Rumi

This article, originally published years ago in the Laughing Man, a journal of contemporary spirituality, examines accounts of the extraordinary manners of death attributed to mystics, saints and sages of numerous spiritual traditions, including Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism.

It is well-known that as a term, Nietzsche’s Übermensch derives from Lucian of Samosata’s hyperanthropos. I argue that Zarathustra’s teaching of the overman acquires new resonances by reflecting on the context of that origination from Lucian’s Kataplous — which literally means sailing into port — referring to the soul’s journey, ferried by Charon, guided by Hermes, into the afterlife. The Kataplous he tyrannos, usually translated Downward Journey or The Tyrant, is a Menippean satire telling the tale of the “overman” who is imagined to be superior to others of “lesser” station in this-worldly life and the same tyrant after his (comically unwilling) transport into the underworld. As a reflection on the life and the death of Zarathustra, this essay also explores the politics of kingship for Empedocles as reformer in terms of Hölderlin’s Death of Empedocles and Nietzsche’s unpublished drafts on the same topic. In Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Nietzsche points to a perspective beyond the here and now, beyond the “values” of our all-too-worldly and all-too-human concerns, no matter whether in terms of perceived political/economic advantage, or indeed in the pursuit of more quotidian satisfactions.

"This is a brief presentation of the life and works of Celaleddin Rumi (Mevlana), a 13th century poet of Persian origin, active in Iconium, Asia Minor. The paper focuses on his relation to the Greek element and his Neoplatonic sources of inspiration. It is followed by a selected bibliography and the translation of a few poems into modern Greek.
The English version (first pdf)  appeared online in the "Encyclopedia of Asia Minor" in 2005, while the Greek version (second pdf) appeared in the literary quarterly "Odos Panos" in 2003.

Mevlâna Jalâluddîn Rumi (1207-1273) has been a universal figure for people from diverse religious and cultural backgrounds. He has been recognized as a literary and spiritual figure. Rumi's philosophy is rooted to an understanding of universe and existence through love. Love is the whole thing and we are the pieces. In the last decades, we clearly can observe a deterioration of Rumi, his spiritual philosophy and his traditional, sacred, worship ritual Sema. Love is fundamental in Rumi's philosophy. Popular media constantly dwells upon love, using the deep human feeling and longing for love. However, the media signifies this love not as an understanding of existence, but as a marketing strategy. Rumi and Mevlevism has been the target of secularization attempts cutting its ties with Islam and further packaging it as a secular, cultural phenomenon and a folk dance form. These attempts yielded authenticity issues and further exploitation of the unique Mevlevi heritage. Rumi's concept of love has also become 'à la mode' in the last decades. Sema as a form of Islamic worship is increasingly being commercialized and exploited. Whirling Dervish imposters can be seen whirling publicly in restaurants, bars, at openings, in hotel lobbies, and even in shopping malls in Turkey. These imposters are even hired for children's circumcision ceremonies, as background dancers in music concerts and performances, in engagements and weddings. Another misconception stemming from an Orientalist perspective is seeing Sema as a dance form, although, Sema is a Dhikr (Remembrance of God) and a prayer; it is a form of submission to divine love and unity; it is a form of worship.

At first glance the typical medieval Islamic map of ‘the West’—Surat al-Maghrib— strikes us as nothing more than a quaint abstraction of circles, triangles, and oblong shapes ornately adorned with vivid pigments. Closer study presents a more complex image, however, of passion and conflict; of attraction and revulsion; of love and hate. Indeed the Maghrib map is by far the most dissonant image in the extant collection of medieval Arabic and Persian maps and, as such, one of the most engaging. Whereas all the other images have a veneer of harmony and balance, this one is—by deliberate design—passionately conflicted. It is the discord of desire inlaid within the Muslim pictographs of the Maghrib that is the focus of this chapter, the over-arching question being how did medieval Islamic cartographers settle on such a strange looking image as a representation of the Western Mediterranean— in particular, North Africa, Islamic Spain, and Sicily? Answering this question requires immersing ourselves in the map-image itself, and takes us through a series of subliminal messages ranging from intra-Islamic imperial ambitions to erotic and nostalgic Andalusian poetry.

A book chapter from a Turkish book - Klasik yeniden düsünmek - on Hegel's view of Islam and Persian Muslim poetry, with a special focus on Rumi, and a discussion on why Hegel had to see Rumi as pantheists because of the place of Persian poetry in his historical schema, rather than because of his acutal and more appreciative reading of their poetry

Muslim thinkers have discussed "Origin of beauty" and "Origin of enjoying the masterpieces of art" in their works and there is a long tradition of this problem in Western philosophy. In this discussion, philosophers have tried to explore the source of beauty inspiration to the artist, to make clear why and how the audience of the artwork understand beauty, and to provide a framework to discuss the "quality of understanding beauty". To answer to this problem, two main approaches are introduced. On the on hand, Pythagoras and the Pythagoreans believe that the origin of the beauty of art is its narration of the Spheres. According to this view, known as "Musicauniversalis,” the distance in music is equal to the distance between the sun and other planets, and enjoying art is resultedfrom understanding of the harmony of the Spheres. On the other hand, Muslim philosophers believe that the beauty of art is due to the narration of the beauty of heaven. Thedefenders of theory of "Representation of heaven" believe that human beings in their presence in heaven have tasted its beauty and in encountering the material beauties of this world,recollectthe heavenly beauty, and in fact, this association and remembrance is enjoyable for him. Rumi as a Muslim thinker, expresses both theories and apparently defends the second one.

Science and learning science are among the most important and pivotal concerns of Jalaluddin Mohammad Balkhi, the great mystic and thinker of the seventh century, who in his works attempted to present and accurately critique science and men of science as well as their blights and teleological purposes. Rumi divides human sciences and scholars into two categories of real and religious, and imitative and mundane. Still, in his view, the most essential discussion is studying the blights, teleological purposes, motives, and moral duties of all kinds of science and episteme that one acquires in this world or imparts with knowledge-seekers and pupils. In this study, adopting content analysis method and logical-methodological and hermeneutic approach, Rumi's theoretical and critical approaches to science and science studies have been categorized under four themes of critical and pathological; functional and teleological; psychological and motivational; and ethical and conscience-related qualities. The first significance of the study is showing that Rumi's discussions in the field of science and science studies require further academic and epistemological investigations, perhaps more than his other discussions. The second implication is that the potential or actual, logical, critical or ethical functions of this kind of science studies become clear. The third important ethical-epistemological function of this approach is that it warns the scholars against the blights and complications caused by learning science, considering the harms, motives and duties of each.

This study examined conceptualisations of FANĀ, the case of 'the cave' and 'the bull', in Masnavi (complete six books) using the theoretical and analytical frameworks of Cultural Linguistics. The study was motivated by an increasing number of Rumi readers all over the world, and specifically in Western contexts. Furthermore, the dearth of empirical research that addresses conceptual metaphors and their cultural roots in a Sufi literary context added to the significance of such a study. The study investigated the cultural schemas, categories, and metaphors of FANĀ; however, the results suggested the existence of a schema and metaphors. Moreover, the study sought to find out possible external cultural influences on such conceptualisations (e.g. Proto-Indo-Iranian religions). The study was conducted through the compilation of the corpus, identification of the metaphors, and the cultural analysis using Nvivo11 and MAXQDA. The preliminary results of the data analysis suggested both universal and culturally-specific conceptualisations. The study was concluded by listing all symbols and metaphors that are linguistic manifestations of FANĀ.

Abstract

Islamic history has witnessed numerous educators of both the heart and mind. Rumi (1207-1273) as a great Sufi employed both rational argumentation and educational method pertaining to the heart and spirit. This article critically examines his educational formulas as reflected in his personal history with textual evidence drawn from his works in the historical context followed by an elaboration on how he put his five stages educational formula in practice. This article argues that Rumi successfully combined aql (reasoning) and qalb (heart) which I call ‘heart-centred spiritual formula’ in the spiritual education through the medium of serving others.
Keywords: Rumi, education, Islam, reasoning, spirituality, etiquette, insan al-kamil (perfect man)

Human beings as a Percipient creature always deals with “understanding” and every action and reaction of him is accompanied with understanding. From early times, this permanent and significant feature of understanding has made the scholars to investigate the structure and methods for achieving a valid understanding. Augustine as a Christian impressive saint in early middle age and Rumi as a mystic and Moslem scholar at the late part of this period are examples of such scholars. One of the principles of their existential hermeneutics is believing in the impact of existential factors in understanding. These two scholars do not separate the Communicating vessels of understanding domain from emotional and voluntary domain. The motto” Credo ut intelligam” of Augustine which is equivalent with “the faith is the same as discrimination and understanding” of Rumi, indicates the common ideas of these two thinkers.                         
To confirm this motto, the philosophical common basis of this theory is discussed and then has been tried to discuss the Rumi’s view based on necessity of cognation between subject and object. Finally tried to claim that misunderstanding of Augustinian’s motto is the product of factors such as the difference between the point of view and ignoring the degrees or levels of faith and understanding in two forms: interreligious and out of religion.Therefore, by introducing three degrees of faith and two domains of understanding and knowing their relationship as dialectic, I have triedto explain and eliminate these misunderstandings.

This playful and irreverent introductory narrative (to my thesis) explores what is at stake when students' creative expression is stifled and all that may be reclaimed by encouraging and supporting the free and playful expressive writing that is not generally considered legitimate within the academy.

The poetic and mystical aspects of Rumi’s Masnavi are very striking, but, as in other texts, the influence of the poet’s historical era is detectible so that it reflects the social realities of its period. Therefore, Masnavi could also be considered as historical evidence that may be used by contemporary historians as a source of information about the time of the poet. “Tabriz’s Muhtasib” is a poem in Masnavi that apparently reveals some of the poet’s viewpoints on his time. This research argues that the changes in the character Muhtasib and in the location of the story correspond with the abolition of the establishment of Hisbah and the election of Tabriz as the capital of the Ilkhanate Empire on the one hand and the importance of Omar, the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate, in Hisbah affairs and Rumi’s interest in him on the other. These events influenced Rumi’s recreation of this ancient story and caused it to contain historical connotations.

Abstract:
Symbolism as one of the tools of pictorial expression and transmission of concepts has brought many works of Iranian painting closer in form and meaning. On the other hand, the use of symbol is also considered as one of the literary arrays. In the process of composing, what attracts the poet's sensation, emotion and imagination more is the creation and the space and scope of nature. Iranian artist creates in a symbolic atmosphere; Taking advantage of the valuable context of Persian poetry and literature, the Iranian painter has not sought to represent tangible nature, but to represent symbolic effects. Manouchehri Damghani and Molana Mohammad Jalaluddin Balkhi (Shams) are among the most prominent poets describing nature in Persian literature. The present study seeks to analyze the symbolic effects of nature in poetry and painting in the fourth and seventh centuries AH with a descriptive and analytical method. The research findings demonstrate that the use of lexical range in the poems of Manouchehri and Rumi shows that their poetic world is a green world filled with symbols resembling nature. The symbolism of nature depiction is beautifully visible in the poetry of these two poets and the painting of the fourth and seventh centuries AH. The invention and use of symbolic elements in Iranian painting in the mentioned centuries does not bear an independent form, but an evolutionary process in form and content based on Persian poetry and literature of this period with poets such as Manouchehri and Rumi and under the influence of naturalistic imagery influenced from Chinese art.
Research aims:
1. Recognition of the symbolic effects of nature in Iranian poetry and painting with emphasis on the poems of Manouchehri Damghani and Ghazals of Shams.
2. Comparison of the elements of nature from the point of view of Manouchehri (mere naturalist) and Rumi (Shams).
Research questions:
1. What is the place of the use of symbolism in the poems of Manouchehri and Rumi and in the paintings of the fourth and seventh centuries AH?
2. How did Manouchehri Damghani and Rumi acknowledged nature in their poems?

This article investigates and compares the views of Descartes and Rumi regarding the duality of the soul and the body and their interaction from the perspective of ontology and epistemology. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that Rumi is a dualist from an epistemological point of view and a monist from an ontological one, whereas Descartes is both epistemologically and ontologically a dualist. Descartes believes in the existence of two substances, namely the soul (the essence of the thinker) and the body (the material essence); and above them he believes in God. In his opinion, the soul and body are not only conceptually distinct in the mind (epistemology), but also in the external world (ontology). In his method of philosophical theorization, which should possess internal consistency, clarity, and distinctiveness, Descartes fails to provide a convincing justification on the interaction between the soul and the body and their substantial union — which is the historic problem of dualism. In contrast, Rumi’s method — which is faithful, religious and an expression of his inner and mystical experiences and whose goal is to achieve wonder, not clarity — has no problem in the explication of his opinions.

The purpose of this study is to explain the spiritual deprivations and types of meeting the needs of students from Rumichr('39')s viewpoint to the realization of “Hayat-e Tayyebeh” (i. e. good life). The research method was content analysis of the verses. The research community consisted of a collection of books, commentaries and articles on Rumichr('39')s works that were purposefully sampled and studied based on the research categories. The units of analysis were correlated verses that were identified, categorized and discussed. Several spiritual deprivations and types of meeting the needs, and the impact of this process on human education were expressed. Data analysis was simultaneous with data collection. The findings suggest that understanding the dimensions of spiritual deprivations derived from the teachings of Islamic mystical education is what the seeker/student and trainer should be aware of; the important aspects of this understanding are: being aware of the authenticity of the different areas of life; responding the needs of each particular area properly; and also the authenticity of the exemplar of each area. Goal achievement is made possible by the consideration of the spiritual deprivations that were extracted from Rumichr('39')s views, and the determination to excellence using elements derived from his works, because being successful in different areas of life depends on using every aspect of life in its thorough capacity.  This research focused on the types of responses to the needs of students, and described seven types of such responses with illustrative examples. The researchers try to alert the authorities of education system that achieving  “Hayat-e Tayyebeh” will be possible through  the satisfaction and genuine fulfillment of needs.

The full text is available here
http://www.socratesjournal.com/index.php/socrates/article/view/46

http://online.pubhtml5.com/gqct/xbvz/

"Abstract
The impact of Persian literature on world culture and literature is undeniable. Persian poets such as Firdowsi, Sa’di, Hafiz, Rumi and Khayyam who deal with universal themes beyond a particular place and time are among the most widely-known literary figures of the world; their works are translated into different languages. Despite the fact that there are different translations of Persian literature in English, it is still not clear whether Persian literature has gained its appropriate place in the world. We study the reception of Persian literature in general and classical Persian poetry in particular in Britain and The United States to see whether it is rightly introduced to these countries or not. A close study of the reception of Persian poetry in Anglophone world in general and in Britain and The United States in particular reveals that while Persian literature is introduced and taught in these countries, it is still far from being truly known there. Those who have been familiar with Persian literature have mainly known it through translations by western scholars, and this has led to problems and misconceptions. As Edward Said argues in Orientalism, the orient is never truly depicted by the west. The best way would be to have Persian scholars of English literature translate Persian works into English.
Keywords: Classical Persian Poetry, Anglophone World, Translation, Britain, The United States.
"

Mevlevî âdap ve erkânını konu edinen bu makale, et-Tuhfetü’l-behiyye fi’t-tarîkati’l-Mevleviyye ve es-Sohbetü’s-sâfiye adlı eserleri bağlamında Köseç Ahmed Dede (ö. 1191/1777) ve Şeyh Galib’in (ö. 1213/1799) Mevlevîlik’te düşünceye ve uygulamaya ilişkin katkılarını ortaya çıkarma amacı taşımaktadır. Konuyla ilgili mevcut çalışmalardan farklı olarak Mevlevî âdap ve erkânının yüzyıllara göre gelişim ve değişiminin takibini mümkün kılma hedefiyle hazırlanan bu makalede biat, zikir, mukabele, çile ve şeyhmürit âdabı gibi beş temel mesele merkeze alınmaktadır. Söz konusu beş temel mesele üzerinden, ilgili literatüre katkıda bulunmuş olan müelliflerin ittifak ve ihtilaf ettikleri esasların ve yaptıkları ilavelerin tespitine odaklanılmıştır. Bu itibarla Köseç Ahmed Dede ve Şeyh Galib’in Mevlevîliğin âdap ve erkânına dair fikir, vurgu ve içtihatları belirginleştirilmiş, onların gerek selefleri gerekse halefleriyle mukayesesine imkân sağlanmıştır. Bu noktada makale, Mevlevî âdap ve erkânını teşkil eden ana unsurların neredeyse tamamında ilk ayrıntılı açıklamanın Köseç Ahmed Dede’ye ait olduğu ve yaptığı mühim değerlendirmelerin yanı sıra dikkatlere sunduğu üçlü sâlik anlayışı ile Şeyh Galib’in ilgili literatüre yeni bir anlatım kazandırdığı iddiasını taşımaktadır. Ayrıca bu makale Mevlevî âdap ve erkânını takdim etmede takip ettiği metodun bir sonucu olarak söz konusu âdap ve erkânın tarikatın kuruluşundan itibaren ilk iki asırda müesses hale geldiğine dair mevcut kabulün gözden geçirilmesi gerektiği önerisini de içermektedir.

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This article examines Mawlawī manners (ādāb) and principles (arkān) by focusing
on several subjects, including initiation, remembrance of Allah (dhikr), whirling
prayer ceremonies (muqābala), a period of 1001 days of uninterrupted service
(çile), and relations between Sufi masters and their disciples, in order to shed light
on the contributions of Köseç Ahmed Dede (d. 1191/1777) and Shaykh Galib (d.
1213/1799). Current studies on the subject do not focus on the historical developments of Mawlawī manners and principles, nor do they follow a chronological
order that would help us to determine the origins of principles. Unlike other studies, this article aims at identifying historical development of Mawlavī manners
and principles that evolved over several centuries and highlighting the similarities
and differences that appear in the sources. In this line, it employs a wide literature
on Mawlawī manners and principles starting with Divane Mehmed Çelebi’s (d.
after 951/1544) Ṭarīqat al-‘ārifīn (The Path of Recognizants to Allah) through Safi
Arpaguş’s Mevlevilikte Manevi Eğitim (The Spiritual Training in Mawlawi order).
Firstly, the article provides a brief overview of the literature on Mawlawī manners
and principles. Based on this literature, it identifies the main elements of Mawlawi
manners and principles and analyzes them under five headings: initiation practices, dhikr, muqābala, chella and relations between Sufi masters and Sufi disciples.
All researchers seem to agree that one needs first to be initiated in order to pledge
allegiance to a living Sufi master, however they disagree on the ceremonies of
initiation.
Chronologically speaking, Köseç Ahmed Dede is the first author to explain in his
work al-Tuḥfa al-bahiyya the details of Sufi ceremonies, such as the ceremonies of
allegiance, the usage of a special formula to remember Allah (talqīn al-dhikr), and
the wearing of hat (sikka) and investiture (khirqa). In addition, Shaykh Galib is the
only one who says that a seeker (ṭālib) can be accepted to the path through a different pledge of allegiance in respect to the level of his aspiration. According to him,
if the seeker has a sincere desire to join the order, the Sufi master might order him
into chella. If the seeker has a lower aspiration for joining, the Sufi master might
recommend that he invokes a special formula to remember Allah. With regards to
the seeker with the lowest motivation, the Sufi master might ask him to repent for
his sins, and follow the Masnawī lectures. Therefore, the first will be murīd (the
disciple), the second will be munīb (repentant) and the third will be muḥibb (lover)
in the path of Mawlawī. Distinctively, Shaykh Galib outlines the conception of the
triple Sufi traveler (sālik) and concludes that manners and principles could differ
in the Mawlawi order depending on those three stages (murīd-munīb- muḥibb).
As for dhikr, the authors unanimously concur that the dhikr of ism-i Jalāl, namely
Allah, leads to the purification of the heart in the Mawlawī order. Shaykh Galib,
however, also adds that true dhikr is one’s living with consciousness and awareness
of the fact that Allah can truly see him/her. Further, he argues that the dhikr of the
heart is contemplation (fikr), the dhikr of the soul is ecstatic love for Allah (‘ishq),
and the dhikr of the secret (sirr) is an ecstatic state of consciousness (jazba). It
is also important to note that Köseç Ahmed Dede and Shaykh Galib share in associating whirling prayer (samā‘) with dhikr. According to them, whirling prayer
is only suitable for those who attain the dhikr of soul, i.e. those who have ecstatic
love for Allah.
It appears that Köseç Ahmed Dede contributed to the Mawlawi manners and principles by his elaboration on the pledge of allegiance ceremonies, chella and dhikr
jahrī of ism al-Jalāl (a vocal invocation done while sitting on the knees through the
repetition of the name “Allah”). Shaykh Galib, on the other hand, is distinctive with
his articulation of the subject by employing a triple classification of the initiator

The article examines the studies and translations into Italian of the 12th-13th century Persian mystic poet Jalal al-Din Rumi (also known as Mevlana or Mowlavi). In particular, the focus is on introductory essays in the relevant translations and on how the translators presented the Author to Italian readers. The presentation of the Other is implemented, for example, with a strategy that tries to make the "unknown" known through the "known". Another remarkable approach is the emotional-sympathetic one in which the translator is moved by his beliefs and/or vocations to relate with the mystical thought of the author Rumi.