Publisher's Synopsis
Introduction by Luce Lopez-Baralt. Calligraphy by contemporary Iranian calligrapher Leila Kokabi. In English and Persian. With this second volume of poetry, Seyyed Hossein Nasr, whose name the reader usually associates with the philosopher, the historian and the scientist, firmly establishes his role as a spiritual mentor of the highest rank. In The Pilgrimage of Life and the Wisdom of Rumi, as in his former Poems of the Way, the poet further explores the pilgrimage of life and invites us to realize what our true transcendent destination really is. This time, however, Nasr's poetical rendering of the Way uncovers increasingly deeper spiritual secrets: so much so that his allegorical pilgrimage turns into a veritable mystical path. In the section entitled "A Few Moments with Rumi," Nasr translates from the Persian some of the finest poems of the Mathnawi and the Diwan. Nasr sustains an ardent dialogue with this foremost Sufi master, his countryman and his very special companion of the Path. Both mystical poets identify with the reed that narrates the poignant tale of separation since both have had the heart-rending experience of feeling "cut from the reed-bed" of their true celestial origins.
