Pinkie up, finally. [The Spiritual Poems of Rumi by Rumi; translated by Nader Khalili]
Translated by renowned Rumi expert Nader Khalili, over 120 poems on spirituality from the Persian mystic poet and Sufi master have been carefully collected and curated in this beautifully illustrated edition.
For more than eight centuries, Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi—commonly referred to simply as Rumi—has enchanted and enthralled readers from every faith and background with his universal themes of love, friendship, and spirituality, which he seamlessly wove into resplendent poetry.
The verses herein perfectly express the spiritual quest and desire for a deeper understanding of not only ourselves, but also of our collective oneness as humankind.
With intricately designed and richly colored covers that mirror the beauty of the words within, the Timeless Rumi series presents themed collections of poems from the great Sufi mystic Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi Rumi that serve as cherished tools for self-reflection.
Good poetry speaks to you. It resounds and often prompts reflection. Obtuse poetry is obscure in meaning, with repeat takes illuminating nothing. The Spiritual Poems of Rumi is a translation by Nader Khalili of selected works of the storied poet, Rumi. I'd say my direct exposure to Sufism has been in the last decade or so of my life. But I know I've known of Rumi. I can't say since when, as I don't remember, but I was quite excited to read some of his works. I bragged to my sister that I was going to be among the cultural elites, the intelligentsia, once I read this book. That's how known Rumi is to be, his works highly regarded the world over, so I was excited to see what the fuss was about. Was I going to get it? Or was it to be an Emperor's new wardrobe situation? Well, I'd say it's a bit of both.
A quick GoodReads search reveals that many, expectedly, have translated Rumi's works, so how much of my comprehension issues are due to the translation versus the source material, I can't say, again, as this is my first introduction to Rumi's literary work. Some poems spoke to me immediately. I found many profound and will be bookmarking many. Others were just so strange to me. Moreover, the title of the book implies a spiritual theme. I guess depending on what you consider the spiritual to be you could argue that the title is fitting, but at times I questioned it because the collective work read more like musings on friendship than spiritual life. At the same time I was taken aback by how universal the sentiments expressed were. It really all depends on interpretation.
So, my first time reading Rumi, how was it? Reading the poems, you definitely get an appreciation for abstracting the obvious and abstracting the intangible. I guess that is a lot of spirituality. Would I like a copy of this to sit on my future bookshelf in my future personal library? Yes. Am I overwhelmingly moved to by this book at the moment? Not so much. 3 stars from me.
The Spiritual Poems of Rumi is due for publication September 15, 2020.
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