of spiritual enlightenment. Now, from the premier interpreter of Rumi comes the first definitive one-volume collection of the enduringly popular spiritual poetry by this extraordinary Sufi mystic.