Introduction: A timeless story of love and transformation: the story of the great 13th century Sufi poet, Jalal al-Din Rumi, is re-lived during this performance through his poetry. Acted and narrated by Ashley Ramsden and Duncan Mackintosh. Accompanied by Ostad Hossein Omoumi. With inserts from Coleman Barks’ translations of Rumi.
Jal-al-Din Rumi: Mowlana Jalal al-Din Balkhi, or Jalal al-Din Rumi as he is known in the West, is the greatest mystical poet of the Islamic ‘Sufi’ tradition. Born in 1207 in Balkh (now in Afghanistan), he died in 1273 in Konya (now in Turkey). His great reputation rests partly on the voluminous Masnavi-ye Ma‘navi ‘Spiritual Couplets’ of his mature years. It is the longest (26,000 couplets) and most consummate mystical poem in Persian, perhaps in any language. It teaches the way out of alienation, exile and slavery to the self and towards the goal of union with the source of all love and knowledge, in the divine. This performance is an opportunity to listen to the poetry and the music of the Masnavi and obtain a glimpse into the life of Rumi. The translations used in this performance are from Coleman Barks, who is perhaps the most prolific modern translator of Rumi. Thanks to his considerable work, Rumi’s poetry is now reaching a huge public in the West.