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    Rumi Biography and Message

    by Cihan Okuyucu
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    • PAPERBACK : 2012-12-12 • 130 Pages • 6 x 9 inch inches • ISBN 9781597841160
    • CATEGORIES Interfaith Dialogue, Backlist, Forthcoming
    • PRICE : $14.95
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    DESCRIPTION

    Written by an expert on both languages spoken by Rumi, Turkish and Persian, this is an authoritative but accessible introduction to this important 13th-century historian and mystic poet. Concentrating on the social and cultural environment in which Rumi lived and produced his influential works, the book describes the war-torn lives of the people in Asia Minor at the time and makes the point that few figures in history have made an appeal for peace so enlightened that it traveled down the centuries.

    TABLE OF CONTENTS CONTENTS
    Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .vii
    CHAPTER 1
    A Life of Love and Wisdom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
    The Main Sources about Rumi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
    His Early Life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
    After Meeting Shams of Tabriz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
    The Mevlevi Order and the Sama . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42
    CHAPTER 2
    His Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
    The Masnawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
    Divani Kabir and others . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
    Praises for Rumi and the Masnawi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
    CHAPTER 3
    Understanding Rumi in Parables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59
    Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .125
    Bibliography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129
    Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133
    Review This work commemorating the 800th anniversary of Rumi's birth seeks to offer a deeper understanding of the Sufi master and founder of the Mawlawi order. Okuyucu (Turkish literature, Fatih Univ.), a former cataloging expert on handwritten manuscripts from the Ottoman era at the Suleymaniye Library, Istanbul, here narrates Rumi's life and thought through parables. Avid Sufi literature devotees will welcome the main sources from which he draws, e.g., the hagiographies of Aflaki, Sepahsalar, and Sultan Walad. Those unfamiliar with Rumi or Sufi literature, however, will likely not stay with this work: the translation lacks the fine verse of such books as The Essential Rumi (Penguin Classics) and instead offers too many murky phrases and instances of improper verb usage. Still, Okuyucu's commentary enables those with a basic understanding of Turkish literature to see new commonalities in the cultural history of a world long seen as radically different from the West. Academic or large public libraries having a basic collection of Rumi works and commentaries can add this for wider exposure to main sources. Medium and small public libraries are better off seeking a more expertly translated work..

    ---Library Journal
    ABOUT AUTHOR
    Cihan Okuyucu
    Cihan Okuyucu

    Cihan Okuyucu is a professor of Turkish Literature at the Yildiz Technical University, Istanbul. He is a leading scholar of Rumi in Turkey.