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Word for Word
Poetry for 'God's funny family'
By SUSAN ASCHOFF
Published March 22, 2005
One of the bestselling poets in the United States is a 13th century Muslim religious leader whose spiritual and passionate verses have been popular here at least a decade.
Jalal al-Din Muhammad Balkhi, better known by his Westernized name Rumi, has sold more than 300,000 books and countless calendars, CDs and posters. Amazon.com lists more than 100 book titles. Madonna, Goldie Hawn and Martin Sheen share his words on the album A Gift of Love. O magazine excerpts his words. Designer Donna Karan has used his poetry as background to fashion shows. Deepak Chopra says Rumi inspires "true exaltation of your own spirit."
A Persian born in what is now Afghanistan, he belonged to a mystical branch of Islam called Sufism, which teaches a universal connection to God and is often at odds with the faith's conservative fundamentalists. His most beloved works are about the nature of God and romantic love. For the last 12 years of his life, he wrote one continuous poem, 64,000 lines divided into six books. Masnavi is without parallel in world literature, writes Rumi translator Coleman Barks, and it is regarded by many Sufis as second in importance only to the Koran.
"Rumi's poetry is God's funny family," says Barks, "talking on a big open radio line."
Below is "Some Kiss We Want," a selection from The Soul of Rumi: A New Collection of Ecstatic Poems translated by Coleman Barks (HarperCollins Publishers, $17.95).
SUSAN ASCHOFF, Times staff writer
There is some kiss we want with
our whole lives, the touch of
spirit on the body. Seawater
begs the pearl to break its shell.
And the lily, how passionately
it needs some wild darling! At
night, I open the window and ask
the moon to come and press its
face against mine. Breathe into
me. Close the language-door and
open the love-window. The moon
won't use the door, only the window.
Word for Word is an occasional feature excerpting passages of interest from books, magazines, Web sites and other sources. The text may be edited for space, but the original spelling, grammar and punctuation are unchanged.
[Last modified March 21, 2005, 13:24:02]
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