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Start giftingThe Essential Rumi, New Expanded Edition
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Learn moreThis revised and expanded edition of The Essential Rumi includes a new introduction by Coleman Barks and more than eighty never-before-published poems.
Through his lyrical translations, Coleman Barks has been instrumental in bringing this exquisite literature to a remarkably wide range of readers, making the ecstatic, spiritual poetry of thirteenth-century Sufi mystic Rumi more popular than ever.
The Essential Rumi continues to be the bestselling of all Rumi books, and the definitive selection of his beautiful, mystical poetry.
Rumi (1207–1273) is the foremost Sufi poet, famous for his lyrics and for his didactic epic Masnavi, a collection of mystical tales and discourse. Rumi lived in the Seldjuk capital Konya, and his influence on literature, carried by his Sufism, spread with the expansion of the Ottoman Empire and lasted centuries.
Robertson Dean has played leading roles on and off Broadway and at dozens of regional theaters. He has a BA from Tufts University and an MFA from Yale. His audiobook narration has garnered numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards.
Coleman Barks is a poet and the bestselling author of The Essential Rumi, The Soul of Rumi, and Rumi: The Book of Love. Although he neither speaks nor reads Persian, he is nonetheless renowned as an interpreter of Rumi and other mystic poets of Persia. He was prominently featured in both of Bill Moyers’ PBS television series on poetry, The Language of Life and Fooling with Words. He taught English and poetry at the University of Georgia for many years, and now focuses on writing, readings, and performances. He lives in Athens, Georgia.
Reviews
“The thirteenth-century Persian mystic’s words continue to resonate, particularly in this translation, which offers a remarkably contemporary voice.”
“The Essential Rumi is a rare and precious book that will stir the hearts of Rumi devotees and win many new converts.”
“Delightful…Barks sparklingly demonstrates once again why his free-form interpretations of [Rumi’s] poetry…have been a major impetus for the current Rumi vogue.”
“If Rumi is the most-read poet in America today, Coleman Barks is in good part responsible. His ear for the truly divine madness in Rumi’s poetry is truly remarkable.”
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