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II Poetry

Rumi lived and wrote in the 13th century and had a profound impact on Sufism and western understandings of Sufism.

Sufi poetry provides insight into the Sufi way, the disciplined quest for closeness to God, and most dramatically, the experience of union with God and the annihilation of the self. We understand, through metaphor, the strength of the longing for God, the difficulties of reaching Him through self-renunciation, the ecstasy of joining with Him. The poetry also provides instruction and invites its audience to think differently about their lives and the world. Sometimes this involves paradoxes. For example: The first step toward Truth (God) may be to let go of all one thinks is true.

Read the poems with this in mind. Choose a poem or a few lines of verse to discuss as an example of a compelling metaphor, lesson, or paradox.

How accessible are these poems? How Islamic? How universal?