1207–1273 · Balkh (present-day Afghanistan); lived in Konya · also known as Jalal al-Din Rumi, Mevlana, Mawlana
Jalal al-Din Rumi was a Persian scholar and Sufi mystic who settled in Konya in Anatolia. After a life-changing friendship with the wandering dervish Shams of Tabriz, he poured out thousands of poems of divine love, and the six books of the Masnavi, which has been called “the Quran in Persian.” His followers founded the Mevlevi order of “whirling dervishes,” and in translation he is one of the best-selling poets in the world.
Begin with Masnavi.
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Jalal al-Din Rumi was a Persian scholar and Sufi mystic who settled in Konya in Anatolia. After a life-changing friendship with the wandering dervish Shams of Tabriz, he poured out thousands of poems of divine love, and the six books of the Masnavi, which has been called “the Quran in Persian.” His followers founded the Mevlevi order of “whirling dervishes,” and in translation he is one of the best-selling poets in the world.
Masnavi is usually considered Rumi’s best-known work, followed by Divan-e Shams.
Most readers start with Masnavi.
Both refer to the same writer. Other spellings and names include Jalal al-Din Rumi, Mevlana, Mawlana.
Many of Rumi’s works are in the public domain; we link to free editions below.