Jalal ad-Din Mohammad Rumi is popularly known as Rumi. He was a 13th-century Persian poet, Islamic scholar, Sufi mystic, and Hanafi faqih. He was born on September 30, 1207. He originally belonged to greater Khorasan in Greater Iran. His poems are translated into many languages. Rumi is said to be the most popular and best-selling poet in the United States. Rumi wrote most of his poems in Persian but he also used Turkish and Greek. His work has influenced not only Persian literature but also Urdu, Bengali, Pashto, Turkish, and Ottoman languages. His writings also influenced the Indian subcontinent. At the end of the 20th century, he became globally popular.
Rumi’s father, Baha al-Din Walad was an author and teacher. He taught at many madrasahs. Because of the threat of the Mongols, Rumi’s family left his native town in 1218. The family met Farid al-Din Attar in Nishapur, Iran. After a pilgrimage to Makkah and travel through the Middle East, his family reached Anatolia. Anatolia was a region that enjoyed prosperity and peace under Turkish rule. After a stay at Karaman, Rumi’s mother died in 1228. After 3 years, in 1931 Rumi’s father died. After a year of his father’s death, Burhan ul-Din Muhaqqiq, one of the Baha al-Din disciples, reached Konya and became familiar with Rumi more deeply. Burhan al-Din contributed a lot to Rumi’s spiritual formation. Jalal al-Din has undertaken one or two journeys to Syria. There he met Ibn al-Arabi, the leading Islamic scholar whose stepson was Jalal al-Din’s friend in Konya.
Rumi’s life completely changed on November 30, 1244, when he met Shams al-Din Tabriz in the streets of Konya. He revealed the mysteries of Divine majesty and beauty to Jalal al-Din. These two mystics lived close together for a long time. Due to some reason, Shams had to leave the town in February 1246. After this incident, Rumi was heartbroken. Eventually, Sultan Walad, his eldest son, brought Shams back from Syria. However, the family could not bear the close relationship between Rumi and Shams, and after this one night, Shams disappeared forever in 1247.
Rumi turned into a poet after the experience of grief, longing, and love. His poems and a large number of rubaiyat show the different stages of love. He always found Shams in himself like a radiant moon. He used to write the name of Shams instead of his name at the end of his poems. This is the complete identification of a lover and beloved. He described the true translation of his experiences in Divan e Shams. Many of his poems were sung in Sufi musical gatherings.
After a few years of Shams al-Din’s death, Rumi observed a similar feeling with an illiterate goldsmith, Salah al-Din Zarkub. One day in front of Salah al-Din’s shop in the bazaar of Konya, Rumi heard the sound of hammer and began his dance. The shop owner was Rumi’s one of closest disciples, and Rumi’s eldest son got married to his daughter. His love again inspired Jalal al-Din Rumi to write poetry.
Husam al-Din Chelebi became his spiritual love after the death of Salah al-Din. Rumi’s main accomplishment, the Masnavi was composed under his influence. Rumi composed nearly 26,000 couplets of Masnavi by following his advice. It is said that Rumi used to recite his verses on the roads and even in the bath.
Rumi lived for a short time after the completion of Masnavi. He has always been a respectable member of Konya. A vast crowd of people attended his burial procession. The Green Dome is a museum in Konya today, a sacred place for all Muslims.
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