Listen: Commentary on the Spiritual Couplets of Mevlana Rumi [Paperback]

An exceptional contribution to the understanding of a key figure in Islamic mysticism, this book offers a 20th century commentary—by the eminent Sufi and spiritual guide Kenan Rifai—on Jalal ad-Din Rumi’s 13th-centurySpiritual Couplets, orMasnavi. Symbolically connecting the long poem to Qur’anic passages, hadiths, and other poems by Sufi masters, this enlightening reference answers the most tortuous of problems and guides one to comprehend the meaning of life. A rigorous translation of Rumi’s original work is also included.

“Holbrook’s highly readable translation of Rifai’sListen!goes a long way toward showing how Rumi has been understood in his own cultural context down to modern times.”  —William C. Chittick, professor, Department of Asian and Asian American Studies, Stony Brook University

“For all of us Rumi lovers who have adored Rumi’s sublime poetry, here is the answer to our prayers: a rich, profound, and yet accessible commentary on Rumi’s masterpiece, theMasnavi. The lovely translation, by the superb scholar Victoria Holbrook, of Kenan Rifai, stands out as the definitive English language commentary on Rumi’s writings.”  —Dr. Omid Safi, professor of religious studies, University of North Carolina–Chapel Hill

“What a gift! We are grateful to Victoria Holbrook for conveying into English Ken’an Rifai’s beal3